Chapter 5 - The Woman in the Champagne Dress
Celia called at 6:12 the next morning.
Grace was sitting at Ruth’s kitchen table, staring at a cup of coffee that had gone cold.
“I can’t talk long,” Celia whispered.
“Where are you?”
“The laundry room.”
“What happened?”
“He went through Owen’s bedroom.”
Grace closed her eyes.
“Did he find the bear?”
“I don’t know. He carried a bag downstairs.”
In the background, a door shut.
Celia stopped breathing.
Then she whispered, “I have to go.”
“Celia. Listen to me.”
Silence.
“If you feel unsafe, leave. Don’t search for anything.”
The call ended.
Grace handed the phone to Ruth.
“She’s still in there.”
“Then we tell Ortiz.”
By noon, Owen had spoken with a specialist at a child advocacy center.
Grace stayed in the waiting room.
She twisted a tissue until it fell apart between her fingers.
When Ortiz came out, she didn’t tell Grace every detail.
She told her enough.
Owen described waking after an argument.
Following his parents through the kitchen.
Standing behind the boathouse.
He remembered his mother’s scarf caught around her neck.
He remembered his father pulling it.
He remembered water.
“He’s been carrying that alone?” Grace asked.
Ortiz’s face softened.
“He was told telling would make you disappear.”
Grace pressed both hands over her mouth.
The detective waited until she could breathe again.
“We’re seeking authorization to search the property. His account, the reported threats, and your corrected statement matter.”
“What about the bear?”
“We’ll look for it.”
At three that afternoon, Celia arrived at Ruth’s door.
No makeup.
No jewelry except her engagement ring.
She held a grocery bag against her chest.
Ruth let her in.
Grace remained standing.
“Did he send you?”
“No.”
Celia set the bag on the table.
Inside was a brown stuffed bear.
Its fur smelled faintly of wood smoke.
“He put it in the fireplace,” Celia said.
“He hadn’t lit it yet.”
Grace stepped forward, then stopped herself from touching it.
“Did you open the pocket?”
Celia nodded.
“I didn’t know.”
“What was in it?”
She swallowed.
“A silver cuff link.”
Grace knew before Celia turned the bag.
Adrian’s cuff links had been a tenth-anniversary gift from Nora.
Each one carried a small engraved date.
Celia’s voice cracked.
“He told me he lost it on a business trip.”
May you like
Then she reached into her purse.
“And last night, he told someone to make sure the other thing was gone.”
