I stood.
As I reached the door, she called after me.
“Mrs. Thornton?”
I turned.
Her gaze lowered toward my closed hand.
“You dropped something.”
The pen lay beside the chair.
I picked it up.
The folded receipt remained hidden in my palm.
Back in my bedroom, I locked the door.
Then I unfolded the paper.
MARA.
The name meant nothing to me.
I searched my phone.
There were dozens of women named Mara connected to Thornton companies, charities, and social events. None stood out.
Then I searched old articles about Ethan’s accident.
Most repeated the same details. His car had been found against a stone barrier
shortly after midnight. He had suffered a head injury and remained unconscious after emergency surgery.
One article included a photograph from a charity gala held three weeks before the crash.
Ethan stood beside Jason and Vivian.
On Ethan’s other side was a woman with dark red hair.
The caption identified her as Dr. Mara Ellis, director of the Thornton Foundation’s medical research program.
I enlarged the image.
She appeared to be in her early thirties. Composed. Intelligent. Her hand rested lightly on Ethan’s arm.
I opened another article.
This one was dated two months after the accident.
DR. MARA ELLIS RESIGNS FROM THORNTON FOUNDATION.
The article said she had stepped down for personal reasons and relocated overseas.
No interview.
No farewell statement.
Nothing after that.
A knock sounded at my door.
I quickly slipped the receipt beneath my phone.
“Who is it?”
“Vivian.”
I unlocked the door.
She entered carrying
two cups of tea.
“I thought you might still be awake.”
“You bring tea to all the strangers who marry your unconscious grandson?”
“Only the ones who make him open his eyes.”
She handed me a cup and sat near the fireplace.
I remained standing.
“Who is Mara Ellis?”
Vivian’s hand paused halfway to her cup.
The reaction was slight.
But unmistakable.
“Where did you hear that name?”
“An article.”
“Which article?”
“One about the foundation.”
Vivian set her tea down.
“Mara was a physician and researcher.”
“Was she close to Ethan?”
