Eleanor quickly locked her phone and placed it beneath a magazine.
Richard entered carrying his jacket over one arm.
"You're still awake?"
"Yes."
He walked into the living room.
"Why?"
"I couldn't sleep."
He glanced at her.
"Are you feeling unwell?"
"No."
Richard placed his keys on the table.
Then he looked toward the fireplace.
For one brief moment, his gaze rested on the camera.
Eleanor followed his eyes.
Her heart began racing.
"Is something wrong?" she asked.
Richard looked back at her.
"No. Why?"
"Nothing."
He removed his watch.
"I have an early meeting tomorrow."
Eleanor nodded.
Richard started toward the stairs, then stopped.
"Have you been using the security system?"
The question came without warning.
She tried to keep her expression neutral.
"Not really."
"Good."
He continued upstairs.
Eleanor waited until she heard the bedroom door close.
Then she took out her phone.
She opened the saved recording and checked that the file was still there.
It was.
She looked again at the image of Richard speaking to the unseen person.
Then she looked at the time.
Tomorrow morning, she would contact Margaret.
But before she could do that, another thought occurred to her.
What if Richard checked the security system and discovered that she had accessed the recordings?
What if he had already received a notification?
She opened the application.
A small message appeared.
**ADMINISTRATOR LOGIN DETECTED.**
Eleanor's blood ran cold.
She read it again.
The notification showed the time she had accessed the archived footage.
Someone else had been informed.
And the administrator account belonged to Richard.
She slowly raised her eyes toward the ceiling.
Upstairs, a door opened.
Footsteps crossed the bedroom.
Then everything went quiet.
Eleanor quickly placed her phone face down on the table.
A moment later, Richard appeared at the top of the stairs.
He was no longer carrying his jacket.
He was no longer wearing his watch.
And his expression had changed.
He looked directly at her.
"Eleanor?"
She forced herself to look up.
"Yes?"
"Come upstairs. We need to talk."
She stood slowly.
"About what?"
Richard descended one step.
His eyes moved briefly toward the magazine covering her phone.
Then he looked back at her.
"About something you shouldn't have been looking at."
Eleanor felt the room tilt around her.
For the first time, she understood that the danger had not ended when Arthur walked out of the house.
It had only begun.
And above them, the little black camera continued recording.
But now Eleanor knew that it was not the only thing watching.
THE EYE ABOVE THE FIREPLACE
PART 2: THE SECRET THAT COULD DESTROY EVERYTHING
Eleanor did not move.
Richard stood halfway down the staircase, watching her with an expression she had never seen before. His voice had been calm when he called her upstairs, but there was something dangerous beneath that calmness.
She knew he had discovered something.
The only question was how much.
"What are you talking about?" she asked.
Richard descended the remaining steps.
"Don't pretend you don't understand."
Eleanor swallowed.
"I really don't."
He stopped a few feet away from her.
"Someone accessed the security system tonight."
She forced herself to shrug.
"Perhaps you forgot your password again."
Richard's expression hardened.
"Don't play games with me."
"I'm not."
He looked at the magazine on the table.
Eleanor's heart began beating faster, but she resisted the urge to reach for it.
Richard extended his hand.
"Give me your phone."
"Why?"
"Because I asked you to."
"Richard, it's my personal phone."
He laughed quietly.
"Your personal phone? In my house, using my security system, accessing recordings that have nothing to do with you?"
Eleanor stared at him.
"Nothing to do with me?"
"That's right."
"Arthur was assaulted in this room. I was here. How can you say it has nothing to do with me?"
Richard's expression changed.
For a moment, he seemed almost surprised by her response.
Perhaps he had expected her to apologize.
Perhaps he had expected her to lower her eyes as she had done so many times before.
But Eleanor was tired.
She was tired of being told that questions were accusations, that concern was interference, and that silence was the price of keeping peace.
"I saw what happened yesterday," she continued. "I don't need a recording to know what you did."
Richard stepped closer.
"Then why did you access the footage?"
"Because I wanted to know whether it recorded the assault."
"And?"
"And I saw it."
He studied her face.
"Did you download anything?"
Eleanor said nothing.
Richard's jaw tightened.
"Answer me."
"Why are you so worried about a recording?"
"Because it is private."
"Private from whom?"
"From everyone."
"Even from me?"
Richard looked away.
That brief movement told her more than a long explanation could have.
He was hiding something.
And he knew she had found it.
"Where is your phone?" he demanded.
Eleanor remained beside the table.
"I don't have to give it to you."
Richard's face turned red.
For a second, she thought he might strike her.
The possibility made her stomach tighten, but she refused to step backward.
Instead, she looked directly into his eyes.
"If you touch me, Richard, I will call the police."
He stopped.
The silence between them stretched.
Then, unexpectedly, he smiled.
It was a small, humorless smile.
"You've been talking to Arthur."
"No."
"Margaret, then?"
Eleanor did not answer.
Richard nodded slowly.
"I should have known."
He walked toward the window and stood with his back to her.
"Listen carefully. You have no idea what is happening. Arthur has been trying to interfere in matters that are far beyond his understanding. He has been talking to people who don't have his best interests at heart."
"Then explain the situation."
"I don't owe you an explanation."
"You owe me the truth."
Richard turned around.
"The truth? You want the truth?"
"Yes."
He approached her again.
"The truth is that Arthur has been trying to ruin me. He has been spreading accusations, questioning my business, and threatening to involve people who could damage everything I've worked for."
"Why would he do that?"
"Because he thinks he knows better than everyone."
"That doesn't explain why you hit him."
Richard exhaled sharply.
"I lost my temper."
"Then apologize."
"I am not apologizing to that man."
Eleanor shook her head.
For the first time, she realized that there was no point trying to convince him through ordinary conversation.
Richard did not believe he had done anything fundamentally wrong.