By seven that morning, Wyatt had been moved again.<\/p>\n
This time nobody entered the transfer into a hospital computer.<\/p>\n
No ambulance coordinator received a route.<\/p>\n
No administrator printed paperwork.<\/p>\n
Agent Keene used a federal medical team, an unmarked vehicle, and a service entrance not listed on public maps.<\/p>\n
Wyatt went to a secure rehabilitation wing attached to a military medical facility outside the city.<\/p>\n
I learned the destination only after he arrived.<\/p>\n
That was fine with me.<\/p>\n
I was beginning to appreciate ignorance as a security measure.<\/p>\n
Wyatt called.<\/p>\n
\u201cBlue baseball.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThere never was one.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cGood.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou all right?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMy knee hates every vehicle ever manufactured.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat sounds normal.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere are you?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSafe.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s not an answer.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s the answer you\u2019re getting.\u201d<\/p>\n
He laughed quietly.<\/p>\n
Then his tone changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid they find where Randall planned to take me?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMove W first.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat does it mean?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re working on it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI hate that sentence.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo do I.\u201d<\/p>\n
Federal agents searched every property tied to Irving, Randall, Gerald Pike, Marissa Vale, Meridian, Crosswind, and Ozark Agricultural Partners.<\/p>\n
Nothing fit.<\/p>\n
Lewis came to the safe house with Denise shortly after noon.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe need Sabrina.\u201d<\/p>\n
I disliked the idea immediately.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor what?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe may know where Irving moved people.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe already gave you the lake house.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe searched it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNothing that explains MOVE W FIRST.\u201d<\/p>\n
Denise placed several photographs on the table.<\/p>\n
Storage buildings.<\/p>\n
Old farms.<\/p>\n
Cabins.<\/p>\n
Industrial properties.<\/p>\n
\u201cRecognize any?\u201d<\/p>\n
I did not.<\/p>\n
\u201cWyatt?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s looking separately.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lewis said, \u201cSabrina may.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe\u2019ll trade.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cProbably.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFor what?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cProtection.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe already has it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe wants relocation away from her father\u2019s jail network.\u201d<\/p>\n
That phrase caught me.<\/p>\n
\u201cJail network?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIrving has been passing messages.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOther inmates. Attorneys. Visitors. We\u2019ve stopped several.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s still directing people?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe think so.\u201d<\/p>\n
I felt anger rise.<\/p>\n
\u201cThen isolate him.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cProsecutors are working on it.\u201d<\/p>\n
The law moved more carefully than anger.<\/p>\n
That was probably why civilization survived.<\/p>\n
Sabrina agreed to talk without Wyatt present.<\/p>\n
I watched through glass.<\/p>\n
She looked smaller than before.<\/p>\n
Not innocent.<\/p>\n
Just tired.<\/p>\n
Lewis placed Randall\u2019s schedule in front of her.<\/p>\n
MOVE W FIRST.<\/p>\n
Sabrina read it.<\/p>\n
Her face changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou need to move Wyatt.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe did.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAgain.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s secure.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou don\u2019t understand.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lewis leaned forward.<\/p>\n
\u201cThen help me.\u201d<\/p>\n
She looked toward the mirrored glass.<\/p>\n
\u201cIs Abraham there?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cGood.\u201d<\/p>\n
I did not know why that mattered.<\/p>\n
She pointed to the note.<\/p>\n
\u201cW doesn\u2019t mean Wyatt.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lewis stared.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt means witness.\u201d<\/p>\n
My pulse changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhich witness?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow do you know?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMy father used codes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cW for witness?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen what did he call Wyatt?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cJunior.\u201d<\/p>\n
I hated that.<\/p>\n
Irving had reduced my son to a category.<\/p>\n
Lewis asked, \u201cWho is the witness?\u201d<\/p>\n
Sabrina shook her head.<\/p>\n
\u201cDad kept separate lists.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cLake house.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe found them.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo. You found the steel box.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lewis stopped.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s another place?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n
