Chapter 2: The Woman Who Refused to Die
Richard's knees slammed against the hardwood floor.
"It took you three days to come home."
The voice was calm.
Professional.
He turned slowly.
A woman in a navy blazer stood at the end of the hallway. Her silver badge caught the afternoon light.
Detective Hannah Brooks.
She watched him with the detached expression of someone who had already decided exactly what kind of man he was.
Richard struggled to stand.
"Where's my wife?"
The detective didn't answer immediately.
Instead, she studied him.
His expensive sweater.
The ski goggles still hanging from his designer duffel.
The faint perfume that definitely didn't belong to his wife.
"You should be asking," she replied quietly, "whether she's still alive."
His face drained of color.
"What... what happened?"
Detective Brooks stepped aside.
"You tell me."
Richard stared through the yellow police tape.
The dried blood covered nearly half the nursery floor.
There was far too much.
His stomach twisted.
"She... she must've fallen."
The detective folded her arms.
"Interesting."
"We haven't released any details about her injuries."
Richard froze.
"I..."
"You knew she was injured before you left."
Silence.
The detective continued.
"Our forensic team found blood beginning beside the bassinet."
She pointed toward a long smear stretching across the carpet.
"Your wife tried to crawl."
Richard swallowed.
"We also found fingerprints on the changing table."
His breathing became uneven.
"She reached for her phone."
The detective's eyes locked onto his.
"But someone had already taken it."
Richard felt sweat forming beneath his collar.
"I don't know anything about that."
"No?"
She removed a clear evidence bag.
Inside was Clara's phone.
Recovered from the hidden compartment beneath the driver's seat of Richard's SUV.
His entire body stiffened.
"We executed a search warrant on your vehicle."
His lips parted.
No words came.
Detective Brooks' voice remained perfectly controlled.
"The phone still contained your fingerprints."
"And every emergency call your wife tried to make before losing consciousness."
Richard stared at the evidence bag as if it were a loaded weapon.
For the first time...
May you like
He realized this wasn't going to end with an argument.
It was becoming a homicide investigation.
