Part 3
Victoria nodded.
Adrian stepped away from the doorway but did not leave it entirely. Elena would have to pass within inches of him.
Victoria went first.
As she moved by, Adrian said quietly, “You came into my home and hit me.”
Victoria stopped.
The estate belonged to a trust. Adrian knew that. Victoria knew he knew it. The sentence had nothing to do with property.
She turned to face him.
“You watched your wife being held on the floor.”
“I watched Celeste keep her from hurting herself.”
Elena made a soft, incredulous sound behind Victoria.
Adrian lifted the phone a little, not pointing it at anyone, simply letting its presence be seen.
“Richard says we should all be careful about what we claim happened.”
Victoria glanced at the black screen, then at her son.
“Richard is right.”
Outside, the wind had risen. The driveway curved between cypress trees toward the gate, and beyond the low stone wall the ocean was nearly black. Victoria’s driver, Samuel, had the rear door open before they reached the car.
Elena hesitated at the sight of him.
“He won’t ask questions,” Victoria said.
Samuel looked toward the estate windows and then politely at the hood ornament.
Elena climbed in.
Victoria followed, closing the door on the rectangle of warm light behind them. As the car moved away, she looked back once. Adrian stood inside the entrance with one hand in his pocket and the other holding his phone. Celeste remained several feet behind him.
Neither of them waved.
For the first ten minutes, Elena said nothing. She sat angled toward the window, her hands beneath the shawl. The road climbed before dropping toward the coastal highway. Each turn revealed a different piece of dark water and then took it away.
Victoria’s own hands rested flat on her knees.
“Where are we going?” Elena asked.
“My house in the city.”
“No.”
Victoria turned.
“I don’t want to be somewhere he has keys.”
“He does not have keys.”
“He knows the staff.”
“My staff will not admit him.”
“He knows the security company.”
Victoria almost said, He would never try to enter without permission.
The sentence died before reaching her mouth.
“There is a small hotel in Millbrook,” Elena said. “Near the pharmacy.”
“It is not secure.”
“It has locks.”
“So does the estate.”
Elena looked at her then. The glance was brief, but it held enough meaning to make Victoria ashamed of the answer.
“Millbrook,” Victoria told Samuel.
He changed lanes without comment.
At the hotel, the night clerk recognized Victoria but pretended not to. She was a college-aged woman with a silver stud in her nose and the alert expression of someone who had learned when wealthy guests preferred anonymity. Victoria booked two adjoining rooms under Samuel’s name and paid with his company card.
Elena stood near the lobby fireplace, rubbing the edge of her shawl between her fingers.
The clerk handed Victoria two key cards.
“Is there another entrance?” Victoria asked.
“Parking lot on the east side.”
“Cameras?”
“At both doors and in the hallways. Not inside the rooms.”
The clerk’s eyes flicked toward Elena’s bare feet.
“We have slippers,” she said. “The spa kind. They’re not great, but they’re clean.”
Elena nearly smiled.
“Thank you.”
Upstairs, Victoria opened both rooms before Elena entered either one. She checked the connecting door, the windows, and the lock. It was an old reflex from years of international travel and threats serious enough to employ people who spoke about evacuation routes over breakfast.
Elena watched her.
“You do that every time?”
“Usually someone does it before I arrive.”
“I meant check the windows.”
Victoria touched the latch. “Since my husband died.”
Elena nodded as though she understood more than Victoria had said.
There was no room service after nine. Samuel returned from a nearby diner with soup, bread, two salads, and a paper bag of things he had bought at the pharmacy without being asked: socks, a toothbrush, hair ties, pain reliever, a charger, and a pair of inexpensive canvas shoes.
Elena sat on the edge of the bed while Victoria arranged the food on the small desk.
“I’m not hungry.”
“You should eat.”
The words came out too quickly.
Elena’s shoulders lifted.
Victoria removed the lid from her own soup. “I should eat,” she corrected. “You can decide for yourself.”
They sat in silence.
The hotel heater clicked on with a metallic rattle. Somewhere beyond the wall, a child laughed, followed by an adult’s tired request to please stop jumping. Elena took a piece of bread and broke it into four pieces before eating one.
Victoria’s phone had vibrated seven times since they left the estate. She had not looked at it.
On the eighth, Elena said, “You can answer.”
“It’s Richard.”
“How do you know?”
“He calls twice, then sends an email, then calls again when he believes civilization is collapsing.”
Elena looked at the untouched phone. “Is it?”
“Not yet.”
The corner of Elena’s mouth moved, then disappeared.
Victoria answered.
“Richard.”
“Where are you?”
“At a hotel.”
“Which hotel?”
“That is not relevant.”
“It becomes relevant if Adrian reports an abduction.”
Victoria looked at Elena.
“Has he?”
“No. He has not reported anything. He would like Elena to return voluntarily.”
“Then he should become accustomed to disappointment.”
Richard exhaled into the phone. “Victoria, I need you to understand the position you have created.”
“I understand it.”
“You assaulted the acting chief executive of Vale Meridian less than forty-eight hours before the transition vote.”
“He is not chief executive until the board votes.”
“He is still your son.”
“That did not protect him from my hand.”
Across the room, Elena went very still.
Richard lowered his voice. “Was anyone recording?”
“Ask Adrian.”
“He says he was on his phone but not recording.”
“What does Celeste say?”
May you like
“That Elena became distressed after a marital disagreement. Celeste attempted to prevent her from falling. You entered, misinterpreted the situation, and struck Adrian.”
Victoria looked at the faint red mark on Elena’s wrist.
