Chapter 3 - The Missing Nine Hours.
The old service office sat behind the kitchen, hidden beyond a narrow corridor most guests never noticed.
Charles unlocked it with a key Nora kept on the staff ring.
A small monitor glowed in the darkness.
Daniel stood behind his father without speaking.
Charles placed Eli's sneaker on the desk.
The words NO SHOES faced upward.
"Tell me you didn't know about that."
Daniel stared at the tape.
"I didn't."
Charles studied his son.
"I need the truth, Daniel."
"I swear I didn't know she marked his shoe."
"That was not what I asked."
Daniel rubbed both hands over his face.
"I knew he was outside."
Charles looked at the monitor instead of his son.
The admission still landed heavily.
"For how long?"
Daniel did not answer.
Charles turned.
"For how long?"
"I thought Vanessa would let him in after a few minutes."
"Did you check?"
Daniel looked away.
Charles sat at the console and opened the camera archive.
The system displayed recordings from the driveway, front entry, rear garden, and side gate.
At 10:14 a.m., the front camera showed Vanessa standing in the doorway with Eli.
The boy wore his thin shirt and shorts.
He had shoes on at first.
Vanessa pointed toward the porch.
Eli shook his head.
The video had no sound, but the argument was obvious.
Then Vanessa bent down, removed the boy's shoes, carried them inside, and shut the door.
Daniel stopped breathing for a second.
"She told me he ran outside on his own."
Charles did not respond.
He moved the footage forward.
At 10:42, Eli knocked on the door.
No one came.
At 11:07, he knocked again.
At 11:31, Daniel appeared behind the glass.
Charles paused the video.
Daniel stared at his own image.
"I remember that."
"What did you do?"
Daniel swallowed.
"Vanessa told me not to undermine her."
Charles pressed play.
The recording showed Daniel standing inside the warm foyer while Eli pressed both hands against the glass outside.
Daniel reached toward the lock.
Then Vanessa entered the frame.
She said something.
Daniel's hand fell away.
The two adults walked out of view.
Charles stopped the footage again.
"You walked away."
Daniel's eyes filled with shame.
"I thought she would calm down."
"You walked away from your son."
"I know."
"No, you know now."
Charles advanced the recording.
Noon became one o'clock.
One became two.
Snow began shortly after three.
Eli curled beside the stone column near the front steps.
At 3:18, Daniel appeared at the window again.
He stood there for nearly twenty seconds.
Then he disappeared.
Charles could no longer look at his son.
He moved the footage toward sunset.
At 5:46, Vanessa opened the front door.
For one hopeful second, Eli stood.
Vanessa placed something on the porch.
It was a plastic cup of water.
Then she shut the door again.
Daniel whispered.
"I didn't know she did that."
Charles stared at the screen.
"You knew enough."
At 6:22, the recording abruptly ended.
The next file started at 7:05.
Forty-three minutes were missing.
Charles checked the system log.
Someone had manually deleted a segment using the administrator code.
He turned toward Daniel.
"Who knows the code?"
Daniel looked confused.
"You, me, Nora, and Vanessa."
"I haven't used it in months."
"Neither has Nora."
Charles leaned closer to the monitor.
A deletion notice showed the exact time of access.
6:31 p.m.
Nine minutes after the camera stopped.
Vanessa had claimed she never touched the system.
Charles opened the login history.
The username attached to the deletion was not Vanessa's.
It was Daniel's.
Charles slowly turned in his chair.
Daniel's face drained of color.
"Dad, I didn't delete that footage."
Charles said nothing.
Daniel stepped closer.
"I swear to you."
Charles looked back at the screen.
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Someone had used Daniel's account at the exact time Eli had vanished from the camera.
And whatever happened during those forty-three minutes had frightened someone enough to erase it.
