Chapter 10 - Friday Morning
At 6:03 a.m. on Friday, Daniel woke to an empty room.
He was staying in Rachel's guest bedroom, a few steps away from Lily.
For one terrible second, he thought someone had taken her.
He ran into the hallway.
"Lily?"
No answer.
He hurried toward the kitchen.
Then stopped.
His daughter stood on a small stool beside Rachel, carefully stirring pancake batter.
She wore yellow pajamas covered in cartoon stars.
A little flour dusted her nose.
Rachel looked up.
"Morning."
Daniel pressed a hand against the doorframe.
Lily smiled.
"Daddy! We're making pancakes."
He crossed the room and hugged her.
She giggled.
"You're squishing me."
"Sorry."
He loosened his arms.
Then Lily whispered, "I didn't eat any yet."
Daniel pulled back.
"Okay."
"I waited for you."
His throat tightened.
"Sweetheart, you don't have to wait for me to eat."
Lily studied him.
"Really?"
"Really."
Rachel turned toward the stove to hide her tears.
Daniel helped Lily down from the stool.
"Go pick a plate."
She opened the cabinet.
There were six plates.
She chose the purple one.
Then she looked at Rachel.
"Can I have two pancakes?"
Rachel smiled.
"You can have two."
Lily thought for a moment.
"Maybe three?"
Daniel laughed.
It was the first genuine laugh he'd managed in days.
"Three sounds perfect."
At 8:15 a.m., Peter called.
"The closing is suspended pending the fraud review."
Daniel exhaled.
"Good."
"The money isn't moving to Hollow Creek."
"Good."
"And the court has entered temporary orders addressing Marissa's disputed authority over Lily."
Daniel looked at his daughter coloring at the kitchen table.
"Does that mean it's over?"
"No."
Peter hesitated.
"But it means her Friday plan isn't going the way she expected."
Daniel looked at the clock.
8:16.
He remembered Marissa's voice.
After Friday, everything will finally be where it belongs.
He wondered what she was doing now.
Marissa was standing in a hotel suite overlooking the Chicago River.
Her laptop was open.
Her phone was ringing.
She ignored the call.
A message flashed across the screen.
TRANSFER SUSPENDED.
She read it twice.
Then swept the laptop off the desk.
It struck the carpet with a dull crack.
Helen Voss stood beside the window.
"That was unnecessary."
Marissa turned.
"Where's Adrian?"
"Unavailable."
"That's not an answer."
"It's the answer I have."
Marissa approached her.
"You promised Owen's situation would never come back to hurt us."
Helen's expression hardened.
"Owen's case was mishandled because you couldn't stop antagonizing the family."
Marissa laughed bitterly.
"His father signed the papers."
"And then tried to revoke them."
"Because Rebecca Bennett got involved."
Helen stared at her.
"Don't say that name."
Marissa went quiet.
Helen continued.
"Rebecca's evidence is already causing enough trouble."
"You told me she didn't have anything substantial."
"I told you we controlled most of what she had."
Marissa looked toward the broken laptop.
"Daniel found the drive."
"I know."
"Then he's going to destroy us."
Helen crossed her arms.
"Only if investigators can authenticate enough of it and connect the right people to the relevant acts."
Marissa stared at her.
"You sound very calm."
"I'm trying to keep us out of prison."
Marissa walked toward her purse.
"Then we need Lily."
Helen's eyes narrowed.
"Absolutely not."
"She's the reason Daniel is fighting."
"The child is protected by court orders and an active investigation."
Marissa grabbed her coat.
"Children disappear from school every day."
Helen stepped in front of the door.
"Don't."
Marissa stared at her.
"Move."
"You're going to make everything worse."
Marissa's voice dropped.
"You should have thought of that before you promised me the Bennett money."
At 9:40 a.m., Naomi received a call from Principal Harper.
"Coach Carter, the district has concluded there isn't evidence supporting the allegation that you coached Lily into making false statements."
Naomi closed her eyes.
"Thank God."
"The administrative leave is being lifted."
She sat down.
"Can I return Monday?"
"Yes."
Naomi began crying.
Principal Harper waited.
Then she added, "I want you to know something."
"What?"
"Several parents contacted the school. They said you helped their children through difficult situations. They wanted the district to know that."
Naomi wiped her cheeks.
"That's kind of them."
"You've earned it."
For the first time that week, Naomi allowed herself to feel hopeful.
At 10:22 a.m., Lily was scheduled for an appointment with Dr. Price.
Rachel drove.
Daniel followed in his own car.
The appointment took place at a pediatric clinic with security arrangements the family had discussed with investigators.
Lily was nervous.
She didn't like doctors.
But Dr. Price had promised to explain everything before touching her.
That mattered.
A woman in blue scrubs greeted them in the lobby.
"Good morning, Lily."
Lily held Rachel's hand.
"Hi."
The woman smiled.
"I'm here to take you to your appointment."
Rachel frowned.
"Where's Dr. Price's nurse?"
"She's assisting another patient."
Rachel looked at the woman's badge.
The photograph was slightly crooked.
The name read Melissa Grant.
Something felt wrong.
"Can you confirm Lily's appointment time?" Rachel asked.
The woman's smile tightened.
"Of course."
Rachel waited.
The woman glanced at her clipboard.
"Ten-thirty."
Rachel's pulse quickened.
The appointment was at eleven.
"I think we'll check in at the front desk first."
The woman stepped closer.
"Mrs. Bennett, I'm authorized to escort Lily."
Rachel moved Lily behind her.
"I'm not Mrs. Bennett."
The woman's expression changed.
At that moment, Daniel entered the lobby.
He saw Rachel's face.
Then the woman in scrubs.
"Rachel?"
The woman turned toward him.
For an instant, Daniel recognized her.
Not from the clinic.
From a photograph recovered from Rebecca's files.
She had been standing beside Helen Voss at a Westbridge fundraiser.
Daniel shouted, "Security!"
The woman tried to move toward the side entrance.
A guard stepped into her path.
She spun around, dropped the clipboard, and ran toward the elevators.
Daniel started after her.
Then stopped.
Lily was crying.
"Daddy!"
He turned back immediately.
Rachel was holding her.
Daniel crouched.
"I'm here."
The woman disappeared around the corner.
But security cameras captured her face.
And the clipboard she dropped contained a printed appointment schedule.
Lily's name had been circled in red.
Detective Reed arrived within the hour.
The clinic preserved its camera footage.
Staff confirmed the woman wasn't an employee.
Investigators identified her as Melissa Grant, a former Westbridge contractor.
Daniel watched as officers collected the clipboard.
"Marissa sent her."
"We're investigating who arranged it," Reed replied.
Daniel stared at him.
"She tried to take my daughter."
"Someone impersonated clinic staff and attempted to escort Lily. We're treating that seriously."
Daniel looked toward Lily, who sat beside Rachel holding her stuffed rabbit.
He wanted to believe Friday was finished.
He wanted to believe they'd stopped the plan.
But at 12:06 p.m., Reed received a call from Wisconsin.
Owen Mercer had given investigators new information about the facility.
And while inspectors were reviewing records at Hollow Creek, staff discovered that an entire cabinet of files had been emptied overnight.
Among the missing materials were documents identifying other children placed through Westbridge.
Then one employee reported an even more disturbing discovery.
A reservation for a private charter flight had been made under a company name linked to Helen Voss.
The passenger manifest listed three adults.
May you like
And one child.
Lily Bennett.
