Chapter 5 - The First Arrest
The officers didn't arrest Sofia, but they kept her and Lena at the facility for two hours. Victor claimed the storage contract belonged to a Whitmore subsidiary. Lena produced a receipt showing the rent had been paid by Mateo Reyes's estate.
"You can contest ownership in court," an officer told Victor. "You don't get to seize the contents today."
Victor's smile disappeared.
By the time Sofia reached home, a local news site had published a story accusing the Whitmore heir's wife of stealing from an elderly benefactor. The article included her hospital photograph and a cropped image from Elena's study.
Sofia stared at June's picture beside the headline. "They put our baby online."
Adrian took one look and called the paper. The editor said the images had come from an anonymous source with documentation.
"Your mother," Sofia said.
"We don't know that."
"We know she showed us the same photograph last night."
Adrian's silence hurt worse than an argument.
At dinner, Sofia told him she wanted to stay at Lena's apartment temporarily. Adrian didn't object. He helped pack June's medicine, blankets, and the little blue outfit she had worn in the kitchen.
"Come with us," Sofia said, surprised at her own invitation.
"I need to find out what Mom has been doing."
"Then don't ask me to wait for an answer forever."
He kissed June's forehead. When Sofia stepped into the car, her phone buzzed with an unknown number.
Ask Adrian what he signed at seventeen.
The article brought messages from strangers who spoke as though they had stood in the kitchen themselves. Some called Sofia a thief. Others called her a bad mother for carrying June while cleaning. Sofia turned off notifications, then turned them back on, afraid silence would make her look guilty. Adrian asked if he could issue a statement. She told him no. 'Your mother has spent years teaching people what to think of me,' she said. 'I don't need you speaking for me, too.' He stared at the phone, finally understanding that good intentions could still steal her voice.
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Attached was a scanned statement, dated the morning after the crane accident. Beneath a typed account blaming Mateo Reyes for sabotage was Adrian's signature.
THE LAST CANDLE
