Chapter 13 - Nora's Name in the Report
The school had received an anonymous complaint about Nora two days after the incident. It claimed she had left Lily unattended during a swim lesson and had a history of reckless behavior. The school had forwarded it to the local swim program, which suspended Nora while it reviewed the accusation.
I called the director and told him I had new evidence. He was cautious. "Mr. Mercer, we can't act on a private dispute. We need statements and records."
"You'll have them."
Nora met me at a coffee shop away from the estate. She looked exhausted, with dark circles under her eyes and a folder on the table between us. She had kept copies of every lesson note, including the dates Lily had asked not to be left alone near the gate.
"She told me someone kept opening it," Nora said. "I reported it to the estate manager twice. He said he'd take care of it."
"Who was the estate manager?"
"Owen Pike."
I knew Owen. He had managed the property since Emily's last year, and I trusted him with keys, vendors, and the security system. He had been the person who recommended Celeste's event company for the foundation gala.
Nora pushed another paper toward me. It was a work order requesting that the pool gate alarm be disabled for a private landscaping project. The signature at the bottom was Owen's, but the date was the day before Lily fell.
"I didn't disable the alarm," Nora said. "I asked why it was off. Owen told me the system was being updated."
I took a photo of the work order. As I stood to leave, Nora caught my sleeve.
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"Daniel, there's something else. The day Emily died, I was on duty at the community center across the road. I saw Owen's truck leave your property just before the ambulance arrived."
The swim program director called later and said he had reviewed Nora's file. Her notes were detailed, dated, and consistent. "I should have asked for her account before suspending her," he admitted. I wished the adults in Lily's life had all been that willing to correct themselves.
