Chương 10
He almost dismissed the comment.
Instead he asked, “Is that bad?”
Emma shrugged.
“Sometimes people don’t want to be fixed.”
The sentence sounded suspiciously mature.
“Did Rachel tell you that?”
“No.”
“Your therapist?”
Emma scowled.
Daniel smiled.
“You’re not supposed to ask what she says.”
“You volunteered it.”
“I said a sentence.”
“All right.”
She took the package and walked away with it.
“Those are mine.”
“I live here.”
Daniel laughed.
His strength improved slowly.
That mattered more than he expected and less than he wanted.
Three weeks after the spoon hit the floor, he could stand for forty-two seconds with support.
He could transfer from the wheelchair to a chair with minimal help.
His morning fog became less severe.
His hands still trembled.
His left leg remained unreliable.
Dr. Patel refused to predict how much function he would regain.
Daniel stopped asking after the fourth time.
The police investigation continued.
Forensic testing supported repeated exposure to the non-prescribed substance, but nobody could reconstruct every day or every dose.
Daniel learned to live with incomplete knowledge.
He hated it.
Maya kept him informed without pretending certainty.
Vanessa remained at a hotel and later moved into a furnished apartment.
She had not been arrested.
Social media discovered the story before official charges existed.
A local business site reported that Daniel had taken medical leave amid “a private domestic investigation.”
A gossip account posted a photograph of Vanessa entering her attorney’s office.
The comments were vicious.
Daniel read twelve before Rachel took his phone.
“Give it back.”
“No.”
“I’m an adult.”
“Debatable.”
“Rachel.”
She handed it back.
Daniel deleted the app.
Five minutes later he opened the website in a browser.
Rachel said nothing.
By the evening he felt sick.
People who knew nothing had decided Vanessa was a monster.
Others decided Daniel was an abusive billionaire husband manufacturing accusations during a divorce.
Someone accused Claire of seducing Daniel.
Someone accused Emma of being coached.
That was the one that made Daniel call Maya.
“Make them take it down.”
“Who?”
“All of them.”
“That isn’t possible.”
“They’re talking about my daughter.”
“I know.”
“I want action.”
“Against whom?”
Daniel had no answer.
Maya said, “This is what public attention looks like. You cannot litigate the entire internet.”
“I can try.”
“And keep the story alive for six months.”
Daniel stared at his screen.
“What do I do?”
“Protect Emma’s privacy. Make one factual statement through the company if necessary. Do not fight strangers.”
Daniel hated that advice.
He followed it.
The company issued four sentences.
Daniel Carter remained on medical leave. A law-enforcement investigation involving his household was ongoing. The company would not comment on private family matters. No minor child should be identified or contacted.
The statement changed almost nothing.
For two days photographers waited near the school.
Daniel withdrew Emma temporarily.
She hated him for it.
“I didn’t do anything.”
“I know.”
“Then why can’t I go?”
“Because there are adults outside.”
“They’re not inside.”
“They’ll follow the car.”
“So?”
“Emma.”
“You’re doing it again.”
“Doing what?”
“Deciding.”
“I am your father. I have to decide some things.”
“You said Vanessa always decided things for you.”
The sentence struck harder than Emma knew.
Daniel kept his voice calm.
“This is different.”
“How?”
“Because I’m trying to keep you safe.”
“Maybe she thought that too.”
Emma regretted it immediately.
Daniel saw it.
Her eyes dropped.
He could have used the regret.
Instead he said, “Maybe she did.”
Emma looked up.
“That doesn’t make her choices right.”
“No.”
“And it doesn’t make mine automatically right either.”
Emma was quiet.
Daniel continued, “Give me three days. If the photographers are gone, you go back.”
“Two.”
“Three.”
“Two and a half.”
Despite himself, Daniel smiled.
“Fine.”
The photographers were gone after two.
Daniel still waited until morning three.
Emma noticed.
She did not mention it.
A month after the incident, Vanessa was charged.
Maya called at 7:02 in the morning.
The district attorney’s office had filed charges related to medication tampering and fraudulent manipulation of Daniel’s medical care. There were additional allegations connected to false communications made on his behalf.
Maya cautioned him not to treat charges as a verdict.
Daniel understood.
He sat alone in the breakfast room after the call.
The house was unusually quiet.
Rachel had gone home the week before.
Emma was upstairs getting dressed for school.
The nurse had already left.
Daniel had a cup of coffee in front of him.
He had made it himself with more difficulty than he wanted anyone to see.
He drank it slowly.
When Emma came downstairs, she found him staring at the empty cup.
“What happened?”
“Vanessa was charged.”
Emma stopped.
“Oh.”
Daniel waited for more.
Nothing came.
Emma sat down.
“Does that mean she goes to jail?”
“I don’t know.”
“Does that mean it’s over?”
“No.”
She nodded.
Daniel watched her twist the edge of a napkin.
“Are you okay?”
“I don’t know.”
He almost smiled at the borrowed answer.
Emma asked, “Can I see her?”
Daniel’s first response arrived instantly.
No.
He did not say it.
“Do you want to?”
“I think so.”
“Why?”
“I don’t know.”
He looked at her.
Emma became frustrated.
“I want to know why she did it.”
Daniel felt his chest tighten.
“I don’t think she can give you an answer that makes sense.”
“Maybe I still want her to try.”
He looked at the napkin between her fingers.
“We’ll talk to your therapist.”
“That’s not yes.”
“No.”
“It’s not no?”
“No.”
Emma exhaled.
“All right.”
Daniel contacted Vanessa’s attorney through Maya.
A meeting was eventually arranged.
Not immediately.
Not alone.
Not at the mansion.
Emma’s therapist recommended waiting.
Daniel waited.
He disliked waiting almost as much as uncertainty.
During that time, Vanessa sent no further letters.
That silence became strange.
Daniel had imagined that once separated from her he would hear her voice everywhere.
Instead he began forgetting small things.
The exact sound of her laugh.
May you like
Which perfume she wore.
How she pronounced Rachel’s name when annoyed.
