“Because you planned to confess?”
“Yes.”
“Why tonight?”
He glanced at the ruined bowl.
“Because I tasted that soup at your mother’s stall seventeen years ago, and she told me you had learned it from her. She said the recipe was a promise that nobody should be made to feel ashamed of feeding people.”
Hannah’s throat tightened.
“She told me that?”
“She did.”
“You never told me.”
“I was ashamed.”
“You should have been.”
“I am.”
His honesty did not comfort her. It was too late for comfort.
“Did you love her?”
Charles looked down at the folded letter.
“Yes.”
The answer came without hesitation.
“Did she love you?”
“I do not know.”
“Did you tell her?”
“I tried. She told me love was not a defense. She said if I loved her, I would return the building.”
“Why didn’t you?”
“Because Rosalie threatened to expose my other crimes.”
Hannah’s eyes sharpened. “Other crimes?”
Charles nodded. “I altered accounts. I hid losses. I used company money to cover debts. Rosalie found out and used that knowledge to control me. I told myself I was trapped. The truth is that I kept choosing the thing that protected me for one more day.”
Luke sat opposite him.
“You could have gone to the police.”
“Yes.”
“You could have told me.”
“Yes.”
