Chapter 8 - THE MEETING HE REFUSED TO HIDE
Vanessa named a waterfront hotel and demanded that Luca arrive without security.
He refused.
"If you have information about threats to my son, give it to Detective Ruiz," he said. "I'll arrange for you to speak with counsel present."
"You used to trust me," Vanessa whispered.
"That was before you lied to a nine-year-old about his allergy."
She hung up.
For an hour, no one heard from her. Then a message arrived at Luca's office from a number Miriam recognized as belonging to Vanessa's attorney. Vanessa was willing to make a recorded statement, with counsel and investigators present.
It felt like the first sensible thing she'd done.
I wasn't invited to the meeting. I didn't ask to be. Instead I went with Mrs. Carter to see Ethan at Claire's apartment, after Claire agreed and security confirmed the arrangements.
Ethan greeted us holding a cardboard spaceship. He'd painted windows down the side, each one a different shade of blue.
"This is where nobody gets left behind," he said.
"Sounds like a good spaceship," I told him.
He showed us a room he'd made for his mother, another for his father, one for his wolf, and a very small room for me. I pretended to be offended by its size.
"It's small because you're the pilot," he explained. "You sit up front."
We spent an hour making paper stars. Claire watched us from the doorway, her expression unreadable.
When Ethan went to wash his hands, she approached me.
"He's attached to you," she said.
I braced myself.
"I know. I hope that doesn't make things difficult."
"It makes things easier when I know who he feels safe with. But I need us all to remember he's the child, not the peacemaker."
"I agree."
She studied me. "Luca may try to thank you by giving you everything. Make sure you know what you actually want."
It was unexpectedly kind advice.
At the estate that evening, Luca returned from the interview looking drained. He wouldn't share anything that could interfere with the investigation, but he told me one thing Vanessa had acknowledged: she'd known the chocolate cake contained pecans, and she had deliberately put it in front of Ethan to frighten Luca into considering excluding him from the wedding. She insisted she never intended Ethan to take a bite.
I felt sick.
"But she told him it was safe," I said.
"I know."
"He could have died."
"I know."
Vanessa had also claimed that her brother supplied the trust paperwork, and that she thought the changes were lawful. Her attorney disputed parts of the account. The investigators were still verifying it.
"Did she say who sent the threat to my mother?"
"She said she didn't know."
I looked away.
"I don't believe her."
"You don't have to. We need proof."
He passed me a sealed letter that Vanessa had given the investigators to deliver, after they had examined it. It was addressed to me.
I opened it in the kitchen.
NORA, YOU THINK YOU WON BECAUSE HE BELIEVED YOU. YOU HAVE NO IDEA WHAT HE DID FOR MY FAMILY TEN YEARS AGO. ASK HIM ABOUT THE NIGHT AT THE HARBOR.
I read it aloud.
Luca's face changed.
"What happened at the harbor?" I asked.
May you like
For the first time since the party, he couldn't meet my eyes.
"A man died," he said. "And I spent ten years wishing I'd told the whole truth."
