Chương 3
Noah breathed out. “I told you that woman was insane.”
“Don’t say that.”
“She planted jewelry in your bag.”
“I know what she did. I still don’t want you saying things you can’t take back.”
“You always do this.”
“Do what?”
“Protect the person who hurt you because you’re scared somebody might think you’re difficult.”
The sentence landed with the accuracy of something he had been storing.
Emily pressed her forehead against the cool window. “I need you to stay at Mrs. Kim’s until I call again.”
“I’m not a child.”
“You’re seventeen.”
“In five months I’m eighteen.”
“In five months you can argue about it.”
“I can come there.”
“No.”
“I can take the bus.”
“Noah.”
“What?”
Her voice shook. “Please do one thing I ask without making me explain why I’m scared.”
He became quiet.
“All right,” he said.
“Thank you.”
“Em?”
“Yes?”
“Don’t let them make it sound small.”
The line disconnected before she could answer.
Rosa turned from the painting. “He is right.”
“He’s seventeen.”
“Seventeen-year-olds are occasionally right. It is unfortunate for everyone.”
Emily handed back the phone. Her reflection in the window looked pale and unfinished. A strand of blonde hair had come loose near her ear. She tucked it back beneath the bun.
The door opened again.
Daniel stood in the hallway with a uniformed police officer beside him. The officer was a woman in her thirties with a calm face and rain darkening the shoulders of her jacket.
“Ms. Harper?” she asked.
Emily nodded.
“I’m Officer Lena Park. I’d like to speak with you privately.”
Daniel stepped back.
Officer Park waited until the door closed, then asked Rosa to remain only if Emily wanted her there. Emily said yes before Rosa could move.
The questions began plainly. When had Emily arrived? Where had she placed the bag? Who knew it was hers? Had she seen the necklace before? Did she have access to the upstairs safe? Had Victoria said anything unusual during the day?
Emily answered as carefully as she could.
She had arrived at two thirty.
She had changed in the staff room.
She had left her bag beneath the bench because the small employee closet was full of banquet supplies.
Everyone on staff knew the bag was hers. It had a faded blue ribbon tied to one handle, though the ribbon had been hidden beneath the other handle when Victoria carried it into the foyer.
She had seen the necklace in family photographs but never in person.
She did not know the safe combination.
Victoria had asked her, at four ten or perhaps four fifteen, whether she planned to remain employed at the house after the charity audit.
Officer Park paused. “What audit?”
Emily glanced at Rosa.
“The Vale Foundation audit,” she said. “Mr. Vale requested one last month.”
“How do you know that?”
“I helped Rosa copy invoices for the accountants.”
Rosa sat straighter. “She helped because my wrist was injured.”
Officer Park looked back at Emily. “Did you find something unusual?”
The room changed.
It was a small change, nothing visible, yet Emily felt it. Until then, the interview had been about a necklace. Now there was another object in the room: the question Victoria had asked in the kitchen.
Would you like to remain employed after the audit?
At the time, Emily had assumed it was another warning about discretion. Victoria liked to remind employees that the family’s affairs were not their concern. She often phrased threats as career advice.
“I found duplicate invoices,” Emily said.
Rosa turned toward her.
“What duplicate invoices?” Officer Park asked.
“Flowers. Catering. Transportation. The same amounts, different vendor numbers.”
“Did you tell anyone?”
“I left a note for Mr. Vale’s accountant.”
“When?”
“Yesterday.”
Rosa’s voice sharpened. “You did not tell me.”
“You were at the clinic.”
“You should have called.”
“I didn’t know if it mattered.”
Officer Park took out a small notebook. “Where did you leave the note?”
“In the audit box in Mr. Vale’s study.”
“Who had access to that room?”
Emily looked toward the door.
“Everyone in the family,” Rosa said. “And me. Emily when she cleans. The accountant. Sometimes the assistant.”
“Victoria?”
“Yes.”
Officer Park wrote something down.
Emily rubbed her thumb against the side of her index finger. “I didn’t accuse anyone. I only wrote that the numbers repeated.”
“What happened to the note?”
“I don’t know.”
Officer Park asked for the amounts. Emily could remember three: $8,400, $12,750, and $6,200. She remembered them because Noah’s college application fees were due, and the casual size of the numbers had annoyed her. One flower invoice equaled more than half her annual rent. She had felt ashamed of that comparison even while making it.
“Did Victoria know you made the note?” Officer Park asked.
“I don’t know.”
The officer studied her. “Did anyone mention it?”
“Victoria asked if I expected to keep my job.”
“What exactly did she say?”
Emily repeated the sentence.
Officer Park closed the notebook. “I’m going to ask the detective assigned to follow up on the financial information. Tonight, our immediate concern is the reported theft and the possible planting of evidence. We’ll preserve the video system and secure the necklace.”
“Am I allowed to leave?” Emily asked.
“After we photograph your bag and return your personal items. We may need the bag temporarily.”
Emily’s stomach tightened. “My apartment keys are in it.”
“We’ll return those.”
“My phone too.”
“You’ll get it back.”
Officer Park stood.
Emily heard herself say, “Will she be arrested?”
The officer did not offer comfort.
“That decision depends on the evidence, the statements, and consultation with the supervising detective. The video is significant, but we need the original recording, time verification, and context.”
“She did it in front of a camera.”
“She may not have known the camera was there.”
“That’s not what I meant.”
May you like
Officer Park waited.
Emily looked down at her damp palms. “I mean everyone saw it. The guests saw it. Why does it still sound uncertain?”
