Chapter 5 - The Night Everything ChangedCarmine did not explain further.
He told Fay to return to the house and refused to answer another question.
But she could no longer ignore the possibility that the accident had been planned by someone who knew the estate's security system.
That night, Dominic asked her to stay while he ate.
It was the first time he had requested her company rather than her service.
Fay sat in the chair opposite him.
"Have you ever been afraid of someone you trusted?" she asked.
Dominic put down his fork.
"Yes."
"Did you ever find out they were lying?"
"Usually."
"How?"
He considered the question.
"People lie with their mouths. They tell the truth with what they protect."
Fay thought of Carmine.
"That's not always true."
"No. But it's a place to start."
She told him what she had discovered.
Dominic listened without interrupting.
When she finished, he looked toward the window.
"Carmine was the first person I called after Elena died. He stood beside me when my own family wanted to take control of everything."
"Maybe he had a reason."
"Maybe."
The uncertainty seemed to hurt him more than anger would have.
The next morning, Dr. Hannah Reed arrived.
She was in her early forties, direct, and unimpressed by the mansion's security staff.
She examined Dominic's medical records and asked detailed questions about the crash.
"Your injury is severe," she said. "I won't promise you a miracle. But I also won't tell you that improvement is impossible without reviewing your current condition."
Dominic's expression remained guarded.
"What are you saying?"
"I'm saying we begin with an honest assessment. Then we build a rehabilitation plan around what your body can do."
For the first time in months, Dominic agreed to treatment.
The sessions were painful and frustrating.
Some days he could barely tolerate the exercises. Other days he managed small movements that left him exhausted.
Fay never celebrated too loudly.
She learned when to encourage him and when to leave him alone.
Their relationship changed in quiet ways.
He began asking whether she had eaten.
She began bringing him books instead of simply clearing the ones he threw aside.
He told her about Elena, how she used to dance barefoot in the kitchen and how she had once convinced him to spend an entire Sunday volunteering at a children's hospital.
Fay told him about her childhood, her father's factory closure, and the years she spent trying to keep her family afloat.
One evening, Dominic asked why she had never complained about being poor.
Fay smiled sadly.
"I complain all the time. Just not to people who can make my life worse."
He laughed.
This time, it lasted longer.
Then the estate's alarm sounded.
Carmine rushed into the room.
"Boss, there's been a break-in."
"What was taken?"
"Nothing from the safe. Nothing from the office."
Dominic's expression sharpened.
"Then what were they looking for?"
Carmine held up a small security drive.
"Someone tried to access the old camera system."
Fay felt her blood turn cold.
The drive contained the footage from the night of the accident.
Someone had attempted to erase it.
Dominic ordered the system disconnected and called an independent technician.
Hours later, they recovered a damaged fragment.
The video showed Dominic's car leaving the estate.
A second vehicle followed.
Then the footage jumped.
When it resumed, Dominic's car was stopped beside a deserted road. A figure approached the driver's door.
The image was grainy.
But the figure turned toward the camera.
Fay recognized the face immediately.
It was Carmine.
Dominic watched the footage twice.
Then he looked at the man who had stood beside him for twelve years.
"Tell me this isn't what it looks like."
Carmine didn't answer.
May you like
Instead, he reached into his jacket.
And Dominic saw the gun.
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