Chapter 4 - The Trap in the Living Room
The following morning arrived with a clear, piercing blue sky that offered no warmth.
Inside Paige’s sun-drenched foyer, the atmosphere appeared superficially peaceful. Classical music played softly from the built-in home speakers. Freshly brewed coffee filled the air with a rich aroma, and a tray of warm pastries sat on the marble kitchen island.
Graham was standing near the curved staircase, wearing a fresh dress shirt and tie, putting on his jacket as if preparing for another busy day of "contractor meetings." Paige stood beside him in an elegant plum silk dress, her arm brushed against his sleeve in a gesture that was far too familiar for a sister-in-law.
"Hannah, morning," Graham said, turning his head toward me with that smooth, practiced smile that had tricked me for fourteen years. "I spoke with the insurance adjuster thirty minutes ago. He said if we submit the contents inventory list by noon, they can issue the emergency living advance by Friday."
"Did he?" I asked, walking down the stairs slowly, holding Lucy's small hand in mine.
Lucy wore her small blue backpack, her fingers gripping my palm tightly. She didn't look at Graham. She didn't look at Paige. She kept her eyes fixed on the front door, knowing that what was about to happen had been set in motion long before the sun came up.
"Yes," Paige chimed in smoothly, taking a step closer to Graham, her hand resting delicately over her throat. "And I told Graham that you two can stay here as long as necessary, Hannah. We're family. We stand together when crisis strikes."
"Family," I repeated, stopping at the foot of the stairs. I looked at Paige—the sister who had shared my childhood, who had sat in the front pew at my wedding, who had held my daughter when she was born. "That’s an interesting word for you to use, Paige."
Graham frowned slightly, his sharp eyes narrowing as he sensed the sudden, frigid shift in the room's temperature. "Hannah, what's wrong with you? You've been acting distant since yesterday."
"I was just thinking about the gas line, Graham," I said softly, my voice carrying a terrifying, unhurried precision. "The brass fitting beneath the stove. The one you loosened with a wrench at 7:15 a.m. on Tuesday while Lucy was playing hide-and-seek under the basement stairs."
Graham froze. The color drained from his face so fast it left him looking ash-gray beneath the foyer lights.
Paige took a sharp intake of breath, her hand dropping from her collarbone. "Hannah... what are you talking about? You're traumatized, you're not making sense—"
"And I was thinking about Apex Horizon Events," I continued, cutting Paige off with a razor-sharp glare. "And the $600,000 you two transferred out of my trust fund over the last eight months to pay for your defaulted business loans and that luxury car parked in your garage."
"Have you lost your mind?!" Graham barked, taking a step toward me, his voice rising in manufactured outrage. "I have worked my fingers to the bone for this family! How dare you accuse me and your sister—"
May you like
He didn't get to finish his sentence.
The heavy double front doors of Paige’s house were thrown wide open.
