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Ryan Suspects When His Dog Runs Into the Church Barking at His Father’s Coffin
Ryan got out of the car and stood outside the church, knowing he wasn’t ready to say goodbye to his father. “We didn’t even get to give Dad a proper funeral,” he thought. Suddenly, Bella’s sharp barking caught his attention.
Ryan turned toward his car, where Bella was more agitated than usual.
“Bella!” He signaled her to lie down, and she obeyed. He petted her head through the open car window. “Now, stay here, Bella.”
Ignoring Bella’s whining, Ryan walked into the church. His father Arnold’s coffin was already in place, closed, and the funeral director had discreetly cordoned off the area because Arnold had died from an infectious disease.
Ryan sat beside his mother. Arnold was to be cremated, not buried, given the circumstances of his death.
Just as the mass ended and the mourners stood to sing the final hymn, Bella’s barking echoed through the church. She jumped on the coffin, knocking the floral arrangement to the floor, and started barking fiercely.
When Bella sat alert on the floor and stared at him, Ryan sensed something was wrong.
“Open the coffin!” he demanded.
A muffled scream was heard. Ryan didn’t care. He approached the coffin and opened it, only to find it empty.
“Where is my brother?” his uncle stared intensely at the funeral director.
Ryan’s mother couldn’t bear what was happening. Her eyes rolled back, and her knees buckled. Ryan caught her just in time before her head hit the marble floor. He rushed her to the hospital.
At his mother’s house, Ryan called the police.
“Right now, all we know is that the coroner confirmed the cause of death and handed over the remains to the funeral home,” Detective Bradshaw told him. “Was your father involved in anything I should know about?”
Ryan hadn’t been involved in his father’s business since opening his dog training and rehabilitation center. But he knew Arnold would never risk his reputation or the company’s.
With no vital leads, Detective Bradshaw left, promising to stay in touch with updates. But Ryan didn’t want to wait. The hospital was keeping his mother overnight. He left Bella at home and went to the morgue looking for answers.
“Did the coroner resign? And the new coroner?” Ryan was puzzled when the receptionist nurse told him there was still no new coroner. He asked to see his father’s file, but the nurse refused, saying it was against the rules.
Ryan knew how to convince her. He put $1,000 on the counter, and she turned a blind eye when he sneaked into the coroner’s office. He started searching the shelves for his father’s file, but it was useless. Arnold’s file had disappeared.
Frustrated, Ryan’s phone buzzed. It was his father’s lawyer, Mr. Stevens. The elderly man informed Ryan that he was the new CEO of Arnold’s company and wanted to see him urgently.
When Ryan arrived at his father’s office, he opened Arnold’s Gmail on the computer, only to find the inbox empty. Someone had deleted all the messages.
“Ryan! Glad to see you,” Mr. Stevens entered the room and closed the door behind him.
Of course! Here’s the English translation of the continuation:
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Illustrative image | Photo: Pexels
“Who’s been using this computer?” Ryan asked.
“No one,” Mr. Stevens replied.
“Wait, where are the ballerina figurines?” Ryan noticed that two figurines were missing from his father’s office.
“Oh, he took them home. Poor Arnold… he never managed to get the third figurine in the set. Can you believe the owner won’t accept less than half a million?” said Mr. Stevens.
Ryan was sure Arnold hadn’t taken them home. He had searched the entire house since arriving for the funeral, and hadn’t seen those ballerinas anywhere.
“But anyway, we have more important matters to discuss…” Mr. Stevens informed Ryan that they were deeply in debt, and several investors were threatening to pull out their investments because Arnold had missed meetings with them for months before his death.
“…and it all started when his new secretary began working here. With all due respect to Arnold and his family, I believe he was involved romantically with her,” revealed Mr. Stevens.
Illustrative image | Photo: Pexels
Ryan lost his calm thinking of his mother’s sad face. He would have confronted his father’s secretary if Mr. Stevens hadn’t stopped him—he would only end up tarnishing Arnold’s reputation.
Ryan spent the day handling the debt problem and sent gift baskets to the most important investors. After work, he followed his father’s secretary, Miss Pearson, and saw her enter the garage of a modest suburban house. She was his only lead so far, so he waited outside her home in his car.
