Chapter 16 - SYLVIA’S PRICE
Sylvia had never liked me.
But hatred was not the beginning.
Money was.
Marcus Dean paid her mortgage.
He covered David’s law school debt.
He financed the renovation of the house.
In return, Sylvia helped control me.
She reported every call I made.
Every time I mentioned my father.
Every disagreement with David.
She created conflict, then described my reaction as instability.
The Christmas dinner was supposed to produce witnesses.
Guests from David’s firm were invited because their statements would carry professional weight.
Sylvia intended to humiliate me until I reacted.
If I shouted, they would call me irrational.
If I left, David would claim abandonment.
If I became physically ill, he would control the response.
The push had not been part of the original plan.
At least, that was Sylvia’s claim.
“You lost your temper,” Elaine said during the deposition.
“Anna refused to obey.”
“She was seven months pregnant.”
“She was dramatic.”
“You pushed her hard enough to cause emergency delivery.”
Sylvia looked toward the screen.
“Babies are born early every day.”
I felt my father shift beside me.
Elaine continued calmly.
“Did you hear Anna ask for an ambulance?”
“Yes.”
“Did you call one?”
“No.”
“Why?”
“David was handling it.”
“Did you see him break her phone?”
“Yes.”
“Did you stop him?”
“No.”
“Did you believe Anna might lose her child?”
Sylvia’s eyes moved toward me.
For the first time, she looked uncertain.
“Yes.”
“Did you care?”
Her attorney objected.
Elaine repeated the question.
Sylvia remained silent.
The silence answered for her.
After the deposition, prosecutors offered Sylvia a deal.
Truthful testimony against Marcus and David in exchange for a reduced sentence.
She accepted within two hours.
David learned about it that evening.
He demanded his own meeting with Caroline.
This time, he offered the full Jefferson Circle archive.
Not copies.
The original server.
He claimed he knew where Marcus kept it.
Caroline asked what he wanted.
David gave one condition.
A private conversation with me.
I refused.
He refused to disclose the location.
Grace was still in the hospital.
Marcus was still free.
The Circle still had people inside law enforcement.
Every instinct told me not to sit across from David again.
But the archive could expose everyone.
I agreed under strict conditions.
A guard remained in the room.
The conversation was recorded.
David entered wearing handcuffs.
He sat across from me.
For several seconds, neither of us spoke.
Then he looked at the healing scar beneath my hospital gown.
“Did she survive?”
I stared at him.
“You do not get to ask about Grace.”
Pain crossed his face.
Whether it was real no longer mattered.
“I need you to know something.”
“What?”
“My mother pushed you.”
“But I was supposed to make sure you reached the hospital.”
I felt cold.
“You had a role after the assault.”
“Yes.”
“And you chose not to do it.”
David lowered his eyes.
“Marcus called while you were on the floor.”
May you like
“What did he say?”
“He said to let the situation continue.”
