Chapter 11 - inside room 17
Evelyn told Naomi to take Sophie toward the kitchen exit.
Sophie refused to release her hand.
“The voice wants me.”
“That is exactly why you are leaving.”
“What if Aunt Nora is inside?”
Evelyn crouched in front of her.
“We do not know who is inside.”
“But she knew the song.”
“Other people know it too.”
Sophie looked toward Celeste.
“Grandma knows it.”
Celeste stepped back as though the child had accused her of something.
Evelyn handed Sophie to Naomi.
“Take her to Marcus.”
Naomi nodded.
Preston moved toward the open door.
“We should all go together.”
“No,” Evelyn said.
“You need me.”
“I needed you to be honest. You failed.”
Graham entered first, carrying an emergency flashlight. Evelyn followed him. Celeste came next, and Preston remained close behind.
Room 17 was larger than Evelyn expected.
Monitors covered one wall. Metal cabinets lined another. A long table held old files, modern computers and several phones connected by cables.
The monitors displayed live images from nearly every room in the estate.
One showed Naomi leading Sophie down the rear staircase.
Another showed Marcus approaching the kitchen entrance with two police officers.
A third showed the wedding ballroom at the Vale Grand Hotel.
Staff members were preparing the stage for the following day.
Someone had been watching everything.
Graham searched the room.
“Who activated this system?”
No one answered.
Evelyn found the denim jacket Sophie had been wearing that morning. It rested beside a black phone identical to Preston’s.
There were two phones.
“You planned to switch them,” she said.
Preston remained silent.
Celeste stared at him.
“You said the phone would be found and the misunderstanding would be resolved.”
“It would have been.”
“Why are there two devices?”
“One contained private business information. I could not risk police examining it.”
Evelyn picked up the second phone.
A draft message was open on the screen.
It was addressed to several journalists.
The message claimed Sophie had attacked Preston after being caught stealing from wedding guests.
Attached to it were photographs of broken jewelry, opened handbags and damaged hotel property.
All the evidence had been manufactured before the wedding.
Celeste read the message over Evelyn’s shoulder.
“You were going to accuse her of more than stealing your phone.”
Preston looked irritated rather than ashamed.
“The guardianship petition required a pattern of behavior.”
“You told me she would stay with relatives for a few weeks,” Celeste said.
“She owns ten percent of the company. As long as Evelyn controls her trust, our voting agreement is vulnerable.”
“Our agreement?” Graham asked.
Preston realized his mistake too late.
Evelyn searched the phone.
Several messages connected Preston to someone saved only as Northstar.
Northstar had directed the entire operation.
The messages began three years earlier, months before Preston supposedly met Evelyn at a charity dinner.
Find a way into Evelyn’s life.
Earn Celeste’s trust.
Use Graham’s debt.
The child is the final obstacle.
Evelyn showed the screen to him.
“You were sent to me.”
Preston lunged for the phone.
Graham stepped between them.
They collided with the edge of the table, knocking several files onto the floor.
May you like
One folder opened at Evelyn’s feet.
It contained surveillance photographs of Nora taken after the date of her supposed death.
