Chapter 6 - Victoria Became The Perfect Suspect
For several seconds, nobody spoke.
Victoria stared at her silver gown.
Then at Marcus.
“You think I attacked her?”
“I didn’t say that.”
Caroline moved toward Victoria.
“Of course she didn’t.”
Andrew stopped Caroline with one look.
“Marcus, how clearly did Elena see the attacker?”
“She said the lights went out first. She saw the dress when the door opened.”
“That’s not identification.”
“No.”
Victoria studied Andrew.
He was doing it again.
Not defending himself.
Defending evidence.
It reminded her of the man she had married, the aerospace engineer who refused to make decisions until he understood every failure point.
Somewhere during the last six months, grief and Caroline’s whispers had made Victoria forget that part of him.
Dr. Morris was brought into the library.
A bandage covered a cut near her hairline.
When she saw Victoria, she looked alarmed.
Then confused.
“That’s not the dress.”
Marcus frowned.
“You said silver.”
“It was silver. But different.”
Elena pointed toward Victoria’s gown.
“Hers has sleeves.”
Victoria’s dress had long beaded sleeves.
“The woman who attacked me had bare shoulders.”
Caroline exhaled audibly.
Andrew noticed.
Victoria noticed him noticing.
Elena looked at Andrew.
“You need to call the police.”
“They’re already on their way.”
Marcus had disabled the signal shield and contacted Baltimore County authorities.
Elena lowered her voice.
“This is bigger than Lily.”
Victoria sat across from her.
“Then tell me what’s happening.”
Elena glanced toward Caroline.
Caroline stiffened.
“I’d like to speak privately.”
“No,” Victoria said.
Andrew looked at her.
“Victoria—”
“No more rooms. No more private conversations. That’s how we got here.”
Elena considered this.
Then nodded.
“Three weeks ago, Caroline contacted my office.”
Caroline interrupted.
“I was worried about Lily.”
Elena continued.
“She said Lily had become afraid of Andrew.”
Victoria looked at Lily, who was now sitting with a trusted nanny near the library doorway.
“Had she?”
“Not according to my observation.”
Andrew frowned.
“You observed her?”
“Twice.”
Victoria stood.
“What?”
Elena turned toward Caroline.
“She told me you had consented.”
Caroline’s face changed.
“Victoria, I can explain.”
“You had my daughter evaluated without telling me?”
“It wasn’t an evaluation.”
Elena corrected her.
“You represented yourself as Lily’s temporary guardian.”
Andrew’s anger finally broke through.
“You forged guardianship papers?”
“I was trying to help!”
“By lying?”
Caroline’s voice rose.
“Because neither of you saw what was happening!”
Victoria stared at her sister.
“What was happening?”
Caroline’s eyes filled with tears.
“You were falling apart.”
The accusation hit Victoria unexpectedly.
“You stopped sleeping after Mom died. You forgot appointments. You barely ate. Andrew disappeared into work. Lily needed someone.”
Victoria felt exposed because parts of it were true.
She had struggled.
She had spent mornings sitting in her mother’s old sweater because washing it felt like losing her scent.
She had missed a school fundraiser.
Once, she had forgotten to pick up Lily from ballet, and Caroline had gone instead.
Those failures had haunted her.
But grief was not abandonment.
Andrew spoke quietly.
“You could have helped without lying.”
Caroline laughed bitterly.
“You weren’t here.”
“I was working.”
“You were always working.”
“And you used that to get inside my family.”
Caroline recoiled.
Victoria stepped between them emotionally, if not physically.
“Elena, what did you find?”
The psychologist answered carefully.
“Lily showed anxiety, but it didn’t appear centered on Andrew.”
“Then what?”
“She repeatedly talked about a woman telling her secrets.”
Victoria’s skin prickled.
“What woman?”
“She wouldn’t identify her.”
Lily suddenly spoke from the doorway.
“Yes, I did.”
Everyone turned.
The child climbed down from the nanny’s lap.
“You told me not to say.”
Elena looked startled.
“I never told you that.”
Lily shook her head.
“Not you.”
She pointed toward Caroline.
“Aunt Carrie told me.”
Caroline’s face went blank.
Then Lily said something Victoria would remember for the rest of her life.
“She said Grandma wanted me to save Mommy.”
Victoria stopped breathing.
May you like
Her mother had been dead for six months.
And Caroline had been telling Lily that Evelyn was still speaking to her.
