Chapter 3 - The Mother Who Was Supposed to Be Dead
Silas Costello hadn't heard his wife's name spoken in two years.
Now his son was claiming she was waiting for him.
"His mother?" Silas whispered.
Khloe looked at Noah.
The little boy was clutching her sleeve.
YOUR MOMMY? she signed.
Noah nodded.
Then he signed something else.
MOMMY SAID COME HOME.
Khloe's heart tightened.
Silas took a step backward.
His wife, Elena, had died twenty-six months earlier in a highway accident outside Chicago.
Her vehicle had overturned during a storm.
The authorities had recovered her personal belongings and later confirmed her death.
Silas had buried her beneath a white marble headstone.
He had stood in the rain while Noah, then barely two, clung to his leg.
Now the child was insisting his mother was alive.
"That's impossible," Silas said.
Khloe studied him.
"Mr. Costello, has anyone recently told Noah that his mother is coming back?"
Silas shook his head.
"Not that I know of."
She turned toward Noah.
WHO TOLD YOU ABOUT MOMMY?
His small hands moved.
VICTOR.
Silas's face went white.
Khloe continued.
WHEN?
Noah held up two fingers.
Then made the sign for sleep.
"Two nights ago," Khloe interpreted cautiously.
Noah nodded.
Then signed more quickly.
VICTOR SHOWED PICTURE.
WHAT PICTURE?
Noah pointed toward Silas's phone.
Khloe looked at him.
"Do you have any recent photographs of Elena?"
Silas shook his head.
"Only old ones."
Khloe gently asked Noah another question.
The boy signed a few words.
Then his lower lip trembled.
RED DOOR. MOMMY CRYING.
Silas stared at his son.
"What?"
Khloe repeated the signs.
Silas gripped the armrest.
"Elena had a red front door at her childhood home."
Khloe looked up sharply.
"Where?"
"Lake Geneva, Wisconsin."
The name meant nothing to her.
But it clearly meant something to Silas.
His breathing changed.
"Victor told me that property was sold after her death."
Khloe carefully placed the teddy bear on the opposite seat.
"Mr. Costello, I think we should have the device examined without disturbing it further."
Silas nodded.
He called the captain using the cabin intercom.
"Captain, I need a private conversation."
His voice remained controlled.
But his hands were shaking.
Then Noah reached for Khloe again.
He signed slowly.
DADDY SAD.
She smiled gently.
YES.
Noah looked toward his father.
Then signed something so heartbreaking that Khloe almost cried.
I TRIED TO TELL HIM.
Silas knelt beside his son.
"What is he saying?"
Khloe swallowed.
"He says he's been trying to tell you."
Silas closed his eyes.
For two years, he'd mistaken his son's silence for an inability to communicate.
He'd hired specialists, purchased equipment, and surrounded Noah with professionals.
But he'd never learned enough sign language to understand the simplest thing his son wanted to say.
Khloe looked down.
Noah's fingers moved again.
DADDY DOESN'T KNOW THE BAD MAN TOOK MOMMY.
May you like
And at that moment, a metallic click sounded from the rear cabin.
Victor Sterling had locked the partition door.
