Chapter 10 - The Housekeeper Who Knew Too Much|
I had never seen Gabriel move so quickly.
One moment he was standing beside my father.
The next, he was halfway to the library doors.
"Where's Lily?"
Daniel raised his radio.
"Checking now."
My heart pounded.
Margaret Ellis.
The woman who had taught me how to polish the antique silver without leaving fingerprints.
The woman who knew the exact temperature Lily preferred her bathwater.
The woman who had worked for the Romanos since Gabriel was eighteen.
I couldn't imagine her betraying this family.
But I had learned something terrible in the past twenty-four hours.
Familiarity wasn't proof of loyalty.
And kindness wasn't always what it appeared to be.
Daniel's radio crackled.
"Lily is in the upstairs sitting room with Mrs. Ellis."
Gabriel stopped.
"Keep both of them there."
The guard answered immediately.
"Understood."
Gabriel turned toward me.
"Stay here."
I shook my head.
"Please."
His expression softened.
"Natalie—"
"She trusts Margaret."
My voice trembled.
"If Margaret has done something wrong, Lily might not understand."
Gabriel hesitated.
Then nodded.
"Stay beside me."
We hurried upstairs.
Two guards stood outside the sitting room.
One quietly informed Gabriel that Lily was safe.
I could hear her laughing inside.
The sound made my chest ache.
Gabriel opened the door.
Lily sat at a small table arranging puzzle pieces.
Margaret stood beside the window.
She wore her usual gray uniform.
Her silver hair was pinned neatly behind her head.
Nothing about her appearance suggested danger.
But when she saw Daniel, her face changed.
Just slightly.
Enough.
"Mr. Romano," she said.
Gabriel looked at Lily.
"Hey, sweetheart."
Lily smiled.
"Daddy!"
He approached her.
"Would you go downstairs with Natalie for a little while?"
Her expression fell.
"Again?"
Gabriel crouched.
"I need to speak with Margaret."
Lily glanced toward the housekeeper.
"Is she in trouble?"
Gabriel paused.
"We're trying to understand something."
Lily frowned.
"Did she do something bad?"
Margaret stepped forward.
"Lily, darling—"
"Margaret," Gabriel said.
She stopped.
His voice remained calm.
"Please let me answer my daughter."
Margaret lowered her eyes.
Gabriel turned back toward Lily.
"I don't know everything yet, sweetheart."
He brushed her hair away from her face.
"But I promise you'll be told the truth in a way you can understand."
Lily considered that.
Then nodded.
I offered her my hand.
"Come on."
She stood.
But before leaving, she turned toward Margaret.
"Are you going to be here later?"
Margaret's expression twisted.
For a moment, she looked genuinely heartbroken.
"I don't know, sweetheart."
Lily stared at her.
Then she whispered, "Okay."
I led her downstairs.
We sat in the breakfast room.
My father was waiting.
Lily had met him only twice before, when he came to collect me after late shifts.
She remembered him immediately.
"Mr. Brooks!"
My father smiled.
"Hello, sunshine."
She hurried toward him.
"Did Natalie tell you about my recital?"
He looked at me.
I smiled.
"Not yet."
Lily climbed onto the chair beside him.
"I was the lead singer."
My father leaned closer.
"Well, that sounds important."
She nodded solemnly.
"It was."
Then her face fell.
"Daddy missed it."
My father looked at her kindly.
"That must have hurt."
She nodded.
"But he's trying now."
My father smiled.
"Sometimes people need to learn how to show up."
Lily looked thoughtful.
"Even grown-ups?"
"Especially grown-ups."
She giggled.
I looked at my father.
He winked.
For a few minutes, the world felt almost peaceful.
Then Gabriel entered.
His expression was exhausted.
I stood.
"Mr. Romano?"
He looked toward Lily.
"Sweetheart, would you show Mr. Brooks the drawing you made for the recital?"
Lily brightened.
"Okay!"
She hurried toward the hallway.
A guard followed at a respectful distance.
Gabriel waited until she was gone.
Then he turned to me.
"Margaret admitted entering the greenhouse."
My chest tightened.
"Why?"
He pulled out a chair.
"Sit down."
I obeyed.
My father watched him carefully.
Gabriel spoke slowly.
"Three years ago, Elena asked Margaret to help preserve certain documents."
I stared.
"She trusted her?"
"Completely."
Gabriel nodded.
"Margaret knew Elena was investigating Raymond."
I felt sick.
"Did Margaret know about the car?"
"No."
He paused.
"Not until after the accident."
My father leaned forward.
"Then why set the greenhouse on fire?"
Gabriel's expression changed.
"She says she didn't."
I blinked.
"What?"
"She went there to retrieve the box."
I stared.
"But the box was empty."
Gabriel nodded.
"According to Margaret, it wasn't empty when she arrived."
A chill moved through me.
"She found the second letter?"
Gabriel looked toward the doorway.
"She claims it wasn't a letter."
My father frowned.
"What was it?"
Gabriel swallowed.
