Chapter 18 - THE ROOM BEHIND THE WALL
Sophia was right.
Of course she was.
The wallpaper behind Vanessa looked like a hotel pattern, but Sophia had seen it before.
She led us to the old west wing of the mansion, sealed during renovations two years earlier.
Behind a linen closet was a narrow servant staircase.
At the top, we found a hidden apartment built between the old roofline and the new guest suites.
Vanessa had been living a second life inside Nathan's own house.
Clothes. Cash. Burner phones. Fake IDs.
A printer full of medical forms.
A wall covered in photographs.
Nathan sleeping.
Nathan taking medication.
Nathan arguing with board members.
Me working in the kitchen.
Sophia coloring.
Sophia signing.
I stopped breathing.
There were notes beside the pictures.
CHILD OBSERVES ROUTINE.
CHILD CANNOT HEAR APPROACH.
LOW THREAT.
My hands began to shake.
Low threat.
That was what Vanessa thought of my daughter.
Nathan tore the paper off the wall and crushed it.
A floorboard creaked behind us.
Vanessa stood in the doorway.
No elegant dress now.
Black jeans. Wet hair. Gun in one hand, flash drive in the other.
"You should have taken Sophia home," she said.
I stepped in front of my daughter.
Vanessa looked at Nathan.
"You could still fix this."
"You tried to kill me."
"I tried to save us."
"From what?"
"From you losing everything."
Nathan laughed in disbelief.
Vanessa's face cracked.
"You don't understand. Graham owns debt in my name. He has for years. He used me to get close to you. If I walked away, he would destroy me."
For one dangerous second, I almost felt sorry for her.
Then she aimed the gun at Sophia.
"Move, Maya."
The sympathy died instantly.
"No."
Vanessa's finger tightened on the trigger.
Nathan stepped forward.
"Shoot me instead."
May you like
Vanessa whispered, "I already tried."
Then the old floor gave way beneath her.
