Ryan gets suspicious when his dog races into the church and starts barking at his father’s coffin. Seeing the dog in an alert position, Ryan opens the casket, only to find his father’s body missing.
Ryan stood outside the old stone church, the spring sun filtering through gray clouds as if the sky itself wasn’t sure whether to mourn. His hand rested on the hood of his car, and his breath came in slow, uneasy pulls. This wasn’t how he imagined saying goodbye.
He glanced at Bella in the backseat—his ever-loyal German Shepherd, trained in scent detection and smarter than most people he knew. But something was off. Her body was stiff, ears perked high, and her growl started deep in her chest before exploding into sharp, frantic barking.
“Bella, down!” Ryan gave the command out of instinct.
The dog obeyed, reluctantly, but her eyes stayed fixed on the church.
He bent closer and stroked her head. “I’ll be right back. Stay, girl.”
Ryan left the car and stepped inside the church, where his father’s casket lay near the altar, flowers carefully arranged on top. Because Arnold had reportedly died of an infectious disease, the funeral director had kept it closed and quietly discouraged guests from getting too close. The plan was cremation—no viewing, no goodbye, just ashes.
Ryan slid beside his grieving mother in the pew and nodded toward his uncle across the aisle. But even as the priest began the service, Ryan couldn’t stop thinking about Bella’s behavior. She never barked like that unless something was seriously wrong.
And then, just as the final hymn began, the church doors creaked open.
Bella sprinted down the aisle before anyone could stop her. She leapt up on the casket, sending lilies scattering across the floor, barking wildly.
“Bella!” Ryan yelled, jumping to his feet.
Then the dog froze—alert, nose twitching, locked in place like a statue. Ryan knew that look. It was her signal.
Something was wrong.
He walked forward with determination. “Open the casket,” he said.
Gasps rippled through the pews. A few people murmured. The funeral director stepped in, panicked. “Sir, I—”
“Open it,” Ryan repeated, louder this time.
When the lid creaked back, silence fell.
The casket was empty.
His uncle paled. “Where’s my brother?”
His mother’s legs buckled. Ryan caught her just before she hit the marble floor and shouted for help. Within minutes, the ambulance had arrived, and she was rushed to the hospital.
Hours later, in the quiet of his childhood home, Ryan stared blankly at the wall as Detective Bradshaw took notes.
“The coroner confirmed the cause of death,” she said. “We have documentation.”
“Then where is he?” Ryan snapped.
Bradshaw didn’t have an answer. She left promising updates, but Ryan was already thinking two steps ahead.
He drove to the morgue.
“The coroner resigned last week,” the nurse at the desk said.
Ryan blinked. “What? Who’s the new coroner?”
“There isn’t one yet.”
He slid a folded bill across the counter.
The nurse hesitated, then turned away.
Ryan slipped into the back and rifled through the files. His father’s name wasn’t there. It was as if Arnold had never died.
As he left, his phone buzzed. It was Mr. Stevens—his father’s lawyer.
“Ryan, you’re the new CEO. I need to see you right away.”
When Ryan arrived at the office, he found Arnold’s email wiped clean. Everything—gone.
“Who’s been on his computer?” Ryan asked.
“No one,” Mr. Stevens said too quickly.
Ryan frowned. “Where are the dancer figurines? The two that were always on his desk?”
“Arnold took them home. He always wanted the third one—some collector’s holding out for half a million.”
But Ryan knew the truth. They weren’t at the house. Arnold hadn’t taken them home.
Then Stevens dropped a bombshell. The company was in trouble. Arnold had been missing meetings, and rumors were swirling. The trouble started, Stevens said, when Arnold hired his new secretary—Miss Pearson.
“She was… more than a secretary,” Stevens said, avoiding Ryan’s eyes. “I think there was an affair.”
That night, Ryan followed Miss Pearson. She drove home to a small suburban house. He waited. When she left again, he slipped inside.
A framed photo of her kissing Arnold sat on her nightstand.
He tore through the drawers. Finally, in the living room, he found a Manila envelope.
Inside was Arnold’s life insurance policy—seven million dollars. And the sole beneficiary?
Miss Pearson.
Ryan took it straight to Detective Bradshaw.
“This is enough to bring her in,” she said. “She’s booked on a flight to Morocco. We’ve got thirty minutes.”
At the airport, the officers fanned out, searching. Ryan slipped past security, ignoring Bradshaw’s protests.
“White shirt! Step out of the line!” she shouted.
The woman turned. Not Miss Pearson.
She was gone.
Frustrated but not defeated, Ryan made one last move.
He tracked down the collector who owned the final dancer figurine and asked for a price.
“Seven hundred fifty thousand,” the man said. “Non-negotiable.”
Ryan didn’t flinch. He called Mr. Stevens. “Sell some of my shares. Get me the money.”
“You’ll lose control of the company.”
“Then I’ll buy them back later.”
With the figurine in hand, Ryan placed an anonymous auction ad, making sure it spread through the circles where his father once moved. If Arnold was alive, he’d see it.
The day of the auction, Ryan waited in the back, heart pounding.
The figurine went up.
Bidding started. Two serious buyers emerged.
“Six hundred thousand going once,” the auctioneer said.
Ryan swallowed hard.
“Going twice…”
“One million,” a deep voice called from the rear.
Ryan turned.
Arnold stood there, hat in hand.
“Sold!” the auctioneer declared.
Arnold turned to leave.
But Ryan stepped into his path.
“You tricked us,” he said.
Then Detective Bradshaw appeared and snapped handcuffs around Arnold’s wrists.
“You faked your death,” Ryan said, his voice shaking. “You planned to steal everything. And you nearly got away with it.”
Arnold didn’t deny it. “I was tired. I wanted to start over—with someone new.”
Ryan shook his head. “You taught me to do what’s right. I guess you forgot your own lesson.”
Bradshaw nodded. “We’ll find Miss Pearson, too. It’s only a matter of time.”
Arnold was led out in silence.
And this time, Bella didn’t bark. She just sat beside Ryan, calm and proud.
She knew justice had finally caught up.
