Chapter 4 - THE CONSERVATORY AFTER MIDNIGHT
The Ashford Conservatory was a historic botanical building in Manhattan.
Glass ceilings.
Rare flowers.
Private event rooms.
And a basement level closed to the public.
Dante had attended dozens of charity events there.
So had Elena.
But neither had ever mentioned a purple door.
Rafael Costa, Dante's head of security, obtained floor plans.
The public areas contained no purple doors.
Neither did the offices.
Then he found an old renovation plan.
A service corridor beneath the west wing.
One door had been painted violet during a restoration project.
Dante stared at the blueprint.
“Where does it lead?”
Rafael looked up.
“An old storage room.”
“Who has access?”
“Facility management.”
Dante's expression hardened.
“And Vincent?”
Rafael hesitated.
“He's on the board.”
I was at Bellanote when Dante called.
“Maya.”
His voice sounded different.
Controlled.
But strained.
“We found a purple door.”
My heart pounded.
“Where?”
“The conservatory.”
I looked toward the kitchen.
Tony was preparing dinner.
“Is Elena there?”
“We don't know.”
Dante continued.
“I wanted you to know because Sophia trusted you.”
I swallowed.
“Please be careful.”
Silence.
Then he said:
“I will.”
That night, police investigators searched the conservatory.
They found the purple door.
Behind it was a small storage room.
Empty shelves.
Cleaning supplies.
A broken chair.
But on the floor, beneath a loose tile, they discovered something.
A silver necklace.
With a tiny purple flower pendant.
Dante recognized it immediately.
He had given it to Elena on their fifth wedding anniversary.
The necklace was submitted as evidence.
Investigators also found traces of recently removed furniture.
And a scrap of paper caught behind a baseboard.
On it were three handwritten words.
SHE KNOWS EVERYTHING.
Dante stared at the photograph.
“What does that mean?”
Rafael shook his head.
“We don't know.”
Meanwhile, Sophia began having nightmares.
She woke crying.
Calling for her mother.
And repeating one phrase.
“Don't open the blue star.”
I visited again the next afternoon.
Sophia sat beside me with her crayons.
I asked:
“Can you show me the blue star?”
She nodded.
She drew a small star.
Then a rectangle beneath it.
Then a circle.
I stared.
It looked like a locker.
Dante leaned closer.
“Where did you see this?”
Sophia whispered:
“Mommy's secret.”
I looked at Dante.
“Did Elena have a locker at the conservatory?”
He frowned.
“No.”
Then he stopped.
“Wait.”
Elena had volunteered at the conservatory's children's education program.
She sometimes stored supplies in a small cabinet near the basement classroom.
The cabinet had a blue star sticker on it.
Dante looked at Rafael.
“Find it.”
An hour later, investigators opened the cabinet.
Inside was a box of art supplies.
Children's books.
And a small purple notebook.
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On the first page, Elena had written:
IF ANYTHING HAPPENS TO ME, TRUST THE CHILD WHO REMEMBERS COLORS.
