Chapter 2 - Three Knocks)
Danielle was downstairs within sixty seconds.
She wore a silk robe over her pajamas and carried her phone like a weapon.
Liam followed despite being ordered to stay upstairs.
The foyer was dark except for the security lights along the staircase.
The fireplace looked perfectly ordinary.
Danielle approached it slowly.
"Liam, stay behind me."
"I am."
She listened.
Nothing.
She placed her hand against the marble.
Cold.
No vibration.
No wind.
Then she heard footsteps.
Marissa entered from the security corridor with two guards behind her.
"What's wrong?"
Danielle looked at her.
"How did you know we were down here?"
"Motion alert."
Liam pointed toward the fireplace.
"Someone talked."
Marissa looked at him.
"What did they say?"
"Help."
One guard glanced at the other.
Danielle crouched beside Liam.
"You heard an actual voice?"
"Yes."
"A man?"
He nodded.
"Was it loud?"
"No. Like this."
Liam whispered.
"Please help me."
Something tightened in Danielle's chest.
Marissa walked toward the fireplace.
She ran her fingers along the marble surround.
"There's no cavity behind this wall according to the plans."
Danielle stood.
"According to which plans?"
"The digital set."
"This house was rebuilt twice."
"Both renovations are documented."
"By my father."
Marissa looked at her.
"Danielle."
"Open it."
Marissa hesitated.
"Open what?"
"The wall."
"There is nothing to open."
Danielle faced the guards.
"Bring tools."
Marissa stepped closer.
"It's two in the morning."
"My son heard a man asking for help behind a wall in a house where two family members are missing."
"Or he heard plumbing."
Liam frowned.
"Plumbing doesn't know words."
Danielle almost smiled despite herself.
Marissa did not.
That bothered her.
"Bring tools."
Marissa finally nodded.
One guard left.
Ten minutes later they had removed the decorative fire screen and inspected the marble.
No hinges.
No visible seams.
A handheld scanner showed thick masonry behind the fireplace.
Marissa handed Danielle the device.
"Nothing."
Danielle stared at the screen.
Liam had curled up on a sofa beneath a blanket.
His eyes were still open.
"Run the scanner again."
"We did."
"Again."
Marissa obeyed.
Still nothing.
At last Danielle allowed herself to feel foolish.
Exhaustion had turned grief into paranoia.
She carried Liam upstairs.
Before leaving the foyer, he looked over her shoulder toward the fireplace.
"It's scared."
Danielle kissed his hair.
"What is?"
"The man."
The next morning the private investigators arrived.
There were three of them.
The lead investigator, Thomas Hale, had spent twenty years with the FBI before opening a private firm.
Victor disliked him immediately.
That alone made Danielle trust him more.
They met in the library.
Thomas placed photographs across the table.
Michelle's abandoned car.
The highway shoulder.
A service station.
A grainy security image showing Caleb buying gasoline two days before he vanished.
"We've been reviewing Mr. Bennett's financial activity," Thomas said.
Victor leaned back.
"And?"
"No unusual withdrawals. No offshore transfers. No indication he planned to leave."
Danielle looked at him.
"What about Michelle?"
"Same."
Victor exhaled impatiently.
"So we have nothing."
Thomas ignored him.
"We also examined the anonymous photo you received."
Danielle's eyes moved toward Marissa.
She had not told Thomas about it yet.
Thomas continued.
"Ms. Reed forwarded it to us early this morning."
Danielle slowly turned toward Marissa.
Marissa met her gaze.
Danielle had explicitly told her not to tell Victor.
She had not said not to send it to the investigators.
It was a technical distinction.
Marissa was very good at technical distinctions.
Victor looked at the photograph.
For the first time that morning, he appeared surprised.
"Where did this come from?"
"Anonymous sender," Thomas said.
Victor picked it up.
Danielle watched his fingers.
"You were there."
Victor studied the image.
"It appears so."
"You don't remember?"
"I visit the lake property frequently."
"Why was Michelle holding a blue rook?"
"I have no idea."
Thomas opened another folder.
"We checked the metadata. The photograph was taken four months and six days ago."
Victor's expression remained unchanged.
"And?"
"Two hours later, Michelle called an attorney named Evelyn Shaw."
Danielle knew the name.
Evelyn had handled part of her mother's estate.
Victor's mouth tightened.
"What did they discuss?"
"Attorney client privilege."
"So again, nothing."
Thomas looked at Danielle.
"Evelyn agreed to meet with you privately."
"When?"
"Today."
Victor stood.
"No."
Danielle stared at him.
"Excuse me?"
"Shaw spent years poisoning your mother against me."
"Mom trusted her."
"Your mother trusted anyone who told her what she wanted to hear."
Danielle's voice sharpened.
"She's been dead for eight years. You can stop arguing with her now."
The room became silent.
Victor's expression changed.
Not anger.
Something more controlled.
"Do what you want."
He left.
Thomas waited until the door closed.
"Does he always respond like that when your mother is mentioned?"
Danielle looked at the doorway.
"No."
Marissa stood near the window.
"Stress."
Danielle turned toward her.
"Whose?"
Marissa said nothing.
That afternoon Danielle drove into the city to meet Evelyn Shaw.
Marissa insisted on accompanying her.
Danielle refused.
For the first time in twelve years.
Evelyn's office occupied the top floor of an old limestone building.
She was seventy-two and sharp-eyed.
When Danielle showed her the photograph, Evelyn did not appear surprised.
Instead she walked to a safe.
"What I'm about to give you was supposed to remain sealed unless Michelle instructed me otherwise."
"Did she?"
"Not exactly."
Evelyn removed an envelope.
"She told me that if she became unreachable for more than thirty days, I should give this to you."
Danielle's heart pounded.
"Why didn't you?"
"Your father threatened litigation against my firm two days after Michelle vanished."
Danielle stared at her.
"For what?"
"Professional misconduct. He made it very clear that any contact with you would become expensive."
Evelyn handed over the envelope.
Inside was a single handwritten note.
Danielle recognized Michelle's writing immediately.
Dani,
If Dad tells you I ran away, don't believe him.
If Caleb disappears too, the house is part of it.
Find what Mom left behind.
The blue rook opens the first door.
Do not trust the person who always knows where you are.
Danielle read the final sentence twice.
Do not trust the person who always knows where you are.
Marissa.
Her phone vibrated.
A message from Marissa.
Liam is asking for you. He says the fireplace is knocking again.
May you like
Danielle stood so quickly the chair struck the wall.
This time when she returned to Harrington Mansion, she did not tell Marissa she was coming.