Shortly after, the garage door buzzed open. He saw her drive off toward the city and wanted to follow her. But then he had a better idea. He jumped out of the car and got inside the garage just before the door closed. There he found a door leading into the house.
He first searched the kitchen, rummaged through drawers, and found a flashlight. He didn’t want to turn on the lights in case Miss Pearson came home unexpectedly. His heart sank when he entered her bedroom and saw a framed photo of her kissing Arnold on the nightstand.
Ryan kept his composure, reminding himself that he was here to find a clue to discover what happened to his father. He searched Miss Pearson’s house but found nothing. Dejected, he was about to leave when he noticed a slightly open drawer in the nightstand.
Illustrative image | Photo: Pexels
A manila envelope caught his interest. Inside was Arnold’s life insurance policy for seven million dollars, and the sole beneficiary was… Miss Pearson! Ryan grabbed the document and headed to the police station.
“This is quite compelling…” said Detective Bradshaw, looking at the document. “Let me see what else I can find out about this Miss Pearson.”
Ryan was sitting near reception when she arrived with a team of officers. It turned out Miss Pearson had booked a flight to Morocco leaving in half an hour.
“Since the U.S. has no extradition treaty with the Moroccan government, it’s vital we get her for questioning before she boards.”
Ryan wanted to accompany the officers, but Detective Bradshaw refused since he was a civilian. Ryan ignored him and followed anyway.
“Police!” shouted Detective Bradshaw as they approached a boarding gate. “Let us through!”
Illustrative image | Photo: Pexels
Ryan slipped past airport security officers by blending with the crowd, and they headed to the boarding area. The police immediately spread out and started checking passengers.
“You! The brunette woman in the white shirt! Step out of line and raise your hands!” shouted Detective Bradshaw.
Ryan felt relieved they had caught Miss Pearson, but his smile faded when the woman turned around. It wasn’t Miss Pearson. The police searched for hours, but Miss Pearson had disappeared.
Ryan was back to square one. But somewhere in his heart, he knew Arnold was alive. Ryan knew the figurines weren’t at his mother’s house. Wherever his father was, he must have taken the figurines with him. Ryan searched online for the collector who owned the third figurine and visited him.
Illustrative image | Photo: Pexels
“So… how much would you accept for it?” Ryan asked, pointing at the statuette.
“$750,000,” answered the collector, Mr. Frederick.
“That’s way above the artist’s market value, sir.”
“Then don’t buy it. The price isn’t negotiable, young man.”
Ryan had to have it, so he asked for time to gather the money. Back in his car, he called Mr. Stevens and told him he wanted to sell $750,000 worth of his shares in the company.
“But then you won’t have a majority stake in the company, Ryan!” Mr. Stevens said.
“I’m aware, Mr. Stevens, but this is urgent,” Ryan explained. “I need the money immediately, but if I’m right, I should be able to buy back those shares within a week.” 
“Ryan,” Mr. Stevens finally answered in a calm tone, “as the main stakeholder and legal advisor of the company, I feel it would be wise not to ask why you need such a large sum of money on such short notice.”
“However, as a longtime family friend,” Mr. Stevens continued, “I must know if this is related to the suspicion I shared with you about Miss Pearson.”
Illustrative image | Photo: Pexels
“In a way, yes,” Ryan replied.
Mr. Stevens sighed. “She’s missing too, you know… she didn’t show up to work today, and her phone number no longer exists. I’ll get you the money… better not ask me for details… and I’ll transfer it to you as soon as possible.”
When Ryan received the message that the money was in his account, he hurried to talk to Mr. Frederick. The older man muttered something about the statuette being worth more than the asking price since it was the only piece available in the set, but Ryan cut him off.
“You asked for $750,000, sir, and that’s what I’m paying, immediately. Aren’t you a man of your word, Mr. Frederick?”
Finally, Mr. Frederick agreed to sell the statuette. Ryan was already ready for the next step. He made some calls from his car and made a quick stop before returning to his mother’s house.
“Where the hell have you been, Ryan?” his mother asked. “I came back from the hospital and found the house empty, and poor Bella was so bored. Your dog misses you; I can’t keep her busy enough, and I’ve barely seen you since the funeral…”
“I’m sorry, Mom,” he murmured. “Please trust that what I’ve been doing is very important. Besides, it will be over very soon.”
