Chapter 11 - The Husband I Thought I Knew
"Take him into custody."
I heard Agent Torres give the order.
For one terrible second, nobody moved.
Daniel stood beside his desk, staring at the recording.
Then two officers approached him.
He didn't resist.
"Sarah," he said.
I stepped back.
He looked as though the movement had physically hurt him.
"I did not authorize Ava's kidnapping."
"Then why did Elise have your credentials?"
He closed his eyes.
"Because I trusted her once."
Agent Torres held out a hand.
"Mr. Hayes, we'll need you to come with us."
Daniel looked toward the staircase.
"Please don't let Ethan see this."
That nearly broke me.
Even now, with my daughter missing, he was thinking about my son.
I couldn't decide whether that made him innocent or simply very good at lying.
"Where's Ava?" I whispered.
Daniel met my eyes.
"I don't know."
The officers escorted him from the house.
I watched through the window as he climbed into an unmarked vehicle.
For the first time since the highway, the mansion seemed cold.
Huge.
Empty.
And dangerous.
Olivia approached me.
"Sarah, there's something we need to discuss."
"Not now."
"It's about Elise."
I turned.
"What about her?"
"She was engaged to Daniel four years ago."
"I know that part."
"She wasn't just his fiancée."
Olivia placed a photograph on the desk.
Elise stood beside Richard Hayes at a charity event.
Below the photograph was a company biography.
Elise Morgan.
Former Director of Family Trust Administration.
My mouth went dry.
"She worked with Richard?"
"Closely."
"Then why did Daniel trust her?"
"Because he believed they were building a future together."
I laughed bitterly.
"Apparently that's a common mistake."
Olivia didn't smile.
She continued.
"Elise retained access to certain administrative systems after the engagement ended."
"Why?"
"Victor approved it."
Everything connected.
Victor.
Elise.
Richard.
The false authorization.
The stolen documents.
My children.
"Can you prove Daniel didn't know?"
"Not yet."
I looked at the photograph again.
Elise had beautiful dark hair and an expensive pearl necklace.
She looked confident.
Perfectly composed.
Nothing like the woman who had stood beside a highway with two hungry children.
"Why did they break up?"
Olivia hesitated.
"Daniel discovered Elise had been sharing confidential business information with Richard."
"And he didn't tell the police?"
"At the time, he believed it was a family dispute."
I pressed my fingers against my temples.
"So he protected her."
"He may have."
"And now my daughter is paying for it."
I turned away before Olivia could answer.
That night, I sat in the kitchen with Ethan.
He held Ava's favorite stuffed rabbit.
A faded white toy with one missing eye.
"Do you think she's scared?" he asked.
I put my arm around him.
"Probably."
His chin trembled.
"She doesn't like sleeping without Bunny."
I looked at the rabbit.
"Then we'll make sure Bunny is waiting when she gets home."
Ethan stared at the table.
"Do you think Mr. Daniel did it?"
I couldn't answer.
He looked up.
"Mom?"
"I don't know."
My son nodded slowly.
Then he said something that cut straight through me.
"Sometimes not knowing is worse than being scared."
I pulled him close.
At 2:13 in the morning, my phone rang.
Unknown number.
I answered immediately.
"Hello?"
A man's voice whispered.
"Sarah?"
I froze.
"Caleb?"
"Don't hang up."
Every muscle in my body tightened.
"Where is Ava?"
He sounded frightened.
"Listen carefully."
"WHERE IS MY DAUGHTER?"
"Richard lied to me."
I almost threw the phone.
"You helped him take her."
"I thought he only wanted the trust papers."
"You knew they were planning to kidnap her!"
Silence.
Then Caleb whispered.
"I didn't think they'd actually do it."
I felt sick.
"You were her father."
"I know."
"No."
My voice broke.
"You don't get to say that word."
He began breathing hard.
"Sarah, I need to tell you something."
"Where is she?"
"She's alive."
"Where?"
"I don't know exactly."
"Then why are you calling?"
"Because Richard is going to kill me."
I stared at the darkness outside.
"Why?"
"Because I found out what really happened to your father."
My hand tightened around the phone.
"What?"
Caleb lowered his voice.
"Patrick Reed didn't just discover the fraud."
I stopped breathing.
"He recorded the people responsible."
"The music box?"
"Yes."
"Where is it?"
"Richard has it."
A sound came through the phone.
A door opening.
Caleb gasped.
"Sarah, listen."
Then he said something I would never forget.
"The fire wasn't meant to destroy the building."
I gripped the counter.
"What was it meant to do?"
His answer was barely audible.
"Kill your father."
A man's voice shouted in the background.
Caleb whispered.
May you like
"Tell Ethan I'm sorry."
The line went dead.
