Chapter 7 - Get Off My Island
Three days after the wedding, I returned to Aurelia Key.
Not because I wanted to.
Because the island had become evidence.
Investigators needed access.
The board needed answers.
And I needed to stand in the place where my daughter had fallen without letting that memory own me forever.
Mia remained in Malé with Dr. Patel’s sister, whom she had already adopted as an honorary aunt.
Marcus accompanied me.
The moment we stepped off the helicopter, staff lined the path.
Some looked worried.
Others looked ashamed.
I stopped.
“What is this?”
Elias cleared his throat.
“They wanted to welcome you back.”
A housekeeper named Lani stepped forward.
“We are sorry about Miss Mia.”
My chest tightened.
“You have nothing to apologize for.”
“We should have reacted faster.”
“No.”
I looked at all of them.
“My family’s actions are not your burden.”
There was visible relief.
I realized many employees feared I would blame them.
That was exactly what my parents would have done.
I would not become them.
“Thank you for taking care of her.”
Lani’s eyes filled.
“Always.”
Then I went to the deck.
The wedding decorations were gone.
No flowers.
No tables.
No champagne.
Only teak, sunlight, ocean, and the low railing.
I stood where Mia had been pushed.
Two meters below, the decorative rocks had been removed.
Temporary safety panels covered the railing.
I took a breath.
Then I heard footsteps.
Sarah.
I turned.
She had been allowed to remain on the island under investigative supervision.
She wore white linen pants and an oversized shirt.
No makeup.
No jewelry.
She looked ten years older.
“You came.”
“This is my property.”
She flinched.
For once she had no clever answer.
We stood in silence.
Then Sarah said:
“I didn’t know.”
“Which part?”
“That you paid.”
“Okay.”
“That Greg was in debt.”
“Okay.”
“That Mom and Dad were involved.”
“Okay.”
Her voice broke.
“Can you stop saying okay?”
“What would you prefer?”
“I don’t know.”
“That’s the problem, Sarah. You’ve spent your entire life expecting other people to tell you what makes you feel better.”
She stared at me.
“I know what I did to Mia was horrible.”
“Horrible is spilling wine.”
She looked down.
“You pushed an eight-year-old child over a railing.”
“I know.”
“Do you?”
“I lost control.”
“For a dress.”
“I was angry.”
“For a dress.”
Tears filled her eyes.
“I’m not defending it.”
“Good.”
She took a breath.
“I want to apologize to her.”
“No.”
Her face tightened.
“Elena—”
“No.”
“She’s my niece.”
“She’s my daughter.”
That ended it.
Sarah wiped her face.
“I keep thinking about her saying sorry before I pushed her.”
My anger moved like ice through my chest.
“She apologized because she has been trained by this family to believe everything is her fault.”
Sarah nodded.
“I know.”
“No. You are only starting to know.”
She sank into one of the deck chairs.
For a moment, she looked like the little girl who used to follow me everywhere.
“Elena, did Mom really know about your company?”
“Yes.”
“How long?”
“Three months.”
“She kept telling me you were jealous of the wedding.”
“I know.”
“She said you probably resented Greg because you couldn’t keep a man.”
I looked toward the ocean.
My fiancé, Michael, had died before Mia was born.
Sarah knew that.
My mother knew that.
Some cruelty was so casual it stopped surprising me.
Sarah covered her face.
“I believed her.”
“You usually do.”
“I’m sorry.”
I said nothing.
She lowered her hands.
“Greg told investigators he originally looked into me because of your connection to Aurelia.”
“Yes.”
“So my marriage was fake.”
“I don’t know.”
“You think he loved me?”
“I think people can love someone and still exploit them.”
Sarah stared at the empty wedding deck.
“That’s worse.”
“Yes.”
A security officer approached.
“Ms. Bennett?”
I turned.
“Your parents have arrived.”
I frowned.
“They were not invited.”
“They came with local counsel. They are requesting permission to collect belongings.”
“Send their belongings to the dock.”
“Understood.”
A familiar voice came from behind him.
“That is enough, Elena.”
My father.
He had pushed past the outer checkpoint with an attorney.
My mother followed.
Even without the diamonds, she looked furious.
“You cannot keep us from speaking to our own daughters.”
I faced them.
“You’re trespassing.”
My mother laughed bitterly.
“This is ridiculous.”
“No. What’s ridiculous is striking me on property I own because you thought I was poor.”
Her face changed.
My father stepped forward.
“You have embarrassed this family enough.”
“Stop.”
He ignored me.
“This private-island nonsense has gone to your head.”
I almost admired his consistency.
Even now, faced with proof of everything, he still believed authority belonged naturally to him.
“You hit Mia.”
“I was trying to wake her.”
“You were told she had fallen.”
“She was acting.”
“She had a concussion and a fractured collarbone.”
He went quiet.
My mother intervened.
“No one knew that at the time.”
“That is why normal people call medical professionals.”
“Elena—”
“No.”
My voice did not rise.
That made them listen.
“You spent three months pretending you didn’t know who I was because you were angry I hadn’t given you access to my money.”
My father looked at Sarah.
She stared at him in shock.
“You told Greg’s investors his family funded this wedding.”
Silence.
“You accepted money.”
My mother looked away.
I continued.
“You used my property to support a lie worth twenty-eight million dollars.”
My father’s attorney touched his arm.
“Richard, don’t respond.”
I smiled without humor.
“For once, listen to someone.”
Dad’s face turned red.
“I am your father.”
“And that sentence is no longer a key.”
“What?”
“It doesn’t unlock my house. My company. My money. My daughter. Or my life.”
My mother stepped toward me.
“We made mistakes.”
“You made choices.”
“Elena, families forgive.”
“Then forgive me for this.”
I looked at Elias.
“Escort them off my island.”
My mother’s face collapsed.
“You wouldn’t.”
I met her eyes.
“Watch me.”
Security stepped forward.
My father resisted.
My mother started crying.
Sarah stood silently.
And as my parents were escorted toward the dock they had once believed belonged to their wealthy son-in-law, my phone rang.
It was Inspector Rasheed.
“Elena, we found another transfer.”
“To whom?”
“A company registered under your sister’s name.”
Sarah heard.
She turned toward me.
“What company?”
The inspector continued.
“The amount is six million dollars.”
Sarah went white.
May you like
“I don’t have six million dollars.”
And just like that, the investigation shifted again.
