I stared at Michael.<\/p>\n
\u201cCloser?\u201d<\/p>\n
He nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cTell me where she is.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNot yet.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy are you doing this?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause you still think information belongs to you simply because you demand it.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stood.<\/p>\n
\u201cI need to see her.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou need to understand why you're seeing her.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI already know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
He picked up the photograph of Sarah.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou think this is about your marriage.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIsn't it?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPartly.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd the rest?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe rest is about what happened years ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
I sat down again.<\/p>\n
Michael placed another document on the desk.<\/p>\n
It was a photocopy of an old financial statement.<\/p>\n
Numbers filled the page.<\/p>\n
Company names.<\/p>\n
Transfers.<\/p>\n
Dates.<\/p>\n
At the bottom was a signature.<\/p>\n
Mine.<\/p>\n
I stared at it.<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn't authorize that.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou signed it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don't remember.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou weren't supposed to.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat does that mean?\u201d<\/p>\n
Michael sat opposite me.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou signed because you trusted someone.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWho?\u201d<\/p>\n
He didn't answer.<\/p>\n
I studied the page.<\/p>\n
Then I remembered.<\/p>\n
A supervisor.<\/p>\n
A man who had helped me advance quickly.<\/p>\n
He had always told me that paperwork was routine.<\/p>\n
Sign here.<\/p>\n
Initial there.<\/p>\n
Move on.<\/p>\n
I had never questioned it.<\/p>\n
Until Rachel did.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe knew about this,\u201d I said.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd she took copies.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen why did she need me?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause she needed someone inside the company.\u201d<\/p>\n
I closed my eyes.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd she chose me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe tried.\u201d<\/p>\n
I opened them.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat do you mean?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou were supposed to help her.\u201d<\/p>\n
I felt sick.<\/p>\n
\u201cI never agreed.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou did.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Michael watched me.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou agreed before you knew what you were agreeing to.\u201d<\/p>\n
I remembered Rachel asking me questions.<\/p>\n
I remembered laughing.<\/p>\n
I remembered telling her I could get access to certain files.<\/p>\n
I had thought she was interested in me.<\/p>\n
I had mistaken her questions for affection.<\/p>\n
The realization was humiliating.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe was using me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Michael shook his head.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe was trying to expose people who were stealing money.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd me?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou were the easiest person to manipulate because you wanted her attention.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked away.<\/p>\n
It was true.<\/p>\n
At twenty-seven, I had been flattered by her interest.<\/p>\n
I had wanted to feel important.<\/p>\n
I had wanted to believe she wanted me.<\/p>\n
That vanity had made me careless.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat happened that night?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n
Michael sighed.<\/p>\n
\u201cRachel realized the people behind the payments knew she had the documents.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe came to my apartment.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe wanted help.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd I refused.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou told her to leave.\u201d<\/p>\n
I remembered.<\/p>\n
The exact words came back.<\/p>\n
I had told her that whatever she was involved in wasn't my problem.<\/p>\n
I had told her I wasn't risking my job.<\/p>\n
I had told her she was being dramatic.<\/p>\n
Then she had cried.<\/p>\n
I had watched her leave.<\/p>\n
And I had gone to bed.<\/p>\n
I covered my face.<\/p>\n
\u201cI should have helped her.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
The simple answer hurt.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat happened afterward?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSomeone followed her.\u201d<\/p>\n
My hands dropped.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe wasn't alone when she left your building.\u201d<\/p>\n
I remembered the car outside.<\/p>\n
I had seen it.<\/p>\n
I had assumed it belonged to someone else.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou knew?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI found out later.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy didn't you tell me?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou wouldn't have believed me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI would have.\u201d<\/p>\n
Michael's expression hardened.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou didn't believe Rachel.\u201d<\/p>\n
I fell silent.<\/p>\n
That was the truth.<\/p>\n
A truth I could no longer escape.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat happened to the documents?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMost were recovered.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBy whom?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe people Rachel was investigating.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd the rest?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOne copy survived.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked at him.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n
Michael said nothing.<\/p>\n
My chest tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cSarah.\u201d<\/p>\n
He nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe has it.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stood so quickly that the chair scraped backward.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe didn't know what it was at first.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen did she find it?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAfter you gave her access to your old storage.\u201d<\/p>\n
I remembered the boxes.<\/p>\n
The ones I had moved after my father died.<\/p>\n
