Silence.
“What happened that night?”
She looked through the glass.
“Howard said your father wanted to talk.”
“About what?”
“He wouldn’t say.”
“So you went with him.”
“No.”
She shook her head.
“He left without me.”
“But the video—”
“I followed him.”
My fingers tightened around the phone.
“Why?”
“Because he’d been acting strange for weeks.”
“Strange how?”
“Destroying papers. Moving money. Taking calls outside.”
She looked down.
“I thought he was having an affair.”
Despite everything, the absurdity almost made me laugh.
“You followed him because you thought he was cheating?”
“Yes.”
“What happened?”
“I parked two streets away.”
Her breathing became shallow.
“I walked toward the house and saw Howard’s truck.”
“Then?”
“I heard shouting inside.”
“Who?”
“Your father. Howard.”
My heart hammered.
“What were they saying?”
“I couldn’t hear everything.”
She swallowed.
“Your father said, ‘It’s over. Tomorrow morning Ruiz gets all of it.'”
“Ruiz?”
“Your parents had apparently already spoken to Detective Ruiz about the financial records.”
