Exile

The morning sun was harsh, bleaching the world white as Elena burst through the front door of the Chateau. She didn't stop. She ran down the gravel drive, past the smoking ruin of the library wall, past the police tape, past the confused union workers.

"Elena!" Rossi shouted, running after her. "Wait!"

Elena didn't wait. She had the drive. She had the truth about the signature. And she knew she had only minutes before Victoria made good on her threat. Before the jet took off again. Before the "accidents" started.

She reached the main gate. It was blocked by the convoy of SUVs and the Sheriff's cruiser. Richard Pendelton's Jaguar was still there, parked arrogantly across the exit.

Richard was leaning against the hood, checking his watch. He saw her coming, disheveled and frantic, and he smiled.

"Done playing hide and seek?" he asked.

Elena didn't slow down. She ran straight at him.

"Move the car," she said.

"I don't think so," Richard said. "The Sheriff has some questions for you about a stolen firearm."

"I said move the car!" Elena screamed.

She reached into her pocket. Not for the gun—she didn't have it anymore. For the hard drive.

"I have the server logs," she said, holding the black box up like a grenade. "I have the backups from the day Arthur changed the prenup. I can prove the forgery."

Richard's smile faltered. He looked at the drive, then at the house, where smoke was still drifting from the library.

"That's inadmissible," he said. "Obtained without a warrant."

"It's probable cause," Rossi said, catching up to them. She was breathless, her hand on her holster. "And it's enough to impound every computer in that house."

She looked at Richard.

"Move the car, Counselor. Or I'll have my team move it for you. Into a ravine."

Richard glared at Rossi. Then he looked at Elena. The arrogance was still there, but it was thinner now. Brittle.

He got into the Jaguar. He reversed, tires spinning on the gravel, clearing the path.

"Get in," Rossi said, pointing to her SUV.

"I need to get to the airport," Elena said. "They're in Gander."

"We'll get you there," Rossi said. "But first, we need to secure this evidence. And we need to get you out of sight. Victoria has friends in high places."

"I don't care about her friends," Elena said, climbing into the backseat. "I care about my children."

The SUV peeled out, sirens blaring. Elena slumped against the seat, clutching the hard drive to her chest. It was warm, vibrating with the data that would destroy the St. Clair name.

But as they hit the highway, her burner phone buzzed.

*Unknown Number.*

She answered.

"Elena?"

It was Marcus. His voice was weak, strained, but alive.

"Marcus," she breathed. "Where are you?"

"Hospital," he said. "Broken leg. Couple of cracked ribs. But I'm okay. Listen to me. We need the DNA."

"I have the drive," Elena said. "I have the prenup forgery."

"That's good for custody," Marcus said. "But it won't stop them from killing Sebastian. It won't stop them from burying the rest."

He paused, coughing.

"Arthur just made a statement. He's claiming Sebastian died thirty years ago. He's claiming the man you found in the asylum is an imposter. A con artist named..."

Paper rustled.

"Named Thomas Miller."

Elena closed her eyes. "They're erasing him again."

"They're going to say you hired him," Marcus said. "To defraud the estate. To fake a paternity claim."

"But the DNA," Elena said. "The test in the safe."

"It's gone," Marcus said. "Incinerated. Unless you got it out."

"I got the jar," Elena lied. She hadn't. She had left it. She had left the finger in the safe.

"Good," Marcus said. "But we need a comparison. We need something to match it to."

"We match it to Julian," Elena said. "They're twins."

"Julian is in federal custody," Marcus said. "His lawyers will block any sample request for months. And Arthur will destroy the chain of evidence before we even get a court date."

"Then what do we do?"

"We need a sample from the source," Marcus said. "We need Thomas Miller."

"Thomas is dead," Elena said. "He died in 2004."

"Not that Thomas," Marcus said. "The boy. Mrs. Vance's son. The one in the bio-hazard lab."

"He's alive?"

"Barely," Marcus said. "State troopers got him out. He's at County General. But Arthur's people are already there. They're trying to transfer him to a 'specialized facility'."

"Serenity Hills," Elena realized.

"Exactly," Marcus said. "If he disappears, the link disappears. We need his DNA, Elena. And we need it before they move him."

"I can't get to the hospital," Elena said. "I'm in custody."

"You're in a car," Marcus corrected. "And you have a satellite phone. Call Mrs. Vance. Tell her to barricade the room."

Elena looked at Rossi in the front seat. The agent was driving fast, focused on the road.

"We need the DNA," Marcus said. "It's the only way to prove motive."