Chapter Fifty-One Her

Chapter Fifty-One Her

Present Day

Answers didn’t bring relief. They raised more questions. The cascade of lies and secrets led to more damage. The ripple effect

swallowed coconspirators and innocent bystanders and touched off new rounds of whispers and recriminations.

Never were the limits on what I’d learned so clear. There would be investigations and reviews of Richmond’s other surgeries.

None of that directly impacted me, except that Richmond’s estate might need to compensate victims, depending on what games

the insurance company played.

Thomas was in a hospital with a concussion. Safely handcuffed to his bed. His family locked down, refusing to talk to anyone.

People in town were in an uproar. The press talked about conspiracies. Parents came forward, insisting Richmond and his team

saved their children. Others, in pained voices, told horror stories about seeing their babies for the last time.

The unraveling should spill over and raise questions about Richmond’s heroic teenage tale. If the armchair true crime detectives

and police didn’t step in, I would. But I was happy to let someone else uncover the truth and disclose it, cementing me in

the role of the shocked and disgusted wife.

Mom hated that I wasn’t taking a more active role in the downfall of Richmond’s reputation, which is why I sat on the back patio, nursing a glass of iced tea and enjoying a minute of quiet. I welcomed the crisp air and soft whistle of wind. The confrontation with Thomas could have ended in bloodshed and death. The cacophonous crash and bang of what ifs and could-have-beens made it difficult to concentrate.

“If I didn’t know better I’d say you were hiding.” Elias sounded more relaxed than when he arrived at the house three days

ago and watched Thomas get carted off in the ambulance.

“You do and I am.”

Elias delivered a lecture during a call yesterday about listening to him and not inviting people to the house. I didn’t know

anything about having a dad but the mix of disappointment and relief in Elias’s voice mirrored the dads I saw on television

shows.

My positive mood bump vanished when Detective Sessions followed Elias out of the house and into my no-longer-safe space. I’d

only expected one of them when Elias texted about a visit an hour ago. “Do you two ever get tired of rushing over here to

talk with me?”

The detective nodded. “Yes.”

“Definitely,” Elias said at the same time. “But this trip brings good news.”

“Where’s your mother?” the detective asked.

“She’s in her room. She’s mad at me and, this is a paraphrase, needed to not see me for a few hours.” She hadn’t changed her

fight exit line since I was a kid.

The detective frowned. “You two have an odd relationship.”

Amen to that.

“August is no longer in custody, but dropping the assault charges won’t save his medical career,” Elias said.

“I’m not sure that’s a bad thing.” He’d marched along to orders he knew were wrong without saying a word. His poor decisions

cost a family their child, which made it tough to root for him. “It’s a fair punishment for getting wrapped up in Richmond’s

bullshit.”

“Speaking of which, August is also telling everything he knows about Richmond and Thomas and the surgery deal.” Elias exhaled.

“In the ultimate fall from grace, Thomas has been removed from the medical practice he founded.”

“That was quick. The poor bastard.” I loaded that response with as much sarcasm as possible.

“And he could be looking at a murder charge,” the detective said.

I nearly dropped my glass. “Peter Cullen is dead?”

“No, he’s fine.” The detective held up a hand as if to tell me to calm down. “I’m talking about Richmond. Thomas had a financial motive to keep Richmond quiet. People in the medical office said there was a lot of tension between

the two of them ever since Richmond’s divorce from Kathryn.”

The detective’s voice lacked its usual accusatory punch. Interesting since the divorce actually was my fault.

He continued. “Thomas also knew this house well and likely was someone Richmond would have welcomed inside on the day he died.

Thomas not bringing a weapon with him and using something from the house suggests a spur-of-the-moment decision. Maybe an

argument that blew out of proportion.”

That meant Thomas knew about my bat and where I kept it. But how? Not from Richmond. He’d invested a lot of time in making me sound dangerous but would he admit to a colleague that his new wife hated him enough to keep a bat by her bed? Not sure.

“You’re still investigating.” I didn’t phrase it as a question because the detective didn’t say Thomas already had been arrested

for murder.

“I’ll keep Elias updated. Thomas is in a broken state. I’m hoping for a confession.”

“Good luck with that.” And I meant it.

The detective hesitated for a few seconds. “I’m assuming a man who would lie about something as serious as his commitment

to sick children might have lied about other things in his life. It’s up to you if you want to open that door.”

With that, the detective walked away, leaving the usual emotional uproar in his wake.

“What the hell was that last part? You didn’t tell him about—”

“No.” Elias sat in the chair next to mine.

No lawyer lecture. A definitive no and I believed a genuine one.

That still left a lot of open questions. “Not sure I buy the theory about Thomas losing it and killing Richmond.”

Elias relaxed in the chair. “Me either.”

That was a massive problem I’d tackle another day. Right now, the subject I’d tried to ignore and dance around even though

it was always on my mind poked at me. There was a reason I used disposable toothbrushes and cleaned out my brush and sink

drain every day. Probably ineffective gestures but who knew.

“I have a client question.”

Elias tensed but his voice didn’t change. “I’m listening.”

“What are the chances the police collected my DNA on one of their searches of the house?”

“Pretty good.”

“That’s not the answer I wanted.” But it was the one I knew I’d get. Thinking about this issue was one of the many things

that kept me up at night.

“I’m not sure how to advise you when you’re still keeping secrets.”

“The problem is not all of the secrets belong to me.” The intimate details that locked me in a desperate conspiracy with my

mother remained hers alone.

After a lifetime steeped in emotional blackmail and wrenching disappointment I merely existed. Trauma mixed with secrets until

my mother’s taunts became my belief system. She kept me alive, so I owed her. I could run but there would be a reckoning...

and I was living that now.

The tragic part about escaping your past is that you never actually do. It’s always there, in the background and in stark

memories, waiting to pounce.

“I think part of you wants to tell me everything.” Elias’s voice was softer now, coaxing. “You deserve to unload some of that

weight you carry.”

I would have laughed at him if he’d delivered the line a few weeks ago. Now, I trusted him, or I trusted him as much as I

was able to trust anyone. “I’m not a big sharer.”

“And how’s that working out for you?”

Happily widowed but nearly killed and still fighting and clawing to break free. “Not great.”

“So...”

Time to jump in. “I need any collected DNA to disappear.”

If the statement shocked him, he didn’t show it. “You never told me where you grew up, or I guess I should say where your

mother grew up.”

Talk about an odd conversation turn. “Is that related to my DNA?”

“I think it might be.” He sighed. “Maryland? Maybe in or around Annapolis, where the Naval Academy is?”

He was a smart man, but I wasn’t ready to crack open that door. A nonanswer would have to suffice. “I’ve never begged anyone

for anything in my life, Elias. I’m begging you to help me with the DNA.”

He stared at me for a few seconds before nodding. “I’ll do everything I can.”

I believed him.