"A notebook."
I leaned forward.
"Elena's notebook?"
He nodded.
"Containing records of financial transfers, names, dates, and details of meetings with Raymond."
My father stared.
Gabriel continued.
"Margaret says Elena instructed her to retrieve it if anyone tried to remove Lily from the estate."
I felt my heart hammering.
"Then where is it?"
Gabriel looked down.
"Margaret won't say."
I stared at him.
"Why?"
"She believes someone inside the household is still working with Raymond."
The room fell silent.
My father slowly leaned back.
"She's probably right."
I looked at him.
He continued.
"Someone set that fire."
Gabriel nodded.
"Margaret says she found the box, removed the notebook, and heard footsteps outside."
I gripped my hands together.
"Then?"
"She escaped through the rear maintenance passage."
Gabriel looked toward the garden.
"Minutes later, the greenhouse began burning."
My father frowned.
"Did she see who started it?"
"No."
"Then what about the card with my name?"
Gabriel shook his head.
"Margaret says she'd never seen it."
I stared.
"Do you believe her?"
Gabriel was quiet for a moment.
"Some of her account is supported by the security footage."
He looked at me.
"But she concealed evidence and ignored instructions from investigators."
My father nodded grimly.
"That makes things complicated."
Gabriel continued.
"Daniel is preserving her statement, and she'll need to speak to the police."
I looked toward the hallway.
"Is she still upstairs?"
"Yes."
He hesitated.
"She asked to speak with you."
I blinked.
"Me?"
Gabriel nodded.
"Alone."
My father immediately shook his head.
"No."
I looked at him.
"Dad—"
"Not after everything that's happened."
Gabriel raised a hand.
"She won't be alone with Natalie."
He looked at me.
"Daniel can remain nearby."
I considered the request.
Then nodded.
"I'll speak to her."
Ten minutes later, I entered the small sitting room.
Margaret sat near the window.
Her hands were folded in her lap.
She looked older than she had yesterday.
Much older.
"Natalie," she whispered.
I closed the door behind me, leaving Daniel just outside.
"Margaret."
She looked toward the garden.
"I never meant for Lily to suffer."
I remained standing.
"Then why didn't you stop Cassandra?"
Margaret closed her eyes.
The silence stretched.
Finally, she whispered, "Because I was afraid."
I felt anger rise.
"Of Cassandra?"
"Of Raymond."
She looked at me.
"Three years ago, after Elena died, someone came to my home."
My stomach tightened.
"They showed me photographs of my granddaughter."
I stared.
Margaret's eyes filled.
"At school."
Her voice cracked.
"At the park."
She pressed a trembling hand against her mouth.
"They told me to keep quiet."
I slowly sat.
"Why didn't you tell Gabriel?"
She shook her head.
"Because I had already seen what happened to Elena."
I didn't know what to say.
Margaret looked down.
"I thought if I stayed close to Lily, I could protect her."
I swallowed.
"But Cassandra hurt her."
"I know."
Tears rolled down Margaret's cheeks.
"And I failed her."
I thought about Lily standing behind me in the dining room.
Her trembling hands.
Her desperate question about whether her father still wanted her.
Margaret wiped her face.
"I watched Cassandra isolate her."
She shook her head.
"Every day, I told myself tomorrow I'd speak."
Her voice broke.
"Then tomorrow became another tomorrow."
I stared at her.
Fear had trapped Margaret for years.
But silence had left Lily unprotected.
Both things could be true.
Margaret reached into her pocket.
She removed a small brass key.
"Elena gave me this."
I looked at it.
"What does it open?"
Margaret swallowed.
"A cabinet in the old servants' archive."
I frowned.
"Under the west staircase?"
She nodded.
"I hid the notebook there."
My heart raced.
"Why tell me?"
Margaret looked directly into my eyes.
"Because Elena trusted your father."
I froze.
"What?"
She nodded.
"She knew Thomas Brooks had tried to help her."
I stared.
"How?"
"She told me herself."
Margaret's voice softened.
"She said he was a decent man who wouldn't let powerful people frighten him into doing the wrong thing."
My eyes filled.
Margaret continued.
"And when she learned he had a daughter, she made me promise that if anything happened, I would try to protect your family too."
I couldn't speak.
Margaret looked down.
"I didn't keep that promise very well."
I stared at the little brass key.
Then I slowly took it.
"Thank you."
She shook her head.
"Don't thank me yet."
I frowned.
Margaret leaned closer.
"There's something you need to know about the notebook."
My pulse quickened.
"What?"
Her face became pale.
"Elena wasn't only investigating missing money."
I stared.
Margaret lowered her voice.
"She discovered Raymond had been selling information about Gabriel's business to people who wanted him removed."
I felt cold.
"Who?"
Margaret hesitated.
Then whispered, "Someone who attended the engagement dinner."
My stomach dropped.
She reached for my hand.
"And Natalie?"
May you like
"Yes?"
"Whatever you do, don't trust Victor Hale."
