Chapter 4 - THE WOMAN WHO DIED TWICE
I called Roman Gallagher at 2:17 in the morning.
He answered on the first ring.
"Claire?"
"Someone sent me a photograph of my mother."
I heard movement.
"What kind of photograph?"
"She's in a hospital bed. The date is three days after she supposedly died."
Roman was silent.
Then he asked, "Are you safe?"
"I'm home."
"Is David there?"
"No."
"Good. I'm sending you the number of a detective who can preserve the message. Don't delete anything."
My throat tightened.
"Roman, is my mother alive?"
He didn't answer immediately.
"I don't know."
That was the first time I heard uncertainty in his voice.
Twenty minutes later, I met Detective Olivia Hart at a nearby police precinct.
Roman arrived separately.
He didn't try to take charge.
He simply sat beside me while Olivia examined the photograph and recorded my statement.
"Claire, when did your mother die?" she asked.
"October seventeenth. Six years ago."
"Did you see her body?"
I hesitated.
"No."
"Why not?"
"The hospital said her injuries were too severe. Arthur Whitlock arranged the funeral."
Olivia looked toward Roman.
He remained silent.
I felt cold.
"Are you saying there was no body?"
"We're checking the records," Olivia replied.
She turned the photograph toward me.
"Do you recognize the room?"
I shook my head.
"Look at the wall behind the bed."
There was a small emblem.
A white rose surrounded by a gold circle.
Roman leaned forward.
His face changed.
"What is it?" I asked.
"The Whitlock Medical Foundation."
Olivia nodded.
"Whitlock funded several private rehabilitation centers."
I stared at my mother's pale face.
"Why would someone fake her death?"
Roman folded his hands.
"Because a dead witness can't testify."
My stomach twisted.
Olivia continued.
"We also found irregularities in the death certificate. The physician who signed it lost his license two years later."
"For what?"
"Falsifying medical records."
I covered my mouth.
Six years.
Six birthdays.
Six Christmas mornings.
Six years believing the person who loved me most was gone forever.
Roman leaned closer.
"Claire, we'll find out what happened."
I turned toward him.
"Why do you care?"
He looked at me for a long moment.
"Because my father may have been involved."
My breath caught.
"What?"
Roman reached into his jacket.
He handed Olivia a copy of an old financial statement.
"My father's company transferred two million dollars to a Whitlock-controlled account the week Evelyn disappeared."
Olivia studied the document.
"Who authorized it?"
Roman's voice turned cold.
"My father."
May you like
Then he looked at me.
"And according to the payment description, the money was for something called Project Silver Rose."
