Chapter 190

Miles offers to let me go home early, but I refuse. I’ve had too many setbacks already, so many almost exclusively handed to me by Edward Zimmer. I’m not going to let him win by cowering any longer. It’s past time that I start advocating for myself.

After righting myself in the chair, and assuring Miles I’m okay enough for him to leave me be for a time, I call Hugo and arrange for a meeting.

At lunch, I find myself sitting at a table with him and Kimberly. Miles wanted to come, but I told him it would draw too much of a scene. Besides, with Hugo and Kimberly, we were old co-workers and friends catching up.

“Miles told me the orphanage burned down,” I say, after our greetings and finished.

“He said the truth,” Hugo says. “I went to see the sight for myself. There’s barely any debris left now. The community turned it into a public garden. I think they grow vegetables there.”

It makes me feel good, knowing that something so terrible was no being used for something so good. Feeding people. Helping them. Giving back. That’s the way it always should have been.

“There are no records to recover then,” I say.

“No, unfortunately,” Hugo says.

“But that doesn’t mean we are out of options,” Kimberly says.

I’m not sure how much Kimberly knows. Hugo told me he didn’t share everything with her, but he did remark that she’s so insightful, she pieced most of it together from what little he did provide. It doesn’t surprise me. It also doesn’t bother me for her to know. She is as close to a friend as I have, Cynthia aside.

God, I wish Cynthia would return from her trip sooner rather than later. It’s not her fault, of course. Who could know this would happen? But I miss her.

Though even she doesn’t know the full truth. Like the others, she wouldn’t think to suspect Edward.

“Many of the orphanage’s records were beginning to be transferred into digital format,” Miles says.

“That’s probably why the place went up in smoke,” Kimberly adds. “Edward could have been covering his tracks before pushing forward toward public office.”

“I don’t know.” It doesn’t fit. Edward is usually so careful, ever a few steps ahead. For him to be so careless as to leave behind inflammatory documents. It doesn’t add up. “There might be something else going on.”

“Regardless,” Hugo says, bringing us both back on track, “We do have partial records of names of people who had grown up in the orphanage. Many of the children didn’t have names, however, which makes it difficult to track them down.”

“Things are going slowly, is what he’s trying to say,” Kimberly says.

“Slowly,” Hugo says, “But we are not dead in the water. We just need more time.”

Unfortunately, with the election coming up, there isn’t much time for such a slow pace. The election will be on us before we know it, and Edward will be much harder to convict if he becomes president. He could just pardon himself.

“We’re fighting a losing battle against time,” I say.

“We have uncovered some records of the orphanages funds from that time. We see Mr. Carpenter’s donations, as well as many others…” Hugo says.

“The orphanage was making a ridiculous amount of money at this time,” Kimberly says.

The orphanage itself wasn’t seeing any of it. The facets leaked and the floorboards creaked. If it rained, a drip would land on my pillow, startling me awake in the few moments I’d gotten to sleep.

“We can see the funds, but we can’t prove what they were for, or that they weren’t used to improve the orphanage. Especially now that it’s burned down,” Hugo says.

“We’ll continue to reach out. With luck, we can track down someone who has seen something.”

I remember the other girls from the orphanage, but I wouldn’t begin to know where to look for them. Maybe a name here or there. But other than that…

The only one I know for sure is Daphne. And as she’s married to Edward, I doubt she would tell me anything…

She’s probably still angry with me too.

“I have more photos,” Hugo says. “Possible Whisperers members that might be corrupt.”

“Let me see,” I say. I hate this part, seeing these faces from the past, but it’s one of the few ways I can help. I really want to help.

Hugo slides a manila envelope across the table to me.

Taking a breath, I hold it, and open the folder. The faces don’t immediately jump out at me, not like Mr. Carpenter’s had. Though they do seem vaguely familiar.

It takes a moment of looking, of thinking, but then I remember. “These two,” I say, pointing. “They didn’t come for me, but I remember seeing them. They… bothered Daphne.”

Hugo frowns. As I push the folder back to him, he looks at the men. “This is even deeper than we thought.”

“Are they important?” I ask.

“I don’t want to say,” Hugo says. “Not yet.”

“I don’t like secrets, Hugo.”

“It’s not just for you, Esther. It’s for all of us. These two… they are dangerous.”

I don’t like the sound of that. “Then you be careful too.”

“I will.”

Kimberly looks between us. “Who is Daphne?”

After I fill her in, she gives me a wide-eyed look. “You have to talk to her.”

“I want to but…”

“She could be the piece that ties this whole thing together,” Kimberly says.

“Kim,” Hugo says gently, redirecting her attention and her excitement. “Daphne has married Edward Zimmer. By choice, by force, by brainwashing? We don’t know. But in any of those cases, it’s not going to be as easy as walking up to her for a nice chat.”

Kimberly deflates somewhat. “Sorry, Esther.”

“Don’t apologize,” I say. “It’s a good thought. One I’ve been thinking of myself.”

“The debate is coming up,” Kimberly says.

“I know.”

“She will be there,” Kimberly says.

“I know.”

I think of those two men walking into Daphne’s room, and the way she would cry afterwards. Soundlessly, while staring up at the ceiling, like she had totally turned herself off.

I had failed to protect her back then. I had abandoned her, being adopted and never coming back.

Could I really leave her alone now? Even if it’s difficult, even if it’s unwelcome…

The least I can do is make sure she’s okay. At least as okay as she can be.

The Edward on the phone was no different than the monster from my youth. He couldn’t possibly treat Daphne differently. Why even marry her? Is it a front?

As much as I think, I can’t find any answers. Only questions. I go round and round in a circle, questions on top of questions until my head hurts.

“We should stop,” Hugo says. “Miles will be angry if I return you in any form of distress.”

Talk of Miles brings me courage and strength.

“You think I’m joking,” Hugo says, then holds up his phone. He has 3 messages from Miles all vaguely threatening.

“That man is your hero, Esther,” Kimberly laughs.

Mood brightened, what could I do but agree.

Yet with my bright mood, comes even more commitment.

I need to talk to Daphne. No matter what.