Nobody moved.<\/p>\n
Graham Voss stood just inside Richard Sterling\u2019s library with his pistol angled toward Victor\u2019s chest. He was older than the photograph from the vault, heavier through the shoulders, his hair almost entirely gray, but his face carried the same calm expression. That disturbed me more than anger would have. He looked like a man arriving for an appointment.<\/p>\n
Victor had shifted half a step in front of Luna. Samira was somewhere outside the house. Derek stood near Richard\u2019s desk. Eleanor remained beside the concealed safe-room entrance. Thomas was closest to me.<\/p>\n
Voss looked at him.<\/p>\n
\u201cTwenty-two years.\u201d<\/p>\n
Thomas said nothing.<\/p>\n
\u201cI always wondered what you would look like when you finally got tired of running.\u201d<\/p>\n
Thomas\u2019s voice was quiet. \u201cDisappointed?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOlder.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat happens when someone spends half his life looking over his shoulder.\u201d<\/p>\n
Voss smiled.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou chose that life.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo. You did.\u201d<\/p>\n
The smile disappeared.<\/p>\n
Luna stepped forward before Victor could stop her.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou attacked Naomi.\u201d<\/p>\n
Voss glanced at her.<\/p>\n
\u201cYour assistant was unfortunate.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe has a concussion.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe should have handed over the badge.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe didn\u2019t know anything.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat was difficult to establish while she was resisting.\u201d<\/p>\n
Luna\u2019s face changed.<\/p>\n
I caught her arm.<\/p>\n
Not because she needed controlling.<\/p>\n
Because I knew that expression now.<\/p>\n
She was about to do something dangerous simply because fear had become anger.<\/p>\n
Voss noticed my hand.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo that\u2019s Adam.\u201d<\/p>\n
I felt Thomas stiffen beside me.<\/p>\n
Voss looked me over with clinical interest.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou were much smaller the last time I saw you.\u201d<\/p>\n
My stomach dropped.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYour ninth birthday.\u201d<\/p>\n
Thomas stepped between us.<\/p>\n
\u201cDon\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n
Voss\u2019s eyes remained on me.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou had a bicycle with red handlebars.\u201d<\/p>\n
I remembered it.<\/p>\n
Dad had taught me to ride it two weeks earlier.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat were you doing there?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWatching your father.\u201d<\/p>\n
Thomas said, \u201cEnough.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDoes he know?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cKnow what?\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked at my father.<\/p>\n
His face told me there was another truth coming.<\/p>\n
I was beginning to hate that expression.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
Thomas kept his eyes on Voss.<\/p>\n
\u201cNot now.\u201d<\/p>\n
Voss chuckled.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou had twenty-two years.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShut up.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTwenty-two birthdays. Twenty-two Christmases. Graduation. College. First job.\u201d<\/p>\n
Thomas moved.<\/p>\n
The pistol rose.<\/p>\n
Victor said sharply, \u201cThomas.\u201d<\/p>\n
My father stopped.<\/p>\n
Voss smiled again.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat temper nearly got you killed the first time.\u201d<\/p>\n
Derek spoke from behind Richard\u2019s desk.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat do you want?\u201d<\/p>\n
Voss turned.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s Richard\u2019s son.\u201d<\/p>\n
Derek\u2019s jaw tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou worked for me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo. You paid me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat\u2019s the distinction?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou thought that meant you controlled me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Voss\u2019s eyes moved toward Luna.<\/p>\n
\u201cYour father made the same mistake.\u201d<\/p>\n
Luna said, \u201cWhere are the original files?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSafe.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou removed them from this room.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow?\u201d<\/p>\n
That interested him.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou still haven\u2019t worked it out?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe room requires three biometric credentials.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cRichard liked theater.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnswer her,\u201d Victor said.<\/p>\n
Voss pointed the gun at him more directly.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re the employee in this room with the least reason to die. Don\u2019t volunteer.\u201d<\/p>\n
Victor did not move.<\/p>\n
Voss looked back at Luna.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe biometric system was added after the room already existed. Your father needed a way to enter during construction.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cA mechanical override.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cGood.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n
Voss nodded toward Thomas.<\/p>\n
\u201cAsk him.\u201d<\/p>\n
Everyone looked at my father.<\/p>\n
Thomas closed his eyes.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou knew?\u201d<\/p>\n
Luna asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy didn\u2019t you say anything?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause Richard told me never to use it unless one of the three designated people was dead.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cRichard is dead.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe designated people are you, me, and Eleanor.\u201d<\/p>\n
