Chapter 12 - THE PHOTOGRAPHER
The snapshots proved Serena had approached my chair before the party. They did not prove what she had done at the edge. Detective Ellis reminded me of that when I wanted to call them the answer.
"We need what happened, not only what we know in our bones," she said.
Tessa came over with a name: Nina Park, the photographer hired for the gala. Nina had been taking pictures of the rooftop at sunset. Tessa remembered seeing her beside the glass elevator when the shouting began.
We met Nina at Leah's office. She was small, direct, and furious about being dragged into the scandal.
"The hotel said I violated my contract by giving pictures to the police," she said. "I never gave them anything. I was afraid they'd delete my work, so I sent one frame anonymously to Mia."
"The picture of the red ribbon?" I asked.
She nodded. "I thought you should see it."
Nina had saved all her originals, including a thirty-second video she took while testing a new camera. In it, guests crossed behind the glass elevator. The polished doors reflected the pool deck.
At first the reflection looked like a blur. Then Serena appeared behind my chair. She leaned forward. The chair moved quickly. A flash of green dress vanished out of frame.
I put my hand over my mouth. Watching wasn't like remembering. Watching meant I couldn't pretend I'd misunderstood.
Tessa's face tightened. "That's her. That's exactly what she did."
The recording was imperfect, but Nina had preserved the original file and its metadata. Ellis took a copy, along with a list of guests who might have filmed the same moment.
At the end of the meeting, Nina opened a separate photograph. Serena was crouched beside my chair an hour before the fall. Her hand was on the rear brake. A thin red ribbon ran from the lever to the frame.
"I thought it was a decoration," Nina said.
May you like
Leah leaned closer.
"That's not a decoration," she said. "It's holding the brake open."
