Chapter 11 - Elaine's Plan.
Claire did not call Elaine immediately.
She wanted ten minutes in which no Mercer could explain anything to her.
She sat on the edge of the hotel bed with both hands over her stomach while Rachel spoke to the detective about preserving the security server.
The baby shifted beneath Claire's palm.
That small movement anchored her more effectively than any reassurance had all night.
When Rachel ended the call, Claire looked at her.
"If Elaine put the proxy on the table, she knew."
Rachel nodded.
"At minimum, she knew there was a plan to pressure you into signing."
"She watched Daniel grab me."
"Yes."
"She watched Martin walk toward me."
Rachel did not soften the answer.
"Yes."
Claire called Elaine.
No answer.
She called again.
Still nothing.
Rachel sent a text saying they needed to speak immediately and that police were reviewing footage from 18C.
Elaine called back within thirty seconds.
Claire did not bother with a greeting.
"Why did you put the proxy on the table?"
Elaine inhaled sharply.
"Sophie talked to you."
"Answer me."
"It wasn't what you think."
Claire laughed once.
"Every person in your family says that right before telling me something worse."
Elaine began speaking quickly.
She said Martin had been demanding Claire's proxy for weeks.
He wanted Elaine to convince Claire that signing it was a routine maternity-leave precaution.
Elaine had refused several times.
Then she learned about Nora's archive and realized Martin intended to force the Harcourt sale through before Claire could expose Northline.
"So you decided to help him?" Claire asked.
"No."
"You put the paper in front of me."
"Because I wanted him on camera."
Claire went still.
Rachel looked up from her laptop.
Elaine continued.
"I knew about the dining-room camera."
"You wanted me to refuse."
"Yes."
"You wanted Martin to react."
"I wanted him to threaten you where it could be recorded."
Claire's voice became quiet.
"You used me as bait."
Elaine began crying.
"I thought he would yell."
"You thought."
"I never believed he would go that far."
"Daniel keeps saying the same thing."
Elaine's voice broke.
"I am so sorry."
Claire stood and walked to the window.
Cars moved through the wet streets below like tiny points of light.
"Did Daniel know you were trying to record Martin?"
Elaine was silent.
Claire closed her eyes.
"Elaine."
"He knew I wanted Martin to say something incriminating."
"Did he know you planned to put the proxy in front of me?"
"Yes."
Claire felt sick again.
"Did he know Sophie was recording?"
"Not with her phone."
"Did he know about the security camera?"
"I don't think so."
Claire turned toward Rachel.
Rachel was writing notes rapidly.
"Why did Daniel restrain me?"
Elaine answered too quickly.
"Martin told him to."
"Did you tell him to do anything?"
"No."
Claire heard something in the answer.
Not a lie exactly.
An omission.
"What did you tell Daniel before dinner?"
Elaine's breathing became audible.
"I told him not to let you walk away before Martin admitted what he wanted."
Claire's hand tightened around the phone.
"Say that again."
"I meant verbally."
"You told my husband not to let me leave."
"I did not tell him to touch you."
"You created a situation where everyone except me knew I was supposed to be trapped in that room."
Elaine sobbed softly.
Claire felt no sympathy.
"And then when it went wrong, you told police you couldn't remember clearly."
"I was afraid."
"Of Martin?"
"Yes."
"I was afraid too."
Claire's voice shook for the first time.
"The difference is that I didn't know I was walking into a plan."
Elaine whispered, "I know."
"No."
Claire wiped one tear from her cheek.
"You know now."
She ended the call.
For several seconds, neither she nor Rachel spoke.
Then Rachel said, "That was an admission."
Claire looked at her.
"It was also my marriage."
Rachel's phone rang.
It was the detective again.
They had located the dining-room camera files on one of the 18C computers.
The relevant time block had been deleted remotely at 2:08 a.m.
Claire's chest tightened.
"Can it be recovered?"
"Possibly."
The detective explained that the deletion request came from an administrator account named EMM-01.
Claire looked at Rachel.
"Elaine Mercer."
Rachel nodded slowly.
Claire called Elaine back.
This time there was no answer.
A minute later, Claire received a text.
I DIDN'T DELETE IT.
Then another.
MARTIN USES MY LOGIN.
Rachel read the messages.
"Convenient."
Claire's phone buzzed again.
The third message was different.
DON'T TRUST THE SERVER TIME.
May you like
CLAIRE, SOMEONE CHANGED THE CLOCK.
Before Claire could respond, Elaine's number went dark.
