CHAPTER 3 — “THE GAP IN THE STORY”
Detective Harris arrived just before midnight.
He didn’t start with questions.
He started with silence.
Then he placed a folder on the table.
Inside were security camera stills from a service road behind our neighborhood.
One image.
A car.
Black SUV.
No plates.
Another image.
A small figure being carried.
Limp.
My hands went cold.
“That’s not possible,” I whispered.
The detective didn’t argue.
Instead, he slid another photo across.
A woman.
Not a stranger.
Someone I recognized.
Our housekeeper.
Rosa.
My breath stopped.
“She left your home at 3:12 PM,” Harris said.
“And returned alone at 3:47.”
“But Lily was reported missing at 3:40.”
The timeline bent like broken glass.
Mark stood up too fast.
“This is insane—Rosa has worked for us for years.”
The detective finally looked at him.
“So has someone inside your house.”
The room went still.
And for the first time…
I understood something terrifying.
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Lily didn’t get lost.
She was moved.
