CHAPTER 3
The police impounded my car before I ever saw it again.
A mechanic later confirmed that someone had partially cut a brake line.
Not enough to fail immediately.
Enough to fail after several miles.
I kept imagining the drive home I almost took.
The freeway.
The exit ramp.
The children waiting in that dark house.
If my flight hadn’t arrived early, I might have died before reaching them.
That was the part I couldn’t stop thinking about.
My flight had landed six hours ahead of schedule because a storm forced the airline to reroute us.
Rachel had expected me the next morning.
She had planned around it.
My accident was supposed to look random.
Then she would collect two million dollars.
What happened to Lily and Tommy afterward?
I was terrified to ask.
Detective Alvarez told me not to assume the worst.
That was impossible.
The worst had already been living in my house.
Lily and Tommy remained hospitalized for another two days.
Doctors slowly increased their food.
Tommy began smiling again.
The first time he laughed, I had to turn away because I couldn’t control my tears.
Lily noticed.
“Daddy, are you sad?”
I wiped my face.
“No.”
“Then why are you crying?”
“Because I’m happy.”
She looked confused.
“You can cry when you’re happy?”
“Yes.”
She thought about that.
“Mommy said crying makes people weak.”
I crouched beside her.
“Mommy was wrong about a lot of things.”
Lily nodded seriously.
Then she whispered, “I cried in the room.”
I swallowed.
“That didn’t make you weak.”
“I tried not to.”
“You didn’t have to.”
“I didn’t want Tommy scared.”
That child had carried a responsibility no five-year-old should understand.
“You kept him alive.”
She looked at me.
“Was I good?”
I almost broke apart.
“You were brave.”
Her lower lip trembled.
“Do I have to be brave anymore?”
I pulled her into my arms.
“No.”
That answer finally made her cry loudly.
And I held her while she did.
When the hospital discharged them, CPS would not allow us to return home immediately.
The crime scene investigation wasn’t finished.
My mother offered her house.
I refused.
I still couldn’t forgive her for seeing Rachel grab Lily and keeping it from me.
Instead, Helen arranged for us to stay in a furnished family apartment connected to a child advocacy program.
It had two bedrooms.
Bright walls.
A small kitchen.
No locked doors.
Lily checked every closet before she would sleep.
That first night, she dragged her mattress into Tommy’s room.
“I need to watch him.”
I sat beside her.
“Daddy watches him now.”
“What if you fall asleep?”
“Then I’ll wake up.”
“What if Mommy comes?”
“She won’t get inside.”
“What if Uncle Mark comes?”
“He won’t either.”
She stared at me.
“You promise?”
“Yes.”
I had never meant anything more.
At midnight, Detective Alvarez called.
Police had located surveillance footage from Mark’s warehouse.
Rachel appeared there repeatedly while I was away.
On one video, she carried two duffel bags into the building.
On another, she brought Lily.
My stomach twisted.
“Why would she take Lily there?”
“We don’t know.”
“Can Lily identify anything?”
“We’ll let the child interviewer decide.”
I hated hearing that.
But I also understood.
Every question had to be handled carefully.
The next morning, a forensic interviewer named Dr. Kim met with Lily.
I watched from another room.
I had been warned not to react visibly.
That became nearly impossible.
Dr. Kim gave Lily dolls and asked her about ordinary things first.
School.
Favorite colors.
Tommy.
Then the locked room.
Lily’s voice became quieter.
“Mommy put us there when Uncle Mark came.”
“Why?”
“She said children bother grown-ups.”
“What did the grown-ups do?”
“Talk.”
“About what?”
“Daddy.”
My hands tightened.
“What did they say about Daddy?”
Lily looked down.
“They said his trip was good.”
“Why?”
“Because he wouldn’t see.”
“See what?”
Lily became silent.
Dr. Kim changed direction.
“Did Uncle Mark ever hurt you?”
Lily shook her head.
Then paused.
“He scared me.”
“How?”
“He told me if Daddy came home, Daddy would leave forever.”
I felt sick.
“Did you believe him?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Mommy said he knew.”
Then Lily said something none of us expected.
“They made me practice.”
Dr. Kim stayed calm.
“Practice what?”
“What to tell the police.”
The room felt suddenly airless.
“What were you supposed to say?”
Lily stared at the doll in her hands.
“That Daddy locked us in.”
I stood up.
Alvarez immediately placed a hand on my shoulder.
“Stay.”
I wanted to break the glass.
Rachel had planned to blame me.
If I died, maybe no one would need the story.
But if I survived?
My abused daughter would be forced to accuse me.
Dr. Kim continued carefully.
“What did Mommy tell you would happen if you didn’t say that?”
“She said Tommy would go away.”
Lily hugged the doll.
“And I’d never see him again.”
I covered my mouth.
After the interview, I sat outside with my head in my hands.
Alvarez joined me.
“They were building insurance.”
I looked up.
“What?”
“A backup plan. If the accident failed, Rachel could accuse you of abuse.”
“Why?”
“Custody. Financial leverage. Maybe divorce.”
“She was going to destroy me either way.”
“Yes.”
I stared at the floor.
Then my phone rang.
An unknown number.
Alvarez motioned for me to answer on speaker.
“Hello?”
A woman whispered, “Is this Daniel?”
“Yes.”
“My name is Jenna.”
I didn’t recognize it.
“I worked with Rachel.”
My heart started pounding.
“What do you want?”
“I saw the news.”
Rachel’s disappearance had become public that morning.
Jenna continued.
“I know where she might go.”
Alvarez grabbed a notebook.
“Where?”
“There’s a lake house.”
“Whose?”
“Mark’s.”
Then Jenna began crying.
“But that’s not why I called.”
I waited.
She whispered, “Rachel told me months ago that she wished Tommy had never been born.”
My vision blurred.
“What?”
“She said he ruined everything.”
“Everything how?”
“She wouldn’t explain.”
Jenna inhaled shakily.
“Daniel, I need to tell you something else.”
“Tell me.”
“She wasn’t just having an affair.”
The room went silent.
“With Mark?”
“No.”
I felt a strange kind of relief for half a second.
Then she destroyed it.
“With your business partner.”
My stomach turned.
“Who?”
“Evan.”
I couldn’t speak.
Evan Cole had been my closest friend for twelve years.
We had built our company together.
He had encouraged me to take this trip.
He had booked the meetings.
He knew my itinerary better than anyone.
Alvarez’s eyes sharpened.
May you like
Jenna’s voice dropped to a whisper.
“And I think Evan is with her right now.”
