All of it in one move.”

Cordell sat with that for a moment, and found that the coldest part of it was not the harm the man had been willing to do to his daughter — monstrous as that was — but the arithmetic underneath it, the way Fenwick had clearly sat and reasoned it out in advance like a problem to be optimized.

Ramsey walked him through the logic the forensics laid bare, and Cordell followed it with a kind of sick clarity.

Every element of the plan had a purpose.

The timing was chosen so the blame would land on the mother.

The reported runaway was staged so there would be an innocent explanation on record before the crisis hit.