No one spoke for several seconds.<\/p>\n
Caroline remained near the conference-room door, her hands hanging stiffly at her sides.<\/p>\n
Claire stared at her sister-in-law.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat do you mean Elias wasn\u2019t the first?\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline looked at Rachel.<\/p>\n
\u201cAre you still representing Claire?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd anything I say here?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMay be protected depending on the context. Sit down first.\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline gave a humorless laugh.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou still sound like a lawyer.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI am still a lawyer.\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline sat.<\/p>\n
Her eyes moved toward me.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m sorry. I don\u2019t know your name.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMaya.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd the baby?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMilo.\u201d<\/p>\n
She looked at him for a long moment.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow old?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAlmost three months.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDown syndrome?\u201d<\/p>\n
I nodded.<\/p>\n
She shut her eyes briefly.<\/p>\n
\u201cOf course.\u201d<\/p>\n
Anger rose in me.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat does that mean?\u201d<\/p>\n
Her eyes opened.<\/p>\n
\u201cNot about him. About my mother.\u201d<\/p>\n
Claire leaned forward.<\/p>\n
\u201cTell us.\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline rubbed her palms together.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I was sixteen, my cousin Evelyn got pregnant.\u201d<\/p>\n
Claire frowned.<\/p>\n
\u201cYour aunt Helena\u2019s daughter?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI thought Evelyn moved abroad.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s what the family said.\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline looked at us one by one.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe had the baby.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel began taking notes.<\/p>\n
\u201cFather?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cA boy from school. The family paid him to disappear.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd the child?\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline swallowed.<\/p>\n
\u201cBorn with cerebral palsy.\u201d<\/p>\n
My stomach tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat happened?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMy mother stepped in.\u201d<\/p>\n
Claire\u2019s face changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cMargaret?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cEvelyn wasn\u2019t her daughter.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo. But Grandfather was still alive then, and Mother already controlled most family decisions.\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline\u2019s voice grew flatter.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe convinced Helena that Evelyn could not handle a disabled baby. She said the publicity would ruin her life.\u201d<\/p>\n
Claire whispered, \u201cHow old was Evelyn?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSeventeen.\u201d<\/p>\n
I felt sick.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey placed the baby?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPrivate medical foster care.\u201d<\/p>\n
The phrase was becoming poisonous.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat happened to Evelyn?\u201d Rachel asked.<\/p>\n
Caroline stared at the table.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe fought them.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFor how long?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMonths.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd?\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline\u2019s mouth tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe was hospitalized.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPsychiatric?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Claire went pale.<\/p>\n
\u201cWas she ill?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe was devastated.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat isn\u2019t what I asked.\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline looked at her.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
The room fell silent.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe threatened to go to the press,\u201d Caroline continued. \u201cMother told everyone she was unstable and obsessed.\u201d<\/p>\n
I thought of Rachel\u2019s warning.<\/p>\n
Build evidence faster than they build a story.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat happened to the baby?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou don\u2019t know?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI was sixteen.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re telling us Margaret did this before but you don\u2019t know where the child went?\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline flinched.<\/p>\n
\u201cI knew pieces. Not everything.\u201d<\/p>\n
Claire\u2019s eyes hardened.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou never told me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t connect it to Elias.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow could you not?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause I thought Elias died.\u201d<\/p>\n
The words struck hard enough to stop Claire.<\/p>\n
Caroline continued more quietly.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen Julian called me after the birth, he was destroyed.\u201d<\/p>\n
Claire stared at her.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe called you?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did he say?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat Elias had complications.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe night he was born.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBefore Julian told me Elias died.\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline\u2019s eyes widened slightly.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Claire leaned closer.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat exactly did he say?\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline searched her memory.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe said Mother was handling the medical decisions because you were in surgery.\u201d<\/p>\n
Claire\u2019s breathing changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid he mention placement?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid he say Elias was dying?\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline hesitated.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Claire looked at Rachel.<\/p>\n
\u201cThen Julian knew before he told me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline sat straighter.<\/p>\n
\u201cKnew what?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat Margaret was taking Elias.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou just said\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI said Mother was handling decisions.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd you thought that was normal?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIn my family?\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline gave a brittle laugh.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
That answer explained more than anything else.<\/p>\n
Rachel interrupted.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen did you learn Elias was alive?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFour months ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
Claire stared.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou knew four months ago?\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline looked ashamed.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd you didn\u2019t tell me?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI tried.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo, you didn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI sent you a message.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI never got one.\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline\u2019s expression changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI never got a message from you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI sent it through Julian\u2019s office because I didn\u2019t have your private number.\u201d<\/p>\n
