Chapter 18 - Two Daughters
Lauren met Margaret in an interview room at the sheriff’s office.
A glass wall separated investigators.
Daniel watched from the adjoining room.
Lauren wore plain gray clothing.
Margaret remained in her wheelchair, though physical therapy had begun helping her walk short distances.
For almost a minute neither woman spoke.
Then Lauren said, “You survived.”
Margaret replied, “Were you disappointed?”
Lauren’s eyes lowered.
“Yes.”
Daniel felt the answer like ice.
Margaret did not react.
“Thank you for telling the truth.”
Lauren looked up.
“That doesn’t forgive it.”
“No.”
“You want to know why I pushed you.”
“I know why.”
“No. You know the money.”
Margaret waited.
Lauren’s voice became quieter.
“My mother died believing your husband never admitted what he did.”
Margaret’s expression changed.
“When?”
“Three years ago.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Don’t.”
Margaret stopped.
Lauren continued.
“She spent her whole life thinking the settlement was hush money.”
“It was not intended that way.”
“That doesn’t matter.”
“No,” Margaret said. “I suppose it doesn’t.”
“My mother worked two jobs even after the settlement because she was afraid the money would disappear. She drank. She got sick. She hated your name.”
Lauren wiped her face.
“I inherited that hatred before I understood what it was.”
Margaret listened.
“Then I met Daniel.”
“And loved him.”
“Yes.”
“Why didn’t you walk away?”
“Because if I walked away, everything I had done became pointless.”
Margaret nodded slowly.
“That is a dangerous reason to continue doing something wrong.”
Lauren laughed bitterly.
“You would know.”
Margaret accepted the blow.
“Yes.”
Lauren looked surprised.
Margaret continued.
“I helped hide the truth about your father.”
Daniel watched Lauren’s posture change.
“What?”
“I signed the settlement strategy. I knew Charles had pushed the schedule despite safety concerns.”
Lauren stared.
“You knew.”
“Yes.”
“And you let your lawyers blame the subcontractor.”
“Yes.”
Lauren stood suddenly.
“You sat across from me before my wedding and acted like you were protecting Daniel.”
“I was.”
“You were protecting yourself.”
“I was doing both.”
Lauren laughed through tears.
“God, you people can make anything sound respectable.”
Margaret’s voice broke.
“You’re right.”
Lauren stopped.
Margaret continued.
“I cannot give you your father back. I cannot give your mother back the life she lost. I cannot undo what Charles or I did.”
Lauren looked at her.
“But you can admit it.”
“Yes.”
“Publicly.”
“Yes.”
“Even if it destroys Hale Ridge?”
“Yes.”
Daniel watched his mother say it without hesitation.
Lauren sat again.
Something had gone out of her.
Not anger.
Purpose.
“My whole life,” she whispered, “I wanted one of you to say that.”
Margaret answered, “Then I am twenty-seven years late.”
Lauren began crying.
Not beautifully.
Not strategically.
She covered her face and broke apart.
Margaret did not reach for her.
Some distances should not be crossed simply because someone is suffering.
After several minutes, Lauren lowered her hands.
“I pushed you.”
Margaret said nothing.
“I looked at Daniel. His back was turned.”
Daniel’s throat tightened.
“I put both hands on the chair.”
Margaret remained perfectly still.
“I knew how steep the road was.”
Lauren looked toward the one-way glass.
Daniel knew she could not see him.
“I pushed hard.”
Detective Shaw leaned toward the audio recorder.
Lauren continued.
“I wanted her gone before she signed the trust documents.”
Margaret asked, “Because of Garrison?”
“Yes.”
“And Mark?”
“Yes.”
Lauren took a breath.
“I knew the company would become vulnerable if you died.”
“Did Mark tell you to kill me?”
“No.”
“Did anyone?”
“No.”
“Then why?”
Lauren’s voice became almost inaudible.
“Because after years of telling myself I was only taking back what your family owed mine, I stopped knowing where the line was.”
Margaret stared at her.
“There is always a line.”
Lauren nodded.
“I know that now.”
Detective Shaw entered.
Lauren was placed under arrest for attempted murder and related charges pending the prosecutor’s final charging decision.
As deputies escorted her away, Lauren stopped.
She looked at Margaret.
“I loved him.”
Margaret answered softly.
“I know.”
Lauren began walking again.
Then Margaret said something that made her stop.
“That’s why what you did to him was worse.”
Lauren did not turn around.
But her shoulders folded.
May you like
For the first time, Daniel understood that love did not cancel betrayal.
Sometimes it made betrayal possible.
