Chapter 7 - ELIZABETH’S LAST LETTER
The envelope arrived in an evidence bag.
Chadworth stared at his name.
Written by hand.
Elizabeth’s handwriting.
He recognized the long curve of the C.
The slight slant in the last name.
He used to tease her about handwriting like a doctor.
Nina opened the evidence bag carefully.
Inside was one folded letter.
Three pages.
Chadworth’s hands shook as he read.
“Chad,
If you’re reading this, I was right to be afraid.”
He stopped.
Gemma was asleep upstairs.
Lorelai refused to sleep.
Rosamund sat outside her bedroom door.
The mansion was quiet again.
But nothing about it felt safe.
He continued.
“I don’t think Stephen Vale is trying to kill me.”
Chadworth looked up.
Nina waited.
He kept reading.
“I think he knows someone is interfering with my care, and he’s too scared to tell me directly.”
His eyes moved faster.
Elizabeth had noticed changes in her medication.
Different pill markings.
Missing doses.
Unexplained sedation.
Vale had warned her privately to have everything independently tested.
Then he stopped answering her calls.
Why?
Because someone had threatened him.
Elizabeth wrote:
“I believe Sabina found out that I knew about the foundation money. Elliot is involved. I don’t know how deep this goes.”
Then came the line that made Chadworth sit down.
“Sabina is not trying to replace me.
She is trying to replace you.”
He read it again.
Nina leaned forward.
“What?”
Chadworth handed her the page.
Elizabeth believed Sabina’s long-term plan had never been about Elizabeth.
It was about Chadworth.
His money.
His voting shares.
His children’s trusts.
His medical authority.
If Elizabeth died, Chadworth would be emotionally shattered.
Vulnerable.
Easy to isolate.
A grieving billionaire with two young daughters.
Sabina could step into the gap.
And she had.
Not immediately.
She waited almost two years before the relationship became public.
Careful.
Patient.
Smart.
Chadworth felt physically ill.
Nina said, “This reads like suspicion, not proof.”
“I know.”
“But paired with the forged power of attorney…”
“I know.”
He continued reading.
The final paragraph was different.
More personal.
“If I’m wrong, burn this letter and forgive me.
If I’m right, don’t waste your life blaming yourself.
You trust deeply. That’s one of the things I loved about you.
Just make sure the girls learn that kindness and blindness are not the same thing.”
Chadworth closed his eyes.
A tear slipped down his face.
Then he saw the final line.
“Ask Lorelai about the blue room.”
He stared.
“The blue room?”
Nina asked, “What is that?”
“I don’t know.”
He went upstairs.
Lorelai was still awake.
She sat against her headboard, knees pulled to her chest.
“Dad?”
He sat beside her.
“Can I ask you something?”
She nodded.
“What’s the blue room?”
Lorelai’s face changed instantly.
That was answer enough.
“Lorelai.”
She whispered, “Sabina said never to talk about it.”
Chadworth felt fear crawl up his spine.
“What blue room?”
“The one under the old pool house.”
He stared.
“There’s no room under the pool house.”
“Yes, there is.”
“How do you know?”
“Rosamund found me there.”
“When?”
“Three months ago.”
“What were you doing there?”
Lorelai’s eyes filled with tears.
“Sabina locked me inside.”
Chadworth went completely still.
“Why?”
“Because I heard her talking to Mr. Crane.”
“About what?”
Lorelai looked toward the bedroom door.
May you like
Then whispered:
“They were talking about when you were going to die.”
