Page 34 of One Last Goodbye

“I was curious. You have a lovely and unique home. I’ve never seen anything like it.”

“Is that what you do? You just snoop places you don’t belong?”

So she’s chosen to make me the target of your anger. This is a difficult situation. I don’t want to condescend to her, nor do Iwant to act defensively and escalate this into a conflict. At the same time, I don’t want to validate her actions and give her the impression that this is a healthy way to approach her grief.

I keep my response brief and to the point. “I wanted to get my bearings. This is a large house, and I need to know where everything is if I’m to properly care for both of you.”

“I’m sixteen years old. I don’t need you to care for me.”

“You certainly don’t need babysitting the way a young child would,” I concede, “but I am charged with your education and your safety, and it’s useful for me to know where I might find you if you’re ever missing.”

“So you snooped around Dad’s library so you could win hide and seek with us?”

“I suppose that’s one way to look at it.”

“Yeah, or you’re a nosy bitch who doesn’t know when to keep out of other people’s business.”

Now, I must rebut. I choose my words carefully. "You have every right to be angry, but you do not have the right to attack me."

“Why? It’s true, isn’t it? You have to know everything there is to know about someone so you can feel like you’re better than them.”

“That’s not true. I—”

“Mary?”

I am startled to hear Catherine’s voice. I jump and spin around to see her approaching. She has one hand on Ethan’s shoulder. Ethan has a wary look on his face as he allows his mother to lead him.

When Catherine is close enough that she doesn’t need to raise her voice to be heard, she says, “I’m taking the children with me to the funeral home to make arrangements for Frederick. You’re welcome to stay here.”

That is her barely polite way of saying that I’mnotwelcome to join them. I look at Olivia. She is still angry, but she’s withdrawn back into her shell. “Would you like to go with your mother?” I ask.

Catherine frowns. “What do you mean? Of course she wants to go. This is for her father’s final arrangements.”

“Yes,” I acknowledge. “And she may prefer not to be involved in this part of those arrangements.”

Catherine's frown deepens. She's not happy with me challenging her authority before she can retort, however, Olivia answers. "I'd like to go."

She steps to her mother and turns to me with a hateful expression. Triumph flickers across Catherine’s face, but she doesn’t gloat. She only smiles at me and says, “I told Sophie we’ll probably get dinner out, but if that changes, I’ll call you. Thank you for taking them for a walk. I’m glad we’re getting them out of the house.”

“Yes. You’re welcome.”

They leave, and I watch the children as Catherine leads them away. She puts her arm around Olivia, but Olivia shrugs it off. She might have been grateful to be rescued from my company, but that doesn’t mean she’s on good terms with her mother.

Ethan permits his mother’s arm to remain around his shoulder, but he turns around and gives me another wary look. My brow furrows. He looks almost as though he’s trying to warn me, but whatever message his gaze is supposed to convey, it’s lost on me.

Eventually, he turns away, and I am left standing alone. It appears I will have the evening to myself. I wonder what I will do to fill the time.

An idea comes to mind, and as soon as it coalesces in my head, I can almost hear Sean begging me to reconsider.

But what could be the downside? Catherine will be gone, and so will the children. I haven’t seen Hugo all day, so it’s safe to assume he’s left, at least temporarily. The servants here all keep to themselves, save for Sophie. I might enjoy keeping her company later, but for now, I have something more pressing to attend to.

I make my way back to the house at a leisurely pace. I want to give Catherine and the children plenty of time to put some distance between themselves and the estate before I reach my destination. When I see the gate open and watch their sedan pull onto the road, however, I quicken and reach the house at a near jog.

In the Ashford home, I found the evidence that eventually leads me to identify Cecilia as her husband's killer hidden in a box in her bedroom. In both the Carltons' home and the Greenwoods', I found clues in the mistresses' bedchambers. Perhaps here, I will learn something that will give me an answer to Frederick Jensen's death as well.

I make my way to the bedroom unseen, and when I find it unlocked, my heart leaps with excitement. A quick inspection shows me I’m alone in the room. I’m not sure what I’m looking for at first, but when I open Catherine’s desktop computer, I see an application named Systec Security.

I open it and find the family's security camera footage. This is a gold mine! If I can access past footage…

---