Chapter 6: Someone Had Been Inside Her House
Danielle didn't remember walking to the private elevator.
One moment, she was standing in the conference room with Grace pressed against her chest. The next, Marcus was beside her, speaking into his radio while two security officers moved toward the private entrance.
"Mrs. Brooks, your driver is being brought around," he said.
"I've also requested a police escort.""
"How long until we reach my house?""
"Approximately twenty minutes, depending on traffic.""
"Then we leave now.""
Marcus glanced at Grace.
"Ma'am, I strongly recommend that you remain here until the police confirm the residence is secure.""
Danielle turned toward him.
"Someone entered my baby's nursery. I am not waiting twenty minutes in a hotel conference room while strangers decide whether my daughter is safe.""
Marcus held her gaze.
"Understood. We'll proceed with the escort.""
He opened the elevator doors.
As Danielle stepped inside, her phone rang.
Michael.
She answered immediately.
"Did you send someone to my house?""
"What?"" Her brother sounded genuinely confused.
"Danielle, what's going on?""
"Someone disabled my security system. I received a photograph of Grace's nursery.""
"What are you talking about?""
"Don't pretend you don't know.""
"I'm not pretending! Are you at home?""
"No.""
"Good. Stay away from there until you know what's happening.""
The urgency in his voice caught her attention.
"Why?""
"Because if someone is trying to frighten you, they'll expect you to rush home.""
Danielle looked at Marcus.
Her brother's warning made sense.
That frightened her more than if he'd simply denied everything.
"Michael, who knows about the investigation?""
"Probably half the executive team by now.""
"I told Thomas not to warn you.""
Michael went quiet.
Then he said, "Thomas called me this afternoon.""
Danielle's stomach tightened.
"What did he tell you?""
"That you were reviewing the Hale payments.""
"Did you ask him to stop me?""
"No.""
"Did you tell anyone about Grace?""
"Of course not.""
"Then how would someone know which room was her nursery?""
Michael exhaled sharply.
"I don't know, Danielle. But listen to me. You need to be careful about who you trust.""
She stared at the elevator's polished steel doors.
"That's exactly what I'm trying to figure out.""
She ended the call.
The elevator descended into the hotel's underground garage.
A black luxury sedan waited beside the private exit. Two security vehicles were positioned ahead of it, their engines running.
Marcus opened the rear door.
Danielle climbed in with Grace, buckled herself into the seat, and secured the baby carrier beside her.
As the convoy pulled onto Peachtree Street, Atlanta's evening traffic flowed around them. Brake lights painted the wet pavement red. A siren sounded somewhere in the distance.
Danielle checked the time.
6:52 p.m.
Her home had been empty for most of the afternoon. A housekeeper had left at three. Danielle had gone to the hotel shortly after lunch.
Only a handful of people knew she would be there with Grace.
Her nanny knew the schedule.
Michael knew it.
And Victoria had somehow learned enough about Danielle's private life to produce a photograph of the nursery.
Danielle called her home security company again.
This time, the operator connected her to a supervisor.
"Mrs. Brooks, we've reviewed the available logs. The system was accessed using an authorized administrator credential.""
"Whose credential?""
"The account belongs to Michael Brooks.""
Danielle went completely still.
"You're certain?""
"Yes. The access was authenticated through his registered device.""
Marcus looked at her in the rearview mirror.
Danielle could barely hear the traffic outside.
"Did the system record any other activity?""
"Yes. The front-door camera captured a person entering the property using a key. The face isn't visible, but the person remained inside for approximately eleven minutes.""
"Did they take anything?""
"We can't determine that remotely.""
Danielle looked down at Grace.
The baby was asleep, one tiny fist resting against her cheek.
Eleven minutes.
Someone had walked into her house, passed through its rooms, and stood inside the nursery where her daughter slept.
Danielle's voice turned cold.
"Send every log, image, and access record to the police. Do not delete anything.""
"Yes, ma'am.""
She ended the call.
Marcus spoke carefully.
"Could your brother have been helping someone with a legitimate security issue?""
"He could have," Danielle replied.
"But he didn't tell me he accessed my home. And he has no reason to disable the system without informing me.""
"Do you want me to contact him?""
"No. Not yet.""
The convoy turned onto Danielle's residential street.
