Chapter 9 - The Evidence in Sophie's Backpack| The police returned to Adrian's house on Thursday morning.
Detective Elena Brooks had been investigating the accident since the day it occurred. She had interviewed witnesses, examined the vehicle, and reviewed the weather conditions on the mountain road.
The initial report suggested that the SUV had lost traction on a wet curve.
But the investigation was not complete.
“Mr. DeLuca, we need to clarify your route that afternoon,” she said.
Adrian sat across from her in the living room, his injured leg supported on a cushion.
“I was taking Sophie home.”
“And then?”
“I was heading to the airport for a business trip.”
“Was Vivian Cole traveling with you?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“She was attending the same meeting.”
Detective Brooks glanced at her notebook.
“Your flight itinerary shows that the trip was personal, not business.”
Adrian felt his throat tighten.
“Who gave you that?”
“We obtained the booking records through the appropriate process.”
He looked away.
The detective continued.
“Were you and Ms. Cole planning to stay at a resort?”
Adrian said nothing.
“Mr. DeLuca, I need you to understand that withholding information will make it more difficult to establish exactly what happened.”
“We were going away for the weekend.”
“Was your wife aware of that?”
“No.”
“Why not?”
“Because it was personal.”
The detective held his gaze.
“Personal to whom?”
He had no answer.
Before she left, Detective Brooks asked whether she could examine Sophie's backpack, which had been recovered from the vehicle.
Adrian retrieved it from a cabinet near the stairs.
The pink backpack looked untouched. A small keychain shaped like a star hung from the zipper.
The detective opened the front pocket and removed a folded sheet of paper.
“Do you recognize this?”
Adrian leaned forward.
It was a drawing Sophie had made at school. Three figures stood beneath a blue sky. One was labeled MOM. Another DAD. The third was a little girl with a yellow dress.
Beneath them, in uneven handwriting, were the words:
I like it best when we are all home.
Adrian looked away.
The detective carefully returned the drawing to its sleeve.
“There's something else.”
She removed a small notebook.
Sophie had been using it to practice writing. Most pages contained misspelled words, drawings, and lists of things she wanted to do.
One entry, written several weeks earlier, caught Adrian's attention.
Daddy says not to tell Mommy about the trip. He says it's a surprise, but Miss Vivian says Mommy wouldn't understand.
The room seemed to shrink around him.
Detective Brooks did not comment on the entry.
Instead, she asked whether he knew what Sophie had meant.
Adrian stared at the page.
“No.”
“Did you tell your daughter to keep the trip a secret?”
He swallowed.
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“I didn't want Claire to worry about the arrangements.”
The detective's expression remained neutral.
“Did Sophie appear uncomfortable?”
“I don't remember.”
“Did she ask questions about Vivian?”
Adrian closed his eyes.
He remembered Sophie standing in the kitchen, looking at him with a seriousness that seemed too old for her face.
Why does Miss Vivian whisper when you talk about the trip?
He had told her not to worry about grown-up things.
He had kissed her forehead and promised they would have a fun weekend together.
Then he had changed the plan without asking Claire.
Detective Brooks closed the notebook.
“Mr. DeLuca, we will need a full account of the events leading up to the accident. Please do not contact witnesses about their statements.”
After she left, Adrian sat alone with the drawing.
He traced the word home with his thumb.
For months, he had told himself that Claire was too suspicious, that Sophie was too young to understand, that his decisions were private matters between adults.
But Sophie had understood something.
She had known that the adults were hiding things.
And she had wanted nothing more complicated than for her family to be together.
Adrian pressed the drawing against his chest.
May you like
Then he began to cry.
This time, no one was there to tell him he was a good father.
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