Thomas Holloway survived the attack with a fractured cheekbone and a concussion.<\/p>\n
Jonah Reed was taken into custody by local police while Nina\u2019s team tried to understand why one of their own investigators had crossed a bus terminal and struck a cooperating witness.<\/p>\n
Daniel disappeared again.<\/p>\n
The cash inside the duffel totaled two hundred thousand dollars.<\/p>\n
Exactly the amount Daniel had admitted receiving from Julian.<\/p>\n
Nina called me from outside the emergency department where Holloway was being treated.<\/p>\n
\u201cSomebody wanted that money found.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDaniel.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cLikely.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTo prove what?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMaybe that he\u2019s returning it. Maybe that he\u2019s tying himself to Julian on his own terms.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat about Jonah?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s talking.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe says he attacked Holloway because Holloway lied about his daughter being threatened.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat doesn\u2019t make sense.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt gets worse.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOf course.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nina lowered her voice.<\/p>\n
\u201cJonah claims Holloway wasn\u2019t forced to help Julian initially.\u201d<\/p>\n
Clara looked at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat does he mean initially?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe says Holloway helped build the vendor structure.\u201d<\/p>\n
My stomach tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cThen switched sides?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPossibly.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cEvidence?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cJonah says he had some.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHad?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe claims Holloway took it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat sounds convenient.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy would Jonah care?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause Jonah\u2019s brother lost a pension in a company Mercer acquired six years ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stared at the phone.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe never disclosed the connection.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen why was he on your team?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause our background search did not catch a surname change in the family.\u201d<\/p>\n
Clara asked, \u201cIs he working for Julian?\u201d<\/p>\n
Nina heard her.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe denies it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDo you believe him?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDo you believe Holloway?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDaniel?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Clara looked at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe really doesn\u2019t trust anyone.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI told you I liked her.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nina ignored us.<\/p>\n
\u201cI am removing Jonah from every aspect of the investigation. We will verify everything independently.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat about the note?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHolloway is conscious. I\u2019m waiting to speak with him.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAsk him about the key.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI intend to.\u201d<\/p>\n
The call ended.<\/p>\n
For nearly an hour, nothing happened.<\/p>\n
That was worse than bad news.<\/p>\n
Bad news gave you somewhere to direct fear.<\/p>\n
Silence let it multiply.<\/p>\n
I spent the time with Leo.<\/p>\n
Clara was too exhausted to come again, so I sat beside the incubator and watched his chest move.<\/p>\n
I kept thinking about systems.<\/p>\n
Companies were systems.<\/p>\n
Marriages were systems too, though I had never treated mine that way.<\/p>\n
Not mechanical.<\/p>\n
Interdependent.<\/p>\n
Small failures spreading invisibly.<\/p>\n
One person stopped speaking because they felt unheard.<\/p>\n
The other stopped asking because silence seemed like an answer.<\/p>\n
Someone else learned where the gaps were.<\/p>\n
Then used them.<\/p>\n
Leo moved his hand.<\/p>\n
I placed my finger against his palm.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou picked a complicated family.\u201d<\/p>\n
His fingers curled faintly.<\/p>\n
I smiled despite myself.<\/p>\n
\u201cSorry about that.\u201d<\/p>\n
When I returned to Clara\u2019s room, she was reading old messages on her phone.<\/p>\n
\u201cLooking for something?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cEverything.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat sounds manageable.\u201d<\/p>\n
She ignored me.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m checking who knew I was at Maya\u2019s.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cA lot of people eventually.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWho knew immediately?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMaya. You, maybe.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNot the address.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cRight.\u201d<\/p>\n
She scrolled.<\/p>\n
\u201cRebecca knew later through divorce documents.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe wasn\u2019t involved then.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cJulian.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMy old friend Elise.\u201d<\/p>\n
I frowned.<\/p>\n
\u201cElise Carter?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou haven\u2019t mentioned her in years.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe stopped talking.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n
Clara\u2019s thumb stopped.<\/p>\n
\u201cAfter the divorce.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe kept defending you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat seems unusual considering what you thought I\u2019d done.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI thought so too.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did she say?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat there had to be another explanation.\u201d<\/p>\n
My attention sharpened.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid she know Julian?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cEveryone around us knew Julian.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat isn\u2019t what I asked.\u201d<\/p>\n
