Chapter 3 - DANIEL'S PRESCRIPTION
Daniel had not taken the medication in nearly a year.
That was the first thing he told Harris.
After a shoulder surgery eighteen months earlier, he received several prescriptions.
Most remained unused.
Nora had locked them in a small cabinet when Lily started having friends over.
Then, six months later, they disposed of almost everything.
Almost.
One bottle was missing.
Daniel had assumed it was thrown away.
It was not.
Investigators traced the pharmacy code.
The missing bottle contained medication that could become dangerous if taken improperly.
No one needed to know more than that.
The important fact was simple:
Vivian had access.
She frequently stayed at the Mercer home.
She knew where Daniel kept household medical records.
And the torn pharmacy label found in her purse matched the missing bottle’s batch.
Still, Harris did not arrest her for attempted murder immediately.
The evidence had gaps.
The camera did not show the substance entering the tea clearly.
The hospital toxicology results were still incomplete.
The bottle itself had not been recovered.
And Vivian’s attorney offered another theory.
Vivian had found the torn label near the kitchen trash after Nora collapsed.
She picked it up because she feared Lily might touch something dangerous.
The wiping?
Panic.
The tea?
She moved it because she was trying to clean.
The lie about arrival time?
Shock.
Possible.
Not convincing.
Possible.
Harris hated possible.
So he kept digging.
Then Nora woke fully.
Her first question was:
“Is the baby okay?”
Daniel cried.
“Yes.”
Her second:
“Where’s Lily?”
“School with my mom.”
Her third:
“Where is Vivian?”
Daniel looked at Harris.
That answer told Nora enough.
She closed her eyes.
Then whispered:
“She wanted me to sign something.”
“The blue folder?”
Nora nodded.
“What was it?”
Her face tightened.
“Guardianship papers.”
Daniel frowned.
“For what?”
Nora looked at him.
“For Lily.”
The room went silent.
Vivian had presented documents proposing that if Nora suffered “pregnancy-related medical incapacity,” temporary guardianship over Lily would transfer not to Daniel—
but to Vivian.
Daniel stared.
“That makes no sense. I’m her father.”
Nora nodded.
“That’s what I said.”
The papers also included something else.
A temporary voting authorization over the Mercer Family Trust.
Daniel stopped breathing.
Lily was the principal future beneficiary of that trust.
The trust held more than money.
It controlled Mercer Orchard Estates, three rental properties, and a minority stake in Daniel’s company.
If Daniel became incapacitated, control passed temporarily to Nora.
If both Daniel and Nora were unavailable, a backup trustee would step in.
The current backup trustee:
Vivian Doyle.
Daniel looked at Harris.
Now they had motive.
May you like
Not necessarily to kill Nora.
But to remove her from the chain.
