Chapter 1 - The Second Injector
“Did the doctors find the second injector?”
Michael’s question hung in the hospital room like smoke.
I stared at the phone in my hand.
Detective Sarah Collins did not move.
Lily was watching me from the bed.
Her small fingers tightened around mine.
I forced my voice to remain calm.
“What second injector?”
There was a pause.
Too long.
Michael laughed softly.
“You always carry two for Lily.”
“I figured the doctors would want both.”
Detective Collins wrote something on a small notepad.
I looked at her.
She pointed to the speakerphone and silently motioned for me to continue.
“Why are you asking?”
“I’m worried about my niece.”
Michael sounded relaxed now.
Almost offended.
“Mom called me and said Lily had some kind of reaction.”
Mom.
That was what Michael still called Evelyn sometimes, even though she was not our mother.
She was Anna’s mother.
My mother-in-law.
For years, Michael had become unusually close to her.
I had assumed they were united by grief.
Anna’s death had devastated all of us.
Now I wondered if grief had merely given them access to one another.
“Where are you?” I asked.
“At the house.”
My stomach tightened.
Our house.
My house.
The place where Michael had been staying since Anna died.
The place containing Lily’s medical records, financial documents, school information, and copies of almost everything connected to her trust.
“What are you doing there?”
Another pause.
“Waiting for you.”
Detective Collins mouthed one word.
Keep going.
“Did Evelyn call you from the luncheon?”
“No.”
The answer came too quickly.
“So how did you know Lily had an allergic reaction?”
Silence.
Michael cleared his throat.
“Someone told me.”
“Who?”
“I don’t remember.”
“You don’t remember who told you your niece nearly died?”
His voice changed.
Only slightly.
But I knew my brother.
I knew when irritation replaced confidence.
“Daniel, you’re obviously upset.”
“There are police here.”
“Then maybe stop interrogating me like I’m the criminal.”
Detective Collins’ eyes narrowed.
I looked toward Lily.
She had closed her eyes again.
Her breathing remained steady.
That was the only thing keeping me grounded.
“Michael.”
“Yeah?”
“Do not leave the house.”
He laughed.
“What?”
“I need to talk to you when I get home.”
“About what?”
“The injector.”
This time, the silence felt different.
Michael breathed once into the phone.
Then quietly said:
“You shouldn’t be talking about that over the phone.”
The call ended.
Detective Collins immediately stood.
“He’s leaving.”
“How do you know?”
“Because innocent people don’t tell you not to discuss evidence over the phone.”
She opened the hospital door and spoke rapidly to the officer outside.
I looked down at my phone.
A message appeared from my home security system.
FRONT DOOR OPENED.
Then another.
BACK GARAGE DOOR OPENED.
Michael was not waiting for me.
He was running.
But before Detective Collins reached the hallway, Lily opened her eyes.
“Dad.”
I turned.
“What is it, sweetheart?”
Her voice was barely a whisper.
“Uncle Michael came into my room last night.”
My entire body went cold.
“What did he do?”
Lily swallowed.
“He took Mommy’s key.”
And I knew exactly which key she meant.
May you like
The key to Anna’s private safe.
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