Member-only story
Framed — The Detective’s Gambit(Part 4)
Stranded in a storm, trapped by secrets — will the truth survive the blizzard?
The flames crackled quietly in Whitman’s hearth.
None of us spoke.
Christian didn’t accuse. Whitman didn’t explain. I didn’t breathe.
That single word — Diagnosis — still floated like smoke in my mind.
Whitman repeated himself. “Is there something else I can help you with, gentlemen?”
Christian simply nodded once, curtly and then turned, and walked out.
I followed Christian into the hallway, the door clicking shut behind us.
The corridor was dim. The sconces flickered as the storm outside roared louder, battering the house with wind and sleet. For a moment, we walked in silence.
Then Christian stopped at the staircase. He didn’t speak. He stared ahead like he was watching something invisible unfold.
I broke the silence. “Diagnosis.”
He didn’t turn to me. “You saw it too.”
“I did.”
Christian’s hands were in his pockets, but his shoulders were drawn tight.