Clara looked up.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey worked together briefly.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMercer.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe consulted on executive wellness and benefits during the insurance redesign.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stared at her.<\/p>\n
The blue medical folder.<\/p>\n
Company insurance.<\/p>\n
Pregnancy suspicion.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow long?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMaybe six months.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTwo years ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid she have access to benefits data?\u201d<\/p>\n
Clara frowned.<\/p>\n
\u201cPossibly.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWould Julian?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNot directly.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBut Elise could.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her expression changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m asking.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cElise was my friend.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo was Julian mine.\u201d<\/p>\n
That silenced her.<\/p>\n
I immediately regretted the bluntness.<\/p>\n
But not the question.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid she know we were trying for a baby?\u201d<\/p>\n
Clara looked away.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
I felt something cold settle in my stomach.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou told her.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe was my closest friend.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you tell anyone else?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMaya.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s it?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
I sat.<\/p>\n
\u201cThen Daniel saying Julian knew we were trying has only a few possible explanations.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cInsurance data.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOr Elise.\u201d<\/p>\n
Clara shook her head.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe wouldn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou said that about Julian once.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI never trusted Julian the way you did.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFine. I did.\u201d<\/p>\n
She looked at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd I trusted Elise.\u201d<\/p>\n
We understood each other then.<\/p>\n
Trust was no longer evidence.<\/p>\n
My phone rang.<\/p>\n
Nina.<\/p>\n
\u201cHolloway is talking.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPut him on.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNot yet.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause I want you to hear this without reacting at him.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat sounds promising.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt isn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n
I waited.<\/p>\n
Nina continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe key was added by someone Holloway knew.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWho?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe says a woman contacted him after he mailed the warning to Maya.\u201d<\/p>\n
Clara\u2019s face tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat woman?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe knew her through Mercer benefits administration.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked at Clara.<\/p>\n
\u201cElise?\u201d<\/p>\n
Nina paused.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Clara\u2019s face went white.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHolloway says Elise Carter told him his warning never reached you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow would she know?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe said she had been checking on Clara after the separation.\u201d<\/p>\n
Clara covered her mouth.<\/p>\n
Nina continued carefully.<\/p>\n
\u201cHolloway says Elise asked for a way to connect the warning to physical records. He told her about Room 417.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe old office.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe key?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe says she later told him she\u2019d found something important and hidden a key with the letter.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHidden where?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIn the envelope.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBut Maya never received it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHolloway believes Elise retrieved the envelope after delivery and placed it in the cabinet.\u201d<\/p>\n
Clara shook her head repeatedly.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat doesn\u2019t make sense.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI agree.\u201d<\/p>\n
She looked at the phone.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy would Elise break into Maya\u2019s house?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHolloway did not say she did.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen how did she get inside?\u201d<\/p>\n
Nina paused.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid Elise ever have access to Maya\u2019s home?\u201d<\/p>\n
Clara looked sick.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe stayed with us for a weekend after I moved there.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stared at her.<\/p>\n
\u201cAfter the separation?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou never mentioned that.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause it didn\u2019t matter.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt matters now.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her voice rose.<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t know someone was building a map of every person who entered the house.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stopped.<\/p>\n
She was right.<\/p>\n
Nina said, \u201cClara, I need you to think carefully. During that weekend, did Elise ever handle your mail?\u201d<\/p>\n
Clara closed her eyes.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe brought it in once.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnything from Holloway?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid she go through the downstairs cabinet?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid she know about the Southshore records?\u201d<\/p>\n
