Chương 8
A separate family-law attorney appeared for Adrian. Natalie hired her own. Samuel remained involved because Ethan’s estate and two family trusts contained language about descendants that now had to be examined without assumptions.
The laboratory confirmed the report’s authenticity.
Ethan’s sample had been collected at an affiliated clinic with identification and witnessed documentation. Natalie’s prenatal sample had been processed under a chain-of-custody procedure intended to support legal use if necessary.
The result remained what it had been.
Theo was Ethan’s biological son.
That fact answered one question and complicated almost every other one.
Adrian was listed as Theo’s father on the birth certificate.
He was married to Theo’s mother.
He had signed hospital forms believing the child was biologically his.
His attorney explained that biology, legal parentage, marriage, acknowledgments, and future custody were overlapping questions, not interchangeable ones.
Claire heard only pieces of those conversations.
She was no longer permitted in Adrian’s study during legal meetings.
She was also, technically, still employed.
On Friday she went to his office with a resignation letter.
He read it.
Then he placed it on the desk.
“No.”
Claire stared at him.
“You can’t refuse my resignation.”
“Apparently I can refuse to accept a piece of paper.”
“That is not how jobs work.”
“I know how jobs work.”
“Then we agree.”
He leaned back.
“Samuel says you may be a witness in several matters.”
“That doesn’t mean I have to keep folding your towels.”
“No.”
“Then I quit.”
Adrian looked at the letter again.
“Why?”
Claire laughed.
That seemed to annoy him.
“Why?”
“Yes.”
“Your wife bribed me. I hid a paternity report. I was holding your brother’s baby in a linen room when you found out your marriage was built on a lie. I feel like I have a strong case for a change of workplace.”
His mouth almost moved.
Almost.
Then he said, “Were you planning to disappear?”
“No.”
“Will you cooperate with the attorneys?”
“Yes.”
“Then take two weeks paid leave.”
Claire stared at him.
“I don’t want your money.”
“You’ve been taking my money for fourteen months.”
“That was salary.”
“This is salary.”
“For not working.”
“It’s leave.”
“You make everything sound legal when you want it to stop sounding personal.”
He looked at her.
Claire wished she had not said it.
Adrian folded the resignation letter in half.
Then in half again.
“You’re right.”
She blinked.
He put it in the desk drawer.
“I don’t want you to leave yet.”
That was worse.
Claire crossed her arms.
“Why?”
He looked toward the nursery monitor on the corner of his desk.
Theo was asleep upstairs.
“Natalie trusts you.”
“Not anymore.”
“She texted you yesterday.”
Claire said nothing.
Adrian looked back at her.
“Victoria trusts you, even though she’s angry with you.”
“Victoria is angry with everyone.”
“Yes.”
“And you don’t trust me at all.”
“No.”
The answer came too quickly to be cruel.
It was simply true.
Claire appreciated that.
He continued.
“But you told me when lying would have been easier for you.”
“Eventually.”
“Eventually is doing a lot of work in this house.”
She looked at the desk.
“So what do you want?”
“I don’t know.”
That was the first time Claire had ever heard Adrian Cole say those words.
He looked tired.
Not elegant-tired, the kind rich people described after flights.
Actually tired.
There was a faint formula stain on the sleeve of his shirt.
He noticed Claire looking at it.
“He has terrible aim.”
“He’s six days old.”
“Eight.”
Claire stared at him.
Adrian glanced at the monitor.
“He’s eight days old.”
“Yes.”
“You looked like you were correcting me.”
“I was.”
His mouth moved.
This time it became a small smile.
It disappeared quickly.
Claire sat across from him.
“I’ll stay through the end of next week.”
“Fine.”
“Not as anyone’s messenger.”
“Fine.”
“And I’m returning the ten thousand dollars to Natalie.”
“Fine.”
“I want Samuel there.”
Adrian nodded.
“Fine.”
Claire narrowed her eyes.
“Are you going to say anything else?”
“No.”
“Good.”
She stood.
At the door he said, “Claire.”
She turned.
“If Natalie asks you to take Theo somewhere without telling me—”
“I won’t.”
He studied her.
Claire added, “And if you ask me to take him somewhere without telling her, I won’t do that either.”
His face tightened.
“Good.”
The check was returned Monday morning.
Natalie stared at it on Samuel’s conference table.
“I told you to keep it.”
Claire slid it closer.
“I don’t want it.”
“You wanted it three weeks ago.”
“Yes.”
The bluntness seemed to surprise her.
Claire sat back.
“I was behind on rent. I had debt. Ten thousand dollars looked like an exit.”
“From what?”
“My life for about five minutes.”
Natalie looked at her.
Claire shrugged.
“It wasn’t enough.”
A strange smile appeared on Natalie’s face.
“No. It never is.”
Samuel stood at the far end of the room pretending to read a document and very obviously listening.
Natalie touched the check.
“Are you going to testify against me?”
“If someone asks me what happened, I’m going to tell them.”
“That sounds like yes.”
“It sounds like what I said.”
Natalie’s fingers tightened.
“I trusted you.”
Claire felt anger rise.
“You paid me.”
“I trusted you before that.”
“And then you used money to make sure trust didn’t matter.”
Natalie looked down.
Claire immediately felt guilty.
She disliked that about herself.
Guilt arrived even when she was right.
Natalie said, “I didn’t know who else to ask.”
“You could have told Adrian.”
Natalie laughed once.
“Everyone says that now.”
Claire said nothing.
Natalie looked toward the window.
“He would have hated me.”
“He hates what you did.”
“That’s different?”
“Yes.”
Natalie looked at her.
Claire thought of Adrian warming the bottle on his wrist.
“People aren’t one thing at a time.”
Natalie’s eyes filled.
“Do you think he’ll ever love Theo again?”
Claire took a breath.
“That is not a question you get to ask me.”
Natalie flinched.
Claire continued more quietly.
May you like
“Ask him.”
“He won’t answer.”