Her house stood behind a low stone wall and a row of magnolia trees. The porch lights were on, but the driveway was empty.
Two police cruisers were already parked outside.
An officer approached the lead security vehicle and spoke briefly with the driver.
Marcus turned toward Danielle.
"The officers have cleared the ground floor. They're checking the upstairs rooms now.""
"Did they find anyone?""
"Not so far.""
Danielle stepped out of the car, carrying Grace.
A female officer approached her.
"Mrs. Brooks? I'm Officer Ramirez. We need you to remain outside until the entire property has been cleared.""
"Was anyone inside?""
"We found evidence that someone entered the residence. We're still determining whether anything was taken.""
Danielle looked past her toward the front door.
The lock appeared intact.
"How did they get in?""
"We're investigating that.""
Officer Ramirez glanced at the baby.
"Is there somewhere safe you can take your daughter tonight?""
"The hotel has a secured private suite.""
"Good. I'd recommend staying there until we finish processing the scene.""
Danielle nodded.
Then a second officer emerged from the house carrying a small evidence bag.
Inside it was a black electronic key fob.
Danielle recognized it immediately.
It belonged to Michael.
She had given it to him six months earlier when he was helping coordinate renovations at the house. He had returned the other keys, or so she'd believed.
"Where did you find that?"" she asked.
"On the floor beside the nursery door," Officer Ramirez replied.
Danielle's fingers tightened around Grace's blanket.
"Does that mean my brother was here?""
"Not necessarily. We need to establish when the fob was dropped and whether it was used to enter the property.""
A uniformed officer called from the doorway.
"Officer Ramirez? You need to see this.""
Ramirez excused herself and went inside.
Danielle remained near the driveway, staring at the windows of her home.
Then her phone vibrated.
An unknown number.
She opened the message.
I told you to stop digging.
A second message arrived.
Your brother can't protect you from what's coming.
Danielle's pulse hammered.
She photographed the messages and handed her phone to Marcus.
"Make sure these are preserved for the police.""
"Yes, ma'am.""
Then she looked toward the house.
Officer Ramirez came back outside, her expression grave.
"Mrs. Brooks, we found something in the nursery that I think you should see.""
Danielle followed her inside only after the officers confirmed the room was safe.
The hallway smelled faintly of lemon polish. Nothing appeared disturbed. Family photographs remained on the walls. A pair of tiny pink shoes sat beside the nursery door.
Inside, the crib stood beneath a pale canopy.
A drawer had been left open.
The officer pointed toward the changing table.
"Someone removed a document from this drawer and left something behind.""
On the table lay a folded envelope.
Danielle approached slowly.
Her name was written across the front in handwriting she recognized instantly.
Her mother's.
For a moment, the room seemed to disappear around her.
Her mother had been dead for nearly two years.
Danielle had packed away most of her personal belongings, keeping only a few letters and photographs. She had never seen this envelope before.
With trembling fingers, she opened it.
Inside was a single handwritten page.
My darling Danielle,
If you are reading this, something has happened that I prayed you would never have to face. There are things about the hotel, about the money, and about the people closest to us that I never had the courage to explain.
I should have told you before it was too late.
Do not trust the person who claims to be protecting the family.
And whatever you do, never sign away your mother's final gift.
Danielle stopped reading.
At the bottom of the page, her mother had written one final sentence.
The original ownership agreement is not where you think it is.
Danielle looked up at Officer Ramirez.
"Did you find this envelope here?""
"It was on the changing table when we entered.""
"Was anything else left behind?""
The officer nodded toward the open drawer.
"There was an empty space beneath the drawer liner. It looks as though someone removed a document that had been hidden there.""
Danielle stared at her mother's handwriting.
Someone had entered her house, accessed the nursery, and searched through a drawer that contained a secret her mother had never told her.
The threat was no longer just about the hotel.
It reached back into her mother's final days.
And somewhere, someone knew exactly what the missing document could reveal.
Her phone vibrated again.
This time, the message came from Michael.
Danielle, don't read anything Mom left behind until you speak to me.
She stared at the screen.
Then another message appeared.
Because if you find the original agreement, you'll understand why I had to do what I did.
Danielle slowly lowered the phone.
For the first time that evening, she wasn't afraid of what a stranger might do to her.
May you like
She was afraid of what her own brother already knew.
And of what he might do to keep her from discovering the truth.
