Chapter 2: Four Words on a Screen
My father didn't ask twice.
Within twenty minutes, he called back with a name — his personal attorney, a woman named Carol Briggs, who had spent thirty years handling exactly this kind of case.
"Send her the recording," Dad said.
"Don't delete a single second of it."
I sent it before Owen even knocked on the door.
When he finally walked in, his jacket was loose, his smile easy.
He looked at my torn veil and dusty dress and frowned.
"What happened to you?"
"I was waiting for you," I said.
"Sit down, Owen."
Something in my voice made him stop smiling.
He sat.
I didn't say anything about the recording.
I didn't mention Lorraine.
I just watched his face and let the silence do the work.
Then his phone buzzed on the nightstand.
He glanced at the screen — and went completely still.
It was a message from Lorraine.
I only caught four words before he flipped it face-down.
*She may already know.*
Owen looked up at me slowly.
"Mara—"
"Don't," I said quietly.
He opened his mouth again — and that was when the second message arrived.
Not on his phone.
On mine.
From a number I didn't recognize.
One photo.
No caption.
My hands went cold when I saw what was in it.
---
What was in that photo — and who sent it to Mara?
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The full truth is darker than anyone expected.
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