Chapter 2: The Question Nobody Could Answer
Vanessa stared at Officer Brooks as if the question itself were an accusation she had never prepared to face.
Her right hand hung empty beside her beige trousers. Her left hand remained tangled in the strap of her cream handbag. Behind her, the late-afternoon sunlight spilled across the hardwood floor, illuminating the black briefcase Marcus had dropped.
Nobody moved to pick it up.
Marcus remained on both knees in front of the sofa, tears running through his short beard. He looked at Vanessa, then at Officer Brooks, then back at the photograph of his daughter.
"Answer her," he said.
Vanessa swallowed.
"I told you, Marcus. I knew nothing about Lily being sick.""
"That's not what she asked," Marcus replied. His voice cracked.
"Did you have my phone?""
"I don't remember.""
Officer Brooks raised her eyebrows.
"You don't remember whether you possessed your employer's phone during a business trip?""
Vanessa shifted her weight.
"We were working long hours. There were meetings, dinners, travel arrangements. Sometimes I handled things for him.""
Marcus looked up sharply.
"What things?""
"Your schedule. Your emails. Reservations.""
"My phone?""
Vanessa hesitated.
"Sometimes.""
A terrible silence settled over the room.
Marcus slowly pushed himself upright, though he remained on his knees. His palms pressed against the rug as he tried to steady his shaking body.
"You told me you didn't know anything," he said.
"Now you're telling me you sometimes handled my phone?""
"I said I didn't know about your daughter!"" Vanessa snapped.
The sharpness of her voice startled even her.
Officer Brooks took one measured step closer.
"Ms. Vanessa, I'm going to ask you to lower your voice. Nobody here has accused you of causing what happened to Lily.
I'm trying to establish who had access to Mr. Reed's communications.""
Vanessa's expression tightened.
"I understand.""
"Then answer carefully," Brooks said.
"Did you ever use his phone without him standing beside you?""
Vanessa looked at Marcus.
For a moment, something almost like anger crossed her face. It was brief, but Marcus saw it.
"Yes," she admitted.
"Once or twice. To check his calendar when my own phone was dead.""
Marcus shook his head.
"That doesn't make sense. You had your laptop. You had access to my work calendar.""
"I was trying to help you.""
"Help me with what?""
"With your schedule!""
"Then why would you need my phone?""
Vanessa opened her mouth, then closed it.
Danielle stood beside the sofa, trembling. She had stopped shouting, but the silence had not calmed her. It had made her more dangerous in a different way. She was listening now, searching every answer for the one detail that might explain why her daughter had died waiting.
"Officer," Danielle said, "I want to tell you something.""
Brooks turned toward her immediately.
"Of course.""
"Before Lily got sick, she asked her teacher to call Marcus. She didn't ask me to call him again because she thought he might answer her teacher.""
Marcus looked at his wife.
"She asked her teacher to call me?""
Danielle stared at him.
"Yes.""
"Why didn't you tell me that before?""
Her expression broke open.
"Because you weren't there to tell!""
Marcus lowered his eyes.
Danielle pressed a trembling hand to her mouth, trying to contain another wave of grief.
"Lily was so little," she continued.
"She thought teachers could fix everything. If she couldn't reach me, she thought her teacher could reach you.""
"Danielle...""
"Don't say my name like that.""
He fell silent.
She walked to the sofa and picked up a folded tissue from the cushion. Her fingers shook so badly that the tissue tore before she could unfold it.
"Her teacher called me afterward," Danielle said.
"She was crying so hard I could barely understand her. She told me she'd tried to reach you because Lily wanted her daddy.""
Marcus covered his mouth.
"What did she say about the calls?""
"She said she called repeatedly. She begged you to answer.""
"I never heard them.""
"I know what you keep saying!""
"Because it's true!""
"Then why did one text come from your number?""
Marcus froze.
Even Vanessa stopped moving.
Officer Brooks opened her notebook again.
"Mrs. Reed," she said, "tell me exactly what you know about that message.""
Danielle looked at Marcus.
