Chapter 3 - THE DEAD HUSBAND WHO WAS STILL BREATHING
A thick, acrid cloud of grey smoke billowed instantly from the shattered glass vial, filling the hallway with a blinding, noxious haze. Mark coughed violently, wrapping his arms around Sophie to shield her face as he backed away toward the patio doors. By the time the smoke cleared and the police burst through the front door with drawn weapons, Vanessa was gone— vanished through the side garage entrance into the dark rainy night.
"Clear the house!" Detective Vance shouted, motioning for his officers to search the perimeter. He walked over to Mark, who was kneeling on the patio holding a weeping Sophie. "Are you two okay?"
"She fled on foot," Mark said, his voice raspy from the smoke. "Search the perimeter. She couldn't have gone far."
"We've got roadblocks set up within a five-mile radius," Detective Vance assured him. He looked down at the file resting on the coffee table. "You mentioned Arthur Vance earlier, Mark. I need to tell you something that wasn't in that private investigator's report."
Mark looked up, his brow furrowing. "What do you mean?"
"Arthur Vance isn't dead," the detective said quietly.
Mark froze. "What? The death certificate—"
"Was forged," Detective Vance revealed, leaning in closer so Sophie wouldn't hear. "Eight years ago, Arthur Vance didn't die of a heart attack. He survived the poison, but it left him completely paralyzed and unable to speak. Vanessa paid a crooked doctor to sign a fake death certificate, declared Arthur dead, and secretly had him transferred to a private, high-security long-term care facility under a fake name. She’s been using his remaining offshore accounts to fund her lavish lifestyle ever since."
Mark felt a chill run down his spine. Vanessa hadn't just abused his daughter and tried to steal his fortune—she was keeping a living ghost captive in a private asylum to milk his wealth.
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"Where is he?" Mark asked, his voice shaking with anger. "Where is Arthur?"
"A private facility outside the city limits called Saint Jude’s Sanatorium," Vance answered. "And according to the night nurse we just questioned ten minutes ago... someone matching Vanessa's description just signed into the building."
