Chapter 166: What the Maids Heard

"Angelina?"

Alexander glanced toward the kitchen again.

Rosalie nodded.

"Angelina Reyes."

That certainly made things easier.

Angelina and her husband, Tomas, had been serving the Vance family for decades. Tomas was one of the estate’s longtime stewards, though these days he was often found helping at the bed-and-breakfast counter. Angelina usually worked in the kitchen whenever things became busy.

They were both somewhere inside the house.

"Why, Angelina?" Alexander asked.

"Because I remember hearing something years ago."

Alejandro’s attention sharpened.

"What?"

Rosalie frowned as she tried to remember.

"It might’ve been nothing more than gossip. The two households were still neighbors back then, and the staff knew one another. Someone from the Sebastian household came into our kitchen one day and spoke to Angelina."

"When?"

"After your grandfather’s accident. I don’t remember exactly how long afterward."

Alexander set down his fork.

"What were they talking about?"

"The accident."

That immediately made the conversation more interesting.

Rosalie continued, "I didn’t hear the beginning. I was only passing through, but the woman seemed nervous. She said something about the accident not being what everyone thought."

"Did she say it wasn’t an accident?"

"I don’t remember her exact words, Alex."

Fair.

"What did you think she meant?"

"Nothing at the time. Everyone was talking about what happened to your grandfather."

There was little reason to treat a conversation between two household employees as anything more than gossip.

The Vance family concentrated on making sure Augustus got well.

Rosalie had no reason to go searching for another story underneath it.

"There was something about Victoria too," she added.

Alexander waited.

"I think the woman wondered whether Victoria knew more about the accident than she should have."

Alejandro frowned.

"Why?"

"I don’t know. That’s why I’m telling you to ask Angelina. She was the one having the conversation."

"Did you ever ask her about it?"

"No."

Rosalie looked at Alexander as though the answer should’ve been obvious.

"Why would I? Nothing came of it."

At the time, that made sense.

Now, however, an old piece of household gossip suddenly felt more relevant.

"Would Angelina even remember?"

Rosalie gave him a look.

"Angelina remembers which vase you broke when you were nine."

Alexander stared at her.

"That has nothing to do with this."

"You blamed Dominic."

"I panicked."

"He wasn’t even in the room when you broke it."

"He’d always visited. It seemed plausible."

Alejandro quietly continued eating, although the twitch at the corner of his mouth gave him away.

Alexander frowned at both of them.

"Why does everyone remember this?"

"Because you spent the rest of the afternoon insisting Dominic must’ve knocked it over before he went home."

"I was nine."

"Yes. And apparently already very committed to your defense."

Alexander decided the investigation was rapidly losing focus.

"Where’s Angelina?"

"In the kitchen."

Of course she was.

Alexander started to rise.

"Finish eating," Rosalie said.

"Mom."

"Angelina isn’t going anywhere."

Alexander looked toward the kitchen, then sat again, reluctantly.

Alejandro pushed the serving dish closer.

"Eat."

Wonderful.

Somehow, Alexander had become nine years old again.

By the time he finished, the lunch rush had mostly died down.

Alexander stood.

Alejandro rose with him.

"I’m coming."

"Why?"

His father shrugged. "I’m curious."

Rosalie stood as well.

Apparently, his investigation had acquired an audience.

They hadn’t even reached the kitchen when Tomas appeared through the doorway carrying an order slip.

He stopped when he saw them approaching together.

"Is something wrong?"

"No," Rosalie said.

Alexander gave her a look.

Tomas caught it immediately.

"Where’s Angelina?" Alexander asked.

"In the kitchen."

"I need to ask her something."

Tomas glanced behind him.

"What did my wife do?"

"Nothing."

That didn’t seem to reassure him.

Alexander entered the kitchen.

Angelina was standing at the stove with an apron tied around her waist, finishing a short order.

She glanced over her shoulder and saw Alexander, followed by Rosalie, Alejandro, and finally her husband.

"If this is about that vase, Sir Alex, I already told your mother a long time ago that you broke it."

Alexander closed his eyes. "Did she hear our conversation?"

Of course she just remembered out of the blue.

"It isn’t about the vase."

"Good."

Angelina transferred the food onto a plate.

"Then what is it?"

Alexander waited until the waiter had taken the order away.

"Do you remember someone from the Sebastian household coming into this kitchen years ago and talking to you about my grandfather’s accident?"

Angelina stopped wiping the counter.

"Yes."

The answer came so quickly that Alexander straightened.

"You remember?"

"I remember enough."

Rosalie stepped closer.

"I only heard part of it."

Angelina looked at her.

"You weren’t supposed to hear any of it."

That was promising.

"Who was she?" Alexander asked.

Angelina glanced toward Tomas.

Her husband seemed to recognize what she was remembering.

"You knew about this too?" Alexander asked him.

"Angelina told me afterward."

Alexander turned back to her.

"What did the woman tell you?"

Angelina folded the towel in her hands.

"She thought something was wrong."

"With the accident?"

"Yes."

"What?"

"She didn’t know exactly. She came to me because she knew I’d been with your family for years."

Angelina paused.

"She wanted to know whether Mr. Augustus had said anything after he came home."

"About what?"

"Anything he remembered."

Alexander frowned.

"Why did she want to know?"

"She didn’t."

Angelina’s expression changed.

"Victoria did."

The kitchen went quiet.

"What do you mean?"

"The maid said Mrs. Sebastian had been asking whether Mr. Augustus remembered anything when he came home."

Rosalie frowned.

"That could’ve been concern."

"Yes," Angelina agreed.

Alexander appreciated that neither woman was trying to turn ordinary questions into proof of something they couldn’t establish.

"So why was the maid frightened?"

Angelina hesitated.

"Because Victoria was asking questions before the people in her household should’ve known some of the details."

Alexander’s expression slowly changed.

"How much did Victoria know?"

"I don’t know."

"Did the maid?"

"No. That was what bothered her."

Angelina shook her head.

"She couldn’t understand where some of the information was coming from."

That was finally something worth examining.

Not proof.

Certainly not enough to accuse Victoria of anything.

But if the maid’s memory had been accurate, Victoria had apparently known details about Augustus’s accident unusually early.

"Did she think Victoria was involved?"

"She never said that."

"What did she think?"

"That something felt wrong."

Alexander glanced at his parents.

Rosalie looked unsettled now.

"Did the maid ever come back?"

"Not to talk about the accident."

"What happened to her?"

"I don’t know. We weren’t particularly close."

"Do you remember her name?"

Angelina hesitated.

"Yes."

"Who was she?"

The older woman didn’t answer immediately.

Instead, she glanced toward Tomas again.

Alexander noticed.

"What?"

"Her name isn’t going to help you much now."

"Why not?"

"Because she didn’t know enough."

Alexander frowned.

"She knew enough to be frightened."

"Yes. But she only saw pieces of what was happening inside that house."

Angelina placed the folded towel on the counter.

"If you’re really trying to find out whether Victoria knew something about your grandfather’s accident, that maid isn’t the person you need."

"Then who is?"

Angelina looked directly at him.

"The person who was always around Victoria."

Alexander already had an uncomfortable idea of where this was going.

Angelina confirmed it.

"Maribel."