Chapter 8 - The House of Glass.
Officer Ruiz moved to the window and pulled the curtain aside by less than an inch.
The street appeared empty.
Daniel immediately hated how exposed his own living room felt.
Claire stared at the photograph on her phone.
The angle came from somewhere near Mrs. Harper's driveway.
"Do not respond," Officer Martin said.
Claire nodded.
Daniel checked the front lock even though he had watched the officers close the door.
It was a useless action, but it gave his hands something to do.
Mrs. Harper was escorted home by Officer Ruiz.
A patrol unit began circling the block.
Claire remained at the kitchen table.
"He knows I am still here."
Daniel sat across from her.
"You are not alone here."
Claire looked toward his uniform.
"That never stopped him before."
The sentence struck Daniel harder than anger could.
"Explain that."
Claire hesitated.
"He was never scared of your rank."
"He liked it."
Daniel frowned.
"Why?"
"Because people respected you."
"He said being connected to you made him look important."
Daniel thought about every polite dinner Evan had attended.
He remembered how many questions Evan asked about military ceremonies, retirement benefits, and old assignments.
At the time, Daniel had thought the young man was making an effort.
Now the curiosity looked calculated.
Officer Martin asked Daniel whether any financial documents were missing.
Daniel went to his desk.
The drawer containing tax papers had been disturbed.
Nothing obvious was gone.
Then he noticed an empty space in the back.
"My spare checkbook."
Claire looked up.
"Missing?"
"Yes."
Daniel opened another drawer.
A folder of property records was also gone.
Officer Martin documented each item.
Claire covered her mouth.
"The duffel bag had copies of bills."
"Exactly," Daniel said.
The possibility widened beyond personal control.
Maybe Evan had been gathering Daniel's information for months.
Officer Ruiz returned from outside.
"No one located yet."
He looked at Martin.
"But Mrs. Harper's doorbell camera caught a vehicle stopping near the corner."
Claire's expression tightened.
"Evan's?"
"Different vehicle."
That answer was worse.
The footage showed a gray sedan arriving three minutes before Claire received the photograph.
The driver's face was not visible.
The passenger window lowered briefly.
Then the car left.
Daniel asked the question nobody wanted to ask.
"Does Evan have someone helping him?"
Claire's eyes moved toward the floor.
"Maybe his brother."
"What brother?"
Daniel had never heard Evan mention one.
Claire swallowed.
"His name is Ryan."
"Evan told me they had not spoken in years."
"But I saw Ryan at our apartment two weeks ago."
Officer Martin leaned forward.
"What were they doing?"
"I came home early."
"They were at the dining table with copies of documents."
Daniel's pulse quickened.
"Whose documents?"
Claire looked at him.
"Yours."
Before anyone could respond, Daniel's landline rang.
He almost ignored it.
Officer Martin told him to answer on speaker.
Daniel did.
A man's voice said only one sentence.
May you like
"Sergeant Major, you need to check your bank account before Evan does."
Then the call disconnected.
