Chapter 5: The Grandmother's Price
My mother-in-law arrived twenty minutes later.
Her name was Eleanor Mercer, and until that evening, I had known her as a woman who sent handwritten birthday cards, brought casseroles when people were ill, and never entered a room without commenting on the flowers.
She had attended our wedding wearing a navy-blue dress and a pearl necklace.
She had kissed Sophie on the forehead during the reception and told her she looked like an angel.
Now she stood in our doorway with a wool coat draped over her arm, staring at the police officers in my dining room.
“What on earth is going on?”” she demanded.
Detective Harris rose.
“Mrs. Mercer, I'm Detective Harris. We need to ask you some questions.””
Eleanor looked at Daniel.
He sat at the dining table with both hands pressed against his knees.
“What have you done?”” she asked him.
Not What happened?
Not Are you all right?
What have you done?
Daniel closed his eyes.
Eleanor turned toward me.
“Lily, darling, surely you can explain this.””
I couldn't believe she had the nerve to call me darling.
“Sophie says you told Daniel to make her mother disappear.””
Eleanor's expression hardened.
“Oh, for heaven's sake. She's a child.””
“She says you told her that everyone would be happier if Karen went away.””
“I told her nothing of the sort.””
Sophie was sitting beside me on the sofa. At the sound of Eleanor's voice, she slipped her hand into mine.
Eleanor noticed.
Her gaze settled on the child.
“Sophie, sweetheart, you know how easily you misunderstand grown-up conversations.””
Sophie stared at the floor.
“Look at me when I'm speaking to you,” Eleanor said.
I stood.
“Don't speak to her like that.””
Eleanor's eyebrows lifted.
“Excuse me?””
“You heard me.””
She gave a small, incredulous laugh.
“Lily, I understand that you're upset. But you have known this family for less than a year. You have no idea what we've been through.””
“I know what happened tonight.””
“You know what a frightened child has told you.””
“Then explain the truth.””
Eleanor removed her coat and laid it neatly over a chair.
“I will not be interrogated in my son's house.””
Detective Harris remained calm.
“Mrs. Mercer, you are not being interrogated at this moment. I'm asking whether you had any involvement in arranging Karen's transfer in March.””
Eleanor turned toward her.
“Karen was mentally unwell. The family made arrangements for her to receive treatment.””
“Was the treatment voluntary?””
“Of course.””
“Can you identify the facility?””
Eleanor hesitated.
“I'm sure Daniel has the information.””
Daniel looked up.
“Mother, stop.””
She stared at him.
“Stop what?””
“Stop pretending this was all about treatment.””
For the first time, Eleanor seemed genuinely startled.
Daniel's voice shook.
“You told me the doctors would evaluate her. You told me she would be released when she was stable. You said no one would know where she was because the press would turn it into a circus.””
“That was exactly what happened,” Eleanor snapped.
“She was unstable, and people were asking questions.””
“You told me the paperwork was legal.””
“It was legal.””
“Then why did the facility have no registration number?””
Eleanor's face lost its color.
Detective Harris leaned forward.
“Mrs. Mercer, do you know where Karen is now?””
“No.””
“Have you had contact with her since March?””
“No.””
“Have you paid anyone to keep her whereabouts secret?””
“Absolutely not.””
Sylvia opened her notebook.
“Then perhaps you'd like to explain the monthly transfers from the Mercer family trust.””
Eleanor's gaze snapped toward her.
“You have no idea what those payments were for.””
“Then explain them.””
“They were private family expenses.””
“Paid to a company that doesn't exist?””
Eleanor looked at Detective Harris.
“This woman has been harassing my family for months. She's bitter because Daniel stopped helping her financially.””
Sylvia laughed.
“Helping me? You paid me to keep quiet.””
Eleanor's expression turned icy.
“You were paid for your services.””
“What services?””
“Don't make me say it.””
“Please do.””
For a moment, the two women stared at each other.
