Chapter 6 - The Empty Closet
Ethan drove home with Richard and Dana behind him.
The house was unlocked.
The alarm had been disabled with Sophia's code.
Inside, drawers stood open. Two suitcases were gone. So was Sophia's jewelry case.
Ethan rushed upstairs.
"Sophia!"
No answer.
Richard entered the bedroom more slowly.
The closet had been cleared on one side.
But Sophia had left something behind.
A shredder bag.
Dana knelt beside it.
"People always think shredded means gone."
They spread strips across the dining table.
For three hours, they reconstructed fragments.
Bank routing numbers.
A private clinic invoice.
A copy of Richard's passport.
Then Ethan found a strip with his own signature.
"What the hell?"
Dana matched it to another piece.
It was part of a spousal consent form authorizing Sophia to act on Ethan's behalf in matters involving the Whitmore family trust.
"I never signed this," Ethan said.
Richard looked at him. "Now you know how it feels."
Ethan lowered his eyes.
Near the bottom of the bag, Dana found a handwritten note.
MONDAY - 9 BOARD
11 BANK
1 VERIDIAN
R AFTER DINNER
E AFTER SIGNATURE
Ethan read the last two lines again.
"R means Richard."
Dana nodded.
"And E?"
No one answered.
Ethan's phone rang.
Sophia.
He put it on speaker.
"Where are you?" he demanded.
Her voice was calm. "You watched the video."
"Yes."
"Then you know your father was provoking me."
Richard almost laughed.
Ethan didn't.
"Come home."
"Not until I know I'm safe."
"Safe from who?"
A pause.
Then Sophia said, "Ask your father what he did to your mother before she died."
Richard went completely still.
Ethan's eyes shifted toward him.
Sophia continued softly.
"You think I'm the first woman Richard Whitmore ever made look crazy?"
The line went dead.
May you like
For the first time since the camera footage, Ethan looked at his father with doubt again.
Richard whispered, "She found Margaret's file."
