Chapter 4 - The Cup on the Counter.
Grant Mercer did not answer his phone.
Daniel called three times from the hospital corridor.
Each call went directly to voicemail.
Grant was thirty-eight, charming when he needed something, and permanently angry that Daniel had inherited voting control of Mercer Development after Daniel's father died.
For years, Grant hid resentment beneath jokes about being the "spare Mercer."
Daniel had ignored those jokes.
Claire had not.
She once told Daniel that Grant smiled like a man keeping a private score.
At three in the morning, Officer Cole confirmed that Grant's name was now part of the inquiry.
"Did he attend dinner?"
Daniel thought carefully.
"He was supposed to."
"Did you see him?"
"I got home late."
"Did Claire say he arrived?"
Daniel searched his messages.
At 7:41 p.m., Claire had written, Your cousin canceled again.
He showed Cole.
"Then why would his voice be in the house?" Daniel asked.
Cole did not answer.
At sunrise, a doctor finally came to see Daniel.
Claire and Sophie were both stable.
They had not regained full consciousness, but their vital signs were improving.
The doctor explained that laboratory testing suggested exposure to a strong sedating substance that neither patient was known to use.
Daniel felt the hallway tilt beneath him.
Someone had not simply frightened them.
Someone had put something in their system.
He returned to the consultation room and called Cole.
The officer was already on his way back to the hospital.
"We found two drinking glasses near the island," Cole said when he arrived.
"One had residue we're testing."
"Two glasses?"
"Yes."
Daniel frowned.
Claire always drank sparkling water from a tall glass.
Sophie used a small pink cup with cartoon stars.
He told Cole.
"Then the second adult glass may matter," Cole said.
Daniel thought of Evelyn.
"My mother drinks mineral water with lemon."
Cole noted it.
"And Grant?"
"Whiskey, usually."
"There was no whiskey glass."
The mismatch bothered Daniel.
Later that morning, detectives obtained permission to examine the kitchen security system.
The Mercer house had indoor cameras only in common entry areas, never private rooms.
Claire had insisted on that boundary.
One camera covered the mudroom door.
Another covered the garage hall.
A third pointed toward the kitchen entrance from the foyer.
At 7:16 p.m., the footage showed Evelyn walking from the sitting room toward the kitchen.
At 7:18, it showed Claire carrying plates.
At 7:21, the camera feed went black.
It returned at 7:31.
Ten missing minutes.
Daniel stared at the time stamps.
"Can someone delete only ten minutes?"
The technician answered cautiously.
"Someone with administrator access could disable recording for a selected period."
Daniel felt another piece move into place.
Only three people had administrator access.
Daniel.
Claire.
And the person who had originally installed the system after Daniel's father died.
Grant Mercer.
Cole received a message and stepped into the hall.
When he returned, his expression had tightened.
"Grant's vehicle was recorded by a traffic camera two blocks from your house at 7:24 p.m."
Daniel stood.
"Then he lied about canceling."
Cole nodded.
"There's more."
A technician had enlarged the kitchen photographs.
One glass on the counter carried Claire's fingerprints.
The other carried Evelyn's.
May you like
But the pink cup Sophie normally used was missing.
And so was Grant.