Then Eleanor reached into her handbag and removed a folded sheet of paper.
She placed it on the table in front of Detective Harris.
“This is a copy of the agreement Sylvia signed. She accepted payment to assist with Karen's relocation. She agreed not to discuss confidential family matters.””
Detective Harris examined the document.
“Did you sign this agreement, Ms. Cole?””
Sylvia's mouth tightened.
“Yes.””
“Did you assist with Karen's transfer?””
Sylvia lowered her eyes.
“Yes.””
The admission landed heavily in the room.
I looked at her.
“You helped them?””
Sylvia looked at me, and for the first time, I saw something resembling shame.
“I thought Karen was going to a legitimate treatment center.””
“You told me she was being held somewhere.””
“I found out later.””
“When?””
She swallowed.
“Three weeks after the transfer. I called the facility to check on her. They told me there was no patient by that name.””
“Then why didn't you go to the police?””
“I tried.””
Eleanor laughed.
“No, you didn't.””
Sylvia's face tightened.
“I went to the local station. I gave them the transfer documents.””
“And what happened?””
Sylvia looked at the detective.
“They told me the paperwork had been reviewed and there was no evidence of a crime.””
Detective Harris wrote something in her notebook.
“Which station?””
Sylvia gave her the name.
“Did you receive any written response?””
“Yes. I kept it.””
“Where is it?””
“In my car.””
Detective Harris turned to Officer Bennett.
“Please accompany Ms. Cole to retrieve the document.””
When they left, Eleanor folded her hands in her lap.
“This is getting out of control.””
I stared at her.
“You arranged for a woman to be transferred to a place that apparently doesn't exist, and now you want to talk about control?””
“Karen was destroying Daniel's life.””
“She was Sophie's mother.””
“And Daniel was her father.””
Eleanor's voice sharpened.
“Do you know what it was like watching my son struggle? He was missing work. He was losing sleep.
He was spending every spare dollar on lawyers and social workers. Sophie was frightened all the time. Karen was unpredictable, and nobody could tell us what she would do next.””
I thought of Sophie arriving at our house with a plastic grocery bag.
I thought of her sitting at the dinner table, asking whether making a mess would get her sent away.
“Then why didn't you help Sophie?”” I asked.
“Why did you decide that the easiest solution was to make her mother disappear?””
Eleanor's eyes flashed.
“I was protecting my granddaughter.””
“No,” I said.
“You were protecting your reputation.””
She stood.
“You have no idea what you're talking about.””
“I know Sophie was afraid of you before tonight.””
Eleanor's expression shifted.
Just slightly.
But I saw it.
She glanced at the staircase.
“Where is the child now?””
“She's right here.””
“I'd like to speak with her.””
“No.””
Eleanor stared at me.
“Excuse me?””
“You're not going near her until the police have finished their questions.””
Her face reddened.
“You cannot keep me from my own granddaughter.””
“Watch me.””
Daniel stood slowly.
“Mother, please leave.””
Eleanor turned toward him.
“You're taking her side?””
“I'm asking you to leave.””
“After everything I've done for you?””
He looked down.
“I know what you've done.””
She stepped closer to him.
“You owe me everything.””
“No,” Daniel said.
“I owe you the truth.””
For a moment, Eleanor looked as though she might slap him.
Instead, she reached for her handbag.
“Fine. If this family wants to destroy itself, I won't stop you.””
She headed toward the door.
Then she paused beside Sophie.
The little girl stiffened.
Eleanor leaned down.
“You mustn't believe everything Lily tells you, sweetheart. Adults sometimes make promises they can't keep.””
I moved between them.
“Leave.””
Eleanor straightened and walked out.
The front door closed behind her.
Sophie immediately began to cry.
I sat beside her and pulled her into my arms.
“I'm sorry,” I whispered.
She shook her head.
“It's not your fault.””
“Grandma says everything bad happens because of me.””
I felt something inside me crack.
