Chương 7
“Yes.”
“That’s the problem.”
Silence stretched between them.
In the other room, Owen shouted that Ivy had taken the blue crayon. The argument was immediate, passionate, and completely unrelated to the collapse of their lives.
Sebastian heard it.
“What color does Owen have?” he asked.
Maya frowned. “What?”
“The other crayon.”
“Green.”
“Green is better.”
“You don’t know Owen.”
“I know green is better.”
Despite herself, Maya laughed once.
The sound surprised her. It surprised him too.
Then the anger returned.
“They need somewhere to live that isn’t a hotel.”
“I own an apartment in Brooklyn. No one associates it with me.”
“Why not?”
“I bought it for my mother years ago. I never transferred the title.”
Maya looked through the open bathroom door at the children. Ivy had surrendered the blue crayon and taken red instead. Owen was now complaining that red was better.
“Who knows about it?”
“Daniel. Lena. My grandfather, probably.”
“Then Marcus knows.”
“Possibly.”
“No.”
“I can put the lease in your name.”
“No.”
“Why?”
“Because every gift from your family has a lock hidden inside it.”
He was quiet.
“That’s fair,” he said.
The answer disarmed her.
“What do you suggest?” she asked.
“We find a place through your attorney. You sign the lease. I provide court-ordered support after we file the paternity acknowledgment.”
“That takes time.”
“I can lend Priya the money.”
“No.”
“Then I’ll pay you.”
“No.”
“Maya.”
She closed her eyes.
There were only so many ways to preserve pride while three children lived out of suitcases. She had spent years refusing anonymous help without knowing Augustus was arranging it anyway. The discovery made every bank balance feel contaminated.
“Temporary loan,” she said. “Documented. To me. No interest. Repaid from the support once the court order begins.”
Sebastian answered immediately. “Agreed.”
“You don’t choose the apartment.”
“Agreed.”
“You don’t get a key.”
A pause.
“Agreed.”
“And one security officer. Lena, if she’ll do it. No one else inside.”
“Agreed.”
“You’re saying yes too quickly.”
“I’m afraid you’ll hang up.”
That was the first time she heard fear in his voice.
She did not hang up.
They found a three-bedroom apartment in Cobble Hill above a dentist’s office. It had narrow rooms, uneven floors, and a kitchen drawer that refused to close unless Maya lifted it slightly. The landlord was a retired math teacher who cared more about references than gossip sites.
Priya handled the lease.
Sebastian transferred the loan through the attorney’s client account. Every dollar was documented. Maya checked the paperwork twice.
The children chose rooms by running into them. Ivy selected the one with a window facing the street. Owen chose the smaller room because the closet had a round brass knob. Noah stood in the hallway, uncertain.
“You can share with me until you decide,” Maya said.
He looked at Sebastian, who was carrying a box of books up the stairs.
“Where does he sleep?”
“Not here,” Maya said.
Sebastian set down the box. “I have my own house.”
“The giant one?”
“Yes.”
“With the old man?”
“Not anymore.”
Augustus had moved to the Vale estate in Westchester after Sebastian removed his staff access to the mansion. He had not gone willingly. Evelyn and the two board-member cousins had watched in silence as the old man packed a single suitcase and left through the front doors.
Marcus remained missing.
Clarissa came to the new apartment on the second evening with three child-sized raincoats and no diamond ring.
“I didn’t know their sizes,” she said. “So I bought several.”
Maya stared at the shopping bags.
“That is too much.”
“I return things professionally.”
“You didn’t have to bring anything.”
“I know.”
Clarissa stood in the hallway wearing jeans, a camel coat, and an expression that suggested she had never before waited to be invited into an apartment.
Maya stepped aside.
The children were building a city from empty moving boxes. Noah had drawn doors on one with a black marker. Owen sat inside another, refusing to allow anyone to enter without saying a password she changed every few minutes.
Clarissa removed her shoes.
Ivy looked up. “You’re the ring lady.”
Maya covered her mouth.
Clarissa blinked, then laughed. “Not anymore.”
“Did you lose it?”
“I gave it back.”
“Why?”
Clarissa sat on the floor, seemingly unconcerned about her expensive coat.
“Because it belonged to a life I don’t want.”
Ivy accepted this more easily than most adults would have.
“What life do you want?”
Clarissa looked at Maya.
“I’m trying to figure that out.”
She stayed for pizza. She cut Owen’s slice into squares, which Owen declared wrong, then triangles, which were also wrong. Noah showed her the silver crest pin, now sealed in a clear evidence bag Priya had provided.
“My mother has one like that,” Clarissa said.
“Your mom is a Vale?”
“No. Augustus gave pins to people he wanted others to recognize.”
Maya looked at her.
“Employees?”
“Associates. Certain security officers. People authorized to move through Vale properties without being questioned.”
“Marcus?”
Clarissa nodded. “He wore one before Augustus made him stop.”
“Why did he stop?”
“He used it to enter the private offices at Vale Holdings after midnight.”
Sebastian, standing near the kitchen counter, put down his paper cup.
“When?”
“Six years ago.”
“You never told me.”
“You never asked what your uncle did before you took over.”
“He said he was handling overseas contracts.”
“He was copying shipping records.”
The room quieted.
Maya glanced at the children. Owen had begun stacking crusts into a tower.
“What kind of shipping records?” she asked.
Sebastian answered without looking away from Clarissa. “Routes. Insurance values. Security schedules.”
“The kind someone could use to plan an attack at a warehouse?” Maya asked.
“Yes.”
Clarissa’s face tightened. “I’m not saying Marcus arranged Pier Nine.”
“But you think he sold information,” Sebastian said.
“I think Augustus caught him, paid his debts, and moved him to a ceremonial position instead of exposing him.”
May you like
Sebastian’s phone was already in his hand.
Clarissa reached out and caught his wrist.
