Chapter 3 - THE LAST MESSAGEThe police officers entered first.
Daniel Hart followed them.
He looked nothing like Eleanor.
Eleanor had been warm, direct, and fearless.
Daniel was polished.
Perfectly dressed.
Perfectly calm.
The kind of calm that made Lena uncomfortable.
“Mia,” he said.
The girl took a step backward.
“You know me?”
Daniel smiled.
“Of course I know you.”
Mia looked at Lena.
“Who is he?”
Daniel's smile faded.
“I’m your uncle.”
Mia's expression hardened.
“I don't have an uncle.”
“Yes, you do.”
“Grandma never talked about you.”
For the first time, Daniel's face changed.
Only slightly.
But Lena saw it.
Anger.
Then it disappeared.
“I’m sorry you feel that way.”
The police officers stepped forward.
“We need to ask everyone some questions.”
Lena crossed her arms.
“About what?”
“Mrs. Hart's disappearance.”
Nora suddenly spoke.
“Ask Daniel where he was the night she disappeared.”
The room went silent.
Daniel turned slowly.
“Nora.”
She smiled.
“Still pretending?”
The officer looked between them.
“Do you know each other?”
Daniel answered first.
“She worked for the foundation.”
Nora laughed.
“She did more than work for it.”
Daniel's eyes became cold.
Lena looked at Nora.
“What does that mean?”
Nora reached into her bag again.
This time, she pulled out a phone.
“I received a message from Eleanor six days ago.”
She pressed play.
A woman's voice filled the restaurant.
Eleanor.
Older.
Tired.
But unmistakable.
“If you’re hearing this, I am either dead or being held somewhere I cannot leave.”
Mia covered her mouth.
Lena felt the blood drain from her face.
Eleanor continued.
“Do not trust Daniel.”
Daniel's face turned white.
The police officers looked at him.
The recording continued.
“The money is not being stolen from the foundation.”
A pause.
“It is being redirected.”
Another pause.
“To someone inside my family.”
The recording ended.
No one moved.
Daniel looked at the police.
“This is absurd.”
Nora held up the phone.
“There’s more.”
She played another recording.
Eleanor's voice whispered:
“The three coins are the key.”
Lena stared at the glass frame.
Mia stepped toward it.
“What does that mean?”
Nobody answered.
Then the restaurant lights went out.
A scream came from the kitchen.
The back door slammed.
Lena ran.
By the time she reached the alley, someone was gone.
But on the ground lay a small envelope.
Lena picked it up.
Written across the front were five words:
YOU SHOULD HAVE LEFT HER HUNGRY.
Inside was a photograph.
Eleanor Hart.
Tied to a chair.
May you like
Alive.
And behind her stood Daniel.
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