Chapter 11
Eleven Minutes Before Claire Died
Victoria did not want to answer.
Marcus saw it instantly.
They met again under supervision.
Elena sat in the corner.
Marcus placed one photograph on the table.
Claire’s wrecked SUV.
“Where were you at 10:41 p.m.?”
Victoria’s face emptied.
“Who told you that?”
“Daniel.”
She closed her eyes.
“That means he’s trying to turn you against me.”
“He doesn’t need help.”
Victoria flinched.
Marcus repeated the question.
“Where were you?”
She stared at the table.
“On Route 9.”
Marcus stopped breathing.
“Why?”
“Claire called me.”
“Again?”
“She asked me to meet her.”
“Where?”
“A gas station near the county line.”
“Why?”
“She said she had proof Daniel forged your signature.”
Marcus leaned forward.
“What happened?”
“I met her.”
“And?”
“She told me she was going to the police the next morning.”
“What did you do?”
“I begged her to wait.”
“Why?”
“Because Daniel had evidence against me.”
Marcus struck the table with his palm.
“You were still protecting yourself.”
“Yes.”
Victoria was crying now.
“Claire got angry. She said Lily deserved better from all of us.”
Marcus looked away.
He could hear Claire saying it.
“That was the last time you saw her?”
Victoria nodded.
“She drove away.”
“At what time?”
“About 10:44.”
“Eight minutes before the crash.”
“Yes.”
“Did you follow her?”
“No.”
“Did Daniel?”
“I don’t know.”
Marcus looked at Elena.
Victoria added, “There was a black sedan in the lot.”
“What sedan?”
“I thought it belonged to someone inside the gas station.”
“Did you see the driver?”
“No.”
“Why never tell police?”
Victoria wiped her face.
“Because Daniel called me after the crash and described the exact conversation I had with Claire.”
Marcus went still.
“He knew what you said?”
“Word for word.”
“Meaning he was listening.”
“Yes.”
“Or he was there.”
Victoria nodded.
Elena leaned forward.
“What did he tell you?”
Victoria’s voice shook.
“He said, ‘If you put yourself near that road tonight, you’ll spend the rest of your life explaining why.’”
Marcus felt sick.
Daniel had not only used guilt.
He manufactured silence.
He made innocent facts look incriminating.
Then waited for fear to do the rest.
“Did you see Claire’s car again?” Elena asked.
Victoria hesitated.
“Yes.”
Marcus looked at her.
“Where?”
“About two miles from the gas station.”
“What happened?”
“She was pulled onto the shoulder.”
“Was anyone with her?”
Victoria nodded.
“A man.”
“Daniel?”
“I couldn’t tell.”
“Why not?”
“It was raining.”
Marcus leaned in.
“What did you see?”
Victoria’s face went pale.
“Claire was outside the car.”
“Doing what?”
“Arguing.”
“With the man?”
“Yes.”
“Why didn’t you stop?”
Victoria’s voice broke.
“Because I was afraid.”
Marcus stared at her for a long time.
Then he stood.
He had no words left for fear.
That night, Elena’s team pulled archived traffic-camera footage from a nearby intersection.
The resolution was poor.
Rain blurred everything.
But at 10:47 p.m., a dark sedan passed heading north.
At 10:49, Claire’s SUV followed.
At 10:50, another vehicle appeared.
A silver pickup truck.
Marcus stared at the screen.
“That’s not Daniel’s car.”
“No.”
Elena enhanced the plate.
Partial match.
Registered at the time to Hale Industries fleet services.
Marcus’s chest tightened.
“Who had access?”
Elena searched the archived assignment logs.
One name appeared.
Gordon Price.
Marcus stared.
Gordon had just told them Daniel called after the crash.
He had not said he was anywhere near Route 9.
Elena immediately called Florida authorities.
Too late.
Gordon Price had left his home twenty minutes earlier.
His phone was off.
His car was gone.
May you like
And on the kitchen counter, police found one handwritten note.
I DID NOT MEAN FOR HER TO DIE.