Claire laughed in disbelief.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou sent a secret about Julian to Julian\u2019s office?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI was scared.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat doesn\u2019t make sense.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNothing about that family makes sense from outside.\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline\u2019s voice rose for the first time.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou think leaving fixes it? You think you walk away and suddenly twenty years of knowing what Mother can do disappears?\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel raised a hand.<\/p>\n
\u201cStop.\u201d<\/p>\n
Both women fell silent.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe need facts.\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cI learned because an old trust administrator contacted me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cName?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cEdward Marr.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel wrote it down.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe said he was retiring and wanted to correct something.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cA beneficiary record.\u201d<\/p>\n
Claire leaned forward.<\/p>\n
\u201cElias.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did he tell you?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat Elias Sterling had been receiving trust-funded medical support for years.\u201d<\/p>\n
My heart began pounding.<\/p>\n
\u201cTrust-funded?\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cNot charity donations. Direct family trust money.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel\u2019s pen stopped.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat matters.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause direct distributions establish acknowledgment.\u201d<\/p>\n
Claire understood first.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey couldn\u2019t claim he was unrelated or abandoned.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCorrect.\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cEdward showed me records. Elias was listed under an internal beneficiary code.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat code?\u201d<\/p>\n
She looked at Rachel.<\/p>\n
\u201cD-seven.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel wrote it down.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat does D mean?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDependent.\u201d<\/p>\n
Claire whispered, \u201cSeven?\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cSeventh dependent on the trust registry.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel looked up sharply.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow many dependents should there have been?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAt the time? Five.\u201d<\/p>\n
Silence.<\/p>\n
My skin prickled.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo there were other hidden children?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n
Caroline nodded slowly.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt least two.\u201d<\/p>\n
The room seemed to contract.<\/p>\n
Claire looked nauseated.<\/p>\n
\u201cWho?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel spoke.<\/p>\n
\u201cCould the codes include adults under guardianship?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo not necessarily children.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo. But Edward specifically called them minors.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked at Milo.<\/p>\n
The pattern widened beyond Elias.<\/p>\n
This was no longer one monstrous decision.<\/p>\n
It was a system.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat happened to Edward?\u201d Rachel asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe died.\u201d<\/p>\n
Claire stared.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThree weeks after contacting me.\u201d<\/p>\n
A cold silence followed.<\/p>\n
Rachel\u2019s expression remained controlled.<\/p>\n
\u201cCause?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHeart attack.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAny reason to suspect otherwise?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline seemed offended by the implication.<\/p>\n
\u201cNot everything is murder.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo one said it was.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel returned to her notes.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid Edward give you records?\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline reached beneath her sweater and pulled out a thin flash drive attached to a cord.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Everyone stared at it.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve carried this since I left Lisbon.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel did not touch it.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ll have forensic copies made.\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt includes distributions, internal notes, and some scanned authorizations.\u201d<\/p>\n
Claire\u2019s face tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cElias\u2019s?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSigned by whom?\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline hesitated.<\/p>\n
\u201cMargaret.\u201d<\/p>\n
That fit what we already suspected.<\/p>\n
But then Caroline added, \u201cAnd Julian.\u201d<\/p>\n
Claire went completely still.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSome documents have his signature.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m sorry.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Claire stood so fast the chair nearly tipped.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe told me Elias died.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe stood beside my bed.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe watched me bury an empty coffin.\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline\u2019s face crumpled.<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo, you don\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n
Claire walked away from the table.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou don\u2019t know what it is to wake up every morning and remember your child is dead.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her voice broke.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou don\u2019t know what it is to become pregnant again and hate yourself because part of you thinks you\u2019re replacing him.\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline began crying silently.<\/p>\n
Claire did not stop.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou don\u2019t know what it is to look at Leo and wonder whether loving him is betrayal.\u201d<\/p>\n
The room held still around her.<\/p>\n
Then Claire turned back.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd Julian knew?\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline\u2019s voice barely carried.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Claire gripped the back of a chair until her knuckles whitened.<\/p>\n
Rachel stood.<\/p>\n
\u201cClaire.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDon\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI need you to sit.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMilo is here.\u201d<\/p>\n
That reached her.<\/p>\n
Claire looked at me.<\/p>\n
Then at the baby.<\/p>\n
She inhaled slowly and sat.<\/p>\n
I understood why Rachel had said it.<\/p>\n
Not to shame Claire.<\/p>\n
To give her something real to hold onto.<\/p>\n
Caroline wiped her face.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s more.\u201d<\/p>\n
Claire laughed bitterly.<\/p>\n
\u201cOf course there is.\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline looked at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen Edward showed me the records, he said Margaret had started preparing a new dependent file.\u201d<\/p>\n
My stomach dropped.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cLast summer.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBefore Milo was born.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBefore I even knew I was pregnant?\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline frowned.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen did you find out?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFebruary.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen yes.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stared at her.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s impossible.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel leaned forward.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat exactly did Edward say?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat Margaret asked him to prepare structures for an unacknowledged descendant.\u201d<\/p>\n
