Chapter 1 - MOMMY IS INSIDE THAT WALL
The first crack sounded like a gunshot.
A hundred and fifty wedding guests turned toward the stage as six-year-old Lily Whitmore swung a wooden hammer against the flower-covered wall behind the altar.
White roses shook loose. A strip of ivory fabric tore. The violinist stopped playing.
“Lily!” Daniel Whitmore shouted.
His daughter swung again.
“Daddy, stop the wedding!”
Daniel hurried across the ballroom, his black tuxedo catching the light from the crystal chandeliers. His bride, Vanessa Cole, stood beside the altar in a breathtaking white gown. Her smile had vanished.
“What are you doing?” Daniel demanded, reaching for the hammer.
Lily twisted away. Tears streamed down her cheeks.
“Mommy's inside!”
A murmur swept through the ballroom.
Daniel crouched. “Sweetheart, what are you talking about?”
“She's behind the flowers. I heard her. She knocked three times.”
Vanessa rushed forward, lifting the hem of her dress.
“Daniel, she's overwhelmed. She's been acting strangely all morning. Please take her away before she ruins everything.”
Lily shook her head.
“I'm not lying!”
She struck the wall again.
This time, something answered.
Three faint knocks came from behind the wooden panel.
The sound was so small that Daniel almost missed it. But he saw the color drain from Vanessa's face.
“Everybody move back,” he ordered.
The wedding planner hurried toward him. “Mr. Whitmore, that's part of the stage installation. We can call the venue manager.”
“Move back.”
Daniel took the hammer from Lily and struck the panel near the place she had been hitting. The wood cracked. A section of roses fell away, followed by a piece of decorative molding.
Behind the flowers was a narrow wooden door, painted to match the stage.
He struck it again.
The latch broke.
A smell of dust and stale air drifted into the ballroom. Then a woman's voice came from the darkness.
“Daniel?”
His blood turned cold.
He knew that voice. He had heard it in dreams for eighteen months.
“Olivia?”
A hand appeared through the opening.
Daniel dropped the hammer and tore away the remaining panel. Inside the narrow compartment, a woman was curled on the floor. Her wrists were tied. Tape covered her mouth. Her blue dress was filthy, and her dark hair clung to her face.
It was Olivia.
His wife.
The woman he had buried in an empty coffin.
“Olivia!”
He pulled her carefully into his arms. She collapsed against him, coughing and trembling. Lily screamed and threw herself toward her mother.
“Mommy!”
Olivia managed to touch her daughter's cheek.
“My baby.”
Daniel held them both. For several seconds, the ballroom disappeared.
Then Olivia grabbed his lapel.
“Vanessa,” she rasped.
Daniel looked up.
His bride stood near the altar, surrounded by guests. Her face had gone white.
“Vanessa locked me in there.”
Two security guards moved toward the bride.
Vanessa stepped backward. “She's confused. Daniel, you know what happened to her. She's been missing. She could be dangerous.”
Olivia shook her head.
“She knows exactly what she did.”
Daniel rose slowly.
“Close every exit.”
His best man, Marcus Reed, stepped away from the altar.
“Daniel, don't do something you'll regret. We need to get Olivia medical attention.”
Daniel looked at his oldest friend. Marcus's expression was concerned, his voice calm.
But his right hand was shaking.
Lily, still clinging to her mother, pointed at him.
May you like
“He helped her.”
The ballroom fell silent again.
