Chapter 7 - The Relative Who Stood Beside Andrew at the FuneralAndrew refused to believe it.
Not at first.
Nathaniel Vaughn had been more like a brother than a cousin.
Their fathers had built the company together.
They had grown up in neighboring houses.
Gone to the same schools.
Spent summers at the same lake.
When Caroline died, Nathaniel had handled business matters so Andrew could stay home with Alex.
He had protected him.
Or Andrew had believed he had.
Reed showed him bank transfers.
Nothing directly connected Nathaniel.
The money had passed through three companies.
But one company shared an attorney with a foundation Nathaniel controlled.
Circumstantial.
Not proof.
Marcus continued talking.
“Nathaniel never told me he wanted anyone killed.”
Reed asked, “What did he tell you?”
“That he needed certainty about the trust.”
“Why?”
Marcus shrugged.
“He said investors were concerned about succession.”
“Did you believe him?”
“At first.”
“And later?”
Marcus looked away.
“Later I didn’t care.”
Andrew’s jaw clenched.
Reed said, “Tell me about Caroline.”
“Caroline found the transfers.”
“She thought you were stealing.”
“I was.”
“And?”
“She didn’t know some of that money was being used for Lang.”
“Then she discovered it.”
“Yes.”
“Did Nathaniel know?”
Marcus remained silent.
“That’s the question that keeps you from getting a deal.”
Marcus laughed bitterly.
“You think prison scares me more than Nathaniel?”
Reed leaned forward.
“It should.”
Marcus studied her.
Then said quietly, “Caroline called him.”
Andrew’s chest tightened.
“When?”
“The afternoon she died.”
Reed looked toward the glass.
Andrew stepped into the room.
Marcus seemed unsurprised.
“What did she tell him?”
Marcus glanced at Reed.
She allowed Andrew to continue.
“What did my wife tell Nathaniel?”
“She said she knew.”
“Knew what?”
“That he had ordered the test on Alex.”
Andrew swallowed.
“And what did Nathaniel say?”
“I wasn’t on the call.”
“Then how do you know?”
“Lucinda was.”
Andrew’s eyes narrowed.
Marcus continued.
“Caroline called Nathaniel from the garden. Lucinda overheard part of it.”
“What part?”
“Caroline said, ‘If Andrew knew what you were doing, he would never forgive you.’”
Andrew looked away.
That could mean anything.
But then Marcus added:
“And she said she had copied everything.”
Andrew slowly looked back.
“Where?”
“I don’t know.”
The hidden office.
The rabbit.
The blue phone.
Caroline had left a trail.
Maybe because she knew she would need one.
Police brought Lucinda into a separate interview.
She looked different without makeup.
Smaller.
Older.
Terrified.
When Nathaniel’s name came up, her reaction was immediate.
“No.”
Reed asked, “No what?”
“I’m not talking about him.”
“Why?”
Lucinda looked toward the camera.
“He’ll destroy me.”
“You’re already facing charges connected to Caroline’s death.”
“You don’t understand.”
“Then explain.”
Lucinda’s hands began shaking.
“Nathaniel knows everyone.”
“That’s not an explanation.”
“He has judges at his charity dinners. Police chiefs at his fundraisers. CEOs who owe him favors.”
Andrew watched from outside.
He had attended those same dinners.
He had never thought of them that way.
Reed asked, “Did Nathaniel order Caroline’s death?”
Lucinda shook her head violently.
“No.”
“Did he know she was in danger?”
Silence.
“Lucinda.”
“He told Marcus to recover the evidence.”
“How?”
“He didn’t care.”
Andrew closed his eyes.
That was enough.
Maybe Nathaniel never said kill her.
Maybe he never needed to.
He had sent desperate people into Andrew’s home to silence Caroline.
Lucinda began crying.
“I wanted to tell Andrew.”
Reed’s voice remained cold.
“When? Before or after you accepted his marriage proposal?”
Lucinda looked ashamed.
“I thought if I stayed close to him, Nathaniel wouldn’t hurt Alex.”
Andrew almost laughed.
The lie was too ugly.
Yet Lucinda looked terrified enough that part of it might be true.
Then Reed asked the question Andrew had been avoiding.
“Why did you cut the green ribbon from Alex’s rabbit?”
Lucinda’s face changed.
“Because I recognized it.”
“From Caroline’s robe.”
Lucinda nodded.
“She tore it off when I grabbed her.”
“And Alex kept it.”
“Yes.”
“You knew it connected you to the staircase.”
“Yes.”
“So you destroyed it.”
“I panicked.”
Reed leaned back.
“You panic a lot.”
Lucinda lowered her head.
Then whispered, “You should check the other half.”
Andrew frowned.
“What other half?”
Lucinda looked toward the mirrored glass.
“Caroline had the rest of the ribbon in her hand when Marcus went downstairs.”
Andrew’s blood ran cold.
The police evidence log from the original case did not mention any ribbon in Caroline’s hand.
Reed asked, “What happened to it?”
“I don’t know.”
“Did you remove it?”
“No.”
“Marcus?”
“No.”
“Lang?”
Lucinda slowly nodded.
Andrew’s stomach twisted.
Dr. Lang had arrived before the ambulance.
According to the original report, he claimed he had been driving past after Lucinda called him.
Another lie.
Lucinda whispered, “He checked Caroline’s pulse.”
“And?”
“He took something from her hand.”
“The ribbon?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
Lucinda looked up.
“Because there was blood on it.”
Andrew stared at the piece preserved in an evidence bag.
If Caroline had scratched or fought Lucinda, the ribbon might contain DNA.
But Lucinda was already admitting contact.
Why would Lang risk stealing it?
Unless the blood belonged to someone else.
Reed asked the obvious question.
“Whose blood?”
Lucinda’s voice dropped to a whisper.
“Nathaniel’s.”
Andrew felt the floor disappear beneath him.
“What?”
May you like
Lucinda closed her eyes.
“Nathaniel was in the house that night too.”
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