Sabrina stared at the table.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe red room.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat red room?\u201d<\/p>\n
She looked confused.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou didn\u2019t find it?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
That frightened her.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe lake house has a room under the garage.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe searched beneath the garage.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNot there.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen where?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe entrance is outside.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShow me.\u201d<\/p>\n
She asked for a map.<\/p>\n
Lewis gave her one.<\/p>\n
Sabrina marked a point about eighty yards from the lake house near the shoreline.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s an old pump shed.\u201d<\/p>\n
Agents had searched it.<\/p>\n
Nothing.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe floor lifts.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lewis immediately called the team.<\/p>\n
While they searched, he continued questioning.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat is the red room?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMy father\u2019s archive.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy red?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe walls.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPainted?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
She swallowed.<\/p>\n
\u201cSoundproofing.\u201d<\/p>\n
Red acoustic panels.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did he keep there?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cRecords.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat kind?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople.\u201d<\/p>\n
The answer sounded wrong until she explained.<\/p>\n
Irving maintained dossiers.<\/p>\n
Debts.<\/p>\n
Affairs.<\/p>\n
Criminal histories.<\/p>\n
Medical records.<\/p>\n
Photographs.<\/p>\n
Recordings.<\/p>\n
Anything that could be used as pressure.<\/p>\n
Gerald Pike had helped gather them.<\/p>\n
The lake house stored the active files.<\/p>\n
Lewis asked, \u201cWere you in there?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTwice.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAfter Mom died.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI was looking for her records.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you find them?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did you find?\u201d<\/p>\n
Sabrina hesitated.<\/p>\n
\u201cVideos.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat videos?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople being questioned.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBy Irving?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSometimes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cRandall?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
My stomach tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat happened to those people?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lewis did not let her escape.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou watched videos.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWere they restrained?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSome.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cInjured?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd you never went to police.\u201d<\/p>\n
She closed her eyes.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Again, victim and participant occupied the same chair.<\/p>\n
Lewis asked, \u201cWho might W be?\u201d<\/p>\n
Sabrina thought.<\/p>\n
\u201cSomeone Dad believed could testify.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat includes half the case.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe ranked them.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cRed, yellow, green.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMeaning?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cRed meant immediate danger.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYellow?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCould become dangerous.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cGreen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cUseful.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat color was Wyatt?\u201d<\/p>\n
She looked toward the glass.<\/p>\n
\u201cRed.\u201d<\/p>\n
I felt nothing surprising anymore.<\/p>\n
\u201cAbraham?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYellow until Christmas.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cRed.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cVictor?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cRed.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCaleb?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYellow.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cLaura Mercer?\u201d<\/p>\n
Sabrina froze.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou found Laura?\u201d<\/p>\n
Lewis ignored the question.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat color?\u201d<\/p>\n
Sabrina whispered, \u201cBlack.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lewis leaned forward.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat does black mean?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cGuess.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMy father only used it twice.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFor whom?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMy mother.\u201d<\/p>\n
The room went cold.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd Laura.\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret had been murdered.<\/p>\n
