Chapter 5 - The Missing Forty Seconds

The flash drive showed signs of tampering.

Maya's digital-forensics consultant, Theo Grant, called from his office that evening. "The video is seven minutes, twelve seconds. Metadata says the original recording was seven minutes, fifty-two."

"Forty seconds missing," Claire said.

"Exactly."

"Can you recover it?"

"Maybe from deleted sectors, maybe from another copy. But whoever edited this knew what they were doing."

Daniel arrived at the hospital before dinner carrying flowers.

Claire pressed the call button the second he entered.

He stopped. "Really?"

"You tried to kill me."

"You're alive."

The answer came too quickly.

Claire stared at him.

Daniel closed his eyes. "That came out wrong."

"No. I think it came out exactly right."

He set the flowers down. "You don't understand what my father did."

"He protected his grandchild from you."

"He punished me."

"For stealing?"

Daniel's face sharpened. "Maya showed you the video."

"She showed the police too."

That was a bluff. Perez had only seen the codicil so far.

Daniel believed her.

He moved closer and lowered his voice. "My father was sick. Paranoid. Rosa fed him stories because she wanted leverage."

"Then why did you cut the curtain?"

He looked toward the door.

"Because Mother said the trust only activated if the baby was born alive."

Claire felt her stomach turn.

Daniel's eyes filled with something that looked like shame but never reached the level of remorse.

"I panicked."

"You tried to murder your wife and son because you panicked?"

"We don't know it's a son."

The casual correction broke something in Claire.

She hit the call button again.

A nurse entered. Daniel backed away.

Before leaving, he leaned close enough that only Claire could hear.

"Rosa is not going to save you."

"Where is she?"

Daniel smiled faintly. "Ask my mother."

That night, Claire woke to a soft knock.

A young orderly stepped inside and shut the door.

"I'm sorry," he said. "Mrs. Bennett paid me to give you this."

Claire's hand went to her belly.

He placed a folded note on the tray and hurried out.

The handwriting was Rosa's.

CLAIRE-DO NOT TRUST THE POLICE OFFICER WITH THE GOLD WEDDING RING. CHARLES MADE TWO VIDEOS. THE SECOND ONE NAMES WHO HELPED THEM.

Beneath the sentence was an address.

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