My father had not waited to be released to make his move.

Gabriel reached down and tapped the screen, switching the camera feed to the street outside the lobby.

A black sedan was parked idling at the curb, its headlights cutting through the heavy rain.

In the back seat, behind the tinted glass, a figure was sitting in the darkness.

The passenger door of the sedan opened slowly.

My father stepped out into the pouring rain.

He did not have an umbrella, but he did not seem to care.

His tailored wool coat darkened instantly under the heavy downpour.

He looked up at the penthouse window, his eyes cold and fixed on the glass.

Gabriel pressed the intercom button on the console.

“Send them up,” Gabriel said to the guard.

I turned to Gabriel, my heart hammering against my ribs.

“He is out on bail already?” I asked.

“He has deep pockets and powerful friends, Claire,” Gabriel said, his hand resting gently on my shoulder.

“But we have the truth,” I whispered.

The elevator hummed in the shaft behind us, the floor indicator lights ticking upward.