If black meant what it appeared to mean, Laura had been marked for elimination years ago.<\/p>\n
Lewis asked, \u201cWhy wasn\u2019t she killed?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDad couldn\u2019t find her.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cRandall found her six months ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sabrina\u2019s face changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cThen Laura is W.\u201d<\/p>\n
Maybe.<\/p>\n
Move witness first.<\/p>\n
Randall might intend to move Laura before attacking me.<\/p>\n
But Laura was under federal protection.<\/p>\n
Unless her location had leaked too.<\/p>\n
Lewis called immediately.<\/p>\n
She was safe.<\/p>\n
Frank answered from beside her.<\/p>\n
\u201cBlue baseball,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
I nearly smiled.<\/p>\n
\u201cWrong family.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWyatt told me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cLaura there?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPut her on.\u201d<\/p>\n
Laura came to the phone.<\/p>\n
Lewis asked whether she knew any place Irving used for witnesses.<\/p>\n
She was silent.<\/p>\n
Then she said, \u201cHawthorne.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat is Hawthorne?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAn old psychiatric facility.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sabrina, hearing through speakerphone, looked up sharply.<\/p>\n
\u201cHawthorne?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou know it?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Laura continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt closed years ago. Irving represented an investment group that bought part of the property.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lewis searched.<\/p>\n
Hawthorne Behavioral Center sat forty miles east of Springfield.<\/p>\n
Abandoned for twelve years.<\/p>\n
Ownership passed through several companies.<\/p>\n
One connected indirectly to Gerald Pike.<\/p>\n
Agents moved.<\/p>\n
The lake-house search team called at almost the same moment.<\/p>\n
They had found the red room.<\/p>\n
The pump-shed floor concealed a narrow staircase.<\/p>\n
Below it was a climate-controlled archive.<\/p>\n
Hundreds of files.<\/p>\n
Video drives.<\/p>\n
Cash.<\/p>\n
Weapons.<\/p>\n
And a wall covered with photographs.<\/p>\n
Active targets.<\/p>\n
Lewis asked them to find Laura.<\/p>\n
Black mark.<\/p>\n
Then Margaret.<\/p>\n
Black.<\/p>\n
Then Wyatt.<\/p>\n
Red.<\/p>\n
Me.<\/p>\n
Red.<\/p>\n
Victor.<\/p>\n
Red.<\/p>\n
Caleb.<\/p>\n
Yellow.<\/p>\n
Daniel Reeves.<\/p>\n
Red.<\/p>\n
Marissa Vale.<\/p>\n
Green.<\/p>\n
Gerald Pike.<\/p>\n
Green.<\/p>\n
Stephen Randall.<\/p>\n
No photograph.<\/p>\n
That made sense.<\/p>\n
He was not a target.<\/p>\n
He was the instrument.<\/p>\n
Then an agent found a file marked W.<\/p>\n
Lewis ordered it opened.<\/p>\n
Inside was a photograph.<\/p>\n
Not Laura.<\/p>\n
Not Victor.<\/p>\n
Not Caleb.<\/p>\n
An elderly man stood outside a church.<\/p>\n
I recognized him after a second.<\/p>\n
Howard Bell.<\/p>\n
Our retired attorney.<\/p>\n
The man who helped Eleanor draft the original Jefferson agreements.<\/p>\n
MOVE W FIRST.<\/p>\n
Witness.<\/p>\n
Howard.<\/p>\n
I called him.<\/p>\n
No answer.<\/p>\n
Again.<\/p>\n
Nothing.<\/p>\n
Lewis contacted Tulsa police.<\/p>\n
Howard\u2019s home was empty.<\/p>\n
Front door unlocked.<\/p>\n
Coffee still warm.<\/p>\n
His car remained in the garage.<\/p>\n
Security footage from a neighbor showed a medical transport van arriving shortly after dawn.<\/p>\n
A man wearing medical scrubs knocked.<\/p>\n
Howard opened the door.<\/p>\n
They spoke.<\/p>\n
Then Howard voluntarily entered the van.<\/p>\n
No struggle.<\/p>\n
Randall knew exactly how to make people cooperate.<\/p>\n
Lewis called Howard\u2019s doctor.<\/p>\n
No medical transport had been scheduled.<\/p>\n
The van was traced through traffic cameras.<\/p>\n
East.<\/p>\n
Toward Missouri.<\/p>\n
Toward Hawthorne.<\/p>\n
Agents converged.<\/p>\n
I wanted to go.<\/p>\n
Lewis refused.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is not your rescue.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s my friend.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s also eighty-one and possibly being held by armed men. You showing up does not improve that.\u201d<\/p>\n
He was right.<\/p>\n
I hated him for approximately ten seconds.<\/p>\n
Then we waited.<\/p>\n
Waiting is worse than action because imagination fills every empty minute.<\/p>\n
At 3:12 p.m., agents reached Hawthorne.<\/p>\n
The property covered dozens of acres.<\/p>\n
Broken windows.<\/p>\n
Overgrown courtyards.<\/p>\n
Several buildings.<\/p>\n
They found the transport van behind an old treatment wing.<\/p>\n
Empty.<\/p>\n
Inside were Howard\u2019s glasses.<\/p>\n
Blood on one armrest.<\/p>\n
Not much.<\/p>\n
Enough.<\/p>\n
Teams entered.<\/p>\n
The first building was empty.<\/p>\n
The second contained old medical furniture.<\/p>\n
The third showed recent use.<\/p>\n
Generator.<\/p>\n
Food.<\/p>\n
Blankets.<\/p>\n
Restraints.<\/p>\n
No Howard.<\/p>\n
Then shots were fired.<\/p>\n
Lewis\u2019s radio filled with voices.<\/p>\n
One agent injured.<\/p>\n
Suspect moving between buildings.<\/p>\n
No identification.<\/p>\n
Frank paced.<\/p>\n
I sat because if I started pacing too, neither of us would stop.<\/p>\n
Ten minutes later, agents found Howard.<\/p>\n
Alive.<\/p>\n
Locked inside a former therapy room.<\/p>\n
His forehead was cut.<\/p>\n
One wrist bruised.<\/p>\n
But he could speak.<\/p>\n
\u201cRandall?\u201d<\/p>\n
Lewis asked through radio.<\/p>\n
Howard answered.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was here.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAlone?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWho?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWoman.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMarissa Vale?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know her name.\u201d<\/p>\n
