Chapter Fifty-Seven Maya

Chapter Fifty-Seven

Maya

August 2023

It’s the day of Kai’s wedding, and Nate and I have set off for the St. Clair estate, where Margaret is hosting the event. The couple and their close friends will all be staying the night, so we’ve packed an overnight bag and plan to leave Dani with Daisy’s au pair.

Dani is humming quietly in the back as she listens to music in her big over-ear headphones. Nate is driving, his Ford SUV more comfortable than my sedan. The yellow lines of the road tick by, illuminated by the headlights as the car cuts through the morning mist. When I told Nate about Matthew threatening our daughter, a side of him I rarely saw showed itself. “If he gets anywhere near her again, I’ll kill him,” he’d said.

Now Nate turns off the highway, past a sign that reads Welcome to Connecticut . I roll down the window, letting the cool morning air rush in.

“You doing okay?” Nate asks.

Before I answer, my new phone rings in the center console. The ring is unfamiliar, the default iPhone setting, and I’m still getting used to the fact that I’d had to replace the one I’d lost when Matthew attacked me. I look at the caller ID and see it’s Detective Gary.

“Detective?”

“Ms. Banks. We have some news. We reviewed the CCTV footage at Broadway Junction and can confirm that a man attacked you. Unfortunately, his face was hidden from view.” My heart sinks. “But…we found Sara Vail’s car at a gas station on I-95, five miles outside Princeton, during the time she said she was with him—she wasn’t actually home. Seeing as Mr. DuPont no longer has an alibi for your sister’s time of death, he is now a person of interest.”

—

The back lawn is already teeming with hundreds of guests, stifling hot. I shiver despite the heat, despite the sweat dripping down the small of my back. One foot, then the other. The detectives are on it. Matthew is going to prison. I focus on that thought as my feet tread over the fresh-cut grass, willing it into existence as I follow Nate into the ceremony.

A pergola arches over the space, bursting with roses and purple wisteria. Waiters bustle about with silver trays and hors d’oeuvres. We’re taking our seats when Daisy rushes over. “I’m glad you’re here.”

“What’s wrong? Are the girls okay?” I ask, worried about Dani. She’d thrown a fit when we’d left her with Daisy’s au pair.

“They’re fine,” Daisy says. “But—look, I got in touch with Marta. I know you told me not to but I had to try. You were right. Naomi was asking her about Lila. Marta didn’t want to talk to me at first, but eventually she admitted that Naomi had asked for her help. I reminded her that Naomi’s death is now being investigated as a potential murder, and that something she knows could help put away her killer. That’s when Marta told me that she has the security camera footage. ”

I stare at her. “What security camera footage?”

“The video. From the ski trip.”

I stare at Daisy, and before I can process the information, her husband, Scott, appears next to her and a rustling of movement sweeps through the crowd as guests stand around us. My chest feels tight as I stand with them and turn to watch Kai make her way down the back steps. It spreads down my torso into my ribs as Daisy’s words sink in: The video. The camera we’d left at the cabin. It might have evidence of what happened the night Lila died…

I can feel my heartbeat in my throat. The video. I can’t believe Marta had it this whole time. I clutch the side of my seat, trying to keep it together. We have to get her to send us that video.

Kai appears in a white silk gown at the end of the aisle. The groom, Marcus, looks calm, present as the quartet plays a bridal march and Kai makes her way toward him. During the rest of the ceremony, I find it hard to focus, and afterward, escape to the house to get away from the crowd.

I’m catching my breath in the living room when I hear two people arguing upstairs. I follow the sound of their voices until, from the second-floor landing, I make out a bright line of light seeping from beneath the door at the end of the hall.

Peering into the crack in the door, I gasp at the sight.

It’s Matthew.

His face is red, and his hands are folded in front of him, his eyes on the ground as his fiancée, Sara, talks animatedly, her back to me, clearly upset. She stops abruptly, her hand gripping the red leather chair as if for support. Matthew doesn’t move. From here I can see the tension between them, the stiffness of his stance, the way he’s flexing his jaw.

She must know that he’s a suspect in my sister’s case. That he attacked me the other night. She has plenty to be upset about.

She says something I can’t make out and reaches for him violently, as if to strike him. But just as her hand nears his face, he seizesit.

“Not now,” he replies, tightly. “We’ll talk later.”

I’m taking another step closer, straining to hear, when the floor creaks.