"The teacher told me that while Lily was dying in my arms at the emergency department, a text came from your number.""
Marcus's face drained of color.
"What did it say?""
Danielle shook her head.
"She didn't tell me the wording. I didn't ask. I couldn't even think straight. I was holding our baby, begging her to stay awake, and all I could think about was that you had finally answered when it was too late.""
Marcus stared at her.
"I didn't send it.""
"You expect me to believe that?""
"I expect you to believe I would never ignore Lily!""
His voice rose so suddenly that Danielle recoiled.
Marcus immediately looked horrified by his own outburst.
"I'm sorry," he whispered.
"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have shouted.""
Danielle turned away.
For a moment, the only sound was the faint hum of the air conditioner and the scratch of Officer Brooks's pen.
Then Brooks asked, "Mr. Reed, where was your phone during the hours the teacher was calling?""
Marcus wiped his face with the heel of his hand.
"In my possession, as far as I knew.""
"As far as you knew?""
"I carried it with me. I remember checking it before one of our meetings. I don't remember seeing any missed calls from Lily's school.""
"Did you check the call log after you learned what happened?""
"No.""
"Why not?""
Marcus stared at the floor.
"Because I came home to find out my daughter was dead.""
Brooks let the answer stand.
It wasn't proof of anything, but it was the first answer that sounded like it came from a man who had run out of ways to defend himself.
Vanessa adjusted her handbag strap.
"I think we're making a terrible situation worse," she said.
"Marcus is grieving. Danielle is grieving. Maybe we should let the family have some privacy.""
Danielle turned toward her.
"You don't get to decide what my family needs.""
"I wasn't trying to—"
"Then stop talking.""
Vanessa's mouth snapped shut.
Officer Brooks watched her carefully.
"Ms. Vanessa, I need you to remain available for further questions.""
"Am I being accused of something?""
"No," Brooks replied.
"I'm asking you to cooperate with a timeline.""
Vanessa looked toward the door.
Marcus noticed.
"Why are you looking at the door?""
"I'm not.""
"You just did.""
"I want to go home. That's all.""
He slowly rose from the rug, using the sofa for support. His knees trembled beneath his navy trousers.
"Then go," he said quietly.
"But if you know anything about those calls, don't make me discover it from someone else.""
Vanessa looked at him with an expression he couldn't read.
"I don't know anything.""
She walked toward the doorway.
Officer Brooks didn't stop her, but she followed every step with her eyes.
At the threshold, Vanessa paused.
"Marcus," she said, her voice suddenly softer, "I'm sorry about Lily.""
He couldn't answer.
Vanessa left.
The front door closed with a quiet click.
Danielle sank onto the sofa and covered her face. Marcus stood beside the white flowers, staring at the picture of the little girl whose calls he had never heard.
Officer Brooks approached him.
"Mr. Reed, I need you to do something for me.""
He turned, exhausted.
"What?""
"Don't erase anything from your phone. Don't reset it. Don't let anyone else handle it until we've established what happened.""
Marcus reached into his right jacket pocket and pulled out his phone.
His hands shook as he unlocked it.
"No missed calls," he whispered.
"Nothing from the school. Nothing from Danielle.""
Brooks held out her hand, asking him to show her the screen without taking the device.
Then Marcus opened his messages.
He scrolled through the conversations, his breathing growing faster.
At the top of the list was an unfamiliar number.
He tapped it.
The conversation contained a single outgoing message, timestamped Wednesday evening.
Marcus stared at the screen.
"I've never seen this number before," he said.
Officer Brooks leaned closer.
"Do you recognize the message?""
He shook his head.
"No.""
Danielle rose from the sofa and approached them.
"Marcus," she whispered, "what does it say?""
He looked at his wife, unable to speak.
Then Officer Brooks's expression changed as she read the message over his shoulder.
May you like
Because whatever had been sent from Marcus Reed's phone that Wednesday night, it wasn't an ordinary reply.
And it was about to change everything they thought they knew about Lily's final hours.
