Chapter 8 - Caroline Had Met Vanessa
The password was Caroline’s birthday.
Inside were audio files.
Not many.
The first was Caroline speaking with someone.
Vanessa.
My chest tightened.
Caroline sounded weak.
She had already started treatment.
Vanessa sounded calm.
Friendly even.
“I’m only asking because my father deserved answers.”
Caroline replied:
“Your father’s company failed because he lied to investors.”
Vanessa’s voice sharpened.
“That’s your family’s version.”
“No. It’s in the court record.”
Then Vanessa asked:
“What happens to your shares if you die?”
Silence.
Caroline:
“Why would you ask me that?”
“I’m curious.”
“No. You’re not.”
The recording ended.
I sat completely still.
Caroline knew Vanessa was digging.
Another recording came weeks later.
Caroline:
“Stay away from my family.”
Vanessa laughed.
“You think Daniel would even recognize me?”
That sentence hit like a punch.
Caroline knew Vanessa might approach me.
And Vanessa already knew I wouldn't recognize her.
Then:
“If you come near Sophie, I’ll make sure Daniel knows everything.”
Vanessa replied:
“You won’t be around forever.”
The room went silent.
Not a direct threat.
But ugly enough.
I had to walk away.
Rebecca followed.
“You okay?”
“No.”
The recordings did not prove Vanessa caused Caroline’s illness.
There was no evidence of that.
I refused to invent one.
But they proved Vanessa had been waiting.
Watching.
Thinking about what happened after Caroline died.
Then we found Caroline’s own note stored on the drive.
**If Daniel finds this, tell him I should have told him sooner. Vanessa Cole is Marcus Cole’s cousin. She believes her family is owed money from mine. She asked about Sophie’s trust. I told Thomas to strengthen it.**
Caroline had anticipated the threat.
That was why Rebecca gained additional oversight when Sophie turned seven.
Vanessa knew.
She was racing the birthday.
Then another file appeared.
Video.
Caroline in the bedroom.
Speaking directly to the camera.
“If something happens to me, don't let grief make you trust the first person who makes life easier.”
I covered my face.
That was exactly what I had done.
Vanessa entered my life when I was drowning.
She handled meals.
Schedules.
Bedtime.
School.
She made herself indispensable.
Not because she loved us.
Because access required trust.
But one question remained.
Why hide Caroline’s recordings inside Sophie’s dollhouse?
Then I realized.
Vanessa didn't hide them.
Caroline had.
The dollhouse originally belonged to her.
Sophie inherited it.
Caroline had planted the drive years ago.
Vanessa had been searching the house for it.
That explained the third-floor surveillance.
The room searches.
The pressure on Sophie.
May you like
And possibly why she was desperate enough to stage the stroller fall.
She needed everyone discredited before Caroline’s evidence surfaced.
