Chapter 6 - Vanessa’s Last Bargain
Vanessa disappeared.
Her phone went dark.
Her credit cards stopped working.
Her apartment was empty.
But she made one mistake.
She took her daughter.
Vanessa had a thirteen-year-old daughter named Lily from a previous relationship.
Lily and Sophie were close.
And teenagers, unlike fugitives, rarely understood how much information their devices shared.
Police located Lily’s tablet briefly near a motel two counties away.
By the time officers arrived, Vanessa had gone.
But she left something behind.
A note.
Not for police.
For me.
EMILY,
YOU THINK YOU KNOW WHAT MOM DID.
YOU DON’T.
ASK NATHAN WHY HE MARRIED YOU.
V.
I read it twice.
Then three times.
Ask Nathan why he married you.
The sentence lodged under my skin.
Nathan and I had met at a fundraiser twelve years earlier.
He had been charming.
Funny.
Interested in my work.
He knew my father had recently died.
He knew I was inheriting money.
Had that mattered?
I hated myself for even considering it.
Miriam did not.
“You need to ask.”
So I did.
Nathan was in custody pending fraud charges, but his attorney arranged a monitored meeting.
He looked older than he had two days earlier.
I placed Vanessa’s note against the glass.
He read it.
His face gave me the answer before his mouth did.
“No.”
I almost stood.
“Emily—”
“No.”
“It wasn’t like that.”
“Then tell me what it was like.”
He closed his eyes.
“Mom knew who your father was.”
Of course.
My father, Thomas Everett, had owned a regional chain of logistics companies.
He was comfortable, not famous.
But wealthy enough.
“She knew he was sick,” Nathan said.
“How?”
“Vanessa catered a hospital fundraiser.”
My stomach turned.
“Keep going.”
“Mom found out you were his only child.”
I stared at him.
“And?”
“She encouraged me to meet you.”
The word encouraged almost made me laugh.
“Did she tell you to marry me?”
“No.”
“Nathan.”
“She said you were lonely. That you had money. That our family needed stability.”
My eyes filled with tears.
Not because I loved him anymore.
Because twelve years of memories suddenly became evidence.
The first date.
The flowers.
His proposal.
The way Judith had welcomed me so quickly.
The way Vanessa had immediately begun borrowing money.
“Did you love me?”
“Yes.”
“When?”
His face crumpled.
“What?”
“When did you start loving me? Before or after you knew about my inheritance?”
He could not answer.
That answer hurt more than the slap.
I stood.
Nathan pressed his palm against the glass.
“Emily, I did love you.”
I looked at him.
“You loved what I made possible.”
Then I walked away.
That afternoon, police found another recording among Nathan’s cloud backups.
It was from nine years earlier.
Judith speaking to Vanessa.
“Emily is useful because she thinks generosity is love.”
Vanessa laughed.
“How long do you think Nathan can keep pretending?”
Judith replied.
“As long as necessary.”
I stopped the recording.
Miriam asked if I wanted to continue.
“Yes.”
Vanessa’s voice returned.
“What if Emily leaves?”
Judith said, “Then Nathan gets half.”
That was the plan.
Not necessarily murder.
Not originally.
Marriage.
Access.
Divorce if needed.
A financial extraction disguised as family.
But something had changed.
The catering debt had grown.
Greg had entered the picture.
Money had disappeared.
And eventually Judith had decided divorce was no longer enough.
At 4:20 p.m., my phone rang from an unknown number.
Vanessa.
“Don’t hang up.”
“Where is Lily?”
“She’s safe.”
“Where?”
“Not with me.”
“What does that mean?”
“I left her with someone.”
“Who?”
“My ex.”
I exhaled.
“Why are you calling?”
“Because Mom is looking for me.”
“Police are looking for you.”
“I’m more afraid of Mom.”
I nearly laughed.
“You helped her.”
“I helped myself.”
“Is that supposed to be better?”
“No.”
At least she knew.
“Where are the recordings?”
Vanessa hesitated.
“I have them.”
“Give them to police.”
“I need something first.”
“Of course you do.”
“Immunity.”
“I can’t give you that.”
“Your lawyer can negotiate.”
“Vanessa, you hit me in front of my children.”
“That’s what you’re focused on?”
“No. I’m focused on the fact that you helped steal millions of dollars from me.”
“I didn’t know about the insurance policy.”
“Do you expect me to care?”
“You should, because I know who signed it.”
“Judith.”
“No.”
My grip tightened around the phone.
“Who?”
Vanessa whispered one word.
“Nathan.”
I stopped breathing.
“He told me Judith forged it.”
“She forged your signature.”
My skin went cold.
“But Nathan signed as witness.”
The room seemed to shrink.
“He knew?”
“Yes.”
“About the policy?”
“Yes.”
A long silence stretched between us.
Then Vanessa said something even worse.
“He also knew Greg was supposed to scare you after the anniversary dinner.”
My knees weakened.
“No.”
“He knew, Emily.”
“Why would he warn me?”
“Because Greg changed the plan.”
“What plan?”
“Scaring you was supposed to make you come back.”
“And the brake line?”
“That wasn’t Mom.”
“Then who?”
Vanessa began crying.
For the first time in twelve years, I heard real fear in her voice.
“Greg cut it himself.”
“Why?”
“Because he wanted you dead.”
“Why?”
“So Judith would get the insurance money, and he could blackmail her for half.”
My blood ran cold.
“Then who killed Greg?”
Vanessa breathed into the phone.
Before answering, I heard something in the background.
A door.
Then footsteps.
Vanessa whispered, “Oh God.”
“What?”
May you like
“She found me.”
The call went dead.
