Chapter 9 - The Basement Behind the Wine Cellar
The crash echoed through the high ceilings like a thunderclap.
Derek jumped back, knocking over a medical tray that clattered violently against the marble floor. Vials of clear liquid shattered into pieces. Dr. Vance froze, his syringe still hovering over a small glass bottle.
Helen Dawson slowly turned around. For the first time since I had met her, the mask slipped. Her pale eyes went wide with pure terror.
"Nathan..." Derek stammered, raising his hands, his face draining of all color. "Nathan, wait! It's not what it looks like—"
Calvin moved in like a freight train, slamming Derek against the wall and forcing his arm behind his back with a sickening pop. Derek screamed as zip-ties locked around his wrists.
Dr. Vance attempted to bolt toward the side balcony door, but I caught him by the throat, slamming him down onto the sofa, pressing my forearm into his windpipe until his eyes bulged.
"You're a physician sworn to protect life," I snarled, inches from his sweating face. "And you came into my house to poison two baby girls for a cut of an insurance trust?"
"I... I didn't..." Vance choked out.
"Shut up," I said, ripping his medical bag from his shoulder and tossing it to Calvin. "Every vial, every fake report, every forged chart is in this bag."
Helen, however, hadn't panicked. She had backed slowly toward the nursery door where Rosie and Cami were locked inside.
"You have nothing, Nathan," Helen hissed, her voice dropping all pretense of gentility, turning venomous and sharp. "You think the police will believe you? I have two years of medical logs, dozens of signed affidavits, and video evidence of your children deteriorating while you traveled the world on business. You are an absent, negligent father. By morning, a judge will sign the emergency custody order, and there isn't a lawyer in this country who can stop it."
"You're wrong, Helen," a quiet voice echoed from the hallway.
Sarah Vance stepped through the broken doorway, holding a thick, leather-bound journal and a high-definition external drive.
When Helen saw Sarah, every ounce of blood left her face.
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"You..." Helen whispered, trembling. "You're dead. I had you ruined..."
"You tried," Sarah said, her voice steady and clear. "But Emily knew what you were before she died. She wrote it all down."
