Chapter 8 - The Woman at the Gate

Mara refused to come alone. "That's how people vanish in bad movies," she told June.

"This isn't a movie."

"Exactly. Bring Teresa."

The east gate of the Voss estate stood beyond a line of cypress trees. In daylight it looked like a service entrance. At midnight, with its security lamps flickering and the sea pounding below the bluff, it looked like a place built to keep secrets.

An elderly woman stepped out of the caretaker's cottage. She wore rubber boots and held a flashlight like a club.

"Mara Quinn?" she asked. "I'm Ruth Bell. I sent the messages."

"You told me not to trust Caleb."

"I told you to be careful with him. He was standing at this gate on the night of the crash."

Ruth had worked for the Voss family for thirty-two years. She knew the old security system. When Victor ordered the gate cameras shut off, she had saved a low-resolution backup to her old gardening office computer. She'd been afraid to tell anyone. Seeing Celeste attack Mara at the gala finally made her move.

Inside the cottage, Ruth clicked play.

A white shuttle rolled into view. Its front warning light blinked. Luis Flores leaned from his window, arguing with someone just beyond the camera. Owen stood in the aisle, one hand against the glass, his paper crown tilted sideways.

Mara leaned toward the screen. "That's him."

For three years she'd seen only photographs. Here Owen was alive. She had to bite the inside of her cheek to keep from breaking.

A black SUV blocked the shuttle for a moment. Caleb Reed stepped into view. He spoke to Luis, then turned sharply toward another figure standing beside the gate.

Victor Voss.

Ruth paused the footage. "Caleb tried to stop them. I heard shouting. Then Victor sent the shuttle through."

An engine sounded outside. Headlights swept across the cottage window.

"That'll be Blake," Ruth said. "He comes at midnight."

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