Chapter 11 - WHAT I COULDN'T TAKE BACK
I walked out of the conference room and made it to the elevator before my legs began to shake. Laura followed with my coat.
"I shouldn't have told him," I said.
"You told the truth. That doesn't make his reaction okay."
I put my coat on backward. Laura gently turned it around without smiling.
At home that night, a package arrived from my mother-in-law. Inside was the paper envelope of lace Mrs. Vega had saved from my wedding gown. The strip I'd torn was folded separately, with an apology written in a stiff, unfamiliar hand.
I phoned Diane.
"Why do you have my dress?"
"I picked it up from the bridal shop. The seamstress said the repair wouldn't be finished until next week."
"Why would you do that?"
"Because it was your dress."
The answer was so simple I didn't trust it.
Diane asked if she could visit. I said no. Ten minutes later, I opened the door and found her standing in the hallway with a plastic grocery bag and rain on her shoulders.
"I know you said no," she said. "That was rude. I'll leave if you want."
I let her in because I was tired of keeping everyone outside.
She unpacked chicken soup, saltines, and one bruised pear. She didn't try to hug me.
"I sent you to the party on purpose," she said.
"I figured."
"I thought if you saw what he was doing, you might stop him. I couldn't make him listen."
"You could have told me before I walked into it."
She nodded. Her eyes filled, and she didn't look away. "Yes. I could have. I was ashamed, and I wanted somebody else to do the hard part."
I showed her the unsigned note from the invitation. She rubbed the paper between her fingers.
"That's mine," she said.
Diane had helped Paige address the invitations. When Paige went outside to take a call, Diane slipped the note into mine. She knew about the spending because Alex had asked her to cover a shortfall in his business account after the transfers.
"Why didn't you just tell me?"
"I was scared he'd stop speaking to me."
"So you let him stop speaking to his wife."
She took the hit without trying to defend herself.
After she left, I called Nia and told her about the sonogram post, the torn dress, and the fact that I'd suspected pregnancy before signing the paperwork. I hadn't told her everything at our first meeting. Not because I thought I was innocent, but because I wanted her to see the version of me I wished were true.
"Thank you," Nia said. "I need the messy version to do my job."
Then she told me the police had called Alex back for a second interview.
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And this time, Paige had asked to speak with them alone.
