Chapter 4 - THE FATHER WHO NEVER CAME HOME
Adeline had been twenty-two when her father died.
She remembered the phone call.
The rain.
Her mother's scream.
The way the hospital corridor smelled of disinfectant and burnt coffee.
Thomas Bennett had worked as a carpenter and safety inspector.
He was careful.
Meticulous.
The kind of man who checked every rung before climbing a ladder.
When the company told them he'd fallen because of a defective scaffold, Adeline hadn't believed it.
Her father had spent twenty-eight years working above ground.
He knew equipment.
He knew danger.
And he never ignored a warning.
But the investigation closed quickly.
The insurance company denied part of the claim.
Her mother became ill.
And Adeline learned that grief was expensive.
Now, seven years later, another piece of equipment had failed beneath her.
Another fall.
Another powerful family.
The resemblance frightened her.
Roman visited the hospital the following afternoon.
He carried no flowers.
Only a folder.
“Adeline,” he said, “I need to ask about your father.”
She stiffened.
“Why?”
“His death occurred at a property connected to my family.”
“I know.”
Roman looked surprised.
“You knew?”
She nodded.
“That's why I recognized your name when I was hired.”
He sat opposite her.
“Why take the job?”
Adeline looked down.
“Because your household paid more than anywhere else.”
She swallowed.
“And because I thought maybe I'd finally find out what happened.”
Roman was quiet.
Then asked, “Did your father leave anything behind?”
“Tools. Photographs. Some notebooks.”
“Do you still have them?”
She nodded.
“Why?”
Roman looked at her.
“Because I think his death may have been connected to something my family concealed.”
Adeline stared.
For seven years, she'd waited for someone to say those words.
But now that she heard them, they frightened her.
“What are you telling me?”
Roman took a breath.
“That I don't believe your fall was an accident.”
May you like
She closed her eyes.
“And I don't think your father's was either.”
