Chapter 6 - The Closing Dinner
Before heading to the title company, I returned to the house to carry out the final phase of our preparation.
When I stepped through the front door, Lorraine was sitting at the dining room table, drinking a mimosa and browsing a luxury interior design magazine. On the table lay brochures for oceanfront villas in St. Barts.
“Evelyn!” Lorraine said, startled, quickly slipping the luxury brochure under her placemat. “I thought you were in your home office.”
“I was just gathering some paperwork for Daniel,” I said, holding up the blue folder from his desk. “He asked me to meet him at Bellmont Title at noon.”
Lorraine’s eyes lit up with unsuppressed glee. She leaned back in her chair, holding her champagne glass between two manicured fingers.
“Oh, that’s wonderful!” she purred. “Daniel works so hard for this family, Evelyn. It’s about time things started paying off for us.”
“‘Us’?” I echoed mildly, stopping near the head of the table.
“Well, you know what I mean, dear,” Lorraine sneered, dropping her sweet facade just a fraction. “Family prosperity. Daniel has been carrying the weight of this household while you run around playing corporate detective in Chicago.”
“My ‘playing corporate detective’ paid for this dining table, Lorraine,” I said flatly. “And the roof over your head.”
Lorraine’s smile turned sharp as broken glass. “Well, darling, house titles change hands all the time. Sometimes the people who think they own everything suddenly realize they have nothing at all.”
“Is that what happened to Margaret?” I asked softly.
Lorraine froze, her champagne glass stopping inches from her lips. Her eyes narrowed into cruel, dangerous slits.
“Margaret is an old fool who outlived her usefulness,” Lorraine spat, no longer trying to hide her true nature. “She sat on three million dollars worth of real estate while my son worked seventy hours a week trying to build a name for himself. She deserved far worse than a locked room, Evelyn. And if you know what’s good for you, you’ll keep your mouth shut, drop off those papers, and let Daniel handle the business.”
I didn't answer. I simply adjusted the small gold brooch on my lapel—the one housing a 4K micro-lens connected directly to Detective Reyes’s mobile evidence server.
“Thank you for your honesty, Lorraine,” I said quietly. “It’s always helpful to have things on the record.”
I turned and walked out the door, leaving her frowning in the quiet dining room.
May you like
Down the street, a unmarked police van pulled up to the curb. Two plainclothes officers stepped out, positioning themselves near the front and rear exits of the house.
Lorraine wasn't going anywhere.
