Chapter 7: The Interrogation of Shadows
Detective Miller stepped fully into the room, pulling a small wooden chair up to the bedside. The fluorescent lighting above cast harsh shadows across his weathered face. He held the transparent evidence bag casually, but his eyes were sharp, evaluating every flicker of emotion between Arthur and Clara.
"Julian Vance," Miller repeated, letting the name hang in the air like smoke. "Your brother, according to the state records I pulled twenty minutes ago on my tablet. Care to explain why a man who has been legally presumed missing for nearly a decade turned up in a alleyway three blocks from your residence with a crowbar and a lockpick set?"
Clara sank deeper into her pillows, looking frail under the white hospital blankets. Arthur instinctively moved closer, standing like a shield between his wife and the officer.
"She was just telling me about him, Detective," Arthur said, his voice steady despite the adrenaline coursing through him. "Julian resurfaced on Monday. He cornered Clara at our house, demanding money."
Miller turned his gaze to Clara. "Is that true, Mrs. Sterling?"
"Yes," Clara whispered, her voice trembling. She wiped away a fresh tear with the back of her hand. "He was desperate. He said he owed money to some very dangerous people—loan sharks operating out of the waterfront docks. He told me if he didn't get fifty thousand dollars by Friday, they were going to kill him."
"And you didn't call the police?" Miller asked, eyebrow raised.
"I was terrified!" Clara cried out, her composure snapping. "He was my brother! I hated what he had become, but I was afraid that if I went to the police, those people would follow through on their threats. I told him to leave, that I wouldn't give him a single cent of Arthur's money. I thought... I foolishly thought he would just run away like he always does."
Miller made a slow notation in his leather pocketbook. "So today wasn't a random burglary. Julian came back to force your hand, using your mother-in-law as leverage."
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"Or," Arthur interjected, a cold realization dawning on him, "Julian sent those men to our home, or they followed him there. Detective, you need to put officers outside my mother's room. If these people think we have money, Eleanor isn't safe."
Miller stood up, snapping his notebook shut. "I've already posted two officers at Mrs. Eleanor Sterling's door, and one down in the lobby. But Mr. Sterling, if your brother-in-law is running from heavy hitters, your home is now an active crime scene. You won't be able to stay there tonight."
