Chapter 5 - The Price of a Lie
I told Detective Mercer everything.
The affair.
The money.
Richard Vale.
Tessa's confession.
The photograph of Corinne.
Every humiliating detail.
By the time I finished, the detective looked as though he had aged ten years.
"Why didn't you tell me about Vale earlier?"
"Because I didn't know."
"You knew he financed your projects."
"Yes."
"You knew he had access to your company's accounts."
"Yes."
"And you signed documents without reviewing them."
I looked away.
Mercer leaned forward.
"Mr. Keaton, do you understand how serious this is?"
"My wife has been kidnapped."
"Possibly. And the same people may have used your company to commit major financial crimes."
"I don't care about the money."
"You should. Because if we don't understand the money, we may never find your wife."
That silenced me.
Mercer arranged for a forensic team to examine the drive.
He also contacted federal investigators.
I was told to remain available.
Not to call Richard.
Not to contact Tessa again.
Not to leave town.
I agreed.
Then I did the first sensible thing I had done in years.
I called Corinne's sister.
Elena Whitfield answered on the fourth ring.
"What do you want, Grant?"
Her voice was cold.
"Elena, please. I need to know where Corinne is."
A bitter laugh.
"That's rich."
"I'm serious."
"So am I."
"Someone burned her car."
Silence.
Then she said, "What?"
I explained.
Not everything.
Enough.
When I mentioned Leonard Pike, she inhaled sharply.
"Elena?"
"Where are you?"
"At home."
"Are the police there?"
"Yes."
"Put me on speaker."
I did.
Mercer stepped closer.
Elena's voice changed.
"Detective, my sister came to me almost three weeks ago."
Mercer grabbed his notebook.
"What did she tell you?"
"That someone was stealing money using her identity."
"Did she identify anyone?"
"Richard Vale."
I closed my eyes.
"Did she mention Leonard Pike?"
"Yes."
"What did she say?"
"He was helping her."
Mercer leaned forward.
"Where did they meet?"
"At a coffee shop near Vanderbilt."
"When?"
"About a month ago."
"Did he give her anything?"
"Documents."
"Do you know where those documents are?"
"She gave them to an attorney."
"Which attorney?"
Elena hesitated.
Then she said, "I need protection before I answer that."
Mercer's expression hardened.
"Why?"
"Because someone followed me home yesterday."
I felt sick.
"Elena—"
"Don't speak to me, Grant."
Her voice shook.
"Do you have any idea what my sister went through?"
I swallowed.
"No."
"She was recovering from childbirth. She was barely sleeping. She was terrified that someone was watching her."
I stared at the floor.
"And where were you?"
I couldn't answer.
"On a beach with your mistress."
"Elena, please."
"No. You don't get to say please."
Her voice broke.
"Corinne spent years protecting you from the consequences of your own selfishness. Even after she discovered what was happening, she worried that you might be innocent."
I covered my face.
"She still defended you."
The words hurt more than I expected.
"She said Richard might have manipulated you."
Mercer watched me silently.
Elena continued.
"She wanted to give you one last chance to tell the truth."
I looked up.
"What?"
"Three weeks ago, she asked you about Westbridge."
I remembered.
We had been eating dinner.
Corinne had asked whether I knew anything about a company called Westbridge Holdings.
I had barely looked up from my phone.
I told her not to concern herself with business matters.
Then I accused her of trying to start an argument.
I remembered her expression.
Not anger.
Disappointment.
She had simply nodded and carried Owen upstairs.
I had forgotten the conversation within minutes.
She had apparently never forgotten it.
"Elena," I whispered, "where is my son?"
Silence.
Then she said something unexpected.
"He's safe."
My heart stopped.
"What?"
"Owen is safe."
I nearly collapsed.
"Where?"
"I can't tell you."
"Please."
"No."
"He's my son."
"And Corinne is my sister."
I gripped the phone.
"Is he with you?"
"He's somewhere safe."
Mercer leaned forward.
"Elena, we need to verify the child's welfare."
"I understand."
"Can you arrange that?"
"Yes."
"Good. Now tell me where Corinne is."
The silence stretched.
Finally, Elena whispered, "I don't know."
My relief vanished.
"What?"
"She left Owen with me four days ago."
"Why?"
"She said she had to meet someone."
"Who?"
"Leonard Pike."
Mercer's face changed.
"But Pike disappeared three weeks ago," he said.
Elena inhaled sharply.
"That's what Corinne was trying to find out."
I stared.
"She went looking for him?"
"Yes."
"Alone?"
"No."
"Who went with her?"
Elena hesitated.
Then she whispered a name.
"Your father."
I felt the room spin.
May you like
My father, Thomas Keaton, had died six months earlier.
At least, that was what everyone believed.
