Chapter 8 - The Witness in Vermont
Antonio wanted to go alone. Helen insisted he needed someone Lydia would trust. Against my better judgment, I agreed to accompany them. We left Mia with a trusted aunt and two guards, and drove north before sunrise.
Lydia lived above a bookstore in a town small enough that strangers attracted attention. She opened the door only after Helen showed her old badge.
“I told Elena to leave the country,” Lydia said. “She wouldn't go without Mia.”
She explained that Elena had discovered Victor Sloane and Isabella were using the foundation to move money. Isabella was not a distant acquaintance. She had worked as a consultant under another surname and had been present at the summer house the week before the fire.
“Who started it?” Antonio asked.
Lydia looked away. “I never saw the match.”
She did, however, possess a recording of Victor threatening Elena. The audio was damaged, but his voice was clear enough to identify. He promised Elena that if she went to the authorities, her family would suffer.
Antonio listened once. His expression became frighteningly still.
Lydia handed me a sealed envelope. “Elena said a woman who cared for Mia would know what to do with this.”
Inside was a letter addressed to whoever made my daughter feel safe.
May you like
I read it in the car. Elena wrote about Mia's love of music, her fear of thunderstorms, and the way she laughed when she was allowed to lick cake batter from a spoon. Then came the line that made me cry: If she has scars, please don't teach her to hide them.
When we returned to the estate, Mia was gone.
