Chapter 3 - The Bracelet
Ian's treatment center was two hours away.
I spoke to him by phone from the hospital conference room.
The first thing he said wasn't hello.
“Is Lizzy alive?”
My knees nearly gave out.
“Yes.”
I heard him exhale.
“Is she with Mom?”
“No.”
“Thank God.”
I gripped the phone.
“Ian, what is the blue house?”
Silence.
Then:
“Mom told you?”
“No. Lizzy did.”
Another silence.
“What happened?”
I told him.
The phone went quiet.
When I finished, my brother was crying.
“I knew it.”
“Knew what?”
“I knew something was wrong.”
“Then why didn't you tell me?”
“I tried.”
His voice sharpened.
“I've been trying for months.”
He explained that Gloria controlled almost all communication concerning Lizzy.
When Ian entered treatment, he'd signed temporary guardianship papers during one of the worst periods of his life.
Gloria convinced him it was necessary.
At first, he believed her.
Then Lizzy's calls changed.
She became guarded.
Sometimes Gloria sat beside her during conversations.
Sometimes the calls ended suddenly.
Then Ian began receiving strange messages.
Lizzy mentioned staying somewhere else.
A “blue house.”
When he asked Gloria about it, she said Lizzy was talking about a friend's home.
Then calls became less frequent.
Eventually they stopped.
“I called you,” Ian said.
“I never got anything.”
“I left messages.”
“With who?”
“Mom.”
Of course.
She'd told him she'd pass them along.
She hadn't.
“What is the blue house?”
“I don't know exactly.”
That surprised me.
“You've never been there?”
“No.”
“Then why did Lizzy tell me to ask you?”
“Because I was the only person who asked her about it.”
Ian took a breath.
“One time she said Grandma took her there when she was bad.”
My stomach turned.
“What does that mean?”
“I don't know.”
Detective Beck, who was listening with Ian's permission, wrote something down.
Ian continued.
“She said there were other kids there sometimes.”
That changed everything.
Beck looked up.
“Other children?”
“Yes.”
“How many?”
“I don't know.”
“What ages?”
“I don't know.”
“Who owned the property?”
“I don't know.”
Every answer made the room feel smaller.
But the hospital bracelet had given investigators something concrete.
The alternate address in Lizzy's medical records.
Detective Beck checked it.
The property was a small rental house painted pale blue.
And the emergency contact associated with that address wasn't Gloria.
It was a woman named Miriam Cole.
I'd never heard the name.
Ian hadn't either.
Within an hour, investigators were working to determine why Miriam Cole's information had appeared in Lizzy's records.
Meanwhile, my mother remained downstairs.
Eventually she demanded to speak to me.
I almost refused.
Marisol suggested that I didn't owe her a conversation.
But I wanted to hear what she would say now.
So we met in a small consultation room.
Detective Beck remained nearby.
Gloria walked in without Walt.
That was unusual.
My parents moved through life as a unit.
Dad followed.
Mom decided.
But now she was alone.
She sat opposite me.
“You've created an unbelievable mess.”
That was her opening sentence.
Not:
How is Lizzy?
Not:
Is she okay?
A mess.
“You locked her in a closet.”
“She was having a tantrum.”
“She called me because she was hungry.”
“We fed her.”
“You left the house.”
“For less than an hour.”
“Lizzy said it was since dark.”
“She doesn't understand time.”
Every answer arrived instantly.
Prepared.
Polished.
I remembered childhood arguments with my mother.
She never paused.
Never reconsidered.
Reality was whatever version Gloria could deliver most confidently.
Then I asked:
“What's the blue house?”
For the first time, she hesitated.
Only half a second.
But I saw it.
“I have no idea.”
“Really?”
“Yes.”
“Then why is its address in Lizzy's hospital records?”
Her face changed.
Not much.
Enough.
“That's ridiculous.”
“The police are checking.”
She stood.
“This conversation is over.”
I didn't move.
“Ian knows.”
That stopped her.
“What exactly has your brother told you?”
Interesting question.
Not:
What does Ian know?
What exactly has he told you?
I looked at her.
“Enough.”
Mom stared at me.
Then she did something I didn't expect.
She smiled.
“You always were dramatic.”
And suddenly I was twelve again.
Too sensitive.
Too emotional.
Too dramatic.
All the words she'd used whenever I noticed something she didn't want discussed.
But I wasn't twelve anymore.
“Lizzy isn't going home with you.”
“You don't decide that.”
“No.”
I nodded toward the door.
“They do.”
Her smile disappeared.
“You think they'll give her to you?”
“I don't know.”
“You broke into our house.”
“To rescue her.”
“You have a child of your own. Do you really want strangers examining every corner of your life?”
There it was again.
Noah.
The weapon she believed would make me retreat.
I leaned forward.
“Don't say my son's name again.”
She stared at me.
“You have no idea what you're getting into.”
“Then tell me.”
Silence.
“What is the blue house?”
She picked up her purse.
“I said we're finished.”
She opened the door.
Detective Beck was standing outside.
And behind him—
my father.
Walt looked twenty years older.
“Gloria.”
Mom froze.
He held an envelope.
“What are you doing?”
Dad looked at me.
Then at Detective Beck.
“I want to make a statement.”
Gloria's face drained.
“Walt.”
“You said nobody would get hurt.”
“Don't.”
“You said it was temporary.”
“Stop talking.”
Detective Beck stepped between them.
“Mr. Mercer, come with me.”
My mother grabbed Dad's sleeve.
He pulled away.
I'd never seen him do that.
Not once.
Then he looked at me.
“I'm sorry, Natalie.”
“For what?”
His eyes filled.
“For believing her.”
Gloria turned and walked away.
Fast.
For the first time in my life, my mother looked afraid.
Dad disappeared into another room with investigators.
An hour passed.
Then two.
Lizzy slept through most of it.
Around noon, Marisol came into the room.
“The emergency placement has been approved.”
“With who?”
“You and Adam, pending the home assessment.”
I covered my mouth.
Adam closed his eyes.
Lizzy woke when I moved.
“What's wrong?”
“Nothing.”
I smiled through tears.
“You're coming home with us.”
She stared at me.
“Really?”
“Really.”
“No Grandma?”
“No.”
Lizzy started crying.
Finally.
Not loudly.
Just tears running down her cheeks as she climbed into my arms.
I held her.
And for a moment, I thought that might be the turning point.
I was wrong.
Because Detective Beck appeared in the doorway moments later.
“Natalie.”
Something in his voice made me stand.
“What happened?”
“Your father gave us the location.”
“The blue house?”
“Yes.”
“Did you go there?”
“Officers are there now.”
“And?”
He hesitated.
“We found a room.”
My heart dropped.
“What kind of room?”
“A room that looks remarkably similar to the closet setup at your parents' house.”
I stared at him.
Then he added:
“And there's something written on the wall.”
“What?”
He looked toward Lizzy before answering.
“Children's names.”
I couldn't speak.
“How many?”
“Seven.”
Seven names.
Seven children.
And one of them was Elizabeth Mercer.
But beside Lizzy's name was something investigators didn't understand.
A date.
Tomorrow's date.
And underneath it, someone had written two words:
FINAL TRANSFER.
Whatever Gloria had been hiding wasn't over.
May you like
Something had been scheduled to happen the very next morning.
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