Chapter 2 - THE MAN IN THE GARAGE
Daniel pulled Lily behind him as the automatic garage door began to rise.
“Noah, upstairs. Lock the bedroom. Call 911.”
Noah did not move. “There was a man in the office before I went in.”
Vanessa seized the cane again and swung. Daniel blocked the blow with his forearm. Pain flashed to his shoulder.
“You should have stayed at work!” she screamed.
The words frightened him more than the weapon. His early return had not interrupted an argument. It had interrupted a plan.
An engine roared. Through the kitchen window, Daniel saw a dark-blue sedan tear out of the driveway. Its left headlight was cracked.
Vanessa wrenched free and ran barefoot into the rain.
Daniel almost followed. Then Lily screamed upstairs.
He chose his daughter.
Detective Maya Ruiz arrived twenty minutes later. She had tired eyes, a steady voice, and the unnerving habit of watching people after they finished speaking.
“This certificate was never filed with the county,” she said. “Right now, it proves only that somebody wanted you to think Claire was dead.”
Noah appeared on the staircase.
“It is real,” he whispered.
Daniel looked at him. “How could you know?”
“Because Mom told me she might die.”
May you like
He opened his fist. A tiny brass key rested in his palm.
“She told me where to look when I turned thirteen.”
