Chapter 3 - The Men at the Door.
The newcomers did not look like grieving relatives.
One was broad-shouldered with a shaved head, while the other wore wire-framed glasses and carried a leather document case.
They positioned themselves on either side of the chapel entrance and quietly locked the doors.
Paul Reeves stared at them in disbelief.
“This is my building.”
The man with glasses smiled without warmth.
“For the next few minutes, Mr. Reeves, it belongs to the Mercer family.”
Margaret moved closer to Ethan and shielded him with her body.
Daniel kept the handgun lowered, but the threat remained clear.
“This can still end without anyone getting hurt,” he said.
Ethan looked through the broken lid at Claire.
She pressed both palms upward, trying to widen the opening.
He saw a plastic restraint around one wrist and felt anger overcome fear.
“You put her in there.”
Daniel’s eyes hardened.
“You don’t understand what your mother did.”
“Then explain it,” Margaret demanded.
The man with glasses opened his case and removed several papers.
He announced that Claire had signed medical directives and property transfers before her supposed accident.
According to those documents, Daniel now controlled the house, the family company shares, and a trust intended for Ethan.
Margaret recognized Claire’s signature but knew the slant was wrong.
Her daughter always crossed the final letter with a long upward stroke.
The signatures on these pages ended abruptly.
“These are copies,” Margaret said.
“Where are the originals?”
The man’s smile disappeared.
At that moment, Claire struck the underside of the lid with both feet.
The coffin rocked on its stand.
Daniel turned instinctively.
Paul seized a heavy brass candleholder and knocked the handgun from Daniel’s hand.
It slid beneath the first row of chairs.
The broad-shouldered man charged, but several mourners blocked him with folding chairs and flower stands.
Ethan used the hammer’s claw to pull loose another piece of wood.
Paul found the coffin’s release mechanism and forced the lid upward.
Fresh air rushed into the narrow space.
Claire lay against the white satin lining, exhausted and blinking in the daylight.
Margaret removed the tape carefully and held her daughter’s face.
Claire’s first words were barely audible.
“Daniel staged everything.”
The alarm continued ringing.
Outside, distant sirens began to answer.
The man with glasses gathered his papers and fled through a side corridor.
The broad-shouldered man followed him.
Daniel dropped to his knees and reached beneath the chairs for the handgun.
Ethan saw the movement and kicked the weapon farther away.
“Not this time,” the boy said.
Daniel stared at him with stunned fury.
Before he could stand, Paul and two guests restrained him using a curtain cord.
Police arrived moments later and forced open the locked chapel doors.
Claire was carried into the sunshine on a stretcher while Ethan held her hand.
As she passed Daniel, she turned her head and spoke clearly enough for everyone to hear.
“The evidence isn’t in the coffin.”
Daniel stopped struggling.
His face changed.
Claire closed her eyes and added one final sentence.
May you like
“It’s where Ethan always hides the truth.”
THE WOMAN BENEATH THE WHITE LID
