Chapter 4 - Shadows of the Estate
Night fell over the mansion, bringing a heavy thunderstorm that rattled the tall glass windows. Inside the warm kitchen, Rosa prepared a simple dinner of chicken soup and toasted bread, while Daniel, Ethan, and Annie gathered around the large oak island table.
For the first time since Claire’s death, the Whitmore dining hall didn't feel like a museum of grief. Ethan was eating, laughing loudly at a story Annie told about her pet hamster who once escaped into a radio speaker.
Daniel watched them from the edge of the kitchen, a faint, long-forgotten warmth blooming in his chest. But his mind was racing.
A knock at the kitchen door interrupted the moment. Mr. Halpern stepped inside, holding a tray of hot tea. His eyes flicked nervously toward Annie, then toward the red car sitting on the counter.
"Sir," Halpern said, bowing his head slightly. "I have prepared the guest wing as you requested for Mrs. Martinez and her daughter. Though, if I may suggest, perhaps it would be best for them to return to their quarters above the garage so as not to disrupt Master Ethan’s routine?"
Ethan immediately dropped his spoon. "No! Annie stays here!"
Daniel stepped between Halpern and the children. His posture was towering, imposing. "They will stay in the main house, Halpern. In the room next to Ethan’s."
Halpern’s jaw twitched. "As you wish, sir. I only thought... given the emotional distress of earlier..."
"Halpern," Daniel interrupted coldly. "Where were you yesterday afternoon between two and three o'clock?"
Halpern blinked, his expression carefully neutral. "I was cataloging the late Mrs. Whitmore’s personal effects in the east storage room, as per your instructions from last month."
"Did you handle Ethan’s toy car?"
"Of course not, sir," Halpern replied without a second's hesitation. "The toy was in Master Ethan’s room until it broke this afternoon."
Daniel stared at him for a long, suffocating moment. "That will be all for tonight."
Halpern bowed and turned to leave. But as he reached the hallway, Annie spoke up in her high, clear child's voice.
"Mr. Halpern?"
The manager froze, turning back slowly. "Yes, little girl?"
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"You have red paint under your thumbnail," Annie said, pointing her small finger. "The same red paint as Ethan’s car."
Halpern instinctively tucked his right hand behind his back, a sudden flash of panic crossing his face before he forced a tight smile. "I was repainting the garden gate this morning, child. Good night, Mr. Whitmore." He turned and walked away rapidly, his footsteps echoing down the corridor.