Luna\u2019s anger sharpened.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo Voss knew about the override.\u201d<\/p>\n
Thomas looked at him.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe shouldn\u2019t have.\u201d<\/p>\n
Voss shrugged.<\/p>\n
\u201cRichard kept too many notes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou stole them the night he died.\u201d<\/p>\n
There was no question in Thomas\u2019s voice.<\/p>\n
Voss\u2019s expression barely changed.<\/p>\n
But that was enough.<\/p>\n
Luna saw it.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo you were searching the house while my father was dying.\u201d<\/p>\n
Voss said nothing.<\/p>\n
Derek\u2019s face drained.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou were in his study.\u201d<\/p>\n
Voss looked toward him.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou invited me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI invited you to talk to him.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd we talked.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did you do?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNothing your conscience can outsource to me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Derek stepped around the desk.<\/p>\n
Victor immediately said, \u201cStay where you are.\u201d<\/p>\n
Derek ignored him.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy father collapsed fifteen minutes after you spoke to him.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYour father had severe coronary disease.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you touch his medication?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you give him anything?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen what happened?\u201d<\/p>\n
Voss looked almost bored.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe became angry.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAt what?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe truth.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat truth?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat Sterling existed because men like Richard were willing to do ugly things and call them necessary.\u201d<\/p>\n
Luna\u2019s voice was cold.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is not an answer.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is the only one you need.\u201d<\/p>\n
Thomas spoke.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe threatened Richard.\u201d<\/p>\n
Voss looked at him.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou weren\u2019t there.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI knew Richard.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou knew the version of Richard that needed forgiveness.\u201d<\/p>\n
Thomas took one careful step forward.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou told him you still had copies.\u201d<\/p>\n
Voss\u2019s eyes narrowed.<\/p>\n
There.<\/p>\n
Thomas had guessed correctly.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou told him if he exposed you, everything would come out. The surveillance. The bribes. The client information. The politicians. The shell accounts.\u201d<\/p>\n
Derek stared at Voss.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat shell accounts?\u201d<\/p>\n
Voss ignored him.<\/p>\n
Thomas continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd Richard told you he didn\u2019t care anymore.\u201d<\/p>\n
For the first time, Voss looked genuinely irritated.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou have always been too confident in your imagination.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Thomas reached slowly toward his jacket.<\/p>\n
The pistol snapped toward him.<\/p>\n
\u201cHands where I can see them.\u201d<\/p>\n
Thomas stopped.<\/p>\n
\u201cI have his recording.\u201d<\/p>\n
Luna looked at him.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat recording?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cRichard called me that night.\u201d<\/p>\n
The room changed.<\/p>\n
Even Voss looked surprised.<\/p>\n
Thomas met Luna\u2019s eyes.<\/p>\n
\u201cAfter Derek arrived.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou spoke to my father the night he died?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy didn\u2019t you tell us?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause I didn\u2019t have the whole recording until recently.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat makes no sense.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was routed through a dead-drop service. Richard knew his phone might be searched.\u201d<\/p>\n
Voss\u2019s calm finally cracked.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere is it?\u201d<\/p>\n
Thomas looked at him.<\/p>\n
\u201cSafe.\u201d<\/p>\n
The same word Voss had used.<\/p>\n
I understood what my father was doing.<\/p>\n
Buying time.<\/p>\n
Voss did too.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re lying.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAm I?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou came here for the originals.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI came here because Richard\u2019s recording told me what you took.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
Thomas smiled without humor.<\/p>\n
\u201cNow you\u2019re asking questions.\u201d<\/p>\n
A faint noise came from outside.<\/p>\n
A car door.<\/p>\n
Voss heard it.<\/p>\n
So did Victor.<\/p>\n
Samira.<\/p>\n
Voss stepped farther into the room.<\/p>\n
\u201cEveryone inside the safe room.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nobody moved.<\/p>\n
\u201cNow.\u201d<\/p>\n
Victor said, \u201cThat room has one exit.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s the point.\u201d<\/p>\n
Luna looked at him.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou intend to lock us inside.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI intend to leave.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWith the files.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWith what belongs to me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Thomas laughed.<\/p>\n