Clara hesitated.<\/p>\n
That hesitation was enough.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou told her,\u201d I said.<\/p>\n
Clara nodded slowly.<\/p>\n
\u201cNot everything.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow much?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat I thought money was being moved strangely and that Julian had threatened me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nina asked, \u201cWhat was Elise\u2019s response?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe told me to stop.\u201d<\/p>\n
The room went still.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe said I was pregnant, alone, and exhausted. She said I should focus on the baby instead of Mercer.\u201d<\/p>\n
I felt anger rise.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat else?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe said Liam had made his choice.\u201d<\/p>\n
My jaw clenched.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid she know you were trying to contact me?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI told her.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid she ever offer to help?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Clara\u2019s eyes filled with something that looked less like sadness than humiliation.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe told me I needed to accept that silence was an answer.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stood.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat exact phrase?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
It mirrored what Julian had engineered.<\/p>\n
Maybe because it was common advice.<\/p>\n
Maybe because it had come from the same source.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere is Elise now?\u201d<\/p>\n
Nina asked.<\/p>\n
Clara looked at her phone.<\/p>\n
\u201cNew York, I think.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cLast contact?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFour months ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat happened?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI stopped answering.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe kept asking whether I still had the Southshore copies.\u201d<\/p>\n
Every muscle in my body tightened.<\/p>\n
Nina\u2019s tone changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow often?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThree or four times.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid that seem strange?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBut?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI thought she was worried.\u201d<\/p>\n
We all understood how often that excuse had been used.<\/p>\n
Julian had claimed protection.<\/p>\n
Elise had claimed concern.<\/p>\n
Clara had received control from both and mistaken it for care.<\/p>\n
Nina said, \u201cDo not contact Elise.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause I want to know what she does when she thinks we haven\u2019t found her.\u201d<\/p>\n
Clara looked devastated.<\/p>\n
\u201cIs she working with Julian?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHolloway thinks so?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe says he distrusted her after one conversation.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat conversation?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe told her the vendor structures implicated Julian. Elise asked whether Liam could be implicated too.\u201d<\/p>\n
I felt my stomach drop.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy would she ask that?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHolloway didn\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
Clara looked at me.<\/p>\n
Neither did I.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnything else?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nina hesitated.<\/p>\n
\u201cHolloway says Elise showed him a photograph.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat photograph?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou and Clara.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOutside your home.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe same one in the warning envelope?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Clara whispered, \u201cThen there were more.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cApparently.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTaken by the investigator Daniel mentioned?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cLikely.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did it show?\u201d<\/p>\n
Nina paused.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou arguing.\u201d<\/p>\n
Clara looked away.<\/p>\n
I remembered dozens of possible evenings.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat was significant about it?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cElise asked Holloway whether you often fought about children.\u201d<\/p>\n
I went cold.<\/p>\n
Clara\u2019s eyes widened.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe asked if he knew whether pregnancy would make Liam harder to influence.\u201d<\/p>\n
The sentence sat in the room like a physical object.<\/p>\n
Elise knew.<\/p>\n
Not only that we were trying.<\/p>\n
She knew someone was thinking strategically about what a child would do to me.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid Holloway ask why?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe said Julian was worried Clara would use pregnancy to pull Liam away from Southshore.\u201d<\/p>\n
Clara made a sound of disbelief.<\/p>\n
I felt anger so sharp I had to lower my voice.<\/p>\n
\u201cJulian said that?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHolloway says Elise attributed it to him.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDo you believe Holloway?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNot automatically.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBut.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBut the detail matches other evidence.\u201d<\/p>\n
I turned toward the window.<\/p>\n
\u201cFind Elise.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMy team already is.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow long?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe landed in Chicago this morning.\u201d<\/p>\n
I turned back.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFlight records show she arrived at O\u2019Hare at 8:14.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cToday?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo idea.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWho met her?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re checking.\u201d<\/p>\n