Description matched.<\/p>\n
\u201cGerald Pike?\u201d<\/p>\n
Howard shook his head.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did they want?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cJefferson.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat specifically?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe option.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you give them anything?\u201d<\/p>\n
Howard almost laughed.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m old, not stupid.\u201d<\/p>\n
That sounded like him.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did they ask?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow to invalidate it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI told them the truth.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat truth?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThey can\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n
That was the first good news.<\/p>\n
The option was too deeply embedded in the original land agreements.<\/p>\n
Without Wyatt and me voluntarily terminating it, Irving\u2019s plan could not survive a court challenge.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy kidnap you then?\u201d<\/p>\n
Howard\u2019s expression changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey wanted something else.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cEleanor\u2019s original trust certificate.\u201d<\/p>\n
My attention sharpened.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat certificate?\u201d<\/p>\n
Howard looked toward the camera.<\/p>\n
\u201cAbe knows.\u201d<\/p>\n
I did not.<\/p>\n
That frightened me.<\/p>\n
Howard continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cEleanor created a physical verification instrument.\u201d<\/p>\n
Laura appeared confused too.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat are you talking about?\u201d<\/p>\n
Howard explained.<\/p>\n
When the trust was amended fifteen years earlier, Eleanor worried about forged signatures.<\/p>\n
So Howard created an authentication certificate.<\/p>\n
Any major delegation of trust authority required a code printed on that certificate.<\/p>\n
Without the code, documents could be challenged immediately.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere is it?\u201d Lewis asked.<\/p>\n
Howard looked at me through the video connection.<\/p>\n
\u201cEleanor kept it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI never saw it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe said she hid it somewhere nobody searching business files would look.\u201d<\/p>\n
That sounded exactly like her.<\/p>\n
Randall had kidnapped Howard because he believed the attorney knew where it was.<\/p>\n
He did not.<\/p>\n
But he knew I might.<\/p>\n
Agents continued searching Hawthorne.<\/p>\n
They found Marissa Vale in a service tunnel.<\/p>\n
She surrendered.<\/p>\n
Randall escaped.<\/p>\n
Again.<\/p>\n
Gerald Pike was not there.<\/p>\n
Marissa asked for an attorney.<\/p>\n
Then changed her mind when agents told her Howard survived.<\/p>\n
She had not expected that.<\/p>\n
She said Randall planned to kill him after getting the certificate location.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat changed?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe ran when police came.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat about Gerald?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s meeting him.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lewis leaned closer.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat happens at six?\u201d<\/p>\n
Marissa\u2019s face changed.<\/p>\n
She knew the schedule.<\/p>\n
\u201cNothing now.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat was supposed to happen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHoward first.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAbraham.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow?\u201d<\/p>\n
She looked toward me through the camera.<\/p>\n
\u201cRandall was going to call him.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSay what?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat Wyatt had been taken.\u201d<\/p>\n
My pulse slowed.<\/p>\n
Exactly what Wyatt predicted.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat proof?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cA video.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOf Wyatt?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen what?\u201d<\/p>\n
Marissa looked ashamed.<\/p>\n
\u201cA recording from the basement.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sabrina and Irving had filmed Wyatt during captivity.<\/p>\n
Randall intended to send me old footage and claim it was current.<\/p>\n
Then demand I come alone with the trust certificate.<\/p>\n
Blue baseball.<\/p>\n
Wyatt had saved me from a trap before it was even sprung.<\/p>\n
Lewis asked Marissa, \u201cWhere was Abraham supposed to go?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHawthorne.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen why attack the hospital?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTo make him afraid enough to believe Wyatt could be taken again.\u201d<\/p>\n
The hospital attack had not only been an assassination attempt.<\/p>\n
It was psychological preparation.<\/p>\n
Make me believe nowhere was safe.<\/p>\n
Then show me footage.<\/p>\n
Then demand obedience.<\/p>\n
Use the father.<\/p>\n
Lewis asked, \u201cWhat happens if Randall cannot get the certificate?\u201d<\/p>\n
Marissa stared at the table.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe has another plan.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWho does?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cGerald.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat kind of plan?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe said Abraham doesn\u2019t need to sign if the trust can be frozen.\u201d<\/p>\n
