Chapter 1 - Disappearance of Sara Bryn Kenyon

A strong arm yanked Sara’s hand, hauling her into the thundering belly of a waiting helicopter. The slap of rotor blades drowned out shouts from the men chasing her—a blur of panic, boots on gravel, a flash of metal in someone’s hand. Sara twisted around, heart pounding, searching the night for any sign she’d been seen. She made it. She was safe. For now.

The door slammed. The helicopter lurched skyward, slicing through darkness, leaving only questions in its wake.

Three months later, Catherine Reynolds-Carter stared at the letter that would change everything.

In March 2020 Catherine Reynolds-Carter received a letter from a lawyer in Maldonado, Uruguay. The letter was to inform her that Sara Bryn Kenyon's home near Piriápolis had been confiscated by authorities.

After numerous unsuccessful attempts to locate Ms. Kenyon for the purposes of past due tax payments, it was declared that the contents of her property are to be released after payment is received in the sum of 28,096.250 UYU. According to our research, you are the only direct relative. Please contact my office to make arrangements to make payment and claim the property by May 1, 2020, otherwise the property will be released to the state.

Sincerely
Dr. Jonás Bergstein

The word "disappeared" echoed in Catherine's mind as she read the official documents again. Sara didn't just disappear—she was a free spirit, yes, but she always stayed in touch. Something was wrong.

Within a week, Catherine found herself on a grueling forty-hour flight to Piriápolis, stopping in Mexico City and São Paulo before finally reaching San Francisco. Among Sara's confiscated personal effects was a large wood and leather trunk with marks and carvings that seemed ancient—one of the few items Catherine brought back to the USA.

The flight back was torture. Catherine tried to sleep but found it nearly impossible, catching only short bursts between waves of worry and anticipation, compounded by her moderate fear of flying. Mostly, though, her mind raced with fear over finding Sara. A bumpy landing brought her into San Francisco International Airport at 1:00 AM, groggy and exhausted.

At least Jax would be there to meet her at baggage claim. She was anxious to see him—Sara's son had a way of always cheering her up.

"Hi Jax." She flung her arms around his neck for a friendly hug. She had to giggle despite her exhaustion. He wore a crisp white button-down shirt and gray slacks, his hair short and casually swept back, his salon-designed facial hair making him look like he'd stepped out of Vogue magazine. She was almost surprised he didn't have on a tie at this hour of the morning.

"Thanks for coming to get me. I'm glad you happen to be in town this week. How are LA and Olivia?"

"Hi Kat." He gave her a kiss on each cheek. "Olivia's fine, and to answer your next question, no, we're not engaged yet. I'm not sure I ever will be, but she's a fine lady. And you know I actually live in Malibu near Drake, right? It's a far cry from Los Angeles proper."

Catherine laughed. "I do know that. And how is my brother Drake? I know you guys are working together now."

"Drake's very busy right now. So am I. Actually, we're working on quite a large project together. How are Kevin and Lucas? I haven't seen them in ages. They're not still dressing alike, are they?"

"Ha. That's funny," Catherine said sarcastically. "They never dressed alike, as you know, except when they were toddlers, of course, and I dressed them. There are some cute pictures of the three of you as toddlers all dressed in your white shirts and Guess denim overalls—all three of you little towhead boys—so adorable. Seems like yesterday, and I miss those times. You're all grown up now and it's sad for me. But I don't think your mother minds at all."

"Well, you know Mom—always the free spirit."

"Yes, and I love that about her. But I would like to know how my twins can be complete opposites of each other. Isn't that biologically impossible? You're the scientist; it's not supposed to work that way."

"Mother Nature is an abstract genius, Kat, and a bit of a bitch with a weird sense of humor."

"There's my suitcase," Catherine said. "Why don't you go get the car? See how long you can wait in the no-waiting zone before getting kicked out by airport security."

"I'll do that," Jax said. "I'll bribe security with my charm and good looks."

Catherine smiled at him. He could charm his way out of anything.

She was so tired she thought she might fall over, but she remembered she needed to find that little room where they kept oversized luggage. The trunk wouldn't be on the baggage carousel.

There was no one in the room, but there was a bell on the counter, and she tapped it twice. A thin man with a thick mustache appeared from the back in a blue uniform with a badge that said his name was Lenny.

Catherine held out the claim check. "Hi Lenny, I have a trunk and three boxes. I'm assuming they won't be coming down the ramp."

"Sometimes special cargo comes off first, and sometimes it comes off last, so just hang in there. You might want to take a seat."

While Jax went to get his Land Rover, Catherine checked her phone for messages. She decided not to call—it was late, and she knew her husband would be in bed—but there were several video messages from him with their two boys laughing in the background. They were all grown up now, so he must have had dinner with them. How sweet. She wished she could have been there.

The mustached man appeared again. "You got lucky," he said. "They're here. I put them on a cart for you. But it's still pretty heavy. Do you have help?"

"Yes, thank you. My friend is bringing the car up front."

The trunk seemed bigger than she remembered, and the cart was heavy, but Jax and the Land Rover were waiting. He had indeed charmed the security lady.

An hour later, they hauled the trunk and boxes up the stone steps and into Catherine's Los Gatos house.

"I guess it's just as well I didn't get the trunk open there. It seemed like an extraordinary amount of paperwork to get everything in order. And I can't believe they couldn't find you—that the only number in your mom's computer was mine. And they referred to me as the only direct relative. Don't you think that's odd?"

Jax hesitated. "Yes, it's weird." But Jax knew more than Catherine about his mother's disappearance.

"I guess I'm surprised they contacted me at all. All this could have just disappeared, and we would never have known. And that police sergeant seemed very nervous."

"Nervous?" Jax said. "What do you mean?"

"I'm not sure exactly. He was fidgety, and his eyes kept glancing around the house. He seemed very anxious to get me out of there. Maybe I'm reading too much into it."

"This trunk is going to take some time to sort through," Jax said. "I know you're worried about Mom, but I heard from her a couple of months ago, and you know how she is."

"Yes, I know," Catherine said. "She has a tendency to just take off and explore without telling anybody, and her job sends her all over the place. I'm more bothered by the fact that the authorities in Uruguay didn't find you in her information—that they contacted me and that the letter said she disappeared. Why would they use that term? It seems odd, that's all."

Jax put his hand on Catherine's shoulder. "I know you're worried," he said, "but I'm not—not yet, so try to relax and let's get some sleep. You know this stuff might just be a bunch of clothes or trinkets she picked up on her travels."

"I'm exhausted too," Catherine said. "If it's okay with you, I'll open the boxes and trunk tomorrow and start looking through the things, unless you want to be here for that?"

"I don't need to be here, Catherine. I've got a lot of meetings in the next couple of days, and I need to get back home soon. Drake and I really do have a very important project we're working on. You go ahead with the journals. Just give me a call and let me know what you find."

"Of course. Where are you staying? Do you need to stay here for the night?"

Jax gave her a hug and a kiss on the cheek. "Thanks, but I've got a hotel in San Francisco. That's where my meetings are, so I'll drive into the city tonight."

As Jax's taillights disappeared down the winding road, Catherine stared at the mysterious trunk sitting in her living room. Whatever Sara had been running from in that helicopter, whatever had made that police sergeant so nervous, the answers might be locked inside that ancient wood and leather container.