Chapter 3 - Echoes in the Attic
Three days later, detectives executed a full warrant on Elena’s private studio in the downtown arts district. Thomas insisted on accompanying Detective Mercer, seeking tangible answers rather than rumors.
Behind a false backing in an antique armoire, Mercer discovered stacks of overdue notices, promissory notes to offshore loan sharks, and life insurance policies taken out on Thomas only six weeks prior—naming Elena as sole beneficiary.
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"She was drowning," Mercer remarked, paging through bank demands. "Nearly two million in unsecured liabilities from a failed venture in Chicago before she met you."
Thomas leaned against the wall, feeling nausea churn. The romance was not serendipity; it had been an orchestrated lifeline built on his murder. But amidst the malice, Mercer found an unsent letter addressed to Elena's younger sister, Claire, an invalid living in a state-funded hospice. “I will fix everything, Claire. I will make sure you never suffer in that facility again, whatever the cost.”
