I was already moving before the call ended.<\/p>\n
\u201cAlan, keys.\u201d<\/p>\n
He didn\u2019t ask why.<\/p>\n
Linda stood when she saw my face. \u201cWhat happened?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPam\u2019s at Grandpa\u2019s house. Someone broke in while she was on the phone.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWho?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe didn\u2019t say.\u201d<\/p>\n
Alan grabbed his jacket.<\/p>\n
Linda came around her desk. \u201cCall the police.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI am.\u201d<\/p>\n
I dialed while we crossed the parking lot.<\/p>\n
The dispatcher took the address, asked whether anyone was armed, and instructed us not to enter the property until officers arrived.<\/p>\n
I promised.<\/p>\n
I had become remarkably good at promising people things I had no intention of doing.<\/p>\n
Alan drove.<\/p>\n
I called Pam repeatedly.<\/p>\n
No answer.<\/p>\n
On the fourth attempt, her phone went straight to voicemail.<\/p>\n
\u201cFaster.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m doing seventy.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDo eighty.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNancy.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cJust drive.\u201d<\/p>\n
The sky had turned the flat gray that comes before rain. Fields blurred past the windows. Every mile gave me more time to imagine what might be happening inside Grandpa\u2019s house.<\/p>\n
Pam had said an older man was there.<\/p>\n
Not Dale.<\/p>\n
Robert?<\/p>\n
The thought came first and made no sense.<\/p>\n
If my father had finally appeared, why would Pam sound afraid?<\/p>\n
Samuel?<\/p>\n
No. Samuel could barely cross his barn without a cane.<\/p>\n
Dr. Weber?<\/p>\n
I hated that my mind went there.<\/p>\n
Nine days before Grandpa\u2019s death, Pam had collected a heart medication Grandpa later warned might have been altered. If someone had changed the prescription, the doctor who ordered it mattered.<\/p>\n
But I had no evidence.<\/p>\n
Only fragments.<\/p>\n
And fragments were exactly what had kept this family trapped for decades.<\/p>\n
Alan turned onto Grandpa\u2019s road.<\/p>\n
A patrol car was already in the driveway.<\/p>\n
Another approached behind us.<\/p>\n
The dining-room window had been shattered.<\/p>\n
Glass glittered across the porch.<\/p>\n
I opened the passenger door before Alan fully stopped.<\/p>\n
An officer stepped toward me.<\/p>\n
\u201cMa\u2019am, stay back.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m the executor. My cousin is inside.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cName?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPamela Mercer.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re checking the residence.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIs she hurt?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe don\u2019t know yet.\u201d<\/p>\n
That answer nearly sent me past him.<\/p>\n
Alan caught my arm.<\/p>\n
\u201cWait.\u201d<\/p>\n
Two officers entered through the front door.<\/p>\n
The next minute stretched longer than it had any right to.<\/p>\n
Then one of them appeared.<\/p>\n
\u201cMs. Mercer is here.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIs she okay?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe has a cut on her hand. She says the other person left.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWho?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe won\u2019t identify him.\u201d<\/p>\n
Of course she wouldn\u2019t.<\/p>\n
I pushed past before anyone could stop me.<\/p>\n
Pam sat at Grandpa\u2019s kitchen table with a dish towel wrapped around her palm.<\/p>\n
Blood had soaked through the cloth.<\/p>\n
She looked pale but furious.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat are you doing here?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou called me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI told you to come alone.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou also sounded like someone was attacking you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo one attacked me.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked toward the broken dining-room window.<\/p>\n
\u201cGlass just shattered itself?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe came through the window.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWho?\u201d<\/p>\n
Pam stared at the officer standing nearby.<\/p>\n
\u201cFamily matter.\u201d<\/p>\n
The officer gave her a look that said he had heard that phrase from too many people doing stupid things.<\/p>\n
I pulled out a chair.<\/p>\n
\u201cTry again.\u201d<\/p>\n
She shook her head.<\/p>\n
\u201cNot with police here.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSomeone broke into an estate property.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe didn\u2019t take anything.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou don\u2019t know that.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know what he wanted.\u201d<\/p>\n
The officer leaned closer.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did he want?\u201d<\/p>\n
Pam closed her eyes.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe seal.\u201d<\/p>\n
I felt Alan go still behind me.<\/p>\n
The officer said, \u201cWhat seal?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCorporate.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOf what?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAn old company.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWas it valuable?\u201d<\/p>\n
Pam laughed once.<\/p>\n
\u201cApparently more valuable than any of us realized.\u201d<\/p>\n
I sat across from her.<\/p>\n
\u201cWho came through the window?\u201d<\/p>\n
She looked at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re not going to believe me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTry.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her voice dropped.<\/p>\n
