Chapter 9 - THE WOMAN AT ST. AGNES
Helen Ward agreed to meet them in person.
Eleanor sent a car.
Naomi sent an investigator.
Claire remained in Chicago because her doctor refused to let her travel.
By evening, Helen was sitting across from Claire in a private suite at the Grand Belmont.
Claire had refused to return to Richard’s condominium.
Eleanor gave her an entire secured floor instead.
Helen was seventy-six.
Small.
Gray-haired.
Nervous.
She held a paper cup with both hands.
“You were quiet.”
Helen looked at Claire.
“Most children cried their first few nights.”
“You didn’t.”
Claire smiled sadly.
“I don’t remember.”
“You carried a blue blanket everywhere.”
Claire’s eyes filled.
She remembered that.
Barely.
A corner of blue fabric.
Soft against her cheek.
A song she could never completely recall.
Helen continued.
“The woman first came when you were around five.”
“Diana?”
“I know that now.”
“What did she want?”
“She watched you.”
“Did she speak to me?”
“Once.”
Claire leaned forward.
“What did she say?”
Helen closed her eyes.
“She asked if you remembered a lake.”
Claire’s breath caught.
“What did I say?”
“You started crying.”
Eleanor turned away.
Helen reached into her handbag.
“I kept something.”
She pulled out a small envelope.
Inside was a photocopy of an old visitor note.
A social worker had written it after becoming suspicious.
UNKNOWN WOMAN ASKED ABOUT CLAIRE.
CLAIMS TO BE FAMILY FRIEND.
CHILD BECAME DISTRESSED.
DO NOT ALLOW UNSUPERVISED CONTACT.
Claire stared.
“Why wasn’t this in my file?”
“It was.”
Helen looked ashamed.
“Then one day it disappeared.”
“Who removed it?”
“I don’t know.”
“But Diana stopped visiting after that.”
Naomi asked.
“Did anyone else visit Claire?”
Helen nodded.
“A man.”
Eleanor stiffened.
“Describe him.”
“Tall.”
“Dark hair.”
“Always wore expensive coats.”
“He never spoke to Claire.”
“He watched from across the courtyard.”
“How often?”
“Maybe four or five times.”
“Name?”
“He signed in once.”
Helen pulled out another photocopy.
The name read.
M. CRAWFORD.
Eleanor shut her eyes.
Claire said nothing.
There was no room left for denial.
Malcolm had known.
At minimum, he had known where she was.
Naomi photographed the document.
“Federal investigators will want this.”
Helen began crying.
“I should have said something sooner.”
Claire shook her head.
“You’re saying it now.”
That night, the story exploded online.
Someone had leaked the DNA result.
News trucks surrounded the Grand Belmont.
Headlines appeared everywhere.
MISSING CRAWFORD HEIRESS FOUND AFTER THIRTY YEARS.
HOTEL HUMILIATION LEADS TO BILLION-DOLLAR FAMILY REUNION.
Claire became famous in three hours.
Her face was everywhere.
So was Richard’s.
A video of him throwing Claire’s suitcase had leaked too.
Public opinion turned vicious.
Richard’s company placed him on temporary leave.
Conrad Pike was fired.
Vanessa disappeared from Sterling Maritime’s offices.
At eleven, Malcolm Crawford held a press conference.
Claire watched from the suite.
He looked solemn.
Concerned.
Uncle-like.
“I am overjoyed that my niece may have been found.”
Claire whispered.
“Liar.”
Malcolm continued.
“However, extraordinary claims involving substantial family assets must be handled responsibly.”
Eleanor’s face hardened.
There it was.
Money.
Malcolm smiled sadly for the cameras.
“My sister has endured unimaginable trauma.”
“We must ensure she is not being manipulated.”
Claire almost admired the performance.
Then a reporter shouted.
“Are you saying Claire Sterling is lying?”
Malcolm paused perfectly.
“I’m saying six hundred million dollars can create powerful incentives.”
Claire’s phone rang.
Richard.
She declined.
A text arrived.
THIS IS WHAT I WARNED YOU ABOUT.
Then another.
COME HOME BEFORE THEY DESTROY YOU.
Claire stared at the screen.
A third message appeared.
I HAVE PROOF ELEANOR PAID SOMEONE TO MAKE THE DNA MATCH.
Claire immediately showed Naomi.
Naomi read it.
Then she smiled.
It was not a pleasant smile.
“Good.”
Claire frowned.
“Good?”
“He just made a mistake.”
“How?”
“Because both laboratories preserved chain-of-custody records.”
Naomi lifted her phone.
“And one of them already contacted me this afternoon.”
“Why?”
“Someone tried to bribe a lab employee to alter the stored sample.”
Claire’s blood ran cold.
“Who?”
May you like
Naomi looked directly at her.
“The payment came from a company controlled by Richard Sterling.”
