Chapter 5
Evelyn demanded to see Grace the next morning.
The nurse laughed in her face.
I wish I had seen it.
Instead, I watched through the narrow window as Evelyn stood in the hallway wearing pearls, rage, and disbelief.
“This is my granddaughter,” she snapped.
The officer said, “You are not permitted near the victim.”
Victim.
The word hurt.
Then steadied me.
I had been victimized.
That did not mean I was weak.
Nathan’s lawyer arrived by noon.
He requested a “family resolution.”
Sarah Whitcomb, the attorney Claire had called before the rescue, arrived ten minutes later.
She wore a navy suit and the expression of a woman who enjoyed badly prepared opponents.
“My client will not be resolving her kidnapping privately,” Sarah said.
The lawyer tried to smile.
“Nathan is concerned about his wife’s mental state.”
Sarah opened her folder.
“Excellent. Then he will be relieved to know we have six weeks of recordings proving her mental state was clear while he held her captive.”
His smile died.
Sarah sat beside my bed.
“Olivia, I pulled your trust documents. Nathan had no legal access. Evelyn had no claim. Your grandmother was very careful.”
A tear slipped down my cheek.
“Grandma never trusted him.”
“She was right.”
Claire held Grace.
“She also left something else.”
I looked at her.
“What?”
Claire pulled a sealed envelope from her bag.
“I found this in the lockbox after you disappeared. It was addressed to you.”
My grandmother’s handwriting curved across the front.
For Olivia, when the house becomes a battlefield.
My hands shook as I opened it.
May you like
Inside was one sentence.
If Nathan ever tries to take what is yours, look behind the blue wall in the basement.
