“What happened?”
“He died of a heart attack two days later. Fifty-three years old, no history of heart problems, perfectly healthy.” Her eyes filled with tears. “Just like Robert Morgan six months after that. Just like everyone who got too close to the truth.”
Brooks felt the pieces clicking into place. A coordinated effort to silence witnesses and eliminate evidence. Dennis Zamil had been another victim of the same operation that killed Lily Morgan and her father.
“Mrs. Zamil, I’m going to have the state crime scene techs process your shed for evidence. And I need you to think carefully about whether Dennis kept any other copies of his documentation. Hidden somewhere the person who broke in wouldn’t know to look.”
She considered this. “Dennis’s mother lived in the house on Elm Street until she passed in 2010. After she died, I cleared out her attic and found a box of Dennis’s things she’d been storing. I brought it home but never went through it properly.” She paused. “It’s in my basement. I’d forgotten about it until now.”
Twenty minutes later, Brooks carried the dusty box out to his car. Mrs. Zamil had insisted he take it immediately, her fear apparent. Someone had broken into her shed looking forevidence. If they realized Dennis had made additional copies, they might come back.
Back at the station, Brooks locked his office door and opened the box. Inside: more photographs, handwritten notes, and a manila envelope marked “FOR AUTHORITIES IF SOMETHING HAPPENS TO ME.”
He opened the envelope carefully. Dennis Zamil’s notes detailed everything he’d observed at the hidden cove. The photographs showed tire tracks, disturbed sand, and most importantly, what appeared to be a concealed entrance in the rock face at the base of the cliff.
Dennis had documented dates and times of suspicious boat activity over several weeks following Lily’s disappearance. He’d noted vehicle descriptions and partial license plate numbers. He’d even managed to photograph two men loading wooden crates from a boat onto a truck at three in the morning.
The photographs were grainy and taken from a distance, but Brooks recognized the location. The same hidden cove where Vivienne’s vision had led them. The same cove that hadn’t been searched during the official investigation.
His phone buzzed. Daniels.
Officer Daniels
Got the records you requested. You need to see this. Six of the deaths on that list were investigated by Chief Morrison. All ruled accidental or natural causes. No autopsies performed on any of them.
Brooks stared at the message, then at Dennis Zamil’s photographs. The corruption went deeper than he’d thought. Morrison hadn’t just covered up Lily’s murder. He’d been protecting an operation for years, possibly decades.
Another text from Daniels.
Officer Daniels: Also found something weird. Morrison’s accident report from 2000 was filed by a deputy from the county sheriff’s office. Deputy’s name was Kenneth Morrison. David Morrison’s brother.
So the family had investigated itself. Convenient.
Brooks organized the evidence into chronological order. Between Lily’s research, Dennis’s documentation, and the official case files with their suspicious gaps, a picture was forming. The Aldrich family had run a smuggling operation from the lighthouse for generations. The Morrison family, as police chiefs, had protected them. Anyone who discovered the truth was silenced.
And now Melissa had vanished while researching the same history.
His phone rang. Vivienne.
“Brooks, I need you to come to The Mystic Cup. I’ve had another vision, and this one was different. Clearer. I saw the cave Dennis Zamil photographed. There’s an entrance to the tunnel system there. That’s how they’ve been moving contraband. That’s where Lily found the evidence that got her killed.”
“How did you know about Dennis Zamil’s photographs?”
A pause. “I didn’t. I saw the location in my vision and recognized it from old survey maps of the coastline. Who’s Dennis Zamil?”
Brooks explained quickly about the break-in and the evidence he’d recovered. Vivienne’s vision had led her to the same location Dennis had documented decades ago, without any knowledge of his investigation.
“Brooks, there’s more. In the vision, I saw Lily hiding something in that cave before they caught her. A recording device. She was documenting everything she found. If we can locate what she hid, it might still have evidence on it.”
“After twenty-five years?”
“It’s worth checking. If Lily was as careful as her mother claims, she would have used something waterproof, something that could survive.” Vivienne’s voice carried urgency. “We need to search that cave before whoever broke into Mrs. Zamil’s shed realizes there’s evidence still hidden there.”
Brooks checked his watch. Four in the afternoon. Enough daylight left for a preliminary investigation. “I’ll meet you at the lighthouse in thirty minutes. Bring flashlights and climbing gear if you have it.”
“Brooks, we should tell Chief Sullivan.”
“Not yet. If the Morrison family compromised the investigation before, I need to know the current chief can be trusted. He’s been helpful so far, but his father went missing in 1978 while investigating the lighthouse. That disappearance was never solved. I need to be sure Sullivan isn’t part of the cover-up before I bring him into this.”
