Chương 11
The children were close enough that he could hear the faint sound of a cartoon through the wall.
Claire’s voice barely carried.
“He didn’t try the handle to see if it was unlocked.”
Nathan shook his head.
“No.”
Alexander watched understanding reach her.
Mercer had not gone to her apartment hoping someone would let him in.
Someone had created a key that would have opened the door.
Claire looked at Alexander.
“He could have entered.”
“Yes.”
“My daughters were inside.”
Alexander’s face became still.
Claire saw that stillness and, for the first time that morning, did not appear frightened by it.
She appeared relieved.
Then Lily opened the sitting-room door.
“Mom?”
Claire turned so quickly the chair behind her scraped the floor.
Lily stood barefoot in the doorway holding one navy shoe.
“Grace says Mr. Mercer took a picture of our door last night.”
Nobody spoke.
Claire crossed the room and crouched in front of her.
“What kind of picture?”
Lily shrugged.
“With his phone.”
“Of you?”
“No.”
“The door?”
Lily nodded.
“After he tried it.”
Alexander moved closer.
“Did he see you watching?”
Lily looked at him.
“I don’t think so.”
“Where were you?”
“Behind the kitchen wall.”
Claire’s face tightened.
“Why didn’t Grace tell me that?”
“She doesn’t know.”
Claire stared at her daughter.
Lily twisted the shoe in her hands.
“I saw him first.”
“And you didn’t tell your sisters?”
Lily shook her head.
“Why?”
Her eyes dropped.
“Because I thought if everybody got scared, Mommy would get scared too.”
Claire stopped breathing for a moment.
Lily looked up again.
“So I told Grace there was somebody at the door, but I didn’t tell her he had a key on his phone.”
Alexander’s attention sharpened.
“What do you mean, a key on his phone?”
Lily made a small rectangle with her fingers.
“He held his phone near the black thing beside the door.”
Claire closed her eyes.
The building used mobile access readers.
Alexander did not need Nathan to explain it.
Mercer had not merely possessed the temporary credential.
He had tried to use it.
Lily’s voice became very small.
May you like
“The light turned green.”
Claire stared at Lily as if the room had tilted beneath her.“The light turned green?”Lily nodded.“Then he pushed.”Claire’s hand moved to her mouth.Alexander looked at Nathan.Nathan was already reopening the access logs.“What happened when he pushed?”Lily hugged the navy shoe against her chest.“The chain was on.”Claire closed her eyes.For one second, nobody moved.Then she reached for Lily so quickly the child nearly dropped the shoe.Claire pulled her against her and held on with both arms.Lily’s face disappeared against her mother’s shoulder.“I put it on,” Lily mumbled.Claire leaned back enough to see her.“You put the chain on?”Lily nodded.“Mrs. DeLuca always does.”Claire’s eyes filled.“You were supposed to be watching a movie.”“We were.”“Why were you at the door?”“I heard somebody.”Claire’s voice broke.“You never go to the door.”“I didn’t open it.”“I know.”“You said never open it.”“I know, baby.”Alexander turned away.There were certain moments a stranger had no right to watch.Marcus seemed to feel the same way, because he suddenly became very interested in the paper bag on the conference table.Nathan remained at the laptop.His fingers moved quietly.Claire held Lily for another few seconds, then looked toward the sitting room.“Where were your sisters?”“Emma was helping Sophie with math.”“Grace?”“Bathroom.”Claire pressed her forehead briefly against Lily’s hair.“And you didn’t tell them what happened?”“I told Grace somebody was there.”“But not that he opened the lock.”Lily shook her head.“Why not?”The child’s mouth trembled.“Because he left.”Claire looked at Alexander.There was something terrible in the simplicity of that answer.For a child, danger that walked away could become a problem no longer worth burdening an adult with.Alexander crouched so he was closer to Lily’s height.“Did Mercer say anything?”She shook her head.“Did you hear him talk on the phone?”Another shake.“Did he stay long after the chain stopped the door?”Lily thought.“Maybe a minute.”“What did he do?”“He stood there.”“Just stood there?”She nodded.“Then he took the picture.”Alexander’s jaw tightened.“Of the door?”“Yes.”“Anything else?”Lily looked at Claire.“I think he took a picture of the little box too.”Nathan looked up.“The reader.”Alexander stood.“Can someone use a photograph of the reader for anything?”“Maybe documentation, model identification, installation details.”Nathan frowned.“By itself, probably not much.”“Probably?”“Security systems are rarely one magic weakness.”Marcus leaned against the conference table.“Usually people are the weakness.”Claire looked at him.