Chapter 16 - The Clinic
The clinic had been closed for five years.
Frank still owned it through three shell companies.
Of course he did.
We arrived without sirens.
Quinn wanted a tactical team. I wanted Frank before he destroyed whatever Elena had died protecting.
For once, we compromised.
Her officers covered the exits while Vincent and I entered through a rear utility door. Luca stayed with Ethan, Sophia, and Lily at the estate.
Inside, the halls smelled like dust and old antiseptic.
A television played somewhere ahead.
Frank's voice carried through the corridor.
"You disappoint me, Samuel."
Harris answered weakly. "I did what you asked."
"You failed twice."
"The child saw me."
"No. The child saw Sloan dressed as Arthur. You were supposed to keep her quiet."
I stopped.
So Harris had not poisoned the cake. Sloan had. The limp, the moon-marked vial, the costume - all staged to frame Arthur.
Harris's job had been the second attempt and the false medical certainty that would steer suspicion where Frank wanted it.
Quinn whispered, "We have enough for conspiracy. Keep moving."
We found the room.
Frank stood beside the cedar box. Harris was tied to a chair, bruised but alive.
"Dominic," Frank said. "Right on time."
"You burned the letter."
"A copy. I'm sentimental, not stupid."
He opened the cedar box.
Inside were photographs, account records, a flash drive, and Elena's original handwritten notes.
"All this trouble for evidence?" I asked.
"Evidence changes history. Your father understood that. He paid to control what people remembered. Elena thought truth was stronger."
"She was right."
Frank sighed. "Still romantic about her. Even after she lied to you for eight months."
I stepped forward.
"You threatened our son."
"And she obeyed. That's the difference between her and you. She knew when to lose."
Behind me, a door clicked.
Sloan stepped from the side corridor with a gun pressed to Quinn's back.
"Drop it," he ordered.
Vincent lifted his weapon.
Sloan smiled nervously. "You too."
Frank's eyes gleamed.
"You see, Dominic? Loyalty always has a price."
Then Sloan's phone rang.
He glanced down.
May you like
The caller ID read: CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL.
And for the first time, Frank Delaney looked worried.
