Chapter 3 - The Escape and the Evidence
The door burst open, and Paige Hale stepped into the room. She was dressed in her usual high-society uniform—a tailored cream blazer and oversized sunglasses—but her expression was vicious. Behind her stood a large, broad-shouldered man in a dark suit whom I recognized as Arthur, the Hale family’s private "security consultant."
"What is the meaning of this?" Paige demanded, glaring at Dr. Ellis before her eyes snapped to me, then to the phone in my hand. Her gaze locked onto the device like a hawk sighting prey. "Arthur, get the phone."
Arthur moved with terrifying efficiency. He didn't hesitate, lunging straight for me.
But I wasn't the fragile housewife they thought I was. My forensic training included defensive tactics. As Arthur reached out to grab my arm, I stepped into his pivot, caught his wrist, and used his own forward momentum to drive his elbow sharply down onto the edge of Dr. Ellis’s heavy oak desk.
A sickening crack echoed through the room. Arthur groaned, stumbling backward, his arm clutching his torso.
"What?!" Paige gasped, her aristocratic composure shattering. "What did you do to him?"
"Seven years in federal law enforcement, Paige," I said, my voice steady, though my adrenaline was roaring. "I've subdued men twice his size."
Brent utilized the distraction to sprint past Dr. Ellis toward the open door. "Paige, she knows about the safe! She knows about the specimens!"
"Get to the car!" Paige yelled.
Brent didn't look back. He bolted down the clinic hallway, his bare back revealing those horrific, unnatural rows of red welts to the terrified clinic staff watching from the lobby.
Paige turned her gaze back to me, her eyes burning with pure hatred. "You've ruined everything, Claire. You think you're so clever? You're a nobody. You came into our family with nothing, and you will leave with nothing. If you bring the police to that house, you won't survive the night."
"Is that a threat, Paige?" I asked, raising the phone. I had quietly activated the voice memo app the moment the door swung open. "Because the police dispatcher heard every word."
Dr. Ellis held up the landline receiver, nodding grimly. "They're entering the parking lot now."
In the distance, the faint, wailing sirens of the Richmond Police Department began to cut through the afternoon air.
Paige’s face twisted in fury. She looked at Arthur, who was still nursing his fractured arm, then back at me. "This isn't over," she hissed. She turned on her heels and stormed out, Arthur trailing painfully behind her.
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Dr. Ellis sank into his chair, breathing heavily. "Mrs. Hale... Claire... what on earth is your husband involved in?"
"I don't know the full scope of it yet," I said, staring at Brent's phone, which was now buzzing with a stream of encrypted notifications. "But I know where the answers are. They're in my basement. And I have exactly five minutes to get there before the Hales burn it to the ground."
