Chapter 7 - THE LAWYER IN THE HALLWAY
Samuel Price denied being inside the Whitmore house.
He claimed he had spent the evening at a charity dinner.
Three guests supported his story.
A restaurant manager confirmed his arrival at nine thirty.
But the camera image had been captured at eight forty-seven.
The restaurant was only twelve minutes from Ryan’s home.
Detective Torres requested traffic footage.
Price responded by filing a complaint against the police department.
He accused them of harassing a respected attorney.
He also filed an emergency petition on Evelyn’s behalf.
The petition requested temporary custody of Oliver.
Ryan read it in the hospital hallway.
His mother claimed both parents were emotionally compromised.
She described Ryan as aggressive and unstable.
She described Maya as delusional.
She argued that Oliver needed a neutral guardian.
That guardian was Evelyn.
“She nearly killed him.”
Ryan crushed the edge of the paper.
Maya took it from his hands.
“She is trying to make you react.”
“She wants everyone to see an angry man.”
Ryan looked toward the security camera above them.
Maya was right.
Every outburst could be used.
Every threat could become evidence.
Evelyn had spent years teaching him that control meant never raising your voice.
Now Ryan understood why.
She had trained everyone around her to appear less believable than she did.
Detective Torres approached with new information.
“Traffic cameras captured Price’s vehicle near your house.”
“Can you arrest him?”
“Not yet.”
“We need more than a car.”
“What about the video?”
“His face is not visible.”
Maya touched the bruise beneath her eye.
“He watched her attack me.”
“Possibly.”
Torres looked at Ryan.
“Did Price have access to your home?”
Ryan thought for a moment.
“He helped update our estate plan last year.”
“He visited twice.”
“Did he know the nursery layout?”
“Yes.”
Torres nodded.
“We also found his fingerprints on the custody documents.”
“That is not illegal.”
“But one of the medical statements contains a forged physician’s signature.”
Maya looked up.
“Which physician?”
“Dr. Nathan Cole.”
Ryan knew the name.
Dr. Cole had treated his father during his final illness.
He was also a longtime friend of Evelyn.
“Did he write the report?”
“He says he did not.”
Torres handed them a copy.
The report described Maya as paranoid, impulsive, and potentially dangerous.
It recommended immediate inpatient treatment.
The examination date was listed as May seventeenth.
Maya pointed to it.
“I was in Denver that day.”
Ryan remembered the trip.
They had attended a friend’s wedding.
There were photographs.
Hotel records.
Airline tickets.
The report could be disproved.
For the first time, Maya’s expression changed.
Fear gave way to determination.
“She wanted a psychiatric document.”
“So she created one.”
Ryan studied the forged report.
At the bottom was a handwritten note.
PATIENT MAY RESIST REMOVAL.
USE FAMILY ASSISTANCE IF NECESSARY.
Detective Torres looked toward the hospital elevators.
“We believe they intended to take Maya somewhere tonight.”
Ryan’s phone rang.
The hospital security director was calling.
A man using Samuel Price’s credentials had attempted to enter through the loading dock.
He had escaped before guards reached him.
But he left something behind.
May you like
A medical transport order.
Maya’s name was printed across the top.