\u201cCurtis.\u201d<\/p>\n
For a moment nobody reacted.<\/p>\n
I actually looked toward the hallway, half expecting someone else to explain what she meant.<\/p>\n
Then Alan said, \u201cCurtis is dead.\u201d<\/p>\n
Pam stared at him.<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cEight years dead.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen who was here?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m telling you who he said he was.\u201d<\/p>\n
The officer frowned.<\/p>\n
\u201cCan you describe him?\u201d<\/p>\n
Pam nodded reluctantly.<\/p>\n
\u201cLate seventies. Maybe eighty. Thin. Gray hair. Left side of his face droops slightly.\u201d<\/p>\n
Alan grabbed the back of a chair.<\/p>\n
I looked at him.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
He didn\u2019t answer.<\/p>\n
\u201cAlan.\u201d<\/p>\n
He stared at Pam.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid he have a scar under his chin?\u201d<\/p>\n
Pam\u2019s face changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stood.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou recognize that description.\u201d<\/p>\n
Alan sat heavily.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDon\u2019t lie.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve seen photographs.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOf whom?\u201d<\/p>\n
He rubbed both hands over his face.<\/p>\n
\u201cCurtis.\u201d<\/p>\n
The room became very quiet.<\/p>\n
I thought of the ledger entry.<\/p>\n
C.H. deceased? verify seal transfer.<\/p>\n
Grandpa had questioned Curtis\u2019s death years before the family believed he died.<\/p>\n
\u201cTell me exactly what happened,\u201d I said to Pam.<\/p>\n
She looked toward the officer.<\/p>\n
He was taking notes now.<\/p>\n
\u201cI came here after calling Nancy. I thought the corporate seal might be hidden where Henry kept old tax records.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cUpstairs closet.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou knew about it before today?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI knew Henry had recovered it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cLast year.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe never told me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBut you knew.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI saw it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIn his desk.\u201d<\/p>\n
I remembered the drawers emptied after his death.<\/p>\n
\u201cThen why was everyone searching the basement?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause after Henry realized I had seen it, he moved it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Pam adjusted the towel on her hand.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe told me it belonged somewhere nobody could alter the record attached to it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat does that mean?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cUntil?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cUntil I saw the bonds.\u201d<\/p>\n
I understood before she said more.<\/p>\n
Government records.<\/p>\n
Fixed purchase dates.<\/p>\n
External evidence.<\/p>\n
Grandpa trusted documents only when the family could not rewrite them.<\/p>\n
Pam continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cI thought the seal might be stored with another piece of outside documentation.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe safe-deposit box?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo. I checked years ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
My temper rose.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou accessed Box 114?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo. I asked Henry what was there.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did he say?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe told me if I ever tried opening it, he\u2019d know.\u201d<\/p>\n
That sounded exactly like Grandpa.<\/p>\n
The officer asked, \u201cHow did this man enter?\u201d<\/p>\n
Pam pointed toward the dining room.<\/p>\n
\u201cI heard glass break. I went in there. He was already climbing through.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you recognize him?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen why call him Curtis?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause he looked at me and said, \u2018You got old, Pamela.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Her voice cracked slightly.<\/p>\n
I had never heard anyone call her Pamela except older relatives.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did you do?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI grabbed a lamp.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe laughed.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe said my father once threatened him with the same lamp.\u201d<\/p>\n
Alan looked at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat lamp belonged to Aunt Rose before Grandpa got it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWho is Aunt Rose?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCurtis and Grandpa\u2019s mother.\u201d<\/p>\n
A family detail only someone old enough might know.<\/p>\n
Pam continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe asked where Henry put the seal.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did you say?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat Henry destroyed it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid he believe you?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did he do?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe went upstairs.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou followed?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWith the lamp?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Despite everything, I almost smiled.<\/p>\n
