Chapter 4 - The Empty Bed
For several seconds, I couldn't understand what I was seeing.
The monitor remained beside the bed.
The IV stand remained.
The blankets had been thrown back.
But Raymond was gone.
I ran into the hallway carrying Theodore.
“Raymond!”
No answer.
Then I heard wheels moving downstairs.
I rushed toward the service elevator.
The doors closed before I reached them.
Through the narrowing gap, I saw Christopher.
And a hospital transport stretcher.
“Stop!”
The doors shut.
I took the stairs.
Barefoot.
Theodore clutched my shirt as I ran.
By the time I reached the garage, Christopher was helping two men load Raymond into a private ambulance.
“What are you doing?”
Christopher turned.
“Transferring him.”
“Where?”
“A hospice facility.”
“At two in the morning?”
He stepped toward me.
“My uncle is dying. You are an employee.”
Then another voice came from behind me.
“Actually, she’s a witness.”
Evelyn Price walked into the garage.
Christopher froze.
She held up her phone.
“I received Nora’s message.”
I hadn't sent one.
Then I realized she was bluffing.
Beautifully.
“You cannot remove my client without proper authorization,” Evelyn said.
“I’m next of kin.”
“And I hold his active medical directive.”
Christopher’s jaw tightened.
The ambulance attendants exchanged uncertain looks.
Evelyn stepped closer.
“Put Mr. Winslow back upstairs.”
Christopher stared at her.
For a moment, I saw something ugly behind his eyes.
Then he smiled.
“Of course.”
Raymond was returned to his room.
At sunrise, Evelyn and I finally spoke privately.
I played my recording.
The audio wasn't perfect, but Wallace’s voice could be heard.
“Tomorrow evening.”
Then Christopher:
“That’s certain?”
Evelyn listened twice.
“This isn't enough.”
“I know.”
“But it’s something.”
I told her everything.
Raymond waking.
The blinking system.
The injections.
His accusation.
Evelyn remained silent for a long time.
Then she said, “Raymond changed his estate plan three months ago.”
My pulse quickened.
“Christopher knows?”
“He knows enough.”
“What changed?”
“If Raymond dies under the existing structure, Christopher receives significant control of the family holdings.”
“Significant?”
“Hundreds of millions.”
I sat down.
Suddenly, everything had a number attached to it.
A very large one.
Evelyn looked toward Theodore, sleeping nearby.
“Nora, you need to leave.”
“I can’t leave Raymond.”
“You have a child.”
“I know.”
“Then understand what you're risking.”
I did.
That was the problem.
I also understood what leaving meant.
Raymond would die.
That afternoon, we arranged for an independent physician.
Dr. Maya Chen arrived without warning.
Christopher was furious.
Wallace was worse.
Dr. Chen reviewed Raymond’s chart.
Then the medications.
Then the bloodwork.
Her expression slowly changed.
“There are inconsistencies.”
Wallace crossed his arms.
“What exactly are you implying?”
“Nothing yet.”
She ordered additional tests.
Christopher objected.
Evelyn overruled him.
For the first time, I believed we might win.
Then the laboratory results disappeared.
Not delayed.
Not inconclusive.
Gone.
And at 8:40 that night, police arrived at the mansion.
They weren't there for Christopher.
They were there for me.
An officer held up a small velvet pouch.
Inside was one of Raymond Winslow’s expensive watches.
“We found this in your room, Ms. Bennett.”
Christopher stood behind them.
His expression was devastated.
Perfectly devastated.
“I trusted her,” he whispered.
And suddenly I understood.
May you like
If Christopher couldn't remove Raymond—
he would remove me.
