Chapter 11 - The Secret Claire Was Willing to Kill For
Claire asked to speak with me the following morning.
I said no.
She asked again through her attorney.
I refused.
Then she made an offer.
She would tell investigators where the missing surveillance drive was hidden if I agreed to hear her explanation.
Detective Whitmore advised me not to meet her alone.
I had no intention of doing that.
But I wanted that drive recovered.
I wanted every recording.
Every conversation.
Every image that could show what Emily had endured.
And I wanted to know whether anyone had been watching Noah while he slept.
So I agreed to a recorded interview in the presence of investigators and counsel.
Claire entered the room wearing a plain gray sweater.
Her hair was pulled into a loose ponytail.
Without makeup, she looked younger.
Almost fragile.
That was how she had always looked when she wanted something from me.
She sat across the table.
For several seconds, she stared at her hands.
Then she whispered, “Daniel.”
I said nothing.
Her eyes filled with tears.
“I never wanted any of this.”
I stared at her.
“Emily spent eight months underground.”
Claire flinched.
“I know.”
“You stood beside me while I searched for her.”
“I know.”
“You helped me explain to Noah that his mother was gone.”
She began crying.
“Please.”
I leaned forward.
“Don't ask me for sympathy.”
Claire pressed her hands together.
“I loved you.”
The words landed like something rotten.
I stared at her.
“No.”
“Daniel—”
“You loved the life you could take from Emily.”
Claire looked wounded.
“That's not fair.”
I almost laughed.
“Fair?”
Her expression hardened.
Only for a second.
Then she looked down again.
“I didn't plan to fall in love with you.”
I said nothing.
She continued.
“When Emily disappeared, I thought Margaret would handle everything.”
I watched her carefully.
“She promised me money.”
“How much?”
Claire hesitated.
“Two hundred thousand dollars.”
I felt sick.
“For helping imprison my wife?”
Claire shook her head quickly.
“No.”
I stared at her.
“She told me Emily would be kept somewhere safe until she signed the statement.”
“Safe?”
Claire looked away.
“She said it would only take a few days.”
I could barely control my voice.
“And when a few days became weeks?”
Claire cried harder.
“I wanted it to stop.”
“Did you open the door?”
She said nothing.
“Did you call the police?”
No answer.
“Did you tell me?”
She shook her head.
I leaned back.
“Then you didn't want it to stop badly enough.”
Claire looked directly at me.
“You don't understand Margaret.”
“I understand her now.”
“No.”
Her voice became urgent.
“You don't understand what she's capable of.”
I stared at her.
“What did she threaten you with?”
Claire hesitated.
Then whispered, “Everything.”
Whitmore spoke for the first time.
“Claire, can you be specific?”
Claire looked toward her attorney.
He nodded for her to answer if she wished.
She drew a shaky breath.
“Margaret controlled the Hollow Creek payments.”
“And?”
“She told me if I went to the police, she'd make sure I took the blame.”
I studied her.
“And you believed her?”
“She had documents with my signature.”
“Because you signed them,” Whitmore said.
Claire flinched.
“Yes.”
Silence.
Then she turned back toward me.
“Daniel, I made terrible decisions.”
I didn't answer.
“But when I married you, things changed.”
I stared at her.
“How?”
“I started thinking we could actually be happy.”
I couldn't believe what I was hearing.
“You showed Emily our wedding pictures.”
Claire froze.
Her eyes widened.
I leaned forward.
“She told me.”
Claire's face collapsed.
“I was angry.”
“At her?”
Claire began crying again.
“She kept telling me you would find her.”
I stared.
“She was right.”
Claire covered her mouth.
I continued.
“She believed I'd find her.”
Claire whispered, “Yes.”
“And instead, I married you.”
She nodded.
My chest tightened.
“What did she say when you showed her the pictures?”
Claire didn't answer.
“Tell me.”
She looked toward the table.
“She said it wasn't your fault.”
My eyes burned.
Claire swallowed.
“She said we'd lied to you.”
I closed my eyes.
Even underground.
Even after everything.
Emily had tried to separate what I'd done from what they'd made me believe.
I opened my eyes.
“Where's the hard drive?”
Claire looked toward Whitmore.
“I want the agreement in writing.”
Whitmore answered calmly.
“Any cooperation arrangement must go through the prosecutor.”
Claire nodded.
“Then I want my attorney to speak with them.”
I stood.
Claire looked alarmed.
“Daniel.”
I moved toward the door.
“Wait.”
I stopped.
She was staring at me.
For the first time, the tears had stopped.
Her expression was flat.
Almost empty.
“You think Emily is innocent.”
I stared at her.
“What?”
Claire leaned forward.
“You think she was just an accountant looking through the books.”
My stomach tightened.
“What are you saying?”
“She knew about the land.”
“Yes.”
“She knew about the trust.”
“Yes.”
Claire's mouth twisted.
“But she didn't tell you everything.”
I looked at Whitmore.
The detective remained still.
Claire continued.
“Ask her why she went to Hollow Creek the night before she disappeared.”
I felt a cold sensation move through my chest.
I turned back.
“What?”
Claire smiled faintly.
“She went there alone.”
I stared at her.
“How do you know?”
Claire didn't answer immediately.
Then she said, “Because I followed her.”
Whitmore leaned forward.
“What happened?”
Claire looked at the detective.
“I saw her meet someone.”
“Who?”
Claire's gaze returned to me.
“A woman.”
I frowned.
“What woman?”
Claire whispered, “Katherine Reed.”
The room went silent.
I stared at her.
“Katherine's dead.”
Claire shook her head.
“That's what Margaret wanted everyone to believe.”
My pulse accelerated.
Whitmore's expression sharpened.
“Claire, explain exactly what you saw.”
Claire leaned back.
“Katherine didn't disappear twelve years ago.”
I stopped breathing.
“She ran.”
“From whom?”
Claire looked toward the camera in the corner.
Then at her attorney.
Her voice dropped.
“From Thomas Vale.”
I felt sick.
Whitmore asked, “Where is Katherine now?”
Claire's face changed.
“I don't know.”
“Then why do you believe she survived?”
“Because I saw her with Emily.”
I stared at Claire.
My thoughts were racing.
If Katherine Reed was alive, whose remains had been found beneath the farmhouse?
If she'd been hiding for twelve years, what did she know?
And why had Emily never told me she'd met her?
Claire leaned forward.
“Daniel, your wife knew she was in danger.”
I said nothing.
“She knew Margaret would come after her.”
A cruel little smile appeared.
“But she still went to Hollow Creek.”
I felt my jaw tighten.
“Why?”
May you like
Claire looked directly into my eyes.
“Because Katherine promised to tell her who was buried beneath your father's house.”
