Chương 9
Claire placed the papers facedown before Lily could see them.
Lily was sitting cross-legged on the bed with the crushed flower crown in her lap.
Claire stopped.
“Where did you get that?”
“Mrs. Alvarez brought it.”
Marta Alvarez had managed Harrow House for twenty-six years. She stood near the window in a dark wool coat, holding her handbag with both hands. Claire had been so focused on Lily that she had not noticed her.
“I hope that was all right,” Marta said.
Claire closed the door.
“How did you find us?”
“Mr. Harris told me which hotel.”
“He should not have done that.”
“No. But he did.”
The crown had been placed inside a shallow pastry box. Most of the silk flowers were flattened. One loop of wire protruded near the ribbon.
Lily touched a bent petal.
“Can we fix it?”
“Probably,” Claire said.
Marta’s mouth moved as though she might disagree, but she remained silent.
“Did Evelyn send you?” Claire asked.
“No.”
“Does she know you came?”
“No.”
Marta looked tired. She had worn the same pearl studs to every formal dinner Claire could remember, but one was missing.
“I saw Mrs. Harrow take the crown,” she said. “I saw her hold Lily.”
“Will you tell the police?”
“I already did.”
Claire sat down.
“What did you say?”
“What I saw.”
“Did you see who took the blue binder from the cottage?”
Marta’s gaze shifted toward Lily.
Claire said, “Sweetheart, put your headphones on.”
“I can still hear with headphones.”
“Then turn the program on.”
Lily did so reluctantly.
Marta waited until animal noises came from the tablet.
“Mrs. Harrow sent me to the conservatory after the ambulance left,” she said. “She asked for a blue book. I told her the cabinet was empty. Mr. Julian said he would look in the cottage.”
“Julian took it.”
“I did not see him take it.”
“He knew where it was.”
“Perhaps.”
“Did he give it to Evelyn?”
“I don’t know.”
Claire studied her.
“Why are you telling me?”
Marta removed her coat and folded it over the chair.
“Because I watched Adrian become smaller in that house. Not all at once. A little each year. He would make coffee and forget to drink it. He started apologizing before asking ordinary questions. After he died, Mrs. Harrow asked me to remove the medicine from his bathroom before you came back from the hospital.”
“What medicine?”
“Tablets in an unmarked bottle.”
Claire looked at the floor.
“I should have told you,” Marta said.
“Yes.”
“I was afraid I would lose my job.”
“Were you?”
“I am now.”
Claire almost offered reassurance. Then she stopped. Marta might lose her job. Naomi might face liability. Julian might lose the company. Lily had already lost her home for the week. Truth did not arrive alone. It dragged furniture.
“Did Adrian leave anything with you?” Claire asked.
Marta shook her head.
“He once asked whether old security records were kept.”
“What did you tell him?”
“That the equipment vendor stored system backups for thirty days unless the account requested longer.”
“Did he request longer?”
“I don’t know.”
Claire picked up the crown box.
A section of floral tape had come loose, exposing Lily’s uneven winding beneath it. Claire remembered sitting at the breakfast table while Lily insisted every white flower represented a different person. One was Daddy. One was Mom. One was Grandmother. One was the woman at school who cleaned paintbrushes. Lily had run out of people and named a flower after the mail carrier.
“Where was this after the fall?” Claire asked.
“On the ballroom floor. Mrs. Harrow told staff to throw it away.”
Lily removed one headphone.
“But you didn’t.”
Marta looked at her.
“No,” she said. “I didn’t.”
That afternoon Evelyn called from an unlisted number.
Claire answered before remembering the no-contact order.
“Do not hang up,” Evelyn said. “You did not place this call.”
Her voice was lower than usual. Medication or pain had roughened it. Claire pictured the cast Julian had described, the careful arrangement of pillows, the private nurse Evelyn would claim not to need.
“You should speak to my lawyer.”
“I have spoken to three lawyers since breakfast. I am tired of people who charge by the hour pretending time belongs to them.”
Claire moved into the hotel bathroom and shut the door.
“Did Julian take the binder?”
“You brought stolen records into my cottage.”
“Your cottage.”
“My property.”
“Did he take it?”
Evelyn exhaled slowly.
“You never understood Adrian’s position.”
“I understand he signed the first transfer.”
A pause.
“Julian gave you the letter.”
“Yes.”
“He was told not to.”
“He was also told not to let the company collapse. You should give him fewer incompatible instructions.”
Evelyn’s breath caught, perhaps from pain.
“You think this is clever.”
“No.”
“You think finding one book makes you righteous. Adrian knew better. He knew what would happen if Harrow Living failed.”
“He planned to report you.”
“He planned many things.”
“He copied the logs.”
“Did he?”
Claire looked at herself in the bathroom mirror. Without the gown and makeup, she appeared ordinary and exhausted. A small bruise had formed at the base of her thumb.
“Where are they?” Claire asked.
“If they existed, I imagine Adrian destroyed them.”
“Why?”
“Because, unlike you, he eventually understood shame.”
Claire pressed her lips together.
“You hurt Lily.”
“I restrained a child who interrupted a formal presentation and accused her dead father in front of donors.”
“She asked why his name was on papers.”
“She repeated something you taught her.”
“I did not.”
“You discuss allegations where she can hear.”
“That was careless. It was not permission to grab her.”
“I lost my temper.”
Claire had never heard Evelyn admit those words.
“Then tell her that.”
“I will not speak to Lily while you are poisoning her against me.”
“She is eight. She saw what happened.”
“Children see what the adults around them teach them to see.”
May you like
Claire nearly ended the call.
Evelyn continued. “Accept the agreement.”