The papers I had never bothered sorting.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou're saying Sarah found Rachel's documents in our house?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy didn't she tell me?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause she understood what they meant.\u201d<\/p>\n
I shook my head.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe knew before you told her?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd she still stayed with me?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe stayed long enough to understand the truth.\u201d<\/p>\n
I couldn't breathe normally.<\/p>\n
Everything was connecting.<\/p>\n
The folder.<\/p>\n
The caf\u00e9.<\/p>\n
Michael.<\/p>\n
Rachel.<\/p>\n
The old documents.<\/p>\n
Sarah's silence.<\/p>\n
But there was still one question.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy did Rachel disappear?\u201d<\/p>\n
Michael looked toward the window.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe didn't disappear.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe left because she was afraid.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOf the people after her?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere did she go?\u201d<\/p>\n
Michael finally reached into his coat.<\/p>\n
He removed a small card.<\/p>\n
He placed it on the desk.<\/p>\n
An address.<\/p>\n
I recognized the town.<\/p>\n
It was only a few hours away.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe lives there.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stared at the card.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou could have given me this yesterday.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou weren't ready.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI am now.\u201d<\/p>\n
Michael nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cThen go.\u201d<\/p>\n
I picked up the card.<\/p>\n
Before I reached the door, he spoke.<\/p>\n
\u201cDavid.\u201d<\/p>\n
I turned.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf Rachel asks you why you came, don't tell her you want forgiveness.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause that's what you want.\u201d<\/p>\n
I didn't answer.<\/p>\n
He continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cTell her the truth.\u201d<\/p>\n
I left.<\/p>\n
The drive home felt longer than it should have.<\/p>\n
I kept thinking about Sarah.<\/p>\n
About the first years of our marriage.<\/p>\n
About all the times she had looked at me and wondered whether I was telling the truth.<\/p>\n
I had thought she was suspicious.<\/p>\n
Now I understood she had been trying to preserve something that I had already damaged.<\/p>\n
When I reached home, the house was quiet.<\/p>\n
Sarah sat in the living room.<\/p>\n
She looked up.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou saw him.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did he tell you?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAbout Rachel.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sarah's face changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou know?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know where she is.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sarah looked down.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou weren't supposed to know yet.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause I wanted you to understand first.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI do.\u201d<\/p>\n
She shook her head.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo, you don't.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know what happened.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDo you?\u201d<\/p>\n
She stood.<\/p>\n
\u201cThen tell me.\u201d<\/p>\n
I told her.<\/p>\n
Everything I could remember.<\/p>\n
The old apartment.<\/p>\n
Rachel's fear.<\/p>\n
The documents.<\/p>\n
My refusal to help.<\/p>\n
The car outside.<\/p>\n
The lies.<\/p>\n
I didn't make myself sound better.<\/p>\n
I didn't soften the parts that made me ashamed.<\/p>\n
When I finished, Sarah was crying.<\/p>\n
\u201cI never knew you remembered all of that.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI tried not to.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat isn't the same as forgetting.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
She wiped her cheek.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy didn't you ever tell me?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause I was ashamed.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sarah gave a tired smile.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou should have trusted me enough to be ashamed in front of me.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked at her.<\/p>\n
That sentence hurt more than anything Michael had said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI want to see Rachel.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sarah nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou should.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWill you come?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
I understood.<\/p>\n
This wasn't her responsibility.<\/p>\n
She had already carried enough.<\/p>\n
I went upstairs and looked at the children sleeping.<\/p>\n
Their faces were peaceful.<\/p>\n
I stood in the doorway for several minutes.<\/p>\n
Then I returned downstairs.<\/p>\n
Sarah was waiting.<\/p>\n
\u201cI'll go tomorrow,\u201d I said.<\/p>\n
She nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cBefore you do, there's something you need to know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
Sarah opened the folder.<\/p>\n
At the very bottom was another envelope.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis came for you.\u201d<\/p>\n
I took it.<\/p>\n
\u201cFrom Rachel?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen who?\u201d<\/p>\n
Sarah looked directly at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cYour daughter.\u201d<\/p>\n
I froze.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
She held up a photograph.<\/p>\n
It wasn't our daughter.<\/p>\n
It was a picture of a young woman I didn't recognize.<\/p>\n
On the back was a date.<\/p>\n
And a name.<\/p>\n
Ella.<\/p>\n
I looked at Sarah.<\/p>\n
\u201cWho is Ella?\u201d<\/p>\n
Sarah's voice was barely above a whisper.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is the person you never knew you left behind.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stared at Michael. \u201cCloser?\u201d He nodded. \u201cTell me where she is.\u201d \u201cNot yet.\u201d \u201cWhy are you doing this?\u201d \u201cBecause you still think information belongs to you simply because you … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":14313,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-14320","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-insightdrama"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14320","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=14320"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14320\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14345,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14320\/revisions\/14345"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/14313"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=14320"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=14320"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=14320"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}