Chapter 10 - Richard Had Taken Marcus’s Call
Richard admitted Marcus called him.
At 10:12 p.m.
More than an hour before Sophia called for help.
Marcus said Sophia was putting herself in danger.
He told Richard to convince her to stop.
Richard refused.
Marcus then said:
“You don’t know what Noah dragged back into this family.”
That was how Richard realized Marcus knew Noah was alive.
He panicked.
Instead of calling police, he called Noah.
Noah went toward Sophia’s house.
That explained why he arrived so quickly after the attack.
But it also created a terrible possibility.
Had Noah led the attacker there?
Federal investigators reviewed Noah’s recent movements.
Noah had been tracking North River independently.
His protected identity had been compromised months earlier.
He believed someone connected to Harbor Shield recognized him.
Sophia’s investigation and Noah’s investigation had converged without
either fully understanding the other.
Then Noah finally met Ethan.
The reunion was not emotional.
Ethan was furious.
“You helped fake an alley attack.”
“I helped get Sophia to a hospital.”
“You contaminated a crime scene.”
“Yes.”
“You let her husband believe a lie.”
“Yes.”
Noah accepted every accusation.
Then he handed Ethan a photograph.
Taken the night of the attack.
A man stood near the North River SUV.
Not Marcus Vale.
Victor Lane.
Ethan looked at Noah.
“You saw him?”
“After we left the house.”
“Why didn’t you tell police?”
“I did.”
Detective Bennett confirmed it.
Victor had been under surveillance for forty-eight hours.
They had not told Ethan because they did not want him confronting the
suspect.
Ethan hated being excluded again.
May you like
But this time he understood the reason.
Understanding did not make it pleasant.
