Chapter 6: What They Wanted From Eli
I pulled Eli against me.
He was trembling so badly that his teeth were chattering.
“No one is taking him.””
The old man smiled.
“You still don't understand.””
A police officer raised his weapon.
“Sir, step away from the child.””
The old man stopped.
“Of course.””
His eyes remained fixed on Eli.
Luke looked at me.
“Claire, get him behind you.””
“I already am.””
“Not enough.””
I had never heard fear in Luke's voice like that.
Not even when Eli had been hospitalized with pneumonia two years earlier.
I looked at him.
“Why do they want him?””
Luke didn't answer.
The old man did.
“Because of what his mother left behind.””
Eli looked confused.
“Mommy?””
I felt my chest tighten.
His mother had died before I met Luke.
I'd been told it was an accident.
A car crash.
A tragic story Luke rarely discussed.
“What did his mother leave behind?””
The old man smiled.
“A fortune.””
Luke shook his head.
“Stop.””
“It's time she knew.””
“Dad, stop.””
The old man laughed.
“You've lied to her for years.””
I looked at Luke.
“About what?””
The old man's gaze sharpened.
“Eli's mother didn't die broke.””
I stared at him.
“What are you talking about?””
“She left her son a trust.””
“How much?””
“Enough that everyone in this room would suddenly become very interested in his welfare.””
Luke whispered, “Claire.””
I turned toward him.
“You knew?””
He nodded.
“How much?””
“Twenty million.””
The number seemed unreal.
I looked at Eli.
He was six years old.
He didn't even understand what a trust was.
The old man continued.
“The money becomes accessible when Eli turns eighteen.””
“Then why would anyone want him now?””
“Because the trust is controlled by a guardian.””
I looked at Luke.
His face was empty.
I understood.
“You're his guardian.””
“Yes.””
“And you can access the money?””
“Not personally.””
“But you can control it.””
“Only under specific conditions.””
The old man smiled.
“And one of those conditions is medical necessity.””
My stomach turned.
“Medical necessity?””
Luke closed his eyes.
“Dad.””
The old man looked at Eli.
“Your stepson has a rare blood condition.””
Eli looked frightened.
I held him tighter.
“What condition?””
Luke immediately stepped forward.
“Don't tell her.””
The old man laughed.
“You never told her?””
I stared at Luke.
“Tell me.””
“Claire—”
“Tell me.””
Luke swallowed.
“Eli has a genetic disorder.””
My mind flashed back to all the strange things I'd noticed.
The blood tests.
The specialists.
The medications Luke had always insisted on handling.
The appointments I had been told were “routine.””
I had believed him.
The old man leaned on his cane.
“His biological mother knew something was wrong.””
“What?””
“She discovered that the trust was being manipulated.””
Luke's voice was barely a whisper.
“That's enough.””
“No.””
The old man looked at me.
“She was going to expose him.””
“Expose who?””
“Luke.””
I turned slowly toward my husband.
“You stole from Eli?””
Luke shook his head.
“I borrowed money.””
“How much?””
“I was going to put it back.””
“How much?””
He said nothing.
The old man answered.
“Eight million dollars.””
The room went silent.
I felt dizzy.
Eight million.
From a child.
Luke had stolen eight million dollars from his own son.
“For what?””
“Debts,” the old man said.
“Gambling?””
“Business.””
I laughed once.
It wasn't funny.
“You told me his mother died in an accident.””
Luke looked at the floor.
“She did.””
Rachel suddenly spoke.
“No.””
Everyone turned.
Rachel's face had gone pale.
“She didn't.””
Luke stared at her.
“Don't.””
“I found the report.””
The old man slowly turned toward her.
“You found it?””
“Yes.””
Rachel reached into her bag.
She pulled out a thin folder.
“I spent two years trying to prove it.””
Luke's voice rose.
“Put it away.””
Rachel ignored him.
She opened the folder.
“Her brakes were cut.””
My entire body went cold.
“What?””
Rachel looked at me.
“Eli's mother didn't die in an accident.””
She looked at Luke.
“She was murdered.””
Eli began crying.
I covered his ears.
“Don't let him hear this.””
Rachel nodded.
“I'm sorry.””
The old man stepped forward.
“You're making a mistake.””
Rachel turned toward him.
“No.””
She pulled out another sheet.
“Because I know who ordered it.””
Luke suddenly lunged.
The police caught him before he reached her.
“Sir!””
He fought against them.
“Give me that!””
Rachel backed away.
“You're not touching this.””
“Rachel!””
“You killed her.””
Luke stopped.
The accusation echoed through the room.
I stared at my husband.
He was breathing heavily.
Then he looked at me.
“Claire.””
I couldn't speak.
“You have to believe me.””
I finally found my voice.
“Did you kill her?””
“No.””
“Did your father?””
Luke hesitated.
That hesitation destroyed whatever remained of my trust.
The old man smiled.
“This is becoming inconvenient.””
One of the police officers reached for his phone.
“Backup is on the way.””
The old man nodded.
“Then we should finish this.””
He pulled a small remote from his pocket.
Luke's face changed.
“Dad, don't.””
The old man pressed a button.
Every light in the maternity wing went out.
The room plunged into darkness.
Someone screamed.
A baby began crying.
Police shouted.
Security moved.
I grabbed Eli with one arm and reached blindly for the bassinet with the other.
“June!””
I heard footsteps running.
Then a man's voice.
“Get the boy!””
I pulled Eli beneath the hospital bed.
“Stay here.””
“Mommy!””
“Don't move.””
The bassinet wheels squealed.
Someone grabbed it.
I reached out.
My fingers caught the edge of the blanket.
Then it tore from my hand.
A flashlight beam cut through the darkness.
I saw the baby's face for one second.
Then the person pushing the bassinet looked down at me.
It was the nurse with the tattoo behind her ear.
She smiled.
“You were never supposed to wake up.””
She pushed the bassinet toward the elevator.
I screamed.
“STOP!””
The doors opened.
She disappeared inside.
The lights suddenly came back.
The hallway was empty.
The bassinet was gone.
So was the nurse.
And Luke was staring at the elevator doors with tears streaming down his face.
I crawled out from beneath the bed.
“Where did she take my daughter?””
Luke didn't answer.
“Luke!””
He looked at me.
Then at Eli.
His face collapsed.
“She didn't take June.””
I froze.
“What?””
Luke whispered,
“She took Ava.””
I stared at him.
“Then where is June?””
He looked toward the sixth-floor elevator.
“She was already taken.””
A police officer grabbed his shoulder.
“Taken where?””
Luke closed his eyes.
“By the only person I was trying to keep her away from.””
“Who?””
Luke looked at his father.
The old man was smiling.
Then Eli suddenly screamed.
“Grandpa!””
Everyone turned.
Eli was staring at the old man's face.
“I remember you.””
The old man's smile disappeared.
Eli pointed at him with a shaking finger.
“You were at Mommy's funeral.””
I looked at Luke.
The old man.
The dead grandfather.
And my husband.
May you like
Then Eli said the words that made Luke collapse against the wall.
“He was the man who put Mommy's picture in the fire.””
