Chapter 3: The Stranger Who Knew Their Secret
Marcus didn't think.
He handed Ava to the nurse standing beside him.
“Please stay with my daughter.””
Then he ran.
The man in the gray jacket pushed through the hospital entrance.
Marcus followed him past the reception desk.
“HEY!””
The stranger glanced over his shoulder.
Then he started running.
Marcus chased him through the parking area.
His wet wedding trousers clung to his legs. His bare feet slapped against the pavement.
The stranger reached a black SUV.
Marcus grabbed the back of his jacket.
“Who are you?””
The man swung around and shoved him.
Marcus stumbled into a parked vehicle.
“Get off me!””
“Who sent you?””
The stranger didn't answer.
Instead, he reached inside his jacket.
Marcus grabbed his wrist.
For one terrifying second, he thought the man was reaching for a weapon.
But he pulled out a folded piece of paper.
He shoved it against Marcus's chest.
“Your daughter isn't the only one who saw what happened.””
Then he broke free, climbed into the SUV, and sped away.
Marcus tried to memorize the license plate.
He caught only the first three characters.
He looked down at the paper.
It was a photograph.
Claire stood beside the swimming pool.
The image had been taken from a distance.
Vanessa was standing behind her.
And between them was a little girl wearing a white dress.
Ava.
On the back, someone had written:
ASK YOUR BRIDE WHAT HAPPENED TO THE FIRST CONTRACT.
Marcus stared at the photograph.
The first contract?
What contract?
A police officer arrived twenty minutes later.
Detective Elena Brooks introduced herself as an investigator with the Charleston County Sheriff's Office.
She was in her early forties, with short dark hair and a calm, direct manner.
“Mr. Reed, I understand your wedding was interrupted by a serious incident.””
Marcus almost laughed.
“That's one way to describe it.””
She opened her notebook.
“I need you to tell me exactly what happened.””
He explained the wedding, Ava's warning, his discovery of Claire underwater, and the chain attached to her ankle.
When he finished, Detective Brooks studied him.
“Did you see anyone place your former wife in the pool?””
“No.””
“Did you witness your fiancée assault her?””
“No. My daughter says she did.””
“Your daughter?””
“Yes.””
“How old?””
“Six.””
The detective nodded.
“We'll need to speak with her when she's ready, preferably with a trained child interviewer.””
Marcus showed her the photograph.
Her expression changed.
“Where did you get this?””
“A man gave it to me in the parking lot.””
“Did you get his name?””
“No.””
“Vehicle description?””
“Black SUV. I have part of the plate.””
She photographed the image.
“Don't contact your fiancée or anyone you suspect may be involved.””
Marcus frowned.
“Vanessa?””
“Especially Vanessa.””
“She was at the wedding. She saw everything.””
“Which means she knows what you know.””
Detective Brooks closed her notebook.
“Mr. Reed, I want to ask you something important. Does your fiancée have access to your financial accounts?””
Marcus blinked.
“What?””
“Joint accounts? Business accounts? Property documents?””
“No. We haven't combined finances.””
“Does she have access to your daughter's records?””
“She helped with school pickups occasionally.””
The detective wrote something down.
“Occasionally?””
“Only when I was busy.””
“Did you authorize her to collect Ava from school?””
Marcus hesitated.
“I signed a temporary authorization form.””
“When?””
“About two months ago.””
“Do you remember what it included?””
“No.””
Detective Brooks looked up.
“Find a copy.””
At 8:40 p.m., Marcus finally entered Claire's hospital room.
Machines beeped softly beside her bed.
Her hair had been brushed away from her face, and an oxygen tube rested beneath her nose.
She looked smaller than he remembered.
Fragile.
He approached carefully.
“Claire?””
Her eyelids moved.
Then opened.
For a moment, she looked confused.
Then she saw him.
“Marcus…”
He pulled a chair beside the bed.
“I'm here.””
Her eyes immediately moved toward the door.
“Ava?””
“She is safe.””
Claire began crying.
“Where is she?””
“She's outside with a nurse. She's been asking about you.””
Claire closed her eyes in relief.
“Thank God.””
Marcus took her hand.
“What happened?””
She looked at him.
Then away.
“Not here.””
“Claire, someone tied a chain around your ankle and left you at the bottom of a swimming pool.””
“I know.””
“Vanessa was there.””
