Chapter 7 - He Found Her in the Rain
The main gate did not open when Ethan entered his code.
He tried again.
ACCESS DENIED.
He called the house.
No one answered.
Through the trees, he could see lights glowing from the ballroom. Cars lined the visitor parking area, and music drifted faintly across the grounds.
The gala was still underway.
Ethan left the rental car beside the gate and opened the emergency access panel. His grandfather had shown him the manual release years earlier.
The heavy iron gates separated slowly.
Ethan drove inside.
The driveway lights were off, which was unusual during an event. He reduced his speed as rain struck the windshield.
At first, he thought the shape ahead was a fallen branch.
Then it moved.
A woman stood near the edge of the driveway.
She was barefoot.
Her blue dress was torn.
Her dark hair clung to her face.
Ethan slammed on the brakes.
“Claire?”
She turned toward the headlights.
For half a second, she did not seem to recognize him.
Then her knees gave way.
Ethan was out of the car before she reached the ground.
He caught her and pulled her against his chest.
“Claire. Look at me.”
Her skin was dangerously cold.
She tried to speak, but her teeth were chattering too hard.
He removed his military coat and wrapped it around her.
“What happened?”
“They locked me out.”
“Who?”
Claire looked toward the house.
“My mother and Natalie?”
She closed her eyes.
Ethan lifted her into the car and turned the heat to its highest setting. He reached for his phone to call emergency services.
Claire grabbed his wrist.
“Do not let them take the folder.”
“What folder?”
“The accounts. The loan. They forged my name.”
Her words were slurred, but Ethan understood enough.
He called emergency services.
Then he called Daniel Mason.
Daniel answered immediately.
“Ethan, I was about to contact you. Someone tried to disable the estate’s security backup.”
“Do you have the driveway footage?”
“I should. Give me a minute.”
“Preserve everything from tonight.”
“What happened?”
“I found Claire outside.”
Daniel became silent.
“I will secure the recordings,” he said. “No one can delete them remotely.”
Ethan ended the call and looked at his wife.
“What did they give you?”
“I do not know.”
“Stay with me.”
Claire’s hand clutched his uniform. “Owen has the records.”
“Where?”
“Greenhouse.”
Headlights appeared behind them.
Margaret’s car stopped across the driveway.
She emerged with Natalie beside her.
Margaret looked shocked when she saw Ethan.
The expression was almost convincing.
“Ethan, what are you doing here?”
He stepped between them and the car.
“What happened to Claire?”
Margaret pressed one hand to her chest. “She became emotional during the gala and disappeared. We have been looking everywhere.”
“You locked her outside.”
“That is not true.”
Natalie stared at the ground.
Ethan looked at his sister. “Is it true?”
“She was upset,” Natalie said. “We tried to calm her down.”
“Did you lock the gate?”
“She wanted to leave.”
“Did you lock the gate?”
Margaret stepped forward. “Your wife has been behaving irrationally for days. She accused us of stealing from the foundation. Tonight she drank too much and ran outside.”
Ethan glanced toward the dark camera above the garage.
“You turned off the security system.”
“There was a technical failure.”
“Daniel Mason installed that system.”
Margaret’s confidence weakened.
“He did more than install it,” Ethan continued. “He created an independent backup.”
Natalie looked sharply at her mother.
Sirens sounded beyond the gate.
Margaret lowered her voice. “Do not humiliate this family in front of the guests.”
Ethan stared at her.
“My wife is barely conscious in that car, and you are worried about humiliation?”
“You do not understand the situation.”
“Then explain the marks on her wrist.”
“She fell.”
“Explain why her phone is broken.”
“She dropped it.”
“Explain why my access code was changed.”
Margaret did not answer.
An ambulance entered the driveway.
Guests began gathering near the mansion doors.
Margaret noticed them and immediately changed her expression. Tears filled her eyes.
“Please help her,” she called toward the paramedics. “She is not well.”
Ethan opened the passenger door.
Claire panicked when the paramedics attempted to move her.
“No,” she whispered. “Ethan.”
“I am here.”
He climbed into the ambulance and lifted her into his arms.
The paramedics allowed him to keep holding her while they checked her vital signs.
Before the doors closed, Owen emerged from the darkness near the greenhouse.
He carried a waterproof bag.
Margaret saw him.
Her face went rigid.
Owen walked directly to Ethan.
“I found the original records where Mrs. Claire said they would be,” he said. “And something else.”
He handed Ethan the bag.
Inside were copies of the forged loan documents, foundation transfers, and a handwritten note describing Claire’s supposed decision to leave Ethan.
The note was written in Claire’s name.
But it was not written in Claire’s handwriting.
Margaret moved toward Owen.
“You are trespassing.”
Owen looked at her with open disgust. “Your father would be ashamed of you.”
The ambulance doors closed before Margaret could answer.
As it sped toward the hospital, Ethan held Claire against him and read the false farewell note again.
May you like
Claire had not only been locked outside.
His mother had planned to make her disappearance look voluntary.
