Chapter 9 - The Uncut Minute

They played the recording in Avery's office with the blinds closed.

The full security footage showed everything: Evelyn striking Mara first, the soup pouring down her face, Mara pushing her into the plate, Daniel grabbing Mara, and Mara slapping him. The images were ugly. Nothing about the complete version made Mara proud. But it did make the edited version a lie.

"Freeze there," Avery said.

In the corner of the screen, while everyone stared at the fight, Grant reached under Mara's chair and removed a blue document folder from her purse. He slipped it inside his jacket as calmly as a man collecting a dinner check.

"My mother's copies," Mara whispered. "I brought them so Evelyn couldn't say I was making things up."

"That's why she wanted a distraction," Claire said.

Avery marked the timestamp. "We can make a demand for the folder. We can also report the apparent theft."

After the guests fled the room, the camera kept recording. Evelyn, wet and shaking, gripped the edge of the table. Grant leaned toward her and asked, "Do we have enough?"

"We have what we need," Evelyn replied.

Henry reached out and shut the laptop. No one spoke for a long moment.

"You knew this was coming," Mara said to him.

"I knew there'd be an argument. Not that she'd hit you. Not that she'd arrange the room like a trap."

"You didn't stop any of it."

"No." His voice broke. "I didn't."

Avery connected the hard drive to an isolated computer. It also held scans of financial statements, payroll registers, and a folder marked WINTER FUND - CURRENT. The dates ran into December of this year.

For seventeen years, Mara had thought her mother had been sacrificed to hide one missing payment. But Northline Services was still receiving money. Hundreds of thousands of dollars had moved through accounts bearing the same routing number from the old carbon copy.

Avery opened the most recent spreadsheet. Under a column marked PROJECT LOCATION were the words HARBOR HOUSE FAMILY SHELTER.

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"They're doing it again," Mara said.

And this time, the next victims were still living inside the building.