Chapter 11 - The Missing Hour
Tyler backed away from the screen.
"That's not me."
Grant looked at the frozen image. Same sandy hair. Same varsity jacket Tyler had worn constantly that winter.
"It looks like you."
"I said it's not me."
His breathing quickened.
Leah moved one step toward him, then stopped, respecting the distance he had asked for without words.
Renee said, "Memory gaps can happen under stress. They can also be caused by medication. Tyler, do you remember feeling sick that night?"
He pressed both hands to his temples.
"I remember going to bed. I remember waking up late. Mom was already gone."
Grant suddenly remembered something small and stupid.
A glass of warm milk on Tyler's nightstand.
"You were taking sleep medication then," he said.
"Only sometimes."
"Who handled it?"
"Mom. Or..."
Tyler looked up.
"Uncle Victor stayed with me that week when you were traveling. He said I needed something stronger because I kept waking up."
Grant cursed under his breath.
Priya zoomed in on the video.
Tyler swayed slightly as he stood behind Caroline. She kept one hand on his shoulder.
"He looks impaired," Renee said.
The next camera showed Caroline leading Tyler toward an elevator at 12:18 a.m.
At 12:22, Victor and Ryan left together.
Grant asked, "Where did Caroline take him?"
Priya searched traffic cameras, garage exits, and old city feeds.
At 12:51, Caroline's SUV entered the underground garage beneath the Mercer house.
At 1:03, Tyler appeared in the upstairs hallway camera, moving unsteadily toward his room.
Then a second figure entered behind him.
Victor.
"How did I miss this?" Grant whispered.
Malik answered quietly. "Because the old system overwrote local footage after thirty days. This copy came from the cloud vendor's legal archive."
On screen, Victor entered Tyler's room.
He stayed for six minutes.
When he came out, he carried something small in his hand.
Priya sharpened the frame.
A pill bottle.
Tyler sank into a chair.
"He drugged me?"
Renee said, "We don't know yet."
But Grant did not need certainty to feel rage.
A new message arrived on Tyler's burner phone.
VICTOR: YOU'RE REMEMBERING NOW, AREN'T YOU?
Then another.
ASK LEAH WHAT YOUR MOTHER GAVE HER THAT NIGHT.
Tyler looked at Leah.
May you like
Her face had gone blank.
"I think," she whispered, "I finally remember the fundraiser."
