Chapter 8 - The Rehearsal
"Rehearsal for what?" Adrian demanded.
No one answered.
Brooks ordered officers to search the estate room by room. Maya stayed close to Caleb, who slept against Adrian's chest as if nothing in the world had changed.
But everything had.
At 2:00 a.m., Maya remembered something.
Three days earlier, Celeste had asked unusual questions about Adrian's schedule.
What time did he leave for the airport on Thursdays?
Did he drive himself?
Did Caleb ride with him?
Adrian's eyes sharpened. "I'm flying to Chicago tomorrow."
Maya felt cold.
"With Caleb?"
"That was the plan."
They searched the garage.
Adrian's SUV looked normal until Brooks's technician crawled underneath it.
"Nobody touch the vehicle."
A brake line had been partially cut.
Not enough to fail immediately.
Enough to rupture after pressure built.
Adrian stared at the metal line.
"Pool first. Car second."
Maya said, "If the car crashed with you and Caleb inside..."
"My mother could claim temporary control of the trust."
Brooks shook her head. "We still need proof linking her to the vehicle."
Then a mechanic's receipt slid from beneath the driver's seat.
Cash service. No name.
But written at the bottom was a phone number.
Owen recognized it.
"That's Mr. Vale."
"Who?" Maya asked.
Adrian went still.
Marcus Vale had been his father's attorney for thirty years.
And the man responsible for drafting the Mercer family trust.
Brooks looked at Adrian.
"Where is he now?"
May you like
Adrian answered quietly.
"At my mother's guesthouse."
