Chapter 6 - THE HOUSEKEEPER WHO SAVED THE ONLY RECORDING|
Rosa Alvarez had worked at the Moretti mansion for eighteen years.
She was sixty-three, with silver-streaked hair, aching knees, and a habit of calling everyone sweetheart.
When I first arrived at the mansion, frightened and desperate for work, she was the person who taught me how to fold the enormous linen napkins and which rooms to avoid when Luca held private meetings.
She'd also been the one who brought me soup when I worked through a winter fever because I couldn't afford to lose a day's wages.
Standing in the hospital hallway, she looked more frightened than I'd ever seen her.
"Rosa, where did you get that card?" I whispered.
She closed her fingers around it.
"From the little camera near the breakfast pantry."
I frowned.
"The old one?"
She nodded.
"Mr. Moretti had it installed after someone stole supplies years ago."
"The main security company replaced the hallway cameras, but they never connected that one to the new system."
My heart began pounding.
"Does it still work?"
Rosa swallowed.
"It records to a memory card."
"And I took the card before anyone else could find it."
Maya immediately asked Rosa not to play or alter the recording.
She explained that the police needed to receive it properly so its reliability could be examined.
Rosa agreed, though her hands trembled when she passed over the small plastic evidence bag Maya had provided.
"Why didn't you tell anyone sooner?" I asked.
Rosa lowered her eyes.
"Because Mrs. Moretti threatened my granddaughter."
I stared at her.
"What?"
"Elena is in college on a scholarship through one of the family's charities."
Rosa's voice cracked.
"Vanessa told me if I kept asking questions about the missing payroll records, Elena would lose everything."
I felt anger rise inside me.
First my mother.
Then me.
Now Rosa's granddaughter.
Vanessa had discovered the weakest place in every person's life and pressed until they stopped fighting.
Maya contacted Detective Ramirez, who arranged for the recording to be examined.
We spent the next several hours waiting.
My mother woke briefly and asked why Rosa was crying.
Rosa held her hand and tried to smile.
"Just being an old fool, Ruth."
My mother shook her head.
"You're not a fool."
Then she looked at me.
"Claire, don't let anyone suffer because of my hospital bills."
I kissed her forehead.
"Mom, we're going to stop this."
I didn't know how.
I didn't know whether I'd lose my job, my home, or even my freedom before it was finished.
But I was beginning to understand that Vanessa's power had depended on everyone believing they were alone.
At five that evening, Detective Ramirez called Maya.
The recording had been recovered and reviewed.
It showed me inside the mansion's breakfast pantry at 9:14 on Tuesday morning, carrying a tray of freshly prepared fruit and coffee.
I could be seen speaking with Rosa, who was arranging dishes for the dining room.
A few minutes later, Luca walked into the kitchen, answered a telephone call, and asked me to bring another cup of coffee to his office.
The time displayed on the recording was consistent with other records investigators were checking.
For the first time in twenty-four hours, I felt as though I could breathe.
"That proves I wasn't signing a confession at the apartment," I whispered.
Maya squeezed my shoulder.
"It strongly supports your account, and there's more."
I looked at her.
"What more?"
"The camera also recorded something else."
The footage continued after I left the pantry.
Vanessa entered through the service corridor wearing her burgundy silk robe.
A man followed her.
Silver hair.
Gray suit.
Gold watch.
Adrian Vale.
They stopped near the small table beside the pantry door.
Vanessa handed him a white envelope.
He opened it, examined something inside, and slipped it into his briefcase.
Then she pointed toward the camera.
Adrian looked directly at it.
He reached upward, but the recording continued because the camera was mounted higher than he apparently realized.
A moment later, they left together.
The exchange lasted less than a minute.
But it was enough to put Adrian and Vanessa together at the mansion during the same morning someone had manufactured my confession.
When Luca saw the still images, his expression became unreadable.
For a long time, he said nothing.
Then he turned to Gabriel.
"Find out who authorized Adrian to enter the private residence that morning."
Gabriel checked his security records.
"Mrs. Moretti requested him, boss."
Luca exhaled slowly.
Naomi, standing nearby, spoke firmly.
"Don't contact either of them about this footage."
"The investigators need to handle the evidence."
Luca looked at me.
"Claire, this changes things."
I shook my head.
"It doesn't change what happened to my mother."
His expression softened.
"No."
"Nothing changes that."
That night, Rosa remained at the hospital with us while Gabriel arranged independent security for my mother's room.
Luca offered to have Rosa's granddaughter's scholarship reviewed by an organization outside Vanessa's control.
Rosa thanked him, but she still looked troubled.
"What is it?" I asked.
She glanced toward the doorway.
"Claire, there's something I haven't told you."
My stomach tightened.
"About Vanessa?"
Rosa nodded.
"Three weeks ago, I overheard her talking to Adrian in the library."
"What did they say?"
Rosa's face turned pale.
"She said the payroll scheme wasn't enough."
I felt a coldness spread through my chest.
Rosa squeezed my hand.
"She said they needed your mother to survive long enough to sign the final documents."
I stared at her.
"Final documents for what?"
May you like
Rosa's voice became barely audible.
"To make you legally responsible for everything they were planning to steal."
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