“That sounded practiced.”“It is.”Nathan clicked through another log.“I have the temporary key creation, but not the exact usage event yet.”“You can’t tell whether he actually used it?”“I can tell the reader accepted something at seven twenty-three.”Claire’s face changed.“That matches Lily.”Nathan nodded.“The unit log shows an authenticated mobile credential.”Alexander stepped beside him.“Can you identify which credential?”“I’m trying.”Lily tugged Claire’s sleeve.“Am I in trouble?”Claire looked down sharply.“No.”“Because I should’ve told you.”“No.”Claire knelt again.“You should tell me if something scary happens, but you are not in trouble.”Lily studied her face.“Even if you’re already sad?”Claire’s expression collapsed.She gathered the child close again.“Especially then.”Emma had opened the sitting-room door.Nobody had heard her.She stood there with Sophie and Grace behind her.“How long have you been listening?” Claire asked.Emma shrugged.“Not long.”Sophie said, “A while.”Emma glared at her.“What?”“You always ruin it.”Claire sat back on her heels.“Come here.”The girls crossed the room.Within seconds, Claire was surrounded.Grace climbed onto one knee.Sophie leaned against her shoulder.Emma remained standing but held the back of Claire’s jacket.Lily still had the shoe.Marcus looked at Alexander.Alexander said quietly, “Get them something to eat.”Marcus nodded.“Real food?”“Yes.”“I feel vindicated.”He left.Nathan finally said, “I found it.”Claire looked up.He turned the laptop.“The credential used at seven twenty-three was the temporary one created at six fourteen.”Claire stood slowly.“So Daniel did try to enter.”Nathan was careful.“The system proves that credential was presented and accepted.”“But not who held the phone.”“Correct.”Claire’s eyes hardened.“Lily saw him.”“Yes.”“That should matter.”“It does.”Alexander said, “It matters differently from proof.”Claire turned on him.“She is not lying.”“I didn’t say she was.”“You sounded like Michael.”That stopped him.Claire immediately looked ashamed.“No.”She rubbed her forehead.“That wasn’t fair.”Alexander said nothing.She exhaled.“I’m sorry.”“You’re frightened.”“I’m angry.”“You can be both.”Her eyes flicked toward him.For a second she seemed prepared to argue.Then she looked away.Nathan closed one window on his laptop.“There may be more.”Claire stepped closer.“What?”“The temporary credential had a label.”“What label?”Nathan hesitated.“Maintenance.”Claire gave a humorless laugh.“Of course.”“Whoever created it wanted the activity to look ordinary.”Alexander asked, “Can we see who named it?”“Same administrator session.”“So the account that disabled the cameras created the key.”“Yes.”“And then the key was used.”“Yes.”Claire began pacing.“Daniel will say somebody else used his credentials.”“He might.”“He’ll say the building system was compromised.”“He might.”“He’ll say Lily misunderstood what she saw.”Alexander’s voice remained calm.“He definitely might.”She stopped.“Then what do I do with this?”No one answered immediately.The girls had gone back into the sitting room, though the door stayed open this time.A cartoon character shouted something about pancakes.The normal sound made the office feel stranger.Alexander said, “You preserve it.”“And?”“You don’t confront him.”Claire looked at him.“That sounds unlike you.”“It’s exactly like me.”“I thought your method was intimidation.”“Sometimes.”“Sometimes?”“People exaggerate.”Marcus returned with sandwiches and juice boxes.“Not that much.”Alexander looked at him.Marcus set the food down.“I’m feeding children.”“That does not grant immunity.”“It should.”Claire almost smiled again.Then her phone buzzed.She looked at the screen.A text from Daniel Mercer.Alexander saw only the first line before she turned it away.We need to talk privately.Claire stared at it.Another message arrived.What happened this morning was unfortunate.Then another.You are letting strangers manipulate you.Claire’s face tightened.Marcus glanced over.“He moves fast.”Claire typed something.Alexander said, “Don’t.”She stopped.“Don’t what?”“Answer angry.”“I’m not angry.”Marcus looked at her.Claire snapped, “Don’t.”Marcus raised both hands.Alexander said, “If you respond, say less than you want to say.”Claire looked down at the phone.“What would you say?”“Nothing.”“That is not helpful.”“It usually is.”She read Mercer’s messages again.“He thinks I’m going to panic.”“Are you?”“Yes.”The honesty surprised everyone except Lily, who had reappeared and was opening a juice box.Claire continued.“I’m panicking right now.”“You’re standing still.”“That’s because I’m good at it.”Alexander studied her.That sentence told him more than anything else she had said all morning.Claire typed.Do not contact my children or come to my home again.She showed Alexander.He read it.