I felt cold.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut Julian and I met in July.\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline looked confused.<\/p>\n
Rachel was not.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen last summer?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAugust.\u201d<\/p>\n
One month after Julian and I met.<\/p>\n
My pulse hammered.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow would Margaret know?\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline shook her head.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
I thought back.<\/p>\n
August.<\/p>\n
Julian had already been staying at my apartment.<\/p>\n
He had already insisted on no photos.<\/p>\n
Already divided his time.<\/p>\n
Already created the sick-mother story.<\/p>\n
\u201cWas the file about Milo?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel held up a hand.<\/p>\n
\u201cDo not assume.\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe draft didn\u2019t include a name.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did it include?\u201d Rachel asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cA contingency structure. Medical support. Confidential housing.\u201d<\/p>\n
My mouth went dry.<\/p>\n
\u201cHousing where?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cResidential care?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPossibly.\u201d<\/p>\n
Claire looked at me.<\/p>\n
This was older than the diagnosis.<\/p>\n
Older than the pregnancy.<\/p>\n
A thought formed slowly.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat if Julian didn\u2019t meet me by accident?\u201d<\/p>\n
No one answered.<\/p>\n
The hotel bar.<\/p>\n
The empty stool.<\/p>\n
The conversation.<\/p>\n
His attention.<\/p>\n
His perfect questions.<\/p>\n
His schedule.<\/p>\n
I felt suddenly foolish for remembering any of it as chance.<\/p>\n
Claire\u2019s face changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cMaya.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere was that conference?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Fairmont downtown.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cJuly eighteenth.\u201d<\/p>\n
She went pale.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat was Sterling Vale\u2019s annual portfolio meeting.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stared.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cJulian told me he was staying there because his office conference ran late.\u201d<\/p>\n
Claire shook her head.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe didn\u2019t stay there.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow do you know?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause he came home.\u201d<\/p>\n
The room seemed to move beneath me.<\/p>\n
Rachel asked, \u201cMaya, what company were you representing?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWestbridge Medical Billing.\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline looked sharply at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
I repeated it.<\/p>\n
She sat back.<\/p>\n
\u201cOh, God.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWestbridge handles claims for Briar Glen.\u201d<\/p>\n
The words hit me like cold water.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI saw the vendor name in Edward\u2019s records.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel looked at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid Julian know where you worked when he approached you?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe asked.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWithin the first ten minutes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Silence.<\/p>\n
My skin crawled.<\/p>\n
Every memory shifted shape.<\/p>\n
He had not simply met a woman in a bar.<\/p>\n
He may have met an employee connected indirectly to the facility where his hidden son lived.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy would that matter?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n
No one had an answer.<\/p>\n
Then Caroline pointed toward Milo.<\/p>\n
\u201cMaybe you were never supposed to get pregnant.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked at her.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat doesn\u2019t make me feel better.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen what was I supposed to be?\u201d<\/p>\n
She hesitated.<\/p>\n
\u201cA way into Westbridge.\u201d<\/p>\n
Claire\u2019s eyes narrowed.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor what?\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline looked at the flash drive.<\/p>\n
\u201cRecords.\u201d<\/p>\n
Milo began to cry.<\/p>\n
I lifted him, but my hands were shaking so badly that Claire came beside me.<\/p>\n
\u201cGive him to me.\u201d<\/p>\n
I hesitated only a second.<\/p>\n
Then I placed him in her arms.<\/p>\n
Claire held Milo against her shoulder with practiced ease.<\/p>\n
He quieted almost immediately.<\/p>\n
The sight nearly broke something in me.<\/p>\n
Julian\u2019s wife comforting Julian\u2019s son while we uncovered the possibility that Julian had selected me for reasons I still did not understand.<\/p>\n
Rachel looked at Caroline.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat records would Sterling Vale want from Westbridge?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMedical claims.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhose?\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline\u2019s eyes moved toward Claire.<\/p>\n
\u201cElias\u2019s.\u201d<\/p>\n
The answer made the entire room silent.<\/p>\n
Rachel spoke first.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf Westbridge processed Briar Glen claims, its system may contain documentation the Sterlings couldn\u2019t fully control.\u201d<\/p>\n
Claire tightened her hold on Milo.<\/p>\n
\u201cEvidence Elias was alive.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
I felt my stomach drop.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd I worked there.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel\u2019s expression changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat exactly did you do?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cProvider dispute resolution.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you have access to old claim files?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSometimes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow old?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYears.\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline whispered, \u201cThat\u2019s why.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked toward the locked conference-room door.<\/p>\n
For the first time, the beginning of my relationship with Julian no longer looked like the beginning of a love affair.<\/p>\n
It looked like an assignment.<\/p>\n
And somewhere along the way, I had become pregnant.<\/p>\n
Rachel closed her notebook.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo one goes home alone.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked at Milo in Claire\u2019s arms.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd tomorrow?\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel\u2019s eyes settled on the flash drive.<\/p>\n
\u201cTomorrow we find out whether Julian Sterling met you because he wanted you\u2014or because eight years ago, his family left evidence they couldn\u2019t erase.\u201d<\/p>\n
No one spoke for several seconds. Caroline remained near the conference-room door, her hands hanging stiffly at her sides. Claire stared at her sister-in-law. \u201cWhat do you mean Elias wasn\u2019t … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":31282,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-31290","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\/31290","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=31290"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31290\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":31325,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31290\/revisions\/31325"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/31282"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=31290"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=31290"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=31290"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}