Chapter 10 - A Thief in a Uniform
Two officers came to the estate after Vanessa reported the missing earring. I showed them my locker, told them I hadn't touched the jewelry, and gave them the names of people who had access to the staff corridor. I didn't ask Luca to make them leave.
Vanessa stood at the end of the hall, watching me with the same expression she'd worn after the slap: not furious now, just certain that I would be the one to pay.
"I found my own earring in her locker," she said. "What more do you need?"
"We need to determine who put it there," one officer replied.
Nora arrived and advised me not to consent to an unnecessary search without understanding the request. I answered questions I could answer. Mrs. Alvarez provided the names of staff who shared access to the lockers. Luca gave the officers the security logs through counsel.
There was no arrest. The officers documented the report and said they would follow up. Vanessa looked furious that it had not ended in handcuffs.
"I want you out," she hissed when we crossed paths by the stairs.
"I'm leaving for the night," I said. "Not because you say I'm guilty."
Michael offered to drive me home. I refused; I needed to prove to myself that I could still walk out of that house on my own terms. Dad waited at the curb in his old blue car.
On the way home, my phone chimed. Camille had sent one photo she had taken before handing in her badge. It showed the staff corridor at the time my locker was open. Vanessa's assistant was visible at the far end, holding the silver garment bag used to carry the green gown.
The assistant wasn't Camille.
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She was a woman I had never seen before, wearing the badge of Northline Restorations.
Under the photograph Camille wrote: SHE WAS ALSO AT LUCA'S OFFICE DOOR.