Pam noticed.<\/p>\n
\u201cDon\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t say anything.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe opened the hall closet, pulled out boxes, then went into Henry\u2019s bedroom.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cLooking where?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cEverywhere.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow did you cut your hand?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI tried to stop him opening the desk drawer. He shoved me. I caught the broken edge of a picture frame.\u201d<\/p>\n
The officer wrote.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid he threaten you?\u201d<\/p>\n
Pam hesitated.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWith what?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWords.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat words?\u201d<\/p>\n
She looked at me instead.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe said if Henry had given you the bonds, then Henry had already lost.\u201d<\/p>\n
I felt a chill.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat does that mean?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe mentioned me by name?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFull name?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo. Just Nancy.\u201d<\/p>\n
The officer asked whether she wanted medical attention.<\/p>\n
Pam refused.<\/p>\n
He looked irritated.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid the man leave through the same window?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo. Front door.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cVehicle?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDark sedan.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPlate?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou didn\u2019t see it?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI was bleeding.\u201d<\/p>\n
He nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cAny idea where he went?\u201d<\/p>\n
Pam looked at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
The police searched the house.<\/p>\n
Nothing obvious had been stolen.<\/p>\n
But Grandpa\u2019s bedroom was turned inside out.<\/p>\n
The mattress leaned against the wall.<\/p>\n
Drawers were removed.<\/p>\n
A floor vent had been unscrewed.<\/p>\n
The closet shelves were empty.<\/p>\n
Somebody knew how Grandpa hid things.<\/p>\n
I stood in the middle of the room trying to imagine my great-uncle alive.<\/p>\n
Curtis had supposedly died after a stroke.<\/p>\n
There had been a funeral.<\/p>\n
I remembered attending.<\/p>\n
Closed casket.<\/p>\n
Dale had given the eulogy.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow was Curtis identified when he died?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n
Alan frowned.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cEight years ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHospital.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhich hospital?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSt. Joseph.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWho identified the body?\u201d<\/p>\n
He thought.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWas there an autopsy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy not?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019d had a stroke before.\u201d<\/p>\n
The pattern bothered me.<\/p>\n
No autopsy for Curtis.<\/p>\n
No autopsy for Grandpa.<\/p>\n
Old men died.<\/p>\n
Families accepted it.<\/p>\n
Paperwork closed doors.<\/p>\n
I called Linda.<\/p>\n
\u201cCan you pull Curtis Harper\u2019s death certificate?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cProbably.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd probate?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd any records showing who identified him.\u201d<\/p>\n
She paused.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause someone claiming to be Curtis just broke into Grandpa\u2019s house.\u201d<\/p>\n
Silence.<\/p>\n
Then, \u201cI\u2019ll call you back.\u201d<\/p>\n
Pam walked into the hallway.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou think it\u2019s actually him.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI think Grandpa wrote \u2018Curtis deceased?\u2019 six years before the supposed death.\u201d<\/p>\n
She leaned against the wall.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou found that?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen Henry suspected it too.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
She looked at the floor.<\/p>\n
\u201cI heard him argue with Martin once.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYour father?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201c1995.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did they say?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHenry accused him of creating alternate identities.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFor Curtis?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou remember the words?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHenry said, \u2018You can\u2019t bury a man twice and expect the books to balance.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
My skin prickled.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy didn\u2019t you tell anyone?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI was twenty-eight, raising two children, and trying very hard never to think about Harper Holdings again.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat changed?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHenry changed.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe started calling me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAbout two years ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe wanted to know exactly what I heard in 1978.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did you tell him?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cEverything I could remember.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid he believe you?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen why were you trying to exclude me?\u201d<\/p>\n