Clara whispered, \u201cShe knew.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cKnew what?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat I had the baby.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t tell her.\u201d<\/p>\n
The implication became immediate.<\/p>\n
Someone had.<\/p>\n
Julian.<\/p>\n
Hospital records.<\/p>\n
Or whoever was still feeding information.<\/p>\n
Nina continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cElise rented a car.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere is she now?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cUnknown.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPhone?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOff.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCredit card?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo activity after the rental.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCould she be going to Daniel?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPossible.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHolloway?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPossible.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMaya?\u201d<\/p>\n
Nina went quiet.<\/p>\n
My chest tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cCall local police.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI already did.\u201d<\/p>\n
I called Maya directly.<\/p>\n
No answer.<\/p>\n
Again.<\/p>\n
No answer.<\/p>\n
Clara sat upright.<\/p>\n
\u201cMaya always answers.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMaybe she\u2019s with police.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCall again.\u201d<\/p>\n
I did.<\/p>\n
Voicemail.<\/p>\n
Then a text arrived from Maya\u2019s phone.<\/p>\n
Can\u2019t talk. Police asked me to come identify property.<\/p>\n
I showed Clara.<\/p>\n
She relaxed slightly.<\/p>\n
I did not.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat property?\u201d<\/p>\n
I typed.<\/p>\n
No answer.<\/p>\n
I called Officer Mills, who was not involved in Maya\u2019s case but had contacts locally.<\/p>\n
He checked.<\/p>\n
No officer had requested Maya to identify property.<\/p>\n
My blood went cold.<\/p>\n
I called Maya again.<\/p>\n
This time someone answered.<\/p>\n
No one spoke.<\/p>\n
\u201cMaya?\u201d<\/p>\n
Breathing.<\/p>\n
Then a woman\u2019s voice.<\/p>\n
Familiar enough that Clara recognized it before I did.<\/p>\n
\u201cLiam.\u201d<\/p>\n
Clara whispered, \u201cElise.\u201d<\/p>\n
The woman on the phone sighed.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was hoping Clara wouldn\u2019t be in the room.\u201d<\/p>\n
My hand tightened around the phone.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere is Maya?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe\u2019s fine.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI want to hear her.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou will.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNow.\u201d<\/p>\n
Elise\u2019s tone remained calm.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re still exactly as impatient as I remember.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere is she?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe\u2019s with me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause all of you are getting very close to something you don\u2019t understand.\u201d<\/p>\n
Clara stood despite the pain.<\/p>\n
\u201cPut my sister on the phone.\u201d<\/p>\n
Elise was silent for a second.<\/p>\n
Then her voice softened.<\/p>\n
\u201cClara.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou lied to me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is not the important part.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is to me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI was trying to keep you alive.\u201d<\/p>\n
Clara went still.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
Elise continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou think Julian is the center of this.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIsn\u2019t he?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
I felt something shift.<\/p>\n
\u201cThen who is?\u201d<\/p>\n
Elise laughed once, bitterly.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is why I took Maya.\u201d<\/p>\n
Clara\u2019s face hardened.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou didn\u2019t take her to protect me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat do you want?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe blue folder.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked at Clara.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
Elise\u2019s voice changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause what\u2019s inside it can destroy more than Julian.\u201d<\/p>\n
I thought of Daniel\u2019s message.<\/p>\n
Julian found out she might be pregnant before she did.<\/p>\n
The medical records.<\/p>\n
The fertility tests.<\/p>\n
The private investigator.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat\u2019s in that folder?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n
Elise answered quietly.<\/p>\n
\u201cProof that your son was never the first pregnancy Julian knew about.\u201d<\/p>\n
Clara stopped breathing.<\/p>\n
I looked at her.<\/p>\n
She stared at the phone.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did you say?\u201d<\/p>\n
Elise did not repeat herself.<\/p>\n
Instead she said, \u201cAsk Clara what happened three years ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
The line went dead.<\/p>\n
I looked at Clara.<\/p>\n
Her face had emptied of all expression.<\/p>\n
\u201cClara?\u201d<\/p>\n
She sat down slowly.<\/p>\n
I knew then, before she said anything, that there had been something she never told me.<\/p>\n
\u201cThree years ago,\u201d she whispered, \u201cI was pregnant.\u201d<\/p>\n
Thomas Holloway survived the attack with a fractured cheekbone and a concussion. Jonah Reed was taken into custody by local police while Nina\u2019s team tried to understand why one of … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":23789,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-23803","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\/23803","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=23803"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23803\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":23873,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23803\/revisions\/23873"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/23789"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=23803"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=23803"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=23803"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}