Chapter 4 - THE ROOM UNDER THE FOUNDATIONDaniel was arrested before he could leave the restaurant.
But the photograph changed everything.
The police took Nora into protective custody.
Mia refused to leave Lena's side.
And Eli fell asleep in the corner booth, exhausted from crying.
At midnight, Lena sat in Eleanor's office.
The office was located inside the Hartwell Foundation.
The walls were covered with photographs.
Children.
Shelters.
Schools.
Food programs.
Thousands of lives.
Eleanor had built everything with one belief:
No child should be invisible.
Lena stared at the photograph of Eleanor.
“What happened to you?”
Nora stood behind her.
“She found out the foundation was being used against her.”
“By Daniel?”
“Not alone.”
Nora placed the flash drive on the desk.
“There are seven people involved.”
“Seven?”
“Board members. Lawyers. Accountants. One judge.”
Lena looked at her.
“You’re telling me the people who were supposed to protect children were stealing from them?”
Nora nodded.
“That’s why Eleanor couldn't go to the police.”
“Why not?”
“Because one of them was already watching the police.”
Lena felt sick.
“What do the coins mean?”
Nora was silent.
Then she walked toward a bookshelf.
She pulled out a thick file.
Inside was a photograph.
A much younger Eleanor.
Standing beside a little girl.
The girl looked about six years old.
She held three coins.
Lena stared.
“Who is that?”
Nora's voice dropped.
“Eleanor's first daughter.”
Lena looked up.
“What?”
“Daniel was not her only child.”
The girl in the photograph had Eleanor's eyes.
“Where is she now?”
Nora closed the file.
“Dead.”
Lena felt a chill.
“How?”
“Car accident.”
“When?”
“Twenty-seven years ago.”
Lena looked back at the photograph.
“What does that have to do with three coins?”
Nora pointed to the girl's hand.
“Eleanor gave her those coins before she died.”
Lena frowned.
“That makes no sense.”
“It does if you know what happened afterward.”
Nora took a deep breath.
“Eleanor believed the accident wasn't an accident.”
Lena slowly stood.
“Who killed her?”
Nora looked toward the door.
“That's what Eleanor had been investigating.”
A sound came from the hallway.
Both women froze.
The door handle began to turn.
Nora whispered:
“We're not alone.”
The door opened.
Mia stood there.
Her face was pale.
“I found this.”
She held out a small piece of paper.
Lena took it.
There were only three words written on it.
I REMEMBER HER.
Mia looked at Lena.
“Who is the girl in the picture?”
May you like
Before Lena could answer, the lights in the building went out.
And somewhere beneath the foundation, a child began to scream.
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