Chapter 11 - INSIDE THE HOUSE
Every hair on my arms rose.
The voice outside sounded like Grant.
Almost perfectly.
But Lily knew her father better than any recording could.
“Emma,” it said again.
“Please open the door.”
I grabbed my phone.
Texted Marcus.
Someone outside. Pretending to be Grant.
Three dots appeared.
DO NOT OPEN.
The handle moved.
Once.
Twice.
Then stopped.
Lily pressed her face against my side.
I looked around the room.
One window.
Second floor.
Too high.
Bathroom.
No secondary exit.
I moved us behind the heavy dressing-room wall.
My phone buzzed again.
Grant.
I’m downstairs. Stay locked in.
The blood drained from my face.
Someone had played a recording of him.
Then I heard something slide beneath the door.
A phone.
Its screen lit.
Video.
Renata.
Live.
Her face appeared bruised along one side from the crash.
She smiled.
“Hello, Emma.”
I didn’t touch the phone.
“How did you get inside?”
“Still asking the wrong questions.”
Her voice came through the speaker.
Lily whimpered.
Renata heard.
“Is Lily there?”
I said nothing.
“Oh, sweetheart.”
Renata’s voice became soft.
“You always did make everything harder.”
Lily buried her face.
Rage replaced fear.
“You will never speak to her again.”
Renata laughed.
“Listen to you.”
Sirens sounded faintly beyond the estate.
Renata looked off camera.
“You called them.”
“Of course.”
“I expected more courage.”
“I have a seven-year-old child with me. Courage means keeping her away from you.”
For once, Renata had no answer.
A gunshot exploded somewhere downstairs.
Lily screamed.
I dropped beside her.
“Look at me.”
She was shaking.
“Look at me, Lily.”
Her eyes found mine.
“Remember the pancakes?”
She nodded through tears.
“Remember Daddy’s terrible dollhouse?”
Another nod.
“We’re going to talk about how bad that dollhouse is when this is over.”
A tiny sob.
“Okay?”
“Okay.”
The fire alarm suddenly activated.
Red strobes flashed.
Smoke began creeping beneath the bedroom door.
My stomach dropped.
Renata’s voice came through the phone.
“The house is old, Emma.”
“What did you do?”
“Old houses burn beautifully.”
The video ended.
I ran to the bathroom.
Wet towels.
Blocked the bottom of the door.
Called Marcus.
No answer.
Grant.
He answered immediately.
“Emma.”
“There’s smoke.”
“Stay where you are. Fire department is entering.”
“Renata’s inside.”
“I know.”
“Where are you?”
“South stairwell.”
“You’re going after her?”
“I’m coming for Lily.”
“Grant, don’t—”
The line cut.
Smoke thickened.
The bedroom door suddenly shook.
One impact.
Then another.
Lily screamed.
“Back!”
I grabbed the heaviest thing I could find.
A brass lamp.
The door burst inward.
I raised it.
“Emma!”
Marcus.
I nearly collapsed.
Two firefighters stood behind him.
“Move!”
We covered Lily with a fire blanket.
The hallway was filled with smoke but little visible flame.
Sprinklers activated.
Water poured across the walls.
“Where’s Grant?” I shouted.
Marcus’s face changed.
“He went toward the east wing.”
“Why?”
“Security saw Renata.”
Of course.
Grant had spent two years believing he failed Catherine.
He was not going to hide while Renata threatened Lily again.
We reached the south staircase.
Then Lily ripped free.
“Daddy!”
“Lily!”
She pointed down the opposite corridor.
Through smoke, a figure appeared.
Grant.
He stumbled.
Blood on his forehead.
I ran to him.
“What happened?”
“She hit me.”
“Renata?”
“She’s headed toward the basement.”
Marcus swore.
The hidden Catherine room.
Renata wanted the evidence.
Police moved down.
Grant tried to follow.
I grabbed him.
“No.”
“She’s destroying Catherine’s files.”
“Police are going.”
“She could escape.”
“And Lily needs you.”
That stopped him.
Lily threw herself into his arms.
Grant held her.
His entire body shook.
“I’m here.”
He repeated it again and again.
“I’m here.”
The fire turned out to be smaller than Renata intended.
She had ignited curtains in an unused bedroom and disabled two sprinkler zones.
But the updated security system Marcus installed activated redundancies.
Firefighters contained it quickly.
Renata reached the basement.
She barricaded herself inside Catherine’s storage room.
For forty minutes, police negotiated.
