Chapter 8
By the following afternoon, Damian’s corrected declaration had reached Caroline and the prosecutor. It stated precisely which parts of his original accusation were unsupported and identified the veterinary record, employee access restrictions, and disputed invoices requiring review.
Daniel warned him that admitting error did not guarantee Nora’s release or erase the prosecution’s existing evidence. The judge would need to assess the case on the record, not on Damian’s guilt.
That restraint made Damian furious. He had caused harm with a signature in minutes; correcting it might take weeks.
Adrian arrived at the mansion shortly before sunset. His charcoal coat was perfectly pressed, and he carried a slim leather portfolio as if walking into an ordinary quarterly meeting.
“You’re embarrassing the family,” he said before removing his gloves.
Damian remained seated behind the desk. “Sit down.”
“I know about your declaration. We have donors calling.”
“Why was Nora’s audit complaint closed under my name?”
Adrian’s face barely moved. “Administrative procedure. We received a duplicative submission.”
“Then show me the first one.”
“I can ask the audit team.”
“Do it now.”
Adrian stood motionless. The smallest muscle in his jaw began to twitch.
From the corridor came the soft scrape of Nero’s claws. Sophia appeared beside Elena, holding her mother’s drawing. Adrian took one look at her and stepped backward.
“Keep the child away from this,” he snapped.
“She came to ask for her pencil case,” Elena said.
Sophia hesitated. “I can wait.”
Damian opened the top drawer and handed it to her. “You don’t need permission to ask for your things.”
Adrian watched Nero follow Sophia back into the hall. “The dog should be isolated until a trainer certifies him.”
“Why?”
“Because he’s a liability.”
Damian held up the veterinary report. “Funny. He was safe enough for Nora to carry to a clinic while your team reported that he had attacked her.”
Adrian reached for the page. Damian drew it back.
“You’ve become reckless,” Adrian said.
“I was reckless when I signed what you put in front of me.”
After Adrian left, Daniel received an email from an anonymous address accusing Nora of using a child to pressure the family into paying her off. The message contained details of Sophia’s visit that had never been public.
“Whoever wrote it has access to the household,” Daniel said. “Keep this untouched and forward it for preservation.”
Elena’s phone rang seconds later. Her landlord was calling about an anonymous complaint alleging she had brought an unauthorized animal into her apartment. Elena did not own a pet.
“They’re trying to scare us,” she said, setting down the phone.
Damian offered to move her into a different residence at his expense. Elena shook her head. “That would make it easy for someone to say I’m being paid to change my story.”
“Then what would help?”
“A lawyer of my own. And enough paid leave to take Sophia to appointments.”
He agreed without argument, arranging for counsel independent from Daniel’s firm.
Cole arrived later with worse news. Marco had ordered him to turn over his notebook and had written him up for refusing. He brought the unsigned disciplinary notice and a copy of the message requesting the notebook.
“Don’t give him the original,” Daniel said. “And don’t delete the messages. I’ll help you find employment counsel.”
Cole looked at Damian. “Can he fire me?”
“I’ve put Marco’s authority over staff discipline on hold,” Damian answered. “An independent manager will review it.”
Elena phoned Nora's lawyer with news of the anonymous complaint against her apartment. Caroline offered to put her in contact with a tenants' rights advocate and urged her to document each conversation with the landlord.
"I hate that Sophia might have to move again," Elena said.
Damian offered a short-term rental allowance through an agreement reviewed by Elena's own counsel. She declined for the moment and asked instead for flexible work hours while she found stable housing.
He agreed. The difference mattered: he was learning to ask what help would be useful, not deciding which solution would make him feel generous.
Upstairs, Sophia was trying to solve a puzzle on the rug. When one piece would not fit, she pressed harder until its cardboard edge bent. She looked ready to cry.
Elena sat beside her. "We can find another place for that one."
"I wanted it to be right," Sophia whispered.
"Wanting doesn't make it fit. Looking carefully might."
Damian heard the lesson without stepping into the room.
Sophia, listening from the doorway, said, “The person who makes everybody scared is usually scared of something, too.”
Damian turned toward her. “Who taught you that?”
“Mommy.”
May you like
She opened her drawing again and pointed to the three yellow marks above the door.
“The man with the gray case,” she said. “Did anybody ask what he put inside?”
