CHAPTER 5 — The Secret Inside the Fox
CHAPTER 5 — The Secret Inside the Fox
Lily stared at the stuffed fox in her hands.
The faint rattle echoed again as she gently squeezed its belly.
Pictures.
Ethan had hidden pictures inside.
She looked toward the sleeping boy.
His breathing had finally become steady.
For the first time since she'd found him in the park, he looked like what he really was.
Just a little kid.
Not someone carrying a secret too heavy for his small shoulders.
Lily carefully placed the fox back beside him.
She wasn't about to cut it open without telling someone.
A few minutes later, Maxwell returned to Ethan's room.
He immediately noticed Lily sitting upright in the chair.
"You should try to sleep."
She shook her head.
"I think Ethan was trying to tell us something."
Maxwell's expression changed.
"What happened?"
She picked up the stuffed fox.
"He said there's something hidden inside."
"The fox?"
"He called it 'the pictures.'"
Maxwell frowned.
"This toy?"
Lily nodded.
"He begged me not to let Jennifer have it."
Detective Maria Alvarez, who had just stepped into the room, heard every word.
She pulled on a fresh pair of evidence gloves.
"If there's evidence inside, we shouldn't damage it."
One of the officers retrieved a small seam ripper from the hospital's sewing kit.
Very carefully, Alvarez loosened a few stitches along the fox's back.
The room fell silent.
Then...
A tiny plastic tube slid into her hand.
It was waterproof.
About the size of a marker.
"What is that?" Maxwell asked.
Alvarez unscrewed the cap.
She slowly tipped the contents onto a clean hospital tray.
Three folded photographs.
A small memory card.
And a tiny handwritten note in shaky children's handwriting.
The note read:
If something happens to me, show Daddy.
Maxwell felt the blood drain from his face.
The first photograph showed Ethan sitting in his wheelchair.
Jennifer stood behind him.
Nothing unusual.
Then Alvarez turned over the second photo.
Everyone froze.
Jennifer was gripping Ethan's arm so tightly that bruises were already forming.
The little boy's face was twisted in pain.
"Who took this?" one officer whispered.
No one answered.
The third photograph was even worse.
Jennifer was talking to a man beside a black SUV.
She was pointing toward Ethan, who sat several yards away.
The man's face wasn't fully visible.
But one detail stood out.
A silver ring with a black crest.
Maxwell stared at it.
"I know that ring."
Detective Alvarez looked up.
"From where?"
"My company's executive board."
The room suddenly felt much smaller.
"You mean one of your executives?"
Maxwell nodded slowly.
"Only board members receive that ring."
"How many people have one?"
"Twelve."
Alvarez immediately handed the photograph to another detective.
"I want every board member identified before sunrise."
The detective hurried out of the room.
Next came the memory card.
One of the officers inserted it into a secure police laptop.
Several files appeared.
Mostly short videos.
The first began playing.
The screen showed Ethan's bedroom.
The camera was hidden beneath a shelf.
Jennifer's voice came first.
"You'll tell your father you fell."
A frightened Ethan answered.
"But you pushed me."
A loud slap echoed through the recording.
Lily flinched.
Maxwell clenched his fists until his knuckles turned white.
Jennifer's voice became cold.
"If you ever tell him the truth..."
She leaned close enough for the hidden microphone to catch every word.
"...you'll end up just like your mother."
The video ended.
Nobody spoke.
Maxwell slowly sat down.
"My wife..."
His voice barely worked.
"She died in a boating accident three years ago."
Detective Alvarez looked at him carefully.
"Was Jennifer with your family then?"
"No."
"When did you meet her?"
"About six months later."
Another detective entered the room carrying a tablet.
"We've identified the board members wearing that ring."
He enlarged the photograph.
"The visible engraving narrows it down."
"To whom?"
The detective hesitated.
"Only three executives wear this particular custom version."
Maxwell leaned forward.
"Names."
The detective swallowed.
"Charles Whitmore."
"Daniel Reeves."
"And..."
He looked directly at Maxwell.
"...your younger brother."
Silence crashed over the room.
"...Adrian Blackwood."
Maxwell stared at the screen as if it had become unreadable.
"No."
His voice was hollow.
"That's impossible."
"Why?" Alvarez asked.
"Because Adrian has been Ethan's favorite uncle since he was born."
Just then, Ethan stirred awake.
He looked around the room.
His eyes landed on the photographs lying on the tray.
"You found them."
Maxwell rushed to his bedside.
"Buddy..."
He gently took Ethan's hand.
"Who helped you hide these?"
Ethan smiled weakly.
"Aunt Grace."
Maxwell frowned.
"My sister?"
Ethan nodded.
"She said..."
His voice trembled with exhaustion.
"...if anything bad happened, I should hide the proof where Jennifer would never look."
Maxwell closed his eyes.
Grace had disappeared overseas two weeks earlier on what everyone believed was a humanitarian mission.
She hadn't answered a single phone call since.
Detective Alvarez's own phone rang.
She answered.
After listening for only a few seconds, her face changed completely.
"What?"
The room went silent.
She lowered the phone and looked directly at Maxwell.
"We just received an alert from airport security."
"What happened?"
"Someone using Adrian Blackwood's private jet filed a flight plan an hour ago."
"Destination?"
Alvarez's voice was grim.
"The Cayman Islands."
She paused.
"But here's the strange part..."
"The passenger manifest includes a woman traveling under a false name."
She turned the tablet toward Maxwell.
The surveillance photo filled the screen.
Even with dark sunglasses and dyed hair, there was no mistaking her.
Jennifer hadn't been arrested.
She had escaped.
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And according to the flight records...
She wasn't running alone.
