Chapter 8 - nora’s final gift
Evelyn drove back to the estate faster than she had ever driven before.
Naomi followed in her car while Marcus contacted a trusted police detective. Preston was delayed by the rehearsal guests, but Evelyn knew he would not remain behind for long.
She entered through the kitchen and ran upstairs.
Sophie was not in the bedroom.
The stuffed rabbit lay in the center of the floor.
Its back seam had been cut open.
“Sophie!”
Evelyn searched the bathroom, dressing room and adjoining nursery.
Empty.
Celeste appeared in the doorway.
“You finally returned.”
“Where is she?”
“Who?”
“Sophie.”
“I sent her to rest.”
“She isn’t here.”
Celeste crossed her arms.
“She may be hiding again.”
“The rabbit has been cut open.”
For the first time, Celeste looked at the toy.
Her face changed.
“What was inside?”
“You tell me.”
Celeste walked toward the rabbit.
Evelyn blocked her.
“Where is my daughter?”
“I don’t know.”
“Did Preston take her?”
“No.”
“Did Father?”
“No.”
“You expect me to believe you?”
Celeste looked offended.
“I would never hurt Sophie.”
“You planned to frame her as a thief.”
“That accusation was supposed to be controlled.”
Evelyn stared at her mother.
“You admit it.”
Celeste lowered her voice.
“It was meant to create a brief distraction. Preston was supposed to claim he had misunderstood and apologize after you signed.”
“You intended to use my daughter’s fear to steal my company.”
“To save the company.”
“And the guardianship petition?”
Celeste hesitated.
“That was Preston’s idea.”
“You gave him access.”
“I believed he would keep Sophie away from the board until she was older.”
“She is eight.”
“She possesses shares that could decide the future of Vale International.”
“She doesn’t even know what a shareholder is.”
“But someone around her does.”
A floorboard creaked inside the wardrobe.
Evelyn opened the door.
Sophie sat behind a row of dresses with one hand covering her mouth.
Evelyn dropped to her knees.
“Are you hurt?”
Sophie shook her head.
“A man came into the room.”
“Who?”
“I didn’t see his face. I hid when he cut the rabbit.”
“Did he find what he wanted?”
Sophie reached inside her flower-girl shoe and removed a small metal object.
It was not a key.
It was a memory card.
“Aunt Nora told me to keep it safe,” she whispered.
Celeste stepped backward.
“When did Nora tell you that?”
“Before she went away.”
“You were two years old.”
Sophie looked confused.
“I remember her song.”
“What song?” Evelyn asked.
“The one about the little sparrow.”
Celeste became pale.
Evelyn placed the memory card inside her phone using an adapter from the desk.
One audio file appeared.
Its date was three days before Nora’s disappearance.
Evelyn pressed play.
Nora’s voice filled the room.
“If Evelyn is hearing this, then they finally made their move.”
Evelyn stopped breathing.
“I changed Sophie’s trust because I found evidence that someone has been stealing from Vale International for years. The person responsible knows I found it. If anything happens to me, do not trust the accident report.”
Celeste sat down heavily.
The recording continued.
“Room 17 contains the original files, but the room is not the real secret. The real secret is who built it and why.”
A man shouted somewhere downstairs.
Preston had arrived.
Nora’s voice lowered.
“Evelyn, protect Sophie. She saw the face of the person who followed me that night.”
The recording ended with three soft notes from a music box.
Sophie began to hum the same tune.
May you like
Then she whispered a name Evelyn had not heard in six years.
“Uncle Graham.”
