Chapter 13 - Plan B
Plan B began at 2:17 the following morning.
Someone tried to enter the Collins house.
The new security system sent an alert to Mark's phone.
Police stationed outside saw a hooded figure run from the side gate.
The person escaped through neighboring yards.
At sunrise, officers found a backpack near a drainage ditch.
Inside were gloves.
A pry bar.
Cash.
And documents.
The documents were photocopies of Sarah's driver's license, medical records, and a passport application bearing Sarah's photograph.
But the name was different.
Rachel Bennett.
Ruiz stared at it.
"This isn't about framing you as negligent."
Sarah said, "Then what?"
Ruiz held up the fake passport application.
"Someone was preparing an identity for you."
Mark frowned.
"Why?"
Investigators searched the burner phone found in the bag.
One message read:
Vehicle staged at airport.
Another:
Child paperwork in glove compartment.
Sarah felt dizzy.
"What child paperwork?"
Ruiz didn't answer until officers located the vehicle.
It was parked in long-term parking at the airport.
Inside the glove compartment were forged documents suggesting Sarah intended to take Lucy out of the country without Mark's permission.
There was also cash.
A second phone.
And one-way airline reservations.
Sarah's name.
Lucy's name.
Mexico City.
Departure: December 29.
Mark sat down.
"He was going to make it look like she ran."
Ruiz nodded.
"If Sarah disappeared or was intercepted near the airport, Walter could argue she was attempting parental abduction."
"But how would he get me there?"
Nobody knew.
Then Jenna remembered something.
"Dad asked Sarah to meet him."
Sarah turned.
"When?"
"Christmas morning. Before the slippers."
Jenna grabbed her phone.
She searched messages.
Walter had texted Sarah on December 23.
Need to discuss Lucy privately after Christmas. Just you and me. No Mark.
Sarah had ignored it.
"What if Plan B was the meeting?" Jenna asked.
Ruiz nodded slowly.
"He gets you into a vehicle. He creates a narrative."
Sarah looked at Mark.
Walter had prepared multiple futures.
If the slippers succeeded, Sarah became negligent.
If they failed, she became unstable.
If that failed, she became a kidnapper.
Every road led to the same destination.
May you like
Walter controlling Lucy.
And the trust.
