Chapter 4 - Sarah’s SecretSarah Carter had not been an accidental witness.
Then a third time.
FIND THE BOY.
He immediately looked toward the hotel doors.
“Rachel.”
Detective Morgan saw his expression and hurried over.
Nathan handed her the paper.
Her face hardened.
“Where did you get this?”
“Eli.”
Rachel turned toward the child.
“Where exactly did you find it?”
“Behind the hotel.”
“When?”
“Yesterday.”
“You were close enough for them to see you?”
“I don’t think so.”
Rachel glanced at Nathan.
“Maybe they did.”
Eli’s face went pale.
Nathan placed a hand on his shoulder.
“You’re staying with me tonight.”
“No.”
“That wasn’t a question.”
Eli backed away.
“I don’t stay with strangers.”
“Good rule.”
Nathan looked at Rachel.
“Can police arrange somewhere secure?”
Rachel nodded.
“Temporary protective placement.”
Eli shook his head violently.
“No foster house.”
“Nobody said foster house,” Nathan replied.
“You’re lying.”
“I’m not.”
“You all say that.”
Eli ran.
Nathan barely caught him before he reached the kitchen hallway.
“Eli!”
The boy fought against him.
“Let me go!”
“Someone may be looking for you.”
“I can take care of myself!”
“You’re eleven!”
“I’ve been doing it for eight months!”
The words echoed through the room.
Nathan loosened his grip.
Eli stood shaking.
Not crying.
Nathan suspected he had forgotten how.
“I believe you,” Nathan said.
Eli looked confused.
“I believe you know how to survive.”
The boy stared at him.
“But surviving and being safe aren’t the same thing.”
Eli’s chin trembled.
Nathan continued.
“You saved my life tonight. Let me keep you safe until we know what’s happening.”
After a long silence, Eli nodded.
Nathan’s penthouse had never felt as empty as it did that night.
Police officers remained in the lobby while a detective sat near the private elevator.
Nathan gave Eli the guest room across from his office.
The boy refused the bed.
Nathan found him ten minutes later sleeping on the carpet beside it.
“Why aren’t you in bed?”
Eli opened one eye.
“Beds are hard to get out of fast.”
Nathan understood.
He placed a blanket beside him.
“You’re safe here.”
Eli didn’t answer.
Nathan returned to the living room.
At 2:14 a.m., Detective Morgan called.
“We located Mark.”
Nathan stood.
“Where?”
“At O’Hare.”
“Leaving the country?”
“Trying to. One-way ticket to Lisbon.”
“Did you arrest him?”
“We detained him.”
“Did he have anything?”
“Twenty-eight thousand dollars in cash. Two passports.”
Nathan closed his eyes.
There was no innocent explanation for that.
Rachel continued.
“He says he’s being framed.”
“Of course.”
“He claims Vanessa asked him for the vial because she wanted to help you sleep.”
Nathan almost laughed.
“Except the vial wasn’t sleep medicine.”
“He says he didn’t know that.”
Nathan walked toward the window.
Chicago lights stretched beneath him.
“Do you believe him?”
“No.”
“Good.”
“But we still need proof of conspiracy.”
“What about the note?”
“Useful, but he denies writing it.”
Nathan clenched his jaw.
“Then prove he did.”
The next morning, Nathan woke to the smell of coffee.
He entered the kitchen and found Eli standing on a chair attempting to make scrambled eggs.
“What are you doing?”
Eli nearly dropped the pan.
“Breakfast.”
“For who?”
“You.”
Nathan blinked.
“Why?”
“You gave me dinner.”
Nathan stared at him for several seconds.
“That’s not how this works.”
“What?”
“You don’t owe me breakfast.”
Eli looked unconvinced.
Nathan took the spatula.
“And you’re burning the eggs.”
“They’re supposed to look like that.”
“They’re black.”
“Crispy.”
Nathan laughed.
It surprised both of them.
Then the intercom buzzed.
Security.
“Mr. Cole, there’s a woman downstairs asking for the boy.”
Nathan’s smile vanished.
“What woman?”
“Says she’s with child protective services.”
Eli dropped his fork.
Nathan looked at him.
“You know someone named Rebecca Hall?”
Eli went completely white.
“No.”
Security continued.
“She has identification.”
Nathan walked toward the intercom.
“Do not let her upstairs.”
Eli whispered, “She found me.”
Nathan turned.
“What?”
“She’s not CPS.”
“How do you know?”
Eli’s breathing quickened.
“She used to come to the shelter.”
“Who is she?”
Eli ran toward the hallway.
Nathan caught up.
“Eli.”
The boy shook.
“She asked kids questions.”
“What questions?”
“Who sleeps where. Who has family. Who nobody would look for.”
Nathan’s blood ran cold.
“Why?”
“I don’t know.”
Nathan called Rachel immediately.
Police arrived downstairs within minutes.
Rebecca Hall was gone.
But building cameras had captured her face.
Rachel called Nathan from the lobby.
“We’ve identified her.”
“Who is she?”
“Rebecca Hall isn’t her real name. Real name is Dana Mercer.”
Nathan waited.
“She has prior arrests for identity fraud and unlawful custody transfers.”
“What does that mean?”
Rachel’s voice darkened.
“She helped move vulnerable kids using forged guardianship papers.”
Nathan looked toward Eli.
The boy was standing ten feet away pretending not to listen.
“Trafficking?”
“Possibly.”
Nathan’s stomach turned.
“What does this have to do with Vanessa?”
“We don’t know yet.”
Then Rachel added, “But Dana Mercer received three bank transfers this year from a shell company.”
Nathan knew what was coming.
“What company?”
“North Lake Consulting.”
Nathan’s heart stopped.
That company belonged to Mark Reynolds.
Eli had not stumbled into Nathan’s dinner by coincidence.
The same people who might have tried to kill Nathan had ties to a woman who hunted vulnerable children.
Nathan walked toward Eli.
“Did your mother know Dana?”
Eli stared at the floor.
“Yes.”
“How?”
“She used to help my mom.”
“With what?”
“Money.”
Nathan crouched.
“Eli, this matters.”
The boy’s eyes filled.
“My mom used to clean offices at night.”
Nathan waited.
“One night she came home scared.”
“What happened?”
“She said she found something she wasn’t supposed to find.”
Nathan’s pulse accelerated.
“What?”
“A flash drive.”
Nathan stared.
“Where is it?”
Eli wiped his eyes.
“My mom hid it.”
“Do you know where?”
“Yes.”
May you like
Nathan almost stopped breathing.
Eli whispered, “That’s why they’ve been looking for me.”
Related Stories
