Chapter 6 - The Lie She Didn't Rehearse
Mara stared at the locked door. "What is this? Am I a prisoner now?"
"You're a witness," Elias said. "And you're going to wait for the detective."
She laughed once. "You're throwing away four years for a woman who lied her way into our house."
"Harper told me she lied. You told me you didn't touch my wine. The laboratory says somebody did."
"Then ask the caterers."
I remembered a detail that had been bothering me since the ambulance. "The server who poured his glass had a blue wrist brace. She dropped the bottle and apologized. Your assistant carried it back to the kitchen. But you brought Elias a new glass yourself."
Mara's face hardened. "You were supposed to be polishing silver."
It was the first true thing she'd said all morning.
Elias lifted his phone. "Why do you know where she was assigned? You told the police you never saw her until she came into the dining room."
Mara held his gaze. "Because Rafe called me."
"Before or after he attacked her?"
"I don't know what Rafe did."
Ortiz arrived before the argument could turn ugly. She took Mara into the hall and interviewed her separately. By then a second officer had arrived with news: the article Mara carried was a manipulated printout, not a newspaper edition, and the signature had been lifted from a staff hiring form.
"Can you arrest her?" I asked.
"I can collect her statement. Don't confuse suspicion with proof." Ortiz paused. "Her lawyer's already on his way."
An hour later, Elias received a call from his father.
"Come home," Everett said over speakerphone. His voice was dry and familiar, like a man discussing a late train. "You have a company to protect."
"You sent me a picture of a kid tied to a chair."
"I sent you nothing."
"Don't lie to me."
"Check the number, son. Then check who had access to my phone yesterday."
Elias looked at me. "Who?"
"Mara. She borrowed it during lunch. Claimed her battery was dead."
Everett was quiet for a beat. "She's been using you, Elias. But if you come to Bellwether before noon, I can keep this from destroying us."
The call ended.
Ortiz came through the doorway with fresh evidence. Security-camera footage from Ben's apartment showed a driver leading him outside. The driver had a familiar walk and a black shoulder holster.
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I recognized Rafe before she said his name.
Then Ben himself appeared on the recording—and climbed into the car without a struggle.