\u201cThose files are evidence of crimes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThose files are insurance.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAgainst whom?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cEveryone.\u201d<\/p>\n
Voss motioned with the pistol.<\/p>\n
\u201cInside.\u201d<\/p>\n
Victor moved first, slowly.<\/p>\n
Luna followed.<\/p>\n
Eleanor.<\/p>\n
Derek.<\/p>\n
I remained beside Thomas.<\/p>\n
Voss looked at us.<\/p>\n
\u201cAdam.\u201d<\/p>\n
Thomas whispered, \u201cDo what he says.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked at my father.<\/p>\n
\u201cNot without you.\u201d<\/p>\n
Something moved across his face.<\/p>\n
Pain.<\/p>\n
Pride.<\/p>\n
Regret.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou always were stubborn.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo I\u2019ve been told.\u201d<\/p>\n
We entered together.<\/p>\n
The safe room was larger than it had seemed initially, perhaps twelve feet deep, lined with shelves and fireproof cabinets.<\/p>\n
Voss stayed at the threshold.<\/p>\n
\u201cPhones.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nobody moved.<\/p>\n
\u201cPut them on the floor.\u201d<\/p>\n
One by one, we did.<\/p>\n
Victor\u2019s first.<\/p>\n
Luna\u2019s.<\/p>\n
Derek\u2019s.<\/p>\n
Mine.<\/p>\n
Eleanor\u2019s.<\/p>\n
Thomas removed an old flip phone.<\/p>\n
Voss stared.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re still using those?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019re harder to make interesting.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDrop it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Thomas did.<\/p>\n
Voss looked at Victor.<\/p>\n
\u201cWeapon.\u201d<\/p>\n
Victor slowly removed his pistol and placed it beside the phones.<\/p>\n
Voss kicked everything toward the library.<\/p>\n
Then he looked at Thomas.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re carrying another.\u201d<\/p>\n
Thomas smiled.<\/p>\n
\u201cTwenty-two years and you still remember.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cLeft ankle.\u201d<\/p>\n
Thomas removed a compact pistol.<\/p>\n
He placed it down.<\/p>\n
Voss\u2019s attention stayed on him.<\/p>\n
That was when Victor moved.<\/p>\n
Not toward Voss.<\/p>\n
Toward the steel door.<\/p>\n
He slammed his palm against the interior release.<\/p>\n
The door began closing.<\/p>\n
Voss fired.<\/p>\n
The sound inside the enclosed space was enormous.<\/p>\n
Luna screamed.<\/p>\n
I grabbed her.<\/p>\n
Victor fell backward.<\/p>\n
The steel door closed between us and Voss.<\/p>\n
Darkness.<\/p>\n
For one second, nobody breathed.<\/p>\n
Then emergency lights came on.<\/p>\n
\u201cVictor.\u201d<\/p>\n
Luna dropped beside him.<\/p>\n
Blood spread across his upper arm.<\/p>\n
\u201cShoulder,\u201d he said through clenched teeth.<\/p>\n
\u201cIs it\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThrough-and-through, I think.\u201d<\/p>\n
Thomas was already kneeling.<\/p>\n
He tore fabric from a stored emergency blanket package and pressed it against the wound.<\/p>\n
Derek stood near the door.<\/p>\n
\u201cCan he open it from outside?\u201d<\/p>\n
Thomas shook his head.<\/p>\n
\u201cNot without the override.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe has the override.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Everyone looked at him.<\/p>\n
Thomas reached into his shirt.<\/p>\n
A thin steel piece hung on a chain around his neck.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe mechanical key.\u201d<\/p>\n
Luna stared.<\/p>\n
\u201cThen how did he get inside earlier?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe had a copy.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cA copy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cEnough to open the hidden outer panel. Not enough to override the lockdown.\u201d<\/p>\n
A pounding sounded from the other side.<\/p>\n
Voss.<\/p>\n
Then silence.<\/p>\n
Eleanor whispered, \u201cHe left.\u201d<\/p>\n
Victor was pale but conscious.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe need to get out.\u201d<\/p>\n
Thomas looked toward the ceiling.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s ventilation.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat doesn\u2019t help.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo. But there should be emergency communications.\u201d<\/p>\n
Luna searched the wall.<\/p>\n
I helped.<\/p>\n
Behind a small panel we found an old telephone handset.<\/p>\n
Dead.<\/p>\n
Derek laughed bitterly.<\/p>\n
\u201cPerfect.\u201d<\/p>\n
Thomas looked at the shelves.<\/p>\n
\u201cRichard would have planned redundancy.\u201d<\/p>\n
Luna said, \u201cYou give him a lot of credit.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI watched him become paranoid for twenty years.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is not comforting.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt kept this room secret.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd trapped us inside it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTemporary flaw.\u201d<\/p>\n
Despite everything, I almost smiled.<\/p>\n
We searched.<\/p>\n
Behind a cabinet, Derek found a maintenance panel.<\/p>\n
Inside was a radio transmitter.<\/p>\n
Victor gave instructions while Thomas activated it.<\/p>\n
Static.<\/p>\n
Then Samira\u2019s voice.<\/p>\n
\u201cVictor?\u201d<\/p>\n
Luna nearly collapsed with relief.<\/p>\n
Victor answered.<\/p>\n
\u201cSafe room. One gunshot wound. Suspect leaving or moving through house.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCopy.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDo not pursue alone.\u201d<\/p>\n
A pause.<\/p>\n
\u201cToo late.\u201d<\/p>\n
Victor swore.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cVehicle leaving east service road.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDescription?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBlack SUV.\u201d<\/p>\n
Voss.<\/p>\n
Samira had seen him escape.<\/p>\n
She called emergency services and secured the house.<\/p>\n
We still needed to get out.<\/p>\n
Thomas used the mechanical key from inside the maintenance panel.<\/p>\n
The door released.<\/p>\n
When we emerged, the library was empty.<\/p>\n