Claire's fingers tightened around his.
“Then you know.””
“I know what Ava told me. I need to hear it from you.””
Claire stared at the ceiling.
“Vanessa wanted something from me.””
“What?””
“Your daughter.””
Marcus went still.
“What do you mean?””
Claire swallowed.
“She wanted custody of Ava.””
Marcus frowned.
“She isn't Ava's mother.””
“That's not what she was planning.””
Claire's voice trembled.
“She wanted to make it look like I was unstable. She said you would eventually become convinced I was dangerous.””
Marcus felt anger rising.
“Why would I believe that?””
“Because she was building a story.””
“What story?””
Claire turned her head toward him.
“That I had been neglecting Ava. That I was emotionally abusive. That I had been drinking. That I was threatening to take her away from you.””
Marcus stared at her.
“That's insane.””
“I have recordings.””
“What recordings?””
“Conversations with Vanessa.””
“Why didn't you tell me?””
Claire's eyes filled with tears.
“I tried.””
He remembered her warning that morning.
Please don't leave Ava alone with her.
He lowered his head.
“I should have listened.””
Claire squeezed his hand.
“You didn't know.””
“I should have asked.””
She looked toward the door.
“Marcus, she has been planning this for months.””
“Why?””
Claire hesitated.
Then she whispered something he wasn't expecting.
“Because Vanessa isn't in love with you.””
Marcus felt as if the floor had shifted beneath him.
“What?””
Claire's breathing became uneven.
“She needed your name. Your money. Your company. And your daughter.””
“My company?””
Claire nodded weakly.
“She told me everything.””
Marcus leaned closer.
“What did she tell you?””
Claire's eyes moved toward the window.
Then she spoke.
“Your company owns the land beside the old Riverside development, doesn't it?””
“Yes.””
“She's been trying to get you to sell it.””
Marcus frowned.
The Riverside property was one of his largest assets.
He had inherited the land from his father and developed part of it into a commercial complex.
The remaining section was worth several million dollars.
Vanessa had recently encouraged him to sell it.
She said they could use the money to purchase a larger family home.
Marcus had refused.
He wanted to keep the property.
“Claire, what does that have to do with you?””
“Everything.””
She took a shallow breath.
“Vanessa told me that if I signed a document transferring Ava's guardianship rights, she would leave you alone.””
Marcus stared.
“Guardianship?””
“She said she wanted to make sure Ava was protected if something happened to you.””
“That makes no sense.””
“It was part of the arrangement.””
“What arrangement?””
Claire closed her eyes.
“I found out she had been meeting with someone from your company.””
Marcus leaned forward.
“Who?””
Claire's lips trembled.
“I don't know his full name.””
“Claire.””
“But I heard her call him Daniel.””
Marcus went cold.
Daniel.
There was only one Daniel in his senior management team.
Daniel Foster.
His chief financial officer.
The man who had worked beside him for eleven years.
His friend.
The person who had stood beside him at his father's funeral.
Marcus sat back.
“That's impossible.””
Claire looked at him.
“Marcus, I saw them together.””
“When?””
“Last Thursday.””
“Where?””
“At the Riverside property.””
She squeezed his hand.
“They were arguing about the money. Daniel said the documents weren't ready.””
Marcus's jaw tightened.
“What documents?””
Claire looked directly at him.
“The ones that would give them control of your company.””
A nurse entered the room.
“I'm sorry, Mr. Reed. Your former wife needs to rest.””
Marcus stood.
“Of course.””
Claire grabbed his wrist.
“Wait.””
He bent toward her.
“There's something else.””
“What?””
She struggled to speak.
“The phone.””
“I saw it.””
“There's a recording.””
“Where?””
Claire swallowed.
“Not on the phone. I copied it somewhere else.””
“Where?””
She looked toward the bedside cabinet.
“Inside Ava's rabbit.””
Marcus frowned.
“Her stuffed rabbit?””
Claire nodded.
“Please don't let Vanessa get it.””
He stared at her.
“Why?””
Claire's eyes filled with terror.
“Because it proves she planned to kill me.””
Marcus felt his stomach twist.
Then Claire whispered the final words before the nurse asked him to leave.
“And Marcus…”
“Yes?””
“Daniel wasn't the only person helping her.””
He froze.
“Who else?””
Claire looked toward the door.
May you like
Then she said a name.
“Your mother.””
