I Thought My Daughter’s Fall Was an Accident—Then the Nanny Told Me What She Saw

Peter Lang finally answered at 1:17 in the morning.

His voice sounded breathless.

"Mark, I can't talk."

"Then listen. Someone photographed Victoria holding Clara over the railing. The note says you filmed it."

Silence.

"Peter?"

"Where's Clara?"

Mark's grip tightened around the phone.

"Safe."

"Keep her that way."

"What do you know?"

A car horn blared through Peter's end of the call.

"Not on the phone. Tomorrow. Eight a.m. The old warehouse on Sheridan. Come alone."

"I'm not coming alone."

"Then don't come."

The line went dead.

Ruiz hated the plan.

Mark went anyway, with police positioned two blocks away.

Elena stayed at the house with Clara and two guards.

At 8:06, Peter's black Range Rover rolled into the abandoned loading yard.

He stepped out wearing yesterday's clothes.

Mark walked toward him.

"Start talking."

Peter looked older than he had two days before.

"Victoria came to me last year. She knew Mercer Medical was vulnerable. She knew the board was considering a sale. Clara's shares could block it once the independent trustee took control."

"Why would you help her?"

Peter looked away.

"Because I wanted the sale."

Mark's face tightened.

"How much?"

"Twelve million in retention and transaction bonuses."

Mark almost hit him.

Peter raised both hands. "I drafted financial projections. I introduced her to Pike. I did not agree to hurt Clara."

"You filmed the staircase."

Peter swallowed.

"I came to the house yesterday because Victoria said she needed me to witness Elena being careless. She wanted video for a guardianship petition. Then she picked Clara up and walked to the railing."

Mark stared at him.

"And you kept filming?"

"I froze."

"You watched her drop my child."

"I didn't know she would do it."

Peter pulled a small drive from his pocket.

"The original video is here. The whole thing."

Mark reached for it.

A shot cracked across the yard.

Peter jerked backward.

Mark dropped behind the concrete barrier as a second shot shattered the Range Rover window.

Police sirens erupted nearby.