Chapter 7 - The Door at Hale House
Emily decided she could no longer wait for Warren to answer a telephone call that never reached him.
She borrowed Maya’s car and drove to the Hale estate in Lake Forest.
The property stood behind iron gates and a stone security house. Emily remembered those gates from childhood. Her mother used to lower the car window and let Emily press the entry code herself.
The code had changed.
A security guard approached the driver’s side.
“I’m here to see Warren Hale.”
“Do you have an appointment?”
“I’m his granddaughter.”
The guard looked toward the infant seat in the back.
“Name?”
“Emily Carter.”
Recognition flashed across his face.
Then concern.
He stepped away and made a call.
Several minutes later, the gates opened.
Emily drove toward the mansion.
She expected Warren to meet her at the entrance.
Vanessa stood there instead.
She wore a white coat and held no umbrella despite the light snow.
“You should not have come.”
“I need to speak with Warren.”
“He isn’t here.”
“Where is he?”
“Recovering from your latest attempt to upset him.”
Emily removed Lily’s carrier from the car.
Vanessa glanced at the baby.
For the first time, her composure faltered.
“So the article was true.”
“You knew I had a child.”
“I knew you made reckless choices.”
Emily walked toward the steps.
Vanessa blocked her path.
“You are not entering this house.”
“My mother grew up here.”
“Your mother abandoned this family.”
“My mother created a trust for me.”
Vanessa’s face became still.
“Richard told me everything.”
“Richard told you what was necessary.”
“You opened an account in my name.”
“That is a serious accusation.”
“I found Northbridge Consulting.”
Vanessa looked toward the security cameras above the entrance.
Her voice became quieter.
“Give me the documents Samuel Price gave you.”
Emily felt cold despite the coat.
“I never said Samuel gave me anything.”
Vanessa realized her mistake.
Emily moved backward.
The front door opened.
Richard stepped outside.
He wore no jacket, as though he had rushed from another room.
“Emily, let’s speak privately.”
“I only want Warren.”
“He doesn’t want to see you.”
“Let him tell me.”
Richard descended the steps.
Lily woke and began fussing.
Emily placed one hand over the carrier.
Richard stopped several feet away.
“You are frightening your daughter.”
“You stole from me.”
“We protected the assets because you were too young to manage them.”
“I’m twenty-seven.”
“You were eighteen when Lydia died.”
“The payments started when I was twenty-one.”
“Those funds were invested for your future.”
“In companies owned by Vanessa?”
Richard’s expression hardened.
“Be very careful.”
The main gates began opening behind Emily.
A black sedan entered the drive.
Warren sat in the rear seat.
Richard turned sharply toward Vanessa.
“You said he was at the office.”
“He was.”
The sedan stopped.
Warren stepped out before the driver could open his door.
His gaze moved from Richard to Emily.
Then to the infant carrier.
Emily waited.
She had imagined this moment every night since finding the letter. In some versions, Warren embraced her. In others, he accused her of lying.
Instead, he stared at the baby and whispered, “Lily.”
Emily’s breath caught.
“How do you know her name?”
Warren reached into his coat and removed a folded page.
It was a copy of the community article.
“I have spent nine years believing you wanted nothing to do with me.”
“I spent nine years believing you blamed me for my mother’s death.”
They both looked at Richard.
Richard stepped between them.
“Father, she is using the child to manipulate you.”
Warren’s head turned slowly.
“Get out of my way.”
Richard did not move.
For one long moment, father and son faced each other on the snow-covered drive.
Then the security guard from the gate approached Emily and quietly handed her a business card.
His name was Marcus Reed.
May you like
On the back, he had written a message.
I copied the security footage from the night Lydia disappeared.
