Chapter 5
I had never seen Dominic so still.
He turned slowly toward the woman who had managed his home for nearly twenty years.
Evelyn Price was crying openly now.
“Dominic, I can explain.”
“You had better.”
She pressed her trembling hands together.
“Your father left certain financial arrangements under my supervision. After his death, there were accounts and property transactions I couldn't reconcile. I was afraid of losing my position, and I made terrible decisions.”
“What decisions?”
“I allowed Mercer to review confidential records. He promised he could help me conceal mistakes before they became public.”
Dominic stared at her.
“Conceal what?”
“Unauthorized transfers. Money moved between household accounts and companies I was supposed to oversee.”
My throat tightened.
“You were stealing from the family?”
Evelyn shook her head desperately.
“Some of the transfers began as attempts to cover debts. Then Mercer started moving more money. He used my authorization and told me that if I exposed him, I'd be implicated too.”
Dominic's face was pale.
“And Sofia discovered it.”
Evelyn nodded.
“She noticed irregularities while helping organize the charity accounts. She asked questions. She copied documents.”
“The information she was hiding,” I whispered.
“Yes.”
Dominic leaned against the wall.
For ten years, he had thought Sofia had been frightened by an imaginary intruder.
But she'd been uncovering financial wrongdoing inside her own home.
And the people responsible had convinced her brother that she was confused.
“What happened the night she died?” Dominic asked.
Evelyn looked at Marcus.
He shook his head.
“Tell him.”
She began to tremble.
“Sofia arranged to meet Mercer. She said she had proof and wanted him to admit what he'd done.”
“Why didn't she come to me?”
Evelyn's tears fell.
“Because Mercer told her the records implicated you.”
Dominic went rigid.
“What?”
“He convinced her that some of the transfers carried your authorization. Sofia was trying to find out whether the documents had been forged before accusing anyone.”
I watched Dominic absorb that.
His sister hadn't distrusted him.
She had been trying to protect him from an accusation she didn't yet understand.
And while he had dismissed her fears, she'd been fighting to uncover the truth.
***
Dominic turned toward Marcus.
“You said Mercer disappeared after Sofia died.”
“He left his job two months later. But I didn't know he'd been living under another name.”
“Until he came back as Reed.”
“Yes.”
“You knew he was the same man before he disappeared the second time.”
Marcus nodded.
“Why didn't you tell me?”
“Because he threatened to destroy evidence if I did. He claimed the only surviving records were in his possession.”
Dominic gave a bitter laugh.
“And you believed him.”
“I wanted to recover them first.”
“You should have come to me.”
“I know.”
“No, Marcus. You don't.”
His voice rose for the first time.
“You watched me spend ten years believing Sofia died because she lost control of her car.”
Marcus lowered his head.
“You let me blame the rain. The road. Myself.”
“I'm sorry.”
Dominic stepped closer.
“My sister was frightened inside her own home, and every person who could have helped her decided that protecting a secret mattered more than protecting her.”
Nobody answered.
Then I spoke.
“Dominic.”
He looked at me.
I could see the fury in his eyes.
But underneath it was something fragile.
The terrible need to understand.
“We still don't know exactly what happened on the road.”
He stared at me.
“Rachel—”
“Evelyn admitted the financial cover-up. Marcus admitted concealing Mercer's identity. But neither has proved who caused the crash.”
For several seconds, he said nothing.
Then he looked at Marcus.
“Where is Mercer now?”
Marcus swallowed.
“I don't know.”
“Find him.”
“And Evelyn?”
Dominic turned toward her.
“She's not leaving this property until the authorities have taken her statement.”
Evelyn covered her face.
Dominic looked at me.
May you like
“Get the recorder.”
***