Our phones remained scattered across the floor.<\/p>\n
Victor\u2019s gun was gone.<\/p>\n
So were Thomas\u2019s.<\/p>\n
Voss had taken both.<\/p>\n
Samira entered moments later.<\/p>\n
She treated Victor until paramedics arrived.<\/p>\n
Luna stayed beside him.<\/p>\n
I watched Thomas.<\/p>\n
He was staring at the safe-room shelves.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
He looked at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cVoss came here for the originals.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThey were already gone.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe expected them to be here.\u201d<\/p>\n
I understood.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf Voss didn\u2019t remove them\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n
Thomas nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cSomeone else did.\u201d<\/p>\n
Luna heard.<\/p>\n
\u201cWho?\u201d<\/p>\n
Thomas looked toward Eleanor.<\/p>\n
Not accusingly.<\/p>\n
Thinking.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe room requires three people or the mechanical key.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou had the key,\u201d Eleanor said.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cRichard had one?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere is his?\u201d<\/p>\n
Thomas looked toward the library.<\/p>\n
\u201cBuried with him.\u201d<\/p>\n
Silence.<\/p>\n
Derek\u2019s face changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Luna turned.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
He stared at the floor.<\/p>\n
\u201cDad wasn\u2019t buried wearing the clothes from the funeral.\u201d<\/p>\n
Eleanor frowned.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat are you talking about?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe suit.\u201d<\/p>\n
Derek swallowed.<\/p>\n
\u201cI changed it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Luna stared.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThere was something in the pocket.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cA key.\u201d<\/p>\n
Thomas closed his eyes.<\/p>\n
\u201cDerek.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t know what it opened.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did you do with it?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI kept it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Luna stepped toward him.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor three years?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere is it?\u201d<\/p>\n
Derek looked at her.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy office safe.\u201d<\/p>\n
Naomi\u2019s badge.<\/p>\n
The archive key.<\/p>\n
The planted evidence.<\/p>\n
Someone had been inside Derek\u2019s office.<\/p>\n
Luna whispered, \u201cVoss found Richard\u2019s key.\u201d<\/p>\n
Thomas shook his head.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy not?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause if Voss had it, he wouldn\u2019t have needed me to reveal the override.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen who took it?\u201d<\/p>\n
Derek\u2019s face went pale.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy assistant.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe knows my safe combination.\u201d<\/p>\n
Victor, being loaded onto the stretcher, looked over.<\/p>\n
\u201cName.\u201d<\/p>\n
Derek hesitated.<\/p>\n
\u201cCeleste.\u201d<\/p>\n
His fianc\u00e9e.<\/p>\n
Luna stared.<\/p>\n
\u201cCeleste has access to your office safe?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe handles some personal documents.\u201d<\/p>\n
Thomas asked, \u201cHow long has she known Voss?\u201d<\/p>\n
Derek looked at him.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe doesn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n
Thomas\u2019s expression told us exactly what he thought of that answer.<\/p>\n
Derek took out his phone.<\/p>\n
Three missed calls.<\/p>\n
All from Celeste.<\/p>\n
One voicemail.<\/p>\n
He played it.<\/p>\n
Her voice filled the library.<\/p>\n
\u201cDerek, I\u2019m sorry. I didn\u2019t know what he was going to do. I thought he only wanted the files. Please don\u2019t come home. He knows about the second archive.\u201d<\/p>\n
The message ended.<\/p>\n
Thomas\u2019s face changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat second archive?\u201d<\/p>\n
Luna looked at him.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou don\u2019t know?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Then Eleanor whispered, \u201cI do.\u201d<\/p>\n
Everyone turned.<\/p>\n
She looked toward Richard\u2019s portrait.<\/p>\n
\u201cNot an archive.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat then?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cA copy.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n
Eleanor looked at Luna.<\/p>\n
\u201cYour father gave it to me the week before he died.\u201d<\/p>\n
Luna stared.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd where is it?\u201d<\/p>\n
Eleanor\u2019s eyes filled with dread.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn the one place nobody in this family ever searches.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYour childhood home.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nobody moved. Graham Voss stood just inside Richard Sterling\u2019s library with his pistol angled toward Victor\u2019s chest. He was older than the photograph from the vault, heavier through the shoulders, … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":16851,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-16864","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\/16864","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=16864"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16864\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16890,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16864\/revisions\/16890"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/16851"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=16864"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=16864"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=16864"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}