Chapter 1 - THE POLICE AT THE DOOR
The pounding at the front door silenced everyone in the dining room.
A second later, a man’s voice thundered through the estate.
“Napa County Sheriff’s Department.”
“Open the door immediately.”
No one moved.
Adrian remained several feet away from me, staring at the fist wrapped around the black flash drive.
The hatred in his eyes had disappeared.
What replaced it was fear.
His father, Richard Caldwell, recovered first.
He turned toward the housekeeper standing near the kitchen entrance.
“Give us one minute,” he ordered.
The housekeeper hesitated.
The officers pounded again.
“We received a report of an active domestic assault.”
“Open the door now.”
Richard’s expression hardened.
“Do it.”
The housekeeper hurried away.
Vivian Caldwell stepped toward me.
Her silk gown brushed against the broken porcelain scattered across the floor.
“You are making a terrible mistake,” she whispered.
Blood continued sliding down my neck.
“The mistake was believing I would protect your son.”
She glanced toward my closed hand.
“You have no idea what Maya gave you.”
“I know you’re terrified of it.”
Her face tightened.
The front doors opened.
Heavy footsteps moved rapidly through the foyer.
Two uniformed deputies entered the dining room, followed by a female sergeant with one hand near her holster.
Every relative immediately began talking.
“It was an accident.”
“She misunderstood.”
“The plate slipped.”
“She became emotional.”
The sergeant raised her voice.
“Everyone stay where you are.”
The room went silent again.
She took one look at my bleeding head and crossed directly toward me.
“Ma’am, are you the person who called?”
“Yes.”
“Who struck you?”
I pointed at Adrian.
“My husband.”
Adrian lifted both hands.
“I did not strike her.”
“The plate broke while I was standing up.”
The sergeant looked at the porcelain fragments around my chair.
Then she looked at the blood covering my blouse.
“Turn around and place your hands behind your back.”
Adrian’s confidence cracked.
“You can’t arrest me based on her word.”
“I have twenty witnesses who saw it happen.”
Several relatives immediately looked away.
Richard stepped forward.
“I’m an attorney.”
“My son will not answer questions without counsel.”
The sergeant did not look at him.
“Then your son can remain silent while he puts his hands behind his back.”
Adrian stared at me as one deputy approached.
“You’re really doing this?”
I met his eyes.
“You did this.”
The deputy reached for Adrian’s wrist.
Adrian suddenly twisted away.
His gaze dropped toward my hand.
Then he lunged.
He did not make it more than two steps.
The deputy slammed him against the dining table and pulled both arms behind his back.
Wineglasses toppled.
A crystal decanter shattered against the floor.
Vivian screamed.
Richard shouted that the officers were using excessive force.
Through it all, Maya remained beside me.
She was pale.
But she did not move.
As the deputy locked handcuffs around Adrian’s wrists, the female sergeant turned toward me.
“What was he trying to take from you?”
Every Caldwell in the room stopped breathing.
I slowly opened my hand.
The black flash drive rested against my bloodstained palm.
“I don’t know yet.”
Maya looked at the sergeant.
“But they do.”
Richard’s eyes narrowed.
“Maya, be very careful.”
She flinched at the sound of his voice.
Then she lifted her chin.
“There’s a security camera above the dining room door.”
The entire family turned toward her.
The sergeant looked up and saw the blinking green light.
“Does that camera record?”
Richard answered too quickly.
“No.”
Maya’s voice remained quiet.
“Yes, it does.”
She pointed toward a cabinet beside the wine cellar.
“The backup system is inside that wall.”
Richard took one step toward her.
A deputy blocked his path.
The sergeant ordered another officer to secure the recording system.
Then she asked me to place the flash drive inside an evidence bag.
I almost obeyed.
Maya caught my wrist.
“No.”
The sergeant watched us carefully.
Maya swallowed.
“Make a copy first.”
Richard’s face went white.
The sergeant noticed.
“What exactly is on that drive?”
Maya looked at her husband, Caleb, seated at the far end of the table.
He had not said a word since the police arrived.
His eyes carried the same warning I had seen in Adrian’s.
Maya turned back to the sergeant.
“Evidence of what happened to Adrian’s first wife.”
For a moment, I thought I had misheard her.
I looked at Adrian.
“Your first wife?”
His face became completely empty.
Richard suddenly stepped forward again.
“This interview is over.”
The sergeant blocked him with one raised hand.
May you like
“No, Mr. Caldwell.”
“It has just begun.”
