Chapter 8 - Deputy Shaw's Choice
Ethan fired first.
Not at Shaw.
At the ceiling.
The explosion in the small nursery made everyone flinch.
Shaw froze with his hand on his gun.
"Take it out slowly," Ethan said.
Shaw stared at him.
Then, inch by inch, he removed the weapon and set it on the floor.
Claire kicked it away.
"Were you the shooter?"
"No."
"You have powder on your cuff."
"Because I fired at the shooter outside the west stairwell."
Evelyn narrowed her eyes.
"Who?"
"A man named Grant Mercer."
Ethan's expression changed.
"My father's attorney?"
Shaw nodded.
"Former attorney. He ran when I challenged him."
Claire remembered the black sedan at Blackwood Cottage.
"Was he driving a black Lincoln?"
"Registered to his firm."
Ethan lowered the revolver.
"Why would Mercer shoot at us?"
"Because," Shaw said, "I pulled the old property transfer records. Mara Ellis filed a legal challenge against Bennett Energy eight years ago. Grant Mercer buried it."
Evelyn closed her eyes.
"Richard paid him."
"More than paid him. Mercer got a silent share in the hydro project. If Emma proves inheritance, the project lease can be voided. We're talking hundreds of millions."
Claire sat on the edge of the little bed.
"So Emma isn't being hidden from Ethan because of some family shame. She's being hidden because she's evidence."
"And leverage," Evelyn said.
Ethan turned sharply.
"What does that mean?"
Before Evelyn could answer, a child's scream came through the wall.
Claire was on her feet instantly.
"Emma."
The scream came again, faint but unmistakable.
They found another narrow door behind a wardrobe.
It led to a back staircase.
Claire rushed down despite Ethan telling her to slow down.
At the bottom, a side door hung open.
A blue sweater lay in the mud.
Tire tracks cut across the lawn.
A car was already disappearing beyond the trees.
Evelyn grabbed the doorframe.
"No. No, no."
Ethan spun on her.
"You said she was safe."
"She was supposed to be with Ruth."
"Who is Ruth?"
Evelyn's face crumpled.
"Mara's sister."
Claire stared at her.
"Mara had a sister?"
"Half-sister. Different name. Richard never found out."
Shaw's radio crackled.
A dispatcher said, "Unit twelve, be advised. Vehicle matching Mercer has been found abandoned near County Road Nine. One adult female located injured at scene. No child present."
Ethan grabbed the radio.
"Who is the woman?"
Static.
Then the answer came.
May you like
"Name appears to be Ruth Ellis. She keeps asking for someone named Claire."