Then she demanded Grant.
Absolutely not.
Grant tried anyway.
Absolutely not.
Detective Whitaker threatened to handcuff him to a chair.
I offered to help.
Eventually Renata emerged.
Not because she surrendered willingly.
Because smoke from the ventilation system began filling the basement.
She came out holding a gun.
Police ordered her to drop it.
She refused.
Then something unexpected happened.
Lily’s voice echoed from the top of the basement stairs.
“Renata.”
Every adult spun.
Grant grabbed his daughter.
“What are you doing?”
Lily stared down the stairwell.
Renata looked up.
For the first time, I saw genuine shock on her face.
Lily had spoken her name.
Loudly.
Clearly.
The woman who had once mocked her silence now stood frozen by her voice.
Lily gripped Grant’s hand.
“You hurt me.”
Renata’s face twisted.
“No, sweetheart.”
“Yes.”
“You don’t understand.”
Lily began crying.
But she continued.
“You hurt Mommy?”
Grant sucked in a breath.
Renata stared.
Then laughed.
“Your mother hurt herself.”
Detective Whitaker stepped forward.
“Put the gun down.”
Renata barely seemed to hear her.
She looked only at Lily.
“Your mother should have known when to walk away.”
Grant’s face changed.
“What did you say?”
Renata smiled.
“She had chances.”
Whitaker repeated the command.
“Gun down.”
Renata’s hand trembled.
“You want to know what Catherine’s problem was?”
Grant said nothing.
“She thought love protected her.”
“Renata.”
“She thought because you loved her, nobody could touch her.”
Grant’s voice became dangerously calm.
“Did you kill her?”
Renata’s eyes shone.
“I didn’t need to.”
“Did you cause the accident?”
“No.”
“Did you leave her there?”
Renata’s smile disappeared.
Warren had already admitted he was at the crash.
But maybe he had lied about being alone.
Grant understood at the same moment I did.
“You were there.”
Renata’s eyes flickered.
Detective Whitaker noticed.
“So were you.”
Renata raised the gun.
Officers reacted.
“Don’t!”
Lily screamed.
Grant pulled her behind him.
Renata pointed the weapon toward the ceiling.
Then toward herself.
“Renata,” Whitaker said calmly.
“This ends one way.”
“No.”
“You don’t know me.”
“I know you want everyone watching.”
Renata’s eyes narrowed.
Whitaker continued.
“If you die here, Catherine gets the final word.”
That reached her.
“You think Catherine wins?”
“Yes.”
“No.”
“Then prove me wrong.”
Silence.
Renata’s hand lowered slightly.
Whitaker took one step.
“Tell us what happened.”
Renata’s breathing quickened.
“She called Grant.”
“We know.”
“He didn’t answer.”
Grant flinched.
Renata smiled.
“She was so angry.”
“You were in the car?”
“Behind her.”
My stomach turned.
Renata had been there.
“She lost control,” Renata said. “That part was real.”
“And afterward?”
Renata’s eyes drifted toward Grant.
“We found her.”
“We?”
“Warren and me.”
Grant’s face went white.
“Was she alive?”
Renata smiled.
“Yes.”
The word destroyed him.
“Did you help her?”
“She asked for her phone.”
Grant’s knees nearly buckled.
Renata continued.
“She kept saying your name.”
I covered my mouth.
“You could have saved her,” Grant whispered.
“I don’t know.”
“Did you call an ambulance?”
“Eventually.”
“What did you do first?”
Renata’s eyes hardened.
“I took the folder.”
Grant lunged.
Marcus caught him.
“You left her dying for a folder?”
“She was going to destroy everything!”
“You left my wife!”
“She would have destroyed me!”
Grant fought against Marcus.
Lily screamed.
“Daddy!”
Grant stopped.
That single word pulled him back.
He looked at his daughter.
Then at Renata.
And instead of attacking her, he stepped backward.
He chose Lily.
Again.
Renata saw it.
She hated it.
Her hand tightened around the gun.
Detective Whitaker moved.
A shot exploded.
I screamed.
Renata collapsed.
The bullet had gone into the wall.
Whitaker had tackled her arm as another officer fired a nonlethal round into Renata’s shoulder.
Police swarmed.
The gun slid across the floor.
Handcuffs closed around her wrists.
Renata screamed Grant’s name.
He didn’t look at her.
He knelt beside Lily.
May you like
“I’m here.”
And for the first time, I realized he finally meant it more than anything else in his life.
