Chương 8
“I authorized protection.”
“The agreement protects her.”
“From speaking?”
“From litigation arising from irresponsible statements.”
Marcus looked at him.
“Whose litigation?”
Grant did not answer.
Marcus stood and moved toward the window.
Cars passed far below. A bus stopped at the corner, and three people ran for it. One missed the door and struck the side with his palm. The driver opened it.
“Withdraw the agreement,” Marcus said.
“That would be unwise.”
“Did you tell the board about it?”
“No.”
“Good.”
“Marcus, she has information that can be framed badly.”
“Did Anthony ignore her warning?”
“Yes.”
“Did Margaret put the chemical on the blanket?”
“The video appears to show that.”
“Did my company pay for the substance?”
“Indirectly.”
“Then the frame is accurate.”
“Accuracy is not the only concern.”
“It is today.”
Grant lowered his voice.
“You are in shock. Your judgment is compromised.”
Marcus turned.
“My judgment was compromised when I believed the person with authority instead of the person holding my dying son.”
“That is guilt speaking.”
“Maybe guilt should speak more often in rooms like mine.”
Grant stared at him.
Marcus continued.
“Withdraw the agreement. Pay Emily’s salary for the full term of her contract without conditions. Pay every employee suspended because of the investigation. Give the police all household records.”
“All records?”
“All.”
“That may expose misuse of corporate funds.”
“Did I misuse them?”
“You delegated.”
“That isn’t an answer.”
“No,” Grant said. “It is the defense.”
Marcus looked through the glass at Zion.
“I’m done defending things I haven’t bothered to understand.”
By evening, police found Anthony Kline at a hotel near the airport. He had not booked a flight. He was sitting alone in the bar with a club soda and two suitcases.
His attorney arranged his surrender.
Anthony denied trying to flee. He said the estate had become unsafe and he feared being blamed for Margaret’s actions. He admitted purchasing the pesticide but claimed Margaret requested it after finding carpet beetles near the nursery closet. The supplier assured him it would be safe once dry.
The product label said otherwise.
Anthony had removed the labels, he explained, because Marcus disliked commercial containers in occupied parts of the house.
Detective Kim asked why the licensed exterminator had been canceled.
“The merger dinner,” Anthony said.
“Mr. Whitaker ordered the cancellation?”
“He said there could be no disruptions.”
“Did he know there was an infestation?”
“I don’t recall telling him.”
“Then how could he order you to conceal it?”
Anthony rubbed his fingertips together.
“You don’t understand how the house worked.”
“Explain it.”
Anthony looked toward his attorney.
The attorney said nothing.
“Marcus didn’t need to give direct orders,” Anthony said. “You knew what failure cost.”
“What did it cost?”
“Your job. Your references. Sometimes your housing.”
“Did he threaten you?”
“He didn’t have to.”
“That is not the same as being threatened.”
Anthony’s face flushed.
“Easy for you to say.”
Detective Kim placed photographs of the containers on the table.
“Did you instruct Margaret to apply this to the baby’s blanket?”
“No.”
“Did you know she planned to?”
“No.”
“Did you tell her to handle the pest problem without contractors?”
“I told her to keep the east wing presentable.”
“Did you approve use of this product in the nursery?”
Anthony stared at the photographs.
“I trusted her judgment.”
Detective Kim sat back.
The sentence remained between them.
Margaret’s interview lasted longer.
She began by insisting she had diluted the chemical. Then she said she had applied it only to the outer edge of the blanket. Then she claimed Zion was never supposed to use that blanket because she had placed it aside for laundering.
The surveillance footage contradicted her.
At last she folded her hands on the table and asked for tea.
Detective Price brought her a paper cup.
Margaret took one sip.
“It was not meant to hurt him,” she said.
“Then what was it meant to do?”
“Kill the insects.”
“On an infant’s blanket?”
“They were in the closet. In the rug. I saw one near the crib.”
“Why not move the child?”
“Move him where?”
“To another room.”
“The west guest rooms were being prepared for the dinner party.”
“The house has eleven bedrooms.”
“Not all of them are suitable.”
Price waited.
Margaret looked down at the tea.
“You find that absurd.”
“I find it difficult to understand.”
“Because you have never worked in a house where every room belongs to someone who is not there.”
Margaret described the previous weeks. Tiny beetles appeared near the nursery baseboard. She reported them to Anthony. He scheduled an exterminator, then postponed the visit when Marcus moved the merger dinner from a hotel to the estate. Margaret tried vacuuming, steam, sealed storage bags. The insects returned.
She feared they would spread into Zion’s clothes.
She feared Marcus would blame her.
“Had he blamed you for similar problems?” Price asked.
“He blamed the person responsible.”
“Were you responsible?”
“I was responsible for the nursery.”
“That is not the same.”
“In his house, it was.”
Price looked at her notes.
“Why apply the chemical directly to the blanket?”
Margaret’s fingers tightened around the cup.
“It had one of the insects on it.”
“Why not throw the blanket away?”
“Rachel bought it.”
The room became quiet.
Zion’s mother had chosen the navy blanket during the seventh month of her pregnancy. After her death, Marcus insisted it remain in the nursery. Margaret had kept it clean, folded, and close to the child because it was one of the few objects Marcus touched without asking someone else to move it.
“I thought I could treat the edge,” Margaret said. “Wash it later. Keep everything as it was.”
“You watched the baby sleep in it.”
“I was going to remove it.”
“You left the room.”
“I was called downstairs.”
“You did not return for forty-three minutes.”
Margaret’s mouth trembled.
“I lost track.”
“You checked the nursery camera from your phone six times.”
May you like
Margaret looked up.
Price slid a printout across the table.
