Chapter 8
I refused to open the door.
My father stood outside holding Daniel's letter.
For a moment, I wanted to run onto the porch and tear it from his hands.
But Lily was upstairs.
And I had promised myself I wouldn't let fear make my decisions anymore.
"Leave it on the porch," I said through the intercom.
Arthur looked toward the camera.
"Nia, please let me explain."
My throat tightened.
"You've had eleven months to explain."
His eyes filled.
"I know."
"Leave the letter."
He lowered his head.
Then placed the envelope on the small table beside my front door.
He stood there for several seconds.
I watched him.
Part of me remembered being a little girl.
Waiting for Dad to come home from work.
Running into his arms.
Believing he could solve every problem.
Now I was afraid to let him into my house.
That realization hurt almost as much as everything else.
Finally, he walked away.
I waited until his car disappeared.
Then I called Detective Brooks.
She advised me to preserve the envelope and arrange for it to be collected.
I agreed.
I wasn't going to risk damaging evidence.
When investigators later examined the letter, they allowed me to receive a copy.
I sat at my kitchen table with Simone beside me.
The handwriting was Daniel's.
I recognized it immediately.
Arthur,
I don't know whether you'll ever admit what you've done.
But I know you're not the only person involved.
Vanessa has been meeting with Curtis Morgan.
I saw the payments.
I also know she has been threatening me through anonymous messages.
You told me you would stop her.
I need you to understand something.
If anything happens to me, Nia and Lily deserve the truth.
Do not make my wife spend her life wondering whether I loved her.
I do.
More than anything.
Daniel.
I stopped reading.
My tears fell onto the page.
"He knew."
Simone wrapped an arm around me.
I stared at the letter.
Daniel had asked my father to protect us.
He'd given Arthur one last chance to do the right thing.
And my father had failed him.
I covered my face.
For several minutes, I couldn't speak.
Then I looked at Simone.
"I need to tell Lily the truth about her father."
She nodded.
"Not everything at once."
"I know."
I wiped my eyes.
"But she deserves to know he loved us."
Simone squeezed my hand.
"Then start there."
That evening, I sat with Lily on her bedroom floor.
Her stuffed rabbit rested between us.
I showed her a photograph of Daniel holding her when she was a baby.
She smiled.
"Daddy."
I nodded.
"Yes, sweetheart."
She touched his face.
"He looks happy."
My eyes filled.
"He was."
I took a breath.
"Lily, I need to tell you something important."
She looked up.
"Okay."
"Daddy loved us very much."
She nodded.
"I know."
I smiled through tears.
"And he never stopped loving us."
She looked confused.
"Even when he was gone?"
My throat tightened.
"Even then."
She leaned against me.
I held her gently.
Then she asked something that broke my heart.
"Did Daddy go away because he was mad at us?"
I shook my head immediately.
"No, baby."
I held her face.
"Never."
Tears filled her eyes.
"He didn't leave because of anything you did."
She began crying.
I pulled her into my arms.
"He died because something terrible happened."
She held me tightly.
I didn't tell her every detail.
She was only six.
She didn't need to carry the full weight of adult crimes.
But she needed to know her father hadn't abandoned her.
And she needed to know none of it was her fault.
The following week, Vanessa was arrested.
I learned about it from Detective Brooks.
Prosecutors had filed charges connected to the vehicle interference and Daniel's death.
Curtis also faced serious charges.
The investigation into Arthur's financial crimes continued separately.
I sat motionless after the call.
Vanessa.
My little sister.
The girl I'd protected when we were children.
The one who used to sneak into my bedroom during thunderstorms.
The one who cried when I left for college.
She had become someone capable of hurting my daughter.
And she was accused of arranging the interference that killed my husband.
I couldn't understand how we had reached this point.
But I knew something important.
I didn't have to understand her choices to stop protecting her from their consequences.
That afternoon, my mother called.
I answered.
"Nia?"
Her voice was shaking.
"Vanessa's been arrested."
"I know."
She began crying.
"Your sister is going to prison."
I closed my eyes.
"Mom, she's been charged. The court will decide what happens."
My mother sobbed.
"How can you be so calm?"
I looked toward Lily.
She was drawing at the kitchen table.
"Because my daughter needs me."
Evelyn went silent.
I continued.
"Because Daniel is dead."
My voice cracked.
"Because I've spent eleven months grieving a man you let me believe had betrayed me."
My mother began crying harder.
"Nia, I'm sorry."
I closed my eyes.
"Did you know about Vanessa and Curtis?"
Silence.
My heart pounded.
"Mom?"
She whispered.
"I knew Vanessa was trying to scare Daniel."
I felt sick.
"What?"
"I didn't know about the car until after the accident."
I stared at the wall.
"Then why didn't you tell me?"
She began sobbing.
"Arthur said we had to protect the family."
I almost laughed.
"Protect the family?"
My voice rose.
"Mom, Daniel was family!"
She cried harder.
"Lily is family!"
I gripped the phone.
"And you let Vanessa frighten her because you were still protecting secrets."
My mother whispered.
"I was wrong."
I closed my eyes.
For the first time, she didn't say I was overreacting.
She didn't minimize Lily's fear.
She didn't defend Vanessa.
She simply admitted she'd been wrong.
But it wasn't enough.
Not yet.
"Mom, I need space."
She nodded through tears.
"I understand."
"And Lily isn't ready to see you."
Her voice broke.
"Okay."
I swallowed.
"If you want a relationship with us someday, you need to start by telling investigators everything."
She whispered.
"I will."
I ended the call.
Then I sat quietly for a long time.
I wasn't happy about my family's collapse.
But I was relieved that the lies were finally breaking.
That night, Detective Brooks sent me an update.
The independent vehicle examination had concluded that deliberate interference with the braking system was a likely cause of the crash.
Investigators had also recovered communications supporting the allegation that Vanessa directed Curtis's work.
I stared at the report.
My hands shook.
Then I looked at Daniel's photograph.
I began crying.
May you like
Because the uncertainty that had haunted me was finally giving way to evidence.
And soon, the people responsible would have to answer for what they'd done.
