Chapter 8 - Hannah's Missing Amendment
I did not ask Sarah how she knew Julian had someone inside the police department.
Not in the basement.
Not while Priya's phone was recording.
I simply said, "Get out."
Sarah stared at me.
"Marcus—"
"Out."
She looked at Priya, then at the empty drive slot.
"If you go to the beach house, don't use the front entrance."
My chest tightened.
"Why would I go there?"
She realized she had said too much.
Then she turned and climbed the stairs.
The front door slammed thirty seconds later.
Priya exhaled.
"We call state police, not local. We preserve the drive. We get Lily somewhere Julian doesn't expect."
"And I find Hannah's amendment."
"Marcus—"
"If the original exists, it destroys his legal route."
"And makes him more dangerous."
"He already suggested stairs."
Priya had no answer to that.
Evelyn moved Lily to her sister's home under a different last name. Priya sent a copy of the local-drive footage to two secure servers and a prosecutor she trusted.
Then I drove to Hannah's beach house alone.
The ocean was gray behind the property, hard wind pushing salt against the windows.
I entered through the side door because Sarah's warning stayed in my head.
Inside, nothing looked disturbed.
That made me more nervous.
Hannah had kept the upstairs office almost untouched.
I opened drawers.
Tax returns.
Old invoices.
Beach permits.
No amendment.
I checked the wall safe.
Empty except for insurance policies.
I opened boxes in the closet.
Nothing.
Forty minutes passed.
My phone vibrated twice.
Priya: STATUS?
Evelyn: LILY SAFE.
I typed back: SEARCHING.
I sat at Hannah's old desk and looked around.
Her pencil cup still held three dried-out pens.
A photo of Lily as a toddler leaned against the lamp.
I picked it up.
Behind the frame, Hannah had written:
ASK LILY WHERE I HIDE THE GOOD PRESENTS.
My heart kicked.
The note could have been innocent.
Or not.
I called Evelyn.
"Put Lily on."
A moment later, Lily's small voice said, "Daddy?"
"Hey, bug. Weird question. Where did Mommy Hannah hide birthday presents?"
Lily giggled.
"You always found them."
"Not all of them."
"She said you never look up."
I raised my head.
Ceiling.
Crown molding.
Air vent above the bookcase.
"Where exactly?"
"The windy square."
I dragged the desk chair across the floor and climbed onto it.
The vent screws were newer than the paint.
My fingers shook as I loosened them with a coin.
Behind the grille sat a plastic waterproof pouch.
I nearly fell getting down.
Inside was a notarized trust amendment.
Hannah Vance Family Property Trust - Amendment Four.
Successor trustee language.
Julian Hale removed.
Independent Harbor Trust Company appointed if I died, resigned, or became incapacitated.
No family successor.
No spouse successor.
No Julian.
My breath left my chest in one burst.
I photographed every page.
Then I reached the witness section.
Witness One: Evelyn Hart.
Witness Two: Sarah Reed.
I stopped.
Sarah had signed the amendment.
She had known exactly what Hannah changed.
Exactly why Julian was blocked.
Exactly what would be required to get around it.
My phone rang.
Sarah.
I declined.
She called again.
Declined.
A text appeared.
DON'T LET JULIAN KNOW YOU FOUND IT.
Then another.
HE'LL COME THERE.
A floorboard creaked downstairs.
I froze.
Not the settling wood.
A shoe.
Another creak.
Front hall.
I slid the amendment back into the pouch and pushed it beneath a loose drawer liner instead of returning it to the vent.
Voices drifted upward.
Julian.
"His car is here."
Sarah answered.
"I told you he wouldn't come."
My heart slammed against my ribs.
She had come with him.
I opened the voice recorder on my phone and slid it into my shirt pocket.
Julian's steps hit the staircase.
Sarah whispered something I couldn't hear.
He replied clearly.
"If Marcus found the amendment, we don't have a legal problem anymore."
I did not move immediately after hearing Julian say body problem.
The office had one other exit: a narrow door to the upper balcony facing the water.
Hannah used to complain that the latch stuck in winter.
I eased it open without letting the hinges click and stepped outside.
Wind struck my face hard enough to water my eyes.
The balcony wrapped around the rear of the house but ended above the old exterior stairs Julian had mentioned on the recording.
I looked down.
One rail post was split near the base.
Fresh split.
Pale wood exposed beneath weathered gray.
Someone had weakened it.
My stomach dropped.
The "accident" was not theoretical.
I photographed the damage and sent it to Priya with one line:
THIS IS THE STAIR PLAN.
Her reply came immediately.
LEAVE NOW. STATE POLICE EN ROUTE BUT 20+ MIN.
Footsteps entered the office behind me.
I stayed flat against the exterior wall, out of sight through the glass.
Julian opened drawers.
"Vent's open," he said.
Sarah answered, "Then he found it."
"Where would he put it?"
"If he has any sense, nowhere you can reach."
Julian laughed without humor.
"You sound like you're rooting for him."
"I'm rooting for nobody dying."
"That luxury ended when you married him."
I heard paper rip.
Sarah said, "You told me Hannah's amendment was missing."
"It was."
"No. You told me it didn't exist. That's different."
Julian's voice hardened.
"Watch yourself."
I looked toward the yard.
My car sat exposed in the driveway.
No clean exit.
Then my phone vibrated again.
Unknown number.
A text photograph loaded slowly.
Lily leaving Evelyn's sister's house earlier that afternoon.
Taken from across the street.
Message beneath it:
WE ALL HAVE LEVERAGE.
My knees nearly gave out.
Someone was watching the safe house too.
I forwarded the image to Priya.
Inside, Sarah said, "If you've touched Lily, I swear—"
Julian cut her off.
"Then help me find the amendment."
Her answer came low and shaking.
"You don't understand Marcus."
Julian gave a dry laugh.
"I understand him better than you do. Men like him think staying calm makes them safe."
I looked down at my hand.
It was trembling so hard the wedding ring clicked against the balcony rail.
The sound was tiny.
Inside, the footsteps stopped.
Julian said, "What was that?"
The balcony door handle began to turn.
His shoes reached the landing.
A pause.
Then Julian said:
May you like
"We have a body problem."