Pam looked away.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat note wasn\u2019t about keeping the bonds from you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat was it about?\u201d<\/p>\n
She sighed.<\/p>\n
\u201cDale asked whether your name could be removed from the estate inventory if the bonds were found.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe said it would protect you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFrom what?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnyone who understood what the serial numbers proved.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo you asked whether I could be excluded.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou still wrote it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou still tried taking the ledger.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause I thought Dale had already found the original corporate documents.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid he?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
I studied her.<\/p>\n
For the first time, I believed she might actually not know.<\/p>\n
My phone rang.<\/p>\n
Linda.<\/p>\n
I answered.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou found something?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her voice sounded strange.<\/p>\n
\u201cCurtis Harper\u2019s death certificate lists the identifying relative as Dale Harper.\u201d<\/p>\n
That was expected.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat else?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe certificate says Curtis died at St. Joseph Memorial.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSt. Joseph has no admission record matching him on that date.\u201d<\/p>\n
I gripped the phone.<\/p>\n
\u201cCould records be missing?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPossible. But there\u2019s another problem.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCurtis\u2019s Social Security number shows activity after his reported death.\u201d<\/p>\n
Alan stepped closer.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat kind of activity?\u201d<\/p>\n
Linda continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cTaxable interest income from an account in Nebraska.\u201d<\/p>\n
Pam sat down.<\/p>\n
\u201cEight years after he died?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSeven.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhose account?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know yet.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked toward the shattered window.<\/p>\n
If Curtis was alive, Grandpa had spent years investigating a man everybody else had buried.<\/p>\n
And somebody had now returned looking for the corporate seal.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat about the death certificate?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cSigned by Dr. Weber.\u201d<\/p>\n
The same doctor who signed Grandpa\u2019s.<\/p>\n
No one said anything.<\/p>\n
I looked at Pam.<\/p>\n
\u201cWho changed Grandpa\u2019s medication?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou picked it up.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWho called in the change?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWho would?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHis doctor.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDr. Weber?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Alan spoke softly.<\/p>\n
\u201cCurtis used Dr. Weber too.\u201d<\/p>\n
Pam stared at him.<\/p>\n
I felt the entire case tilt.<\/p>\n
One doctor.<\/p>\n
Two questionable deaths.<\/p>\n
One man apparently alive after his funeral.<\/p>\n
Another man dead days before exposing a decades-old fraud.<\/p>\n
A police officer came down the hall.<\/p>\n
\u201cMs. Ellis?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe found something you should see.\u201d<\/p>\n
He led us into Grandpa\u2019s bedroom.<\/p>\n
Behind the removed floor vent was a narrow cavity.<\/p>\n
Inside sat an empty velvet pouch.<\/p>\n
The fabric was dark blue.<\/p>\n
Embossed on it in faded gold were the words:<\/p>\n
HARPER HOLDINGS COMPANY
\nCORPORATE SEAL<\/p>\n
The seal itself was gone.<\/p>\n
Tucked beneath the pouch was a folded slip of paper.<\/p>\n
The officer handed it to me.<\/p>\n
Grandpa\u2019s handwriting.<\/p>\n
If this is empty, Curtis came first.<\/p>\n
Below that:<\/p>\n
Do not trust his grave.<\/p>\n
I was already moving before the call ended. \u201cAlan, keys.\u201d He didn\u2019t ask why. Linda stood when she saw my face. \u201cWhat happened?\u201d \u201cPam\u2019s at Grandpa\u2019s house. Someone broke in … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8361,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8370","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-chapter-story"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8370","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=8370"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8370\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8390,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8370\/revisions\/8390"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/8361"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=8370"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=8370"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=8370"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}