Page 65 of Murder in the Lighthouse

With trembling hands, Brogan studied her mother’s face and features. “My God, she’s gorgeous and so very young.”

“She was,” Amalie said, handing off more photos from Britta’s days of doing music videos. “The music videos are easy to find online if you know where to look. I’ve shared the links with you in the documents I’ll leave behind today.”

“There’s no doubt how she met my father,” Brogan said to Lucien. “The music industry has far-reaching tentacles.”

“And not all of them are positive,” Lucien concluded. “Did she get mixed up with drugs at all?”

“That’s not what killed her. I’m sorry to be so blunt,” Amalie articulated. “Yes, Britta died in childbirth.”

Brogan let out a gasp. “Did she bleed to death?”

Amalie laid a hand on Brogan’s knee. “No. And it was no one’s fault. Britta developed a rare heart condition that weakens the heart muscle during labor. Hers lasted almost twenty-four hours. It’s known as PPCM, postpartum cardiomyopathy. Some women make a complete recovery. Some are plagued by heart failure for the rest of their lives. Some experience arrhythmias or thromboembolic events. In Britta’s case, she went into labor, spent twenty-four hours in agony, and died before delivery. She suffered a major cardio event, losing total myocardial function due to a blood clot that broke away and traveled to her heart.It happened quickly. The doctors had to act fast to perform a cesarean to get you out of there to save your life.”

“Oh, my God,” Brogan muttered, leaning forward,hanging on every word. “That sounds horrific.”

“You asked me to find out what role Rachel Brinell played in all of this. Hospital records show that your father, Rory Rossum Cole, was with her when she died. He was inconsolable. But she had a friend there with them, and that was Rachel Brinell.”

“Rachel Brinell was at the hospital during my birth,” Brogan repeated, the statement lingering in the air like a haunting echo. “And Britta’s parents?”

“Arrived later to discover their daughter had died,” Amalie finished, knowing the weight of her words.

“Are they still alive?”

“They are.” Amalie patted a thick folder. “All the contact information is contained in the file. It’s up to you if you want to pursue contact. Everything I tell you can be corroborated.”

“I don’t understand, though,” Brogan began. “What exactly was the relationship between Rachel and Britta? If I’m not mistaken, there was a big age difference. Ten years, maybe.”

“Ten years, yes. The women met at a party given by Versace. At the time, Britta became obsessed with everything English or American, even though she couldn’t speak the language well. Thus, she became fascinated with the American heiress who helped interpret for her. Before their meeting, Rachel had taken time off to tour Europe. Time off from what, I don’t know. Her job at Brinell Steel consisted mostly of being a figurehead. During this time, her mother ran the company. From the people I talked with, Rachel had very little to do. So she could afford to hang out with the likes of Miuccia Prada, Calvin Klein, Marc Jacobs, Karl Lagerfeld, or any of the Arnault heirs. She ran in the same circle.”

“Descendants of Christian Dior,” Lucien provided.

“Both women ran with a very wealthy, very sophisticated crowd. According to the people I spoke with, Rachel and Britta became inseparable after spending a weekend partying on a yacht somewhere in Greece. From all accounts, when Britta crossed paths with your father—the English rock icon living in the States—she fell hard. Despite her youthful age, she was smitten.”

“A member of Indigo told me that Rachel showed up in Madrid and talked a pregnant Britta into leaving, returning to Sweden to have the baby,” Brogan offered. “That’s what I don’t understand. Why would she do that?”

“Maybe she thought she was saving her from a life of debauchery with a rock star,” Amalie joked. “I don’t know the reason for that. And you probably will never know either. Every piece of information I discovered from the time Britta and Rory were together, brief as it was, is in the file. You must read it for yourself. Maybe then, you will have a better understanding.”

“What I’m hearing is that Rachel must have known more about their relationship than anyone else, including Britta’s parents.”

“That’s a fair statement,” Amalie confirmed. “Remember, Fredrik encouraged their daughter to have this illustrious modeling career where she could meet such people as Rory. I’m sure Rachel was privy to many of their secrets as a couple. Rachel was one of the few people Britta trusted completely.”

Brogan blew out a breath. “She’d likely have done whatever Rachel suggested. How did Rachel get custody again?”

“Ah. Fredrik was a lawyer. He arranged for you to be taken to the States for Rachel to raise.”

“Just like that. I suppose I should feel lucky that Rachel felt the need to raise me as hers. Otherwise, I’d be growing up in Gothenburg with grandparents who didn’t really want me.” Sheglanced at the coffee table. “I think we should eat now,” she suggested.

“You could still get in touch with Britta’s parents, your grandparents,” Amalie proposed.

“Why? I don’t need to know people who didn’t want me in the first place, who pawned me off on the first person who offered to take me.” She picked up the platter of food. “Have a sandwich, Amalie. I made cucumber with cream cheese, salmon with cream cheese, and my famous egg salad.”

“I can tell you’re upset.”

“No, not really. Lucien told me not to expect a happy ending. It’s a good thing I took it to heart and listened.”

By the time Amalie departed, Brogan had gone through a range of emotions—relief, gratitude, and a hint of sadness about the death of Britta, a woman she never got to know. They shared blood and DNA but not much else. She wondered about her father, who had obviously loved the young model. After all, he’d hung around for the birth of his daughter. And then left her in Rachel’s care to raise without looking back.

Overwhelmed, Brogan was left to process everything in the thick file folder with Lucien’s help. But not tonight.

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