Chapter 13
The first few days were awkward.
Lena stayed in the guest room. She barely came out except to eat and use the bathroom.
Poppy was curious about her. She would stand outside the guest room door, listening. Sometimes she would knock and ask if Lena wanted to color.
Lena always said yes.
Slowly, a bond started to form between them. Poppy would sit on the floor of the guest room, coloring, while Lena watched TV or read books about babies. Sometimes Poppy would talk to Lena's stomach, telling the baby about her toys and her friends at school.
It was strange to watch.
My daughter. And the woman my husband had an affair with. Bonding over the baby that had torn our lives apart.
But it was also sweet. In a way that hurt my heart.
Sarah's cousin, David, called me on the third day.
He came over that afternoon. Tall, serious, with kind eyes.
I told him everything. Showed him the letter from Grant. The evidence. Let him listen to Lena's recording.
He sat in my living room, taking notes, his face grim.
"This is strong," he said when I finished. "Really strong. The letter, the bank records, the recording... if all of this is authentic, we have enough to arrest Margaret for embezzlement. And possibly murder."
"Possibly?" I said.
"Murder is hard to prove," he said. "We have Grant's letter saying he was afraid she would kill him. And we have motive. But we don't have physical evidence tying her to the accident. The police ruled it an accident at the time. Skid marks on the road. Brake failure. It'll be an uphill battle to get them to reopen the case."
He leaned forward.
"But the embezzlement charges? Those are solid. We could get her twenty years, easy. And with the recording showing she threatened Lena, we might be able to get additional charges for intimidation and conspiracy."
He looked at me.
"Here's what I suggest. We go to the police with the embezzlement evidence first. Get her arrested. Once she's in custody, we push for them to reopen Grant's case. With her in jail, she won't be able to come after you or Lena or the kids."
I looked at Lena, who was sitting beside me on the couch. She nodded.
"When do we do this?" I said.
"Tomorrow," David said. "I'll make some calls tonight. Set up a meeting with the detective in charge of white-collar crime. We'll go in together. You, me, and Lena. We'll present everything. And we'll get her."
He stood up to leave.
"And Audrey? One more thing. Be careful. Margaret is going to figure out something is wrong soon. If she suspects you have the evidence, she might try something desperate."
I nodded.
"I'll be careful."
After David left, I went to the kitchen to make coffee.
Lena followed me.
"Tomorrow," she said quietly. "It's really going to happen."
I nodded.
"Tomorrow."
She looked at me.
"Thank you. For everything. For letting me stay here. For protecting me and the baby."
I looked at her. Really looked at her.
She was just a kid. Twenty-two years old. Alone in the world. Pregnant with a married man's baby.
She had made a mistake. A big one.
But so had Grant.
May you like
And I was tired of hating her. Tired of being angry.
"We're in this together now," I said. "And we're going to get through it. Together."
