Chapter 13 - Delphine inherits the secret
Eleanor developed pancreatic cancer.
Sixteen months before the hotel party, she transferred Cross Meridian operations to Delphine.
Among the files:
North Vale invoices.
Vivienne’s location.
Legal correspondence.
A private letter.
Eleanor wrote:
I kept her alive. I also kept her away. I no longer know whether those were the same act.
Delphine read everything.
What did she do?
Continue payments.
Never tell me.
Never tell police.
She visited Vivienne twice.
That was confirmed by North Vale visitor logs.
First visit:
Eleven months before the staircase.
Second:
Five months before.
What happened?
Vivienne later told investigators:
Delphine said Rosie was safe.
I was dangerous.
My companies were collapsing under criminal scrutiny.
If she returned, she could trigger violence.
Delphine showed her a photograph of Rosie.
School picture.
Eight months old? No, current aged seven.
Vivienne asked:
“Does she remember me?”
Delphine said:
May you like
“Barely.”
That lie mattered more to me than almost anything.
