Chapter 18 - WHAT SOFIA RECORDED
The recording on Sofia’s tablet was longer than the first clip.
She had accidentally captured it days earlier while making a video of her stuffed animals in the hallway.
You could hear Clara and Nico in the kitchen.
Nico: Once Mateo signs, Blue Mesa gets the money.
Clara: And after January?
Nico: You stage the loss. We wait. Then Brandon moves the property.
Clara: I’m not doing this forever.
Nico: You don’t have to. Lisbon is booked.
Then came the line that ended any remaining ambiguity.
Clara: The baby part is fake. The transfer is real. That’s what matters now.
The detective listened twice.
He asked Sofia where she had been standing.
She pointed to the hallway rug.
“Were you trying to record them?”
“No,” she said. “I was making Mr. Rabbit dance.”
The detective smiled gently. “Mr. Rabbit did very important work.”
Sofia smiled for the first time in two days.
Then the recording continued.
My own voice came from a speaker in the kitchen. One of the messages I had left Clara from a business trip.
Tell Sofia I love her. I’ll call after dinner.
There was a pause.
Then Nico said, “You gonna let the kid talk to him?”
Clara answered, “No. She’s been asking too many questions.”
I had to leave the room.
In the hallway, Sofia found me sitting on the floor.
“Daddy?”
I wiped my face quickly.
“Hey, bug.”
“Are you sad?”
“Yeah.”
“Because I told?”
I pulled her into my lap.
“No. Listen to me. I’m sad because you had to be brave when the grown-ups should have been brave for you.”
She thought about that.
Then she asked the question I knew would stay with me forever.
“Do I still get to live with you if I make people mad?”
I held her so tight she squeaked.
“Yes.”
“Even if I tell bad secrets?”
“Especially then.”
May you like
She nodded against my chest.
Then she whispered, “There’s one more thing in my pocket.”