“That's a lie.””
“She said Daddy wouldn't have to pay so much money if Mommy had behaved.””
“That's not your fault.””
“She said if I told anyone about the hair, Mommy would get hurt.””
I closed my eyes.
“Who told you that?””
“Grandma.””
Daniel sank into the chair opposite us.
He looked smaller than I had ever seen him.
“Sophie,” he whispered, “I never wanted you to be frightened.””
She pulled away from me.
“But you knew where Mommy was.””
He couldn't answer.
“You knew she was alive.””
His eyes filled with tears.
“Yes.””
“Why didn't you tell me?””
Daniel covered his face with both hands.
“Because I was a coward.””
Sophie stared at him.
The word seemed to confuse her.
“A coward?””
He nodded.
“I was scared of my mother. I was scared of losing you. I thought if I did what she asked, everything would settle down.””
“Did it?””
He lowered his hands.
“No.””
Sophie looked at me.
“Is Daddy bad?””
I took a breath.
“Daddy has made some very bad choices. That doesn't mean you have to decide everything about him tonight.””
“But he lied.””
“Yes.””
“And Mommy is alive.””
“We have reason to believe she is.””
She began crying harder.
“I want her.””
I held her close.
“I know.””
Detective Harris returned a few minutes later with Officer Bennett and a new folder of documents.
She asked Daniel to step into the kitchen.
When he returned, his face was gray.
“What happened?”” I asked.
He looked at me.
“There's something else you need to know.””
I waited.
“After Karen was transferred, I was told she had died.””
“By whom?””
“Mother.””
“But you said you didn't know what happened to her.””
“I thought she had died in the facility.””
“You never asked for proof?””
“I asked. She showed me a death certificate.””
Detective Harris interrupted.
“Mr. Mercer, the document you provided during the original missing-person inquiry was not a certified death certificate. It was an administrative record containing information that appears to have been fabricated.””
Daniel stared at her.
“What?””
“We have requested the original records. The copy your mother provided you does not establish that Karen died.””
He sat down heavily.
“I believed her.””
Detective Harris's expression remained firm.
“Belief is not evidence.””
Daniel looked at Sophie.
“I should have checked.””
Sophie wiped her nose with the back of her hand.
“Yes,” she said.
One small word.
It seemed to hurt him more than anything else that had happened that night.
Detective Harris closed her folder.
“We have enough information to pursue several leads. But before we leave, Mrs. Mercer, I'd like to ask you one question.””
I looked at her.
“Did you know Karen was missing before tonight?””
“No.””
“Did you have any contact with her?””
“No.””
“Did you find anything else in Sophie's bag besides the hair?””
I thought of the pharmacy label.
The photograph.
The handwritten note.
I reached into my purse and removed the ziplock bag.
Detective Harris put on gloves and examined it.
Then she turned it over and studied the label.
Her expression changed.
“Where exactly did you find this?””
“At the bottom of the bag.””
She looked at Daniel.
“Mr. Mercer, what does S-08 mean?””
Daniel shook his head.
“I don't know.””
Detective Harris held the bag closer to the light.
“That's not a pharmacy label.””
I stared at her.
“What do you mean?””
She pointed to a tiny line of text printed along the bottom edge.
“It's a specimen tracking label.””
She turned to Officer Bennett.
“Call the medical examiner's office. Ask them to check whether this reference number appears in any of the March records.””
Daniel stood abruptly.
“Why would a medical examiner have anything to do with my wife's hair?””
Detective Harris didn't answer immediately.
Instead, she looked at Sophie.
“Sweetheart, do you know why your mother wanted you to keep this bag?””
Sophie nodded.
“Mommy said it was proof.””
“Proof of what?””
The child looked at Daniel.
Then she whispered, “That the woman they buried wasn't Mommy.””
No one moved.
May you like
Detective Harris slowly lowered the bag.
And for the first time that night, she looked genuinely afraid.