Matthew looks directly at me and my heart lurches. No no no. I take a step away, and another, before I turn and run.

—

My heart races as I rush through the party looking for Daisy.

“Matthew’s here,” I tell her, out of breath, when I find her near the bar.

“What, why?” She looks over her shoulder. “Where is he?”

I point to the house. “Upstairs. He and Sara were arguing.” My hands are shaking. People waiting in line are looking at us.

“Marcus probably invited him. They do business together,” Daisy says, pulling me away from them, but she looks concerned. “I’m here. Nate’s here. There’s hundreds of other people here. He can’t hurt you. If he tries, we’ll call the police.”

—

An hour later, we’re at the reception. the sun has gone down and the wind has picked up, rattling the trees, making the candle flames dance. Kai comes out in a traditional red silk gown, a cheongsam, and the guests erupt in cheers, clinking glasses, screams.

I can’t get comfortable, I keep expecting Matthew to be inches from me every time I turn around. I send a text to Margaret. Matthew’s here.

She responds after a few minutes: That bastard, he should have known better than to come here. I’m sorry—I’ll send him away.

I watch Matthew out of the corner of my eye. Does he know Daisy spoke to Marta? Did he come to try to stop us?

I touch my throat, remembering the feel of his hands on my neck, the sound of the oncoming train. I picture him waiting outside our apartment in the black SUV, talking to Dani after school. Sweat beads on my forehead, and I force a breath, dig my nails into my palms, as the sound of the train grows louder. Make it stop.

The microphone screeches, and I flinch. “Thank you all for coming,” Marcus says. I force myself to look away from Matthew. “We cannot express the joy and gratitude we feel to be able to celebrate this special day with you.” He holds his glass up and hands the microphone to Kai. “With all the awful things going on in the world, we feel so blessed to be able to celebrate our love with all of you. Thank you to Margaret and John for hosting.” Kai gestures to Margaret’s table, but her chair is empty next to John. I glance around and see Margaret marching toward Matthew’s table. Oh no. “And to our family and friends who have traveled halfway around the world to be here,” she says. “And…we have a surprise for you this evening. My talented friend, Brigitte Senyuva, has choreographed this original piece for us.”

The DJ starts the music and dancers in flowing fabric take the stage. One of the girls, with her curly Afro and focused expression, reminds me of Naomi. Beyond them, on the opposite side of the dance floor, seeing Margaret approach, Matthew stands up from his table.

I lean over and whisper to Nate, looking in their direction. “Matthew’s here.”

—

Whatever Margaret said to Matthew must not have worked, because she’s back at her table, and he’s at his. After dinner, Nate gets up to get another drink from the bar. Kai and Marcus are beginning their first dance when Daisy lets out a little yelp, pointing across the reception. “Oh no. Maya, look!”

Across the reception, Nate is in Matthew’s face, shaking his hands in the air. Matthew shoves him.

Guests turn to stare, but Kai and Marcus are lost in their first dance, unaware of the commotion.

“What are you doing?” I whisper-yell when I’m close enough for them to hear me, trying not to call any more attention to the situation than there already is. A small crowd of men has gathered around them. Nate has Matthew pinned, one fist raised overhead. I pull Nate’s arm. “Stop it, stop!”

Matthew staggers to his feet. He brings his hand from his lip, which is split, bleeding down his chin. “You’re lucky I don’t press charges,” Matthew spits.

Nate stares at him, hunched over like a boxer, with a wild, soulless look in his eyes I’ve never seen before. He looks like he’s about to lunge at Matthew again, but I grab his arm. “Don’t. It’s not worth it.”

—

In the pool house, where we’re staying, Nate holds an ice pack to his cheek. The life has come back to his eyes but now he looks spent.

“I don’t know what you were thinking,” I say, trying to keep the judgment out of my voice, because the truth is, if I’d had the chance to punch Matthew in the face, I’d have done it too.

“He should stay away from my family,” Nate says through clenched teeth. He smells like alcohol.

“How much did you have to drink?”

He ignores me.

“What happened? Did he say something to you?”

Nate closes his eyes, shakes his head.

“What did he say?”

Nate’s jaw clenches. His eyes flash with hatred. “He tried to hurt you. He tried to hurt Dani. ”

—

I want to tell Nate that Marta has the video, but I don’t know how he’d react. Now isn’t the right time.

Instead, I put my head on his chest and thread my arms around his torso. “Remember what the detective said—his alibi fell through,” I remind him. “This is almost over.”