Chapter 9 - NOAH'S ROOM
Claire had always claimed Noah belonged to a distant cousin.
Daniel had met the boy only three times.
Noah was quiet.
Watchful.
And strangely afraid of Claire.
Daniel remembered asking about him once.
Claire had said his mother was in rehabilitation.
Emily said that was a lie.
"His mother was an accountant."
"For Victor?"
"For one of his shell companies."
"She discovered where money was going."
"What happened to her?"
"She disappeared."
Sarah's face hardened.
"You think Victor killed her?"
Emily shook her head.
"I don't know."
"But before she disappeared, she hid records."
"Victor believed she told Noah where."
Daniel immediately called Claire's sister, Melissa.
No answer.
Police drove to her address.
The house was empty.
A neighbor said Melissa had left with Noah early that morning.
Daniel's stomach dropped.
"Claire called someone from jail."
Ruiz nodded.
"Victor."
They issued an alert.
Hours passed.
No sign of Melissa.
Then Sophie came downstairs carrying her stuffed rabbit.
"Is Noah in trouble?"
Daniel crouched.
"You know Noah?"
Sophie nodded.
"He slept downstairs once."
Daniel froze.
"In our basement?"
"Yes."
"When?"
"When you were at Grandma's hospital."
Sarah closed her eyes.
Daniel fought to stay calm.
"Where downstairs?"
Sophie led them to the storage room.
Behind stacked holiday boxes was an old cabinet.
Daniel moved it.
A narrow door appeared.
He had never seen it before.
Inside was a small room.
A mattress lay on the floor.
Empty water bottles filled a corner.
There were children's drawings taped to the wall.
One showed a boy and a girl holding hands.
Above them were the words SOPHIE + NOAH = BRAVE.
Daniel felt rage building.
"They kept a child here."
Ruiz photographed everything.
Sarah found scratches near the baseboard.
One looked intentional.
Letters.
Daniel knelt.
The message read.
CHECK THE BLUE HOUSE.
Sophie whispered.
"That's Noah's secret place."
"What blue house?"
"The one by the lake."
Daniel looked at Sarah.
Claire's family owned a cabin near Lake Madison.
Its exterior was blue.
Ruiz immediately called for units.
They drove there before sunset.
The cabin appeared empty.
The front door was unlocked.
Inside, they found food still warm on the stove.
Someone had left minutes earlier.
Ruiz searched upstairs.
Daniel heard him shout.
"Here!"
They ran to a bedroom.
A chair had been knocked over.
A rope lay on the floor.
On the wall, written in black marker, were four words.
DANIEL KNOWS TOO MUCH NOW.
Then Daniel's phone rang.
Unknown number.
He answered.
A boy whispered.
"Mr. Vance?"
Daniel's heart stopped.
"Noah?"
"Please don't hang up."
"Where are you?"
"I don't know."
Daniel heard a car engine.
May you like
Noah began crying quietly.
"They're taking me to Mr. Crane."
