第4章 Chapter 4: The Truth Behind the Door

We gathered in the study at noon, all pretense of civility abandoned. Thomas had found Cornelius's files in the safe behind the Gainsborough painting—the combination was the date of the Whitfield verdict, because of course it was.

"Let me make sure I understand," Harriet said, spreading the documents across the desk. "Seven years ago, a man named Daniel Whitfield was convicted of murdering his wife based on expert testimony from—" she looked at me, "Dr. Voss."

"My psychological profile was one element of the prosecution's case."

"It was THE element. Without your testimony that Whitfield exhibited classic homicidal ideation patterns, there was no case. The physical evidence was inconclusive."

I felt the others watching me. "I stand by my assessment."

"Except Cornelius didn't." Harriet held up a sheaf of papers. "He spent five years investigating. These documents prove that the real killer was someone else entirely—someone in this room."

The temperature seemed to drop ten degrees.

"That's a serious accusation," Victor said. Still calm. Still perfectly, terrifyingly calm.

"Is it?" I stepped toward the desk. Something in the files had caught my eye—a photograph I recognized. A face I'd seen before, younger, unlined by years of careful deception. "Because I think Cornelius didn't just identify the killer. I think he set this entire weekend as a trap."

I picked up the photograph and turned it to face the room.

"Sofia. Or should I say, Catherine Whitfield—Daniel's sister."

Sofia—Catherine—didn't deny it. She simply reached into her handbag and produced a small revolver.

"He was innocent," she said. Her voice was steady now, all pretense of fragility gone. "My brother has been rotting in prison for seven years for something he didn't do. And every single person in this room helped put him there."