“Good.”“That’s all?”“That’s enough.”She sent it.The reply came within twenty seconds.I have never threatened your children.Then another.Be careful what accusations you put in writing.Claire’s face went pale.Marcus said, “There it is.”“What?”“The turn.”Claire looked at him.“He stopped trying to persuade you and started building a record.”Alexander nodded.“He’s thinking about who may read these messages later.”Claire sat down.“I hate this.”Lily poked a straw through the foil top of her juice box.“You can have mine.”Claire looked at her.“What?”“If you’re sad.”“I’m okay.”Lily held out the juice.“It’s apple.”Claire took it.“Thank you.”Lily nodded and selected another from the bag.Marcus watched this transaction.“She negotiates better than most people I know.”Alexander said, “She gives away other people’s property.”Marcus checked the bag.“That was my juice.”Lily froze.Marcus smiled.“You can have it.”She narrowed her eyes.“You’re not tricking me?”“No.”“Okay.”She took two.Marcus stared.Alexander said, “You invited that.”Nathan’s phone rang.He stepped away to answer it.Claire sat with the unopened juice box in both hands.“I need to tell the board.”Alexander shook his head.“You need to decide what you can prove.”“I can prove the cameras were disabled.”“Yes.”“I can prove a temporary key was created.”“Yes.”“I can prove it was used.”“Yes.”“And Lily can identify Daniel.”“Yes.”“Then what am I missing?”“Why.”Claire frowned.“Does it matter?”“To you, maybe not.”“To the board?”“To everyone.”She leaned back.“He came to frighten me.”“Maybe.”Her eyes sharpened.“You think there’s another reason.”“I think men rarely take unnecessary risks without believing they gain something.”Marcus nodded.“Especially men like Mercer.”Claire looked between them.“What could he have wanted inside?”Alexander asked, “What’s in your apartment?”“My children.”His expression hardened.“Besides them.”She swallowed.“Nothing unusual.”“Work files?”“A few.”“Computers?”“My laptop.”“Company laptop?”“Yes.”“Where was it?”“With me.”“Documents?”“Some.”“What kind?”“Board materials.”“Anything about the sale?”“Yes.”Marcus sat down.“Anything Mercer couldn’t already access?”Claire started to answer.Then stopped.Alexander saw the moment before she spoke.“There’s a folder.”“What folder?”“My father’s.”The girls were eating in the adjoining room now.Claire lowered her voice anyway.“After he died, his assistant gave me a box of personal office papers.”“Why keep them at home?”“I hadn’t gone through all of them.”“Anything important?”“I didn’t think so.”“That isn’t the same answer.”Claire looked irritated.“I found handwritten notes.”“About?”“Daniel.”Marcus stopped unwrapping a sandwich.Alexander said, “What did they say?”“Mostly questions.”“What questions?”Claire stared down at the apple juice Lily had given her.“One page had a list of contract names.”“And?”“Next to Daniel’s name, my father wrote, ‘Ask Michael who approved side letter.’”Nathan returned from his call.Alexander’s attention did not leave Claire.“What side letter?”“I don’t know.”“Did you ask Michael?”“Yes.”“What did he say?”“That Dad was probably confused.”Marcus gave a quiet, skeptical sound.Claire glared at him.“My father was sick.”“With what?”“Cancer.”Alexander waited.Claire’s voice softened.“Pain medication affected him near the end.”“That doesn’t mean every note was meaningless.”“I know.”“Did Mercer know you had the papers?”Claire shook her head.Then stopped.Her expression changed.“At my birthday dinner, Daniel asked what I planned to do with Dad’s office.”Alexander said nothing.“He offered to help sort the files.”Marcus sat straighter.“What did you tell him?”“I said most of them were already archived.”“Most.”“Yes.”“Did you mention the box?”Claire looked down.“I might have.”Alexander’s jaw tightened.She became defensive immediately.“I did not know any of this then.”“No one said you did.”“You looked like you were about to.”“I was thinking.”“That is apparently dangerous when you do it.”Marcus coughed into his sandwich.Alexander ignored him.“Where is the box now?”Claire looked at him.“In my bedroom closet.”The room became very quiet.Then her phone rang again.This time it was not Mercer.It was the building manager.Claire answered.“Yes?”She listened.Her face changed.“When?”Alexander stood.Claire looked at him.“Are you sure?”Another pause.“No, do not touch anything.”She ended the call.“What happened?” Marcus asked.Claire’s voice came out flat.“The manager went upstairs because Michael asked him to check my unit.”Alexander already knew he was not going to like the rest.Claire stared at him.“The chain on my door is broken.”
