Chapter 8 - THE PERFECT FRAME
Lucas almost laughed.
“That’s impossible.”
Mason did not react.
“Your fingerprints are on the bottle.”
“I’ve never seen it.”
Rosa stepped forward.
“That polish is used throughout the manor.”
“Mr. Lucas could have touched a bottle before.”
“I haven’t lived here full-time in six years.”
Mason nodded.
“Which makes the placement suspicious.”
Claire studied him.
“You don’t think Lucas did it.”
“I think someone wanted us to think he did.”
Lucas looked at Claire.
For the first time since the fall, she believed him.
Not completely.
But enough.
They returned to the manor.
Evelyn sat in the drawing room with two attorneys.
Her emerald dress had been replaced by black cashmere.
She looked smaller in daylight.
Mason dismissed the lawyers’ objections.
“Did you put polish on the staircase.”
“No.”
“Did you push Claire.”
Evelyn stared at the floor.
“I grabbed her.”
Claire’s heart pounded.
“Why.”
Evelyn looked up.
“Because she was holding documents.”
“What documents.”
“Records showing money moved from Sterling Global.”
“You stole it.”
Evelyn’s eyes filled with tears.
“Yes.”
Lucas looked stunned.
“How much.”
“Sixteen million.”
Silence.
Evelyn wiped her face angrily.
“I was going to repay it.”
“Sixteen million dollars.”
“My investment fund collapsed.”
“I panicked.”
“Graham said he could hide it.”
Claire finally saw the shape of the trap.
“So Graham owned you.”
Evelyn nodded.
“He told me if your baby received the voting trust, the internal audit rules would change.”
“The transfers would be exposed.”
“That’s why you wanted the trust stopped.”
“Yes.”
“Did you want me dead.”
Evelyn recoiled.
“No.”
“Did Graham.”
“I don’t know.”
Helena entered from the hallway.
“That is enough.”
Mason turned.
Helena ignored him.
She faced Evelyn.
“You will say nothing else.”
Evelyn laughed bitterly.
“You’re still doing it.”
“Doing what.”
“Protecting him.”
Claire watched Helena.
Not protecting Evelyn.
Him.
Graham.
Lucas seemed to understand too.
“Mother.”
Helena’s expression remained unreadable.
“How long have you known what Graham was doing.”
Before she could answer, an officer entered.
“Detective.”
“We found Vale.”
Mason stood.
“Where.”
The officer hesitated.
“In the east wing.”
“Behind a false wall.”
Claire remembered the hidden surveillance room.
“Is he alive.”
“Yes.”
“But there’s a problem.”
“What problem.”
“He says he was locked inside before Claire fell.”
“And the security logs support his story.”
Claire stared at Mason.
May you like
If Graham had been imprisoned before the staircase attack, then the male voice on her recording could not have been him.
Someone had imitated Graham perfectly.
