Chapter 6 - The Trap is Sprung
The forty-eight hours were up. Claire met Liam in the secluded parking lot behind the clinic. The rain was pouring down, blurring the windows of his old sedan.
Liam handed her a printed document, his face pale. "You were right, Claire. It's worse than we thought. The substance in that syringe is a highly concentrated derivative of the N-12 compound. It’s an unapproved neuro-sedative. In small doses, it causes severe muscle weakness, lethargy, and suppresses the vocal cords' motor function. In large doses over a long period... it causes permanent neurological decay."
Claire stared at the chemical breakdown on the paper. "She’s systematically destroying his brain so he can never tell his father what she did."
"You have to go to the police, Claire," Liam urged.
"No," Claire said, shaking her head. "Vanessa has the best lawyers money can buy. If I go to the police with a stolen sample, she’ll claim I planted it to extort them, or that I stole it from Whitman Labs myself to frame her. She’ll turn it into a media circus and destroy the evidence before they can get a warrant. I need Grant Whitman to see it with his own eyes. I need him to catch her in the act."
The next day, Claire arrived at the mansion with the document hidden in her bag. She knew that Grant was scheduled to leave for a three-day business trip to Chicago that afternoon. Vanessa had already ordered a celebratory dinner for her friends that evening, assuming the husband would be gone.
Claire waited until Grant was packing his briefcase in his study. She slipped inside, locking the door behind her.
"Claire? What is the meaning of this?" Grant asked, looking surprised and slightly annoyed.
"Mr. Whitman, please. You have to look at this," Claire said, rushing forward and placing Liam's lab report on his desk. "This is a chemical analysis of the medication your wife is giving Noah every day."
Grant frowned, picking up the paper. As he read the technical terms and the conclusion, his face drained of color. "This... this is N-12. This is a restricted, failed compound from my company’s research labs from five years ago. How did you get this? This is impossible!"
"Vanessa is using it to keep Noah paralyzed and mute," Claire said, her voice fierce with conviction. "She's been drugging him for months. He communicated with me using a book, Mr. Whitman. He told me. If you leave for Chicago today, she will continue to destroy your son's mind until there is nothing left. You need to pretend to leave, but stay in the house. Watch her prepare his afternoon dose."
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Grant looked at the paper, then at Claire. Denial, rage, and profound terror battled on his face. "If this is a lie, Claire, I will ruin you."
"If this is a lie, you can throw me in jail," Claire said, tears in her eyes. "But please, for Noah's sake, just watch her."
