Chapter 12 - Mrs. Hargrove's Terrible Secret|
Mrs. Hargrove began crying before Dominic asked the first question.
I had never seen that woman cry.
Not when guests screamed at her.
Not when employees made expensive mistakes.
Not even at Elena Moretti's funeral.
Now she sat in Dominic's study with shaking hands, staring at the photograph someone had taken of Lily.
“I never meant for this to happen.”
Dominic leaned against his desk.
“Explain.”
She swallowed.
“Three weeks ago, someone contacted me about my daughter.”
Her voice broke.
“Her name is Caroline. She's twenty-six.”
I knew Caroline.
She was a schoolteacher in Connecticut.
Mrs. Hargrove spoke about her constantly.
“What happened?” I asked.
“She was arrested.”
Dominic's expression didn't change.
“For what?”
“Financial fraud. Someone opened accounts using her information.”
Mrs. Hargrove covered her mouth.
“The evidence looked terrible. The police believed she'd stolen money.”
Gabriel crossed his arms.
“And someone offered to make the charges disappear.”
Mrs. Hargrove nodded.
“They told me all I had to do was provide access to the house security system.”
I stared at her.
“You let them inside?”
Tears rolled down her face.
“I thought they were stealing documents.”
“Documents?”
“Yes!”
Her voice cracked.
“I swear, Mara, nobody told me they intended to hurt Ethan.”
Dominic remained silent.
That silence was worse than shouting.
“Who contacted you?” he finally asked.
“I never saw his face.”
“His name?”
“He called himself Mr. Gray.”
Gabriel frowned.
“Did you ever meet him?”
“Once. At a parking garage in White Plains.”
“What did he look like?”
“Tall. Dark hair. Expensive coat.”
She hesitated.
“And he wore a silver cufflink.”
The same detail Rosa had remembered.
Dominic's jaw tightened.
“Owen Mercer.”
Mrs. Hargrove buried her face in her hands.
“I disabled the cameras. I used Mara's credentials. Someone had copied them from the security office.”
I felt sick.
“You framed me.”
“No.”
She looked at me desperately.
“I didn't know they would plant anything in your locker.”
I stepped backward.
For six years, I had trusted this woman.
She had helped me through pregnancy.
She had brought soup when Lily had pneumonia.
She had told me which hospital would offer affordable care after Jonah died.
And now she had endangered my daughter.
“Why didn't you tell me?” I whispered.
“Because they threatened Caroline.”
Dominic stepped forward.
“Listen carefully, Beatrice.”
She looked up.
“Your daughter will have legal representation. Every document used against her will be examined.”
Her face crumpled.
“Thank you, sir.”
“Don't thank me yet.”
His voice sharpened.
“You endangered my child and Mara's. You will cooperate fully with the authorities.”
Mrs. Hargrove nodded through her tears.
Then she reached into her pocket.
“There is something else.”
She placed a small brass key on the desk.
“The man told me never to open the room at the end of the north wing.”
Dominic stared at it.
“Why?”
May you like
Mrs. Hargrove whispered:
“Because that's where your wife kept the evidence.”
