Chapter 14 - THE PHOTOGRAPH INSIDE THE FRAMEPolice upgraded the case.
The audio established a direct threat moments before the fire.
The photographs placed Vivian and Delacroix inside the archive with Camille.
Prosecutors added conspiracy, kidnapping and attempted murder to the investigation.
Camille’s death became a suspected homicide.
Vivian’s location remained unknown.
The audit traced a payment from Rouge Étoile to a private aviation company.
A jet was scheduled to leave Le Bourget Airport that night.
Its destination was Tangier.
Police reached the plane before departure.
Vivian was not aboard.
The passenger was Dr. Delacroix.
He carried two passports, cash and a portable drive containing clinic records.
He was detained.
Under questioning, Delacroix blamed Vivian.
He claimed the original plan was financial fraud, not murder.
According to him, Vivian asked Camille to enter the archive wearing Sophie’s coat.
She said they needed security footage showing Sophie leaving through another door.
When Sophie arrived unexpectedly, Vivian panicked.
An argument began.
Restoration solvent spilled.
Delacroix insisted the fire started accidentally.
“Why was Sophie locked inside?” investigators asked.
“Vivian said she would open the door after retrieving the documents.”
“Did she?”
“No.”
“What happened to Sophie?”
Delacroix found her unconscious near a service stairwell after firefighters entered the lower floor.
Instead of taking her to an emergency hospital, he transported her to Maison Sainte-Cécile.
Vivian feared Sophie would speak if she regained consciousness.
“What about Camille?”
Delacroix looked away.
“She was trapped in the restoration room.”
Vivian placed Sophie’s jewelry near Camille’s body.
Delacroix falsified the DNA report.
The official story became complete.
A dead woman received Sophie’s name.
A living woman lost it.
“Why keep Sophie alive?” police asked.
Delacroix answered, “Vivian said killing her after the fire would create more risk.”
So they erased her instead.
Adrian listened to the confession through investigators.
His hands shook.
Sophie survived because Vivian considered captivity easier to hide than another body.
The distinction offered no comfort.
Delacroix revealed Vivian had a safe apartment beneath a false name in Montmartre.
Police searched it.
They found red wigs, forged documents and photographs of Adrian with Chloe.
On one wall was an engagement plan.
Gallery date.
Guest list.
Press announcement.
Vivian intended to marry Adrian, consolidate control of the arts foundation and leave France within six months.
Sophie’s appearance at the gallery destroyed five years of preparation in five seconds.
Inside a drawer, officers found a photograph of Chloe at age three standing outside Maison Sainte-Cécile.
Vivian held her hand.
Behind a white curtain, Sophie’s silhouette was visible.
Chloe’s memory was real.
Vivian had brought the child to the clinic.
Why?
Delacroix provided the answer.
Vivian wanted to know whether Sophie reacted to Chloe.
She planned to measure how much memory had returned.
Through the window, Sophie touched two fingers to her heart and then to Chloe’s forehead.
Chloe copied the gesture.
Vivian immediately closed the curtain.
Afterward, she told the child it had been a dream.
Adrian held the photograph.
His daughter had recognized her mother twice.
The first time, an adult taught her to doubt herself.
The second time, in the gallery, Chloe refused.
As police left the apartment, an officer noticed a recent coffee cup near the sink.
It was still warm.
Vivian had been there minutes earlier.
May you like
On the mirror, written in red lipstick, was a message for Sophie:
YOU TOOK MY LIFE. NOW I WILL TAKE YOUR DAUGHTER.
Related Stories
