Chapter 5 - THE MAN ACROSS THE STREET
Adrian spun toward the window.
Across the street, a black SUV sat beside the curb.
Dark windows.
Engine running.
Rachel jumped up.
“Get down!”
She pulled Sophie behind the desk.
Adrian ran toward the lobby doors.
Rachel grabbed him.
“Don’t!”
“My daughter—”
“Your daughter is right here. That call was meant to make you panic.”
The SUV pulled away.
Adrian watched it disappear into traffic.
Lucas was still on the phone.
“You always were emotional.”
Adrian put the phone back to his ear.
“If you come near Sophie, I’ll kill you.”
“Careful. Threats can sound ugly in court.”
“You murdered Emily.”
Silence.
Then Lucas sighed.
“Emily got herself into trouble.”
Adrian’s fist tightened.
“What did you do?”
“You should ask your girlfriend.”
“She’s not my girlfriend anymore.”
Lucas laughed.
“That won’t matter.”
The call ended.
Rachel looked at Adrian.
“He wants you angry.”
“He got it.”
“That’s exactly the problem.”
Adrian crouched beside Sophie.
“You okay?”
She nodded, but tears filled her eyes.
“Uncle Lucas hurt Mommy?”
Adrian didn’t know how to answer.
Rachel did.
“We don’t know everything yet.”
Sophie looked at Adrian.
“But Mommy knew.”
Adrian hugged her.
“Yes.”
That answer hurt more than anything.
Because Emily had known she was in danger.
And Adrian hadn’t.
He had been too busy.
Too distracted.
And Vanessa had made sure he stayed that way.
For months before Emily’s accident, Vanessa had become indispensable at work.
Coffee.
Schedules.
Late meetings.
Travel arrangements.
Every crisis ran through her.
Every interruption.
Every message.
Now Adrian understood why.
She hadn’t entered his life after Emily died.
She had been inside it long before.
Rachel drove them to a safe apartment she used for witnesses.
No one knew the address.
At least, that was the theory.
By sunset, Adrian had called his attorney and frozen several corporate accounts.
He also sent copies of Emily’s files to three separate encrypted locations.
At 9:17 p.m., someone knocked.
Three slow taps.
Rachel pulled a gun from a drawer.
Sophie stared.
Adrian whispered, “Bedroom. Now.”
She ran.
Rachel approached the door.
“Who is it?”
A man answered.
“Daniel Mercer.”
Rachel’s face changed.
Adrian noticed.
“You know him?”
She didn’t answer.
The man outside spoke again.
“I was the detective on Emily Cole’s case.”
Adrian’s eyes hardened.
“The corrupt detective?”
Rachel lifted the gun.
“Go away, Mercer.”
“I can’t.”
“Try.”
“I have proof Lucas paid me.”
Adrian stepped toward the door.
Rachel blocked him.
“Could be a trap.”
Mercer said, “Vanessa tried to kill me tonight.”
Rachel and Adrian exchanged a look.
Adrian unlocked the door.
Mercer stumbled inside.
Blood covered his shirt.
He collapsed to one knee.
Rachel caught him.
“What happened?”
Mercer pulled a small digital recorder from his jacket.
“Three years ago, Lucas paid me to bury evidence.”
Adrian’s voice shook with rage.
“You took his money?”
“Yes.”
“You son of a—”
“I know.”
Mercer looked at him.
“But I kept one thing.”
“What?”
“The original emergency call from Emily’s crash.”
Adrian stared at the recorder.
Mercer pressed play.
Static.
Rain.
Emily crying.
Then her voice.
“Someone hit me.”
A dispatcher asked, “Ma’am, can you see the vehicle?”
Emily breathed heavily.
“Yes.”
“What kind?”
“A black SUV.”
Adrian’s stomach tightened.
The recording crackled.
Then Emily whispered something that made Adrian’s knees weak.
“I know the driver.”
The dispatcher asked, “Who is it?”
May you like
Emily answered.
“Vanessa Reed.”
