Chapter 5 - THE LAST PAGE OF GRACE'S NOTEBOOK
The notebook was smaller than Roman's hand.
Its green cover was faded, the corners bent from years of being moved between apartments.
Inside were grocery lists, baby formula prices, work schedules, and little reminders written by a young mother trying to keep her life together.
Nora had opened it before.
But she had never read every page.
It had felt too personal.
Grace Bennett had been only twenty-three when she died.
She had worked two jobs, loved strong coffee, and called her daughter "Little Sparrow" because Lucy made chirping sounds in her sleep.
Nora remembered her laughter more clearly than her face.
She also remembered the night Grace had arrived at the diner with a bruise on her wrist.
"I walked into a door," Grace had said.
Nora hadn't believed her.
But Grace refused to explain.
Three weeks later, she was dead.
Now Roman sat at Nora's kitchen table, turning the notebook's pages with great care.
"There's a section missing," he said.
Nora leaned closer.
Several pages had been torn out near the back.
"Maybe Grace used them for shopping lists."
"Maybe."
Roman ran his finger along the remaining paper.
There were impressions from writing on a removed page.
He didn't attempt to decipher them.
Instead, he photographed the notebook and asked Nora's permission to have a forensic document examiner inspect it.
Nora nodded.
"Whatever helps us understand."
Then she pulled out a folded envelope.
"This came with Grace's things."
Inside was a letter addressed to Lucy.
The handwriting was neat but shaky.
My darling Sparrow,
If you're reading this someday, it means I couldn't stay as long as I promised.
I want you to know that being your mother was the best thing that ever happened to me.
There are people who believe the world belongs to them because they have money and power. But they are wrong.
The world belongs to everyone brave enough to care.
If Nora is reading this beside you, tell her I knew she would never let you feel alone.
Love always, Mom.
Nora began crying before she reached the final sentence.
Roman sat quietly.
He didn't offer a solution.
Didn't suggest money.
He simply moved a box of tissues closer.
For once, he understood that some wounds couldn't be repaired by influence.
Later that afternoon, Daniel arrived with news.
Harborline Administrative Services had been dissolved seven years earlier.
The company officially handled payroll and vendor payments for shipping businesses.
But records showed it had also moved money between several organizations connected to Victor.
"Grace was one of four junior bookkeepers," Daniel explained.
"What happened to the others?" Roman asked.
"One moved overseas. One died from an alleged overdose. The third is missing."
Nora felt sick.
"And Grace?"
"Her accident was investigated, but the case was closed."
Roman looked at the notebook.
"Who signed off on the company's financial records?"
Daniel hesitated.
"Victor."
Silence.
Then Nora asked, "Why would a powerful man care about a bookkeeper?"
Roman answered quietly.
"Because bookkeepers see where the money goes."
Daniel placed a photograph on the table.
It showed Grace standing outside a waterfront office.
Beside her was a man wearing glasses and a brown jacket.
"That's Thomas Reed," Daniel said. "He was Harborline's senior accountant."
"Where is he now?"
"Nobody knows."
Roman examined the photograph.
Something about Reed's face seemed familiar.
Then he remembered a man standing beside Victor at his father's funeral.
A nervous man.
Someone Victor had dismissed after a short conversation.
"Find him," Roman said.
Daniel nodded.
But Nora interrupted.
"Wait."
Both men looked at her.
"We can't keep searching for answers while Lucy is living in fear."
Roman's expression softened.
"You're right."
"She asked me last night whether the people who killed her mother were coming for her."
Roman stared.
"What did you tell her?"
"That I would protect her."
Nora's voice broke.
"But I don't know whether I can."
Roman reached across the table.
"You don't have to do it alone."
She looked at him.
For the first time, she didn't pull her hand away.
That evening, Julia arranged temporary accommodation through a protected housing service while the eviction dispute proceeded.
Nora chose a modest furnished apartment in a quieter neighborhood rather than Roman's mansion.
He respected her decision.
But he made sure Daniel coordinated with the police about the threats.
For two days, life almost returned to normal.
Lucy attended school.
Nora cooked breakfast.
Roman visited in the evenings with groceries and ridiculous stories about his business meetings.
One night, Lucy asked him to help build a model volcano.
Roman stared at the instructions.
"I negotiate shipping contracts worth millions of dollars."
Lucy handed him a glue stick.
"Good. Then you can handle this."
Nora laughed until her sides hurt.
Roman looked offended.
But he spent the next hour covering his expensive shirt in papier-mâché.
For a little while, he forgot about Victor.
Then his phone rang.
Daniel.
"We found Thomas Reed."
Roman stepped into the hallway.
"Where?"
"Milwaukee. He's been living under a different surname."
"Is he willing to talk?"
"Only if you come without Victor's people."
Roman glanced toward the apartment.
"I'll come."
Daniel lowered his voice.
"Boss, there's something you need to know before you meet him."
"What?"
"He says he knew your father."
Roman's breath caught.
"Everyone knew my father."
"Not like this."
A pause.
Then Daniel continued.
"Reed claims he was in Adrian Vale's office on the night he was murdered."
Roman went still.
"And?"
"He says your father discovered Victor was stealing from the family businesses."
Roman stared at the wall.
Daniel's voice became grim.
"According to Reed, Adrian planned to report Victor's financial crimes and remove him from the company."
Roman felt the familiar coldness spread through his chest.
He had spent ten years believing his father was murdered by a rival syndicate.
What if the man who raised him had been the murderer?
"What else did Reed say?"
Daniel hesitated.
"He said Victor knew Grace Bennett had copies of the original financial records."
Roman closed his eyes.
"Did she?"
"Yes."
"Where are they?"
"We don't know."
Roman looked through the doorway.
Nora was sitting on the floor helping Lucy paint cardboard trees for a school project.
He had brought danger into their lives.
But the danger had existed long before he found them.
Daniel spoke again.
"Boss, Reed says there's one final thing."
"What?"
"He wants to know whether Nora still has the cookbook."
Roman frowned.
"What cookbook?"
"Her mother's cookbook."
Roman stared toward the kitchen.
On the counter lay a thick, battered cookbook wrapped in clear plastic.
The same book Nora had used to protect his handwritten note for ten years.
May you like
And suddenly, Roman understood.
The evidence might have been sitting beside Nora's stove all along.
