Chapter 8 - Olivia Heard Everything
Adrian returned home with new locks, two security guards, and a silence he could not escape.
Olivia was waiting in the kitchen.
“You sent Mrs. Grant home.”
“She’s with her sister tonight.”
“And Clara?”
“She’s staying somewhere else.”
Olivia’s face fell.
“Because of you.”
Adrian did not defend himself.
“Yes.”
Olivia sat at the island.
For twelve years, Adrian had believed protecting his daughter meant shielding her from ugly truths.
Rachel had disagreed.
“She’s stronger than you think,” Rachel used to say.
Adrian finally understood.
He sat across from Olivia.
“Vanessa may have been lying to us for a long time.”
Olivia stared at the counter.
“I know.”
Adrian frowned.
“What do you mean?”
Olivia hesitated.
“Promise you won’t get mad.”
“I promise I’ll listen.”
That wording mattered now.
Olivia slowly pulled her phone from her pocket.
“There are voice recordings.”
Adrian’s stomach tightened.
“Of Vanessa?”
Olivia nodded.
“Why were you recording her?”
“Because she said things when you weren’t home.”
“What things?”
Olivia pressed play.
Vanessa’s voice filled the kitchen.
“You need to stop talking about your mother so much.”
Adrian’s face went rigid.
Olivia’s recorded voice answered.
“Why?”
“Because your father is trying to move forward.”
Another clip played.
“You’re old enough to take care of yourself, Olivia.”
Then another.
“Clara won’t be here forever.”
Another.
“When your father and I get married, some things in this house will change.”
Adrian could barely breathe.
The last clip was worse.
Olivia had recorded it four nights earlier.
Vanessa sounded angry.
“If Clara tells your father anything about his office, you keep your mouth shut.”
“Why?”
“Because grown-up problems can break families apart.”
“Clara doesn’t lie.”
A pause.
Then Vanessa spoke more softly.
“Neither did your mother, and look what happened to her.”
Adrian stood so suddenly the chair scraped across the floor.
“What did she mean?”
Olivia looked frightened.
“I don’t know.”
Adrian replayed the recording.
Neither did your mother, and look what happened to her.
The sentence could mean nothing.
Or it could mean everything.
He called Detective Reed.
Reed listened.
“We’ll add it to the evidence.”
“Do you think Vanessa had something to do with Rachel’s death?”
“Adrian.”
“Answer me.”
“We have no evidence of that.”
“But she knew Rachel before me.”
“That doesn’t mean she caused her illness.”
Rachel had died of an aggressive cancer.
Adrian knew that.
He knew grief could turn coincidence into conspiracy.
Still, Vanessa’s words stayed in his head.
Olivia began crying quietly.
Adrian put the phone down.
“I’m sorry.”
“Did Vanessa hurt Mom?”
“I don’t know.”
“You said you would tell me the truth.”
“The truth is I don’t know.”
Olivia nodded.
Then she asked the question Adrian feared.
“Why did you believe Vanessa instead of Clara?”
Adrian could have said the scene was chaotic.
He could have said Emma was crying.
He could have said Vanessa appeared terrified.
All of that was true.
None of it was enough.
“Because I reacted before I thought.”
Olivia waited.
“And because I trusted the wrong person.”
“Do you trust Clara?”
“Yes.”
“Does Clara trust you?”
Adrian looked away.
“No.”
“Then fix that.”
“I don’t know if I can.”
Olivia wiped her eyes.
“Mom used to say sorry is what you say.”
Adrian looked at her.
“And changing is what you do.”
Rachel’s words.
Adrian remembered them.
He had forgotten how often Olivia remembered everything.
Later that night, after Olivia went upstairs, the doorbell camera alerted Adrian.
A package had been placed outside the gate.
The security guard retrieved it.
Inside was Rachel’s missing medical journal.
Adrian had not seen it since the week she died.
May you like
A yellow note was taped to the cover.
ASK YOURSELF WHY VANESSA HAD THIS.