Laura immediately understood.<\/p>\n
\u201cA legal challenge.\u201d<\/p>\n
Marissa nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cGerald has a judge.\u201d<\/p>\n
The conspiracy had begun with a former judge helping Irving find vulnerable people.<\/p>\n
Now Gerald Pike intended to use another judge to freeze the Yates trust before March.<\/p>\n
If the trust were tied up in litigation when the freight corridor received designation, Heartland might be unable to exercise the Jefferson option.<\/p>\n
Irving did not need to win forever.<\/p>\n
Only until the deadline passed.<\/p>\n
Lewis asked, \u201cWhich judge?\u201d<\/p>\n
Marissa shook her head.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
Then she remembered one word.<\/p>\n
\u201cCrown.\u201d<\/p>\n
It meant nothing to me.<\/p>\n
Laura reacted immediately.<\/p>\n
\u201cCrown Petition.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat is that?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cA sealed emergency filing used in certain trust disputes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWho can file it?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSomeone claiming beneficiary rights.\u201d<\/p>\n
My stomach tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cWho could claim rights to my trust?\u201d<\/p>\n
Laura looked at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cFamily.\u201d<\/p>\n
There were very few people.<\/p>\n
Wyatt.<\/p>\n
Me.<\/p>\n
And through marriage, arguments could be attempted by Sabrina.<\/p>\n
But Sabrina was in custody and cooperating.<\/p>\n
Unless Irving had prepared someone else.<\/p>\n
Laura asked Howard a question.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid Eleanor ever amend contingent beneficiaries?\u201d<\/p>\n
Howard went quiet.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWho?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI need the trust schedule.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHoward.\u201d<\/p>\n
He looked uncomfortable.<\/p>\n
\u201cAfter Eleanor\u2019s death, if both Abraham and Wyatt were incapacitated, temporary beneficial supervision passed to a designated family representative.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWho?\u201d<\/p>\n
Howard answered.<\/p>\n
\u201cSabrina.\u201d<\/p>\n
The room went silent.<\/p>\n
Sabrina herself looked stunned when Lewis told her.<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
Maybe she did not.<\/p>\n
Irving might have known.<\/p>\n
If both Wyatt and I were declared incapacitated\u2014or dead\u2014Sabrina could claim standing to challenge trust administration.<\/p>\n
That explained why she remained useful even after the murders.<\/p>\n
But Sabrina was now charged with trying to kill Wyatt.<\/p>\n
Any court would question her claim.<\/p>\n
Unless another document existed.<\/p>\n
Howard\u2019s face tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s one more contingent representative.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWho?\u201d<\/p>\n
He looked at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cEleanor added the person because she wanted someone independent of immediate family.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWho, Howard?\u201d<\/p>\n
He said the name.<\/p>\n
Frank Mercer.<\/p>\n
My oldest friend.<\/p>\n
The man sitting beside me.<\/p>\n
Frank stared at the screen as if Howard had spoken in another language.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m what?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou were the backup trust protector.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI never agreed to that.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou signed.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFifteen years ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
Frank\u2019s face changed.<\/p>\n
He remembered.<\/p>\n
\u201cEleanor told me it was emergency paperwork.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was.\u201d<\/p>\n
Laura whispered, \u201cDad.\u201d<\/p>\n
Frank stood.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lewis looked at him.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
Frank stared toward the front window of the safe house.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey don\u2019t need Sabrina.\u201d<\/p>\n
His voice had become very quiet.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey need me.\u201d<\/p>\n
At that exact moment, an agent outside shouted.<\/p>\n
Glass shattered.<\/p>\n
A bullet struck the wall where Frank had been sitting seconds earlier.<\/p>\n
Agents dragged us to the floor.<\/p>\n
Another shot came through the window.<\/p>\n
Then tires screamed outside.<\/p>\n
By the time federal vehicles reached the road, the shooter was gone.<\/p>\n
But the message was unmistakable.<\/p>\n
Randall and Gerald had stopped trying to use Wyatt against me.<\/p>\n
They had discovered a different path into Eleanor\u2019s trust.<\/p>\n
And Frank Mercer had just become the most valuable man in their plan.<\/p>\n
By seven that morning, Wyatt had been moved again. This time nobody entered the transfer into a hospital computer. No ambulance coordinator received a route. No administrator printed paperwork. Agent … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":10775,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10789","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-insightdrama"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10789","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=10789"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10789\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10809,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10789\/revisions\/10809"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/10775"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=10789"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=10789"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=10789"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}