Chapter 13 - The Dead Business Partner
Evelyn Shaw surrendered without resistance.
She carried no flash drive.
She claimed she had entered through the side door during the blackout after receiving a message from Celeste. She had taken the drive from Elena and handed it to someone waiting near the basement elevator.
“Who?” Rowan asked.
“I never saw their face.”
“You expect us to believe that?”
“I was told the drive would be destroyed.”
“By whom?”
Evelyn looked at Celeste.
“Ask her.”
Celeste’s attorney prevented further questioning.
Rowan arrested Evelyn for theft and obstruction. A search of her pockets revealed an old access card for Ashbourne Tower and a handwritten code consisting of four numbers.
2319.
Elena’s condo number again.
At the station, Rowan separated every witness.
Maya stayed with Elena while officers processed the evidence.
Shortly before midnight, Rowan returned with news.
The federal unit had authenticated the black notebook. The records showed a pattern of fraudulent property seizures involving at least nine women over fifteen years.
Mercer Capital accounts were being frozen.
Adrian’s request for immediate release had been denied until a judge reviewed the assault footage and evidence of witness intimidation.
Celeste’s personal accounts were also under investigation.
For the first time since Elena opened the blue transfer folder, a piece of the danger had been contained.
Her condo remained hers.
The forged agreement had no legal power.
Adrian could no longer reach her without violating a court order.
Yet Claire was still missing, and the Orchard drive had disappeared into the city.
“Elena,” Rowan said, “you should know that Adrian is willing to cooperate.”
Maya laughed bitterly.
“Already?”
“He wants immunity on the financial charges.”
“In exchange for what?”
“Claire’s location.”
Elena stood.
“He knows where she is?”
“He claims he knows where she was taken after St. Helen’s Clinic.”
“By whom?”
“He will speak only after his attorney negotiates.”
Maya shook her head.
“He is lying.”
“Possibly.”
“He never knew where Claire went. That is why he kept searching the condo.”
Rowan looked at her.
“Then why did he want the property?”
“To find Orchard before Claire could expose the family.”
Elena remembered Adrian’s words at the bank.
He had warned that Claire wanted her frightened.
Perhaps he had never controlled Claire’s disappearance. Perhaps he had only helped begin it.
“What did Evelyn have to do with Lydia?” Elena asked.
Rowan opened a file on his tablet.
“They founded a property-management company together twenty-eight years ago. Evelyn handled security systems. Lydia handled acquisitions.”
“Why was Evelyn declared dead?”
“Her car was found after a bridge accident. No body was recovered.”
Maya looked at Elena.
“The same story they used for Claire.”
Rowan nodded.
“Evelyn later assumed at least three identities. One of them worked as a contractor for St. Helen’s Clinic.”
“She moved Claire,” Elena said.
“That is our current theory.”
“Then why steal the drive tonight?”
“Evelyn says someone threatened to reveal where her son lives.”
“Does she have a son?”
“We are checking.”
Elena thought of the old phone, the empty elevator and Lydia’s letter arriving exactly when Adrian entered the condo.
Evelyn had delivered the envelope.
She had worn the pale coat.
She had impersonated Claire at the bank.
But she was not the woman Maya pulled into the elevator.
There were at least two people using Claire’s image to move unseen around the Mercers.
Rowan’s phone rang.
He answered, listened and looked toward Elena.
“What happened?” she asked.
“The officers at Ashbourne Tower found your front door open.”
“That is impossible. I locked it.”
“The lock was not damaged.”
Maya stood.
“The thief has Lydia’s original access card.”
Rowan called for additional units.
Elena grabbed her coat.
This time, he did not tell her to stay behind.
They reached the condo shortly after one in the morning.
Nothing appeared stolen.
The hidden wall compartment remained open. The folders were untouched.
But the security panel near the front door had been removed.
May you like
In its place, someone had written a message directly on the wall.
Thank you for bringing the second key to dinner.
