Chương 6
Daniel lowered his voice.
“How is she?”
“She says she’s fine.”
“That bad?”
“She asked whether the agents could have shot her.”
Daniel was quiet again.
“Tell her I’m sorry.”
“You can tell her yourself when she wants to see you.”
“I’ll wait.”
The Bellweather records arrived two days later.
Halcyon Guest Services had purchased the brooch through a telephone bidder. The caller used a prepaid number, but the auction house kept a recording for authentication. A forensic comparison did not identify Marcus. The voice belonged to a woman.
The shipping address led investigators to a private bank branch. A courier had collected the package using authorization signed by Teresa Boyd.
The courier company still had the delivery record.
The package had gone to the Vane Foundation headquarters.
It had been received by Lila Vane, Marcus’s younger sister.
By then, Sophie’s headache had improved, but the video had followed her into ordinary life.
Her school sent a carefully worded email offering support and requesting a meeting before her return. Parents from the art program delivered flowers, cookies, and one stuffed bear nearly as tall as Sophie. A local newspaper left three messages asking whether she wished to “share her truth.” Someone mailed a handwritten note accusing Evelyn of using her niece to create public sympathy for an illegal arrest.
Evelyn threw the note away before Sophie saw it.
She missed the second one.
Sophie found it beneath the building’s front door while checking for the missing cream ribbon, which had not been recovered from the hotel.
The note contained no threat. That made it harder to explain why it frightened her.
YOUR AUNT PUT YOU IN DANGER FOR HER CAREER.
Sophie read it twice, folded it along the existing crease, and placed it on the kitchen counter.
Evelyn returned from taking out the trash and saw it.
“Where did you get this?”
“Downstairs.”
“You went downstairs?”
“To look for the ribbon.”
“You were supposed to stay in the apartment.”
“You were in the alley.”
“That isn’t the point.”
“It was one floor.”
“You do not leave without telling me.”
Sophie’s face closed.
Evelyn picked up the note. No envelope. No postage. Someone had entered the building or slipped it beneath the outer door.
Her body responded before thought. She checked the hallway through the peephole, locked the deadbolt, lowered the blinds, and called the duty desk.
Two agents arrived within twelve minutes.
They photographed the note, collected it in an evidence sleeve, and reviewed the building camera. The outer vestibule camera had been disabled for maintenance that morning. The lobby camera showed only residents.
One agent examined the fire stairs while the other spoke with the building manager.
Sophie sat on the couch with the stuffed bear beside her. She watched strangers search the apartment because Evelyn had once again told her she was safe.
After they left, Evelyn began packing a bag.
“Where are we going?” Sophie asked.
“A secure apartment for a few days.”
“I have school Monday.”
“We’ll arrange remote work.”
“I hate remote work.”
“I know.”
“My keyboard won’t fit in a bag.”
“We can get another one.”
“I don’t want another one.”
Evelyn folded clothes too quickly. A black shirt slid from the suitcase, and she shoved it back in.
Sophie stood in the bedroom doorway.
“Is the note true?”
“No.”
“You didn’t put me in danger?”
Evelyn stopped packing.
“I did not bring you to the gala for my career.”
“But you knew bad people would be there.”
“I knew Marcus was under investigation.”
“And you went anyway.”
“Yes.”
“You took me.”
“You were invited, and I went with you.”
“That’s taking me.”
Evelyn sat on the edge of the bed.
“I believed the operation could happen without coming near you. I believed the plans would protect everyone in that room.”
“But you were wrong.”
“Yes.”
“So the note is a little true.”
The words were not accusation. That made them worse.
Evelyn looked at the suitcase between them.
“I made a decision I would not make again.”
“Because I got hurt?”
“Because I treated a plan like a promise.”
Sophie rubbed the sleeve of her sweatshirt over her hand.
“Are you going to lose your job?”
“I don’t know.”
“Would that be because of me?”
“No.”
“Because you helped me.”
“Because adults made decisions before the gala. What happened afterward made those decisions visible.”
Sophie stared at her.
“You talk weird when you’re scared.”
Evelyn let out a breath that almost became a laugh.
“I know.”
“Are you scared now?”
“Yes.”
“Of the note?”
“Yes.”
“Of losing your job?”
“Yes.”
“Of me being mad?”
Evelyn looked at her.
“Yes.”
Sophie sat beside her, leaving several inches between them.
“I’m not only mad.”
“What else?”
“I don’t know yet.”
“That’s fair.”
They remained there until Daniel called to say the secure apartment was ready.
It belonged to the government but looked like a furnished rental assembled by someone who distrusted color. Beige couch. Beige rug. Framed photographs of landscapes that did not exist. The kitchen contained four identical mugs and no cereal bowls.
Sophie opened cabinets.
“This place is sad.”
“It’s temporary.”
“That’s what makes it sad.”
They ate takeout noodles from the four mugs because the plates were too shallow. Evelyn slept on the couch and woke each time the building pipes knocked.
On the second night, Sophie found a loose handle on a kitchen drawer and asked for a screwdriver. The apartment had no tools, so Evelyn used the edge of a butter knife to tighten it.
“You’re going to ruin the knife,” Sophie said.
“It’s government property.”
“That means people paid for it.”
Evelyn looked at her.
“You’re becoming exhausting.”
“I learned from you.”
They both smiled, briefly and unwillingly.
The next morning, Daniel arrived with groceries and news.
May you like
Lila Vane had agreed to an interview.
She came without an attorney, which made the prosecutor nervous. Lila was thirty-four, a foundation board member, and publicly known for avoiding the aggressive visibility her brother enjoyed. She lived in Boston, worked as an architectural preservation consultant, and attended only three board meetings a year.
