Chapter 3
Nolan and I fought the night before he vanished.
A real fight.
That made the fake message believable.
He accused me of ignoring irregularities in estate staffing.
I accused him of seeing betrayal in everyone because he hated sitting still.
He said:
“You trust the house because Dad built it.”
I answered:
“I trust the people who’ve kept it standing.”
Dahlia had been estate manager for fourteen years.
Ellis worked security for nine.
Their father, Vincent Vane, served mine for almost three decades.
The Vanes were part of the walls.
That was exactly what Nolan had been trying to tell me.
Walls can hide things too.
Rafe returned with the phone analysis.
“The message didn’t come from Nolan’s device.”
I looked up.
“It came through his account.”
“From where?”
He hesitated.
“The estate office terminal.”
Dahlia’s terminal.
She stopped breathing.
I turned.
“Still maintenance?”
She looked at Ellis.
Always Ellis.
Never herself.
I walked closer.
“Where is Nolan?”
She whispered:
“He’s alive.”
Everything in me went cold and quiet.
Tessa covered her mouth.
Rafe moved automatically toward the door.
I raised one hand.
Not yet.
“Where?”
Dahlia’s voice shook.
“Red Hollow.”
“Why?”
“He wasn’t supposed to stay this long.”
That sentence almost made me lose control.
“What was supposed to happen?”
Ellis interrupted.
“He was supposed to listen.”
Of course.
Listen.
Obey.
Cooperate.
All clean words.
“With what?”
No answer.
I looked at the dog.
The German Shepherd had lain beside Archie now, head resting against the boy’s sneaker.
Archie had stopped crying.
He touched the animal’s ear.
“Uncle dog?”
Maybe.
Maybe not.
I crouched and inspected the collar more carefully.
Beneath the watch was a strip of blue fabric knotted tightly around the leather.
Nolan wore blue work shirts at Red Hollow whenever he helped with maintenance.
He had once joked suits made the place feel haunted.
Watch.
Blue cloth.
Dog.
Red clay.
A message assembled without words.
My brother knew someone might intercept a phone.
So he sent something harder to edit.
I stood.
“Rafe.”
“Yes.”
“Bring six men.”
Dahlia panicked.
“Garrick, wait.”
I looked at her.
“You locked my son in a kennel because he recognized the one thing my brother managed to send home.”
May you like
She stopped.
“I’m done waiting.”
