Chapter 23
Kimberley
I swallow hard, feeling his firm grip around my hands, a few drops of dishwater still clinging to my fingers. What on earth could have happened that makes it so hard for him to tell me?
“You mean a lot to me too, Gabriel. You and Rosie—you’ve become my little family. I mean, if I’m even allowed to call it that…” I smile, a little embarrassed, while Gabriel looks at me intently and, for a moment, even gives me a small smile back.
“There’s so much I need to tell you,” he says quietly. “But it’s best if I start at the beginning.” His grip loosens and then he lets go completely. “You should sit down.”
That bad?
“Okay…” I keep my eyes on him as I walk over to the dining table and sit. Gabriel takes a seat across from me, turning so we’re face to face.
“A few weeks ago, Kerem called,” he begins.
“He said there’d been a new development in Catherine’s case and that we were being summoned for questioning.
We drove to the station together. I honestly thought there’d been trouble in prison—maybe she’d attacked someone or been attacked.
But it was something completely different. ”
I can see how hard it is for him to talk about this, so I move a little closer and lay my hand on his cheek.
“No matter what it is, I’m here,” I assure him. I brush my fingers lightly over his chest before taking his hand and squeezing it tight.
“She was cursing at a cellmate,” he says slowly.
“Ranting about the whole situation. And then she said something that made the cellmate suspicious—because this woman knew exactly why Catherine was serving her sentence. The inmate went to a guard and asked to speak to the police. In exchange for information, she wanted better conditions or even a reduced sentence.”
I swallow hard. What’s going on?
“What… did she hear?”
“Catherine apparently implied that all the effort she went through wasn’t worth it.
That there was always a risk of getting caught, and now she’s in prison for a minor offense instead of the real crime.
Her cellmate figured there must be something else.
A police officer reopened the file and found an incident from four years ago…
” Gabriel rubs his face with his free hand.
“Back then, an unknown shooter attacked our parents. Our father died, our mother survived. The perpetrator was never found, but they left behind DNA that didn’t match any registered criminal.
And unless there’s suspicion of family or close acquaintances, no samples are taken.
But Catherine’s in custody now, so they had no problem getting a sample from her, and… there was a match.”
“There was… a match?”
What he’s telling me is unbelievable. I draw in a breath, one hand pressed to my chest, the other clinging to his.
“The unknown DNA belonged to Catherine. She was at the crime scene that night, even though she had an airtight alibi. The police questioned her, and after hours she broke down. She confessed.”
“She… confessed?”
“Yes. She was furious at our father, my mother, me…”
“Your mother?”
“Yes,” Gabriel says quietly. “I didn’t even know it myself, but Catherine is only my half-sister. My father had an affair and convinced Catherine’s mother to give her up to him. He didn’t want the public to know he’d fathered a child with his mistress. He pressured my mother to adopt Catherine.”
“Oh my God… Did Catherine know about this?”
“Yes. Her biological mother wrote her a letter before she died. She’d sworn to my father never to tell Catherine the truth.
In return, she was financially compensated.
But when she learned she didn’t have long to live, she wrote to her daughter.
They met several times. That’s how Catherine learned about the cruel exchange—the money for a child. The perfect family built on a lie.”
Gabriel sighs. “After her biological mother’s death, Catherine decided to take her happiness into her own hands.
She believed if she killed him and my mother, she’d be entitled to half of the fortune.
But she was wrong. My father had changed his will years ago, leaving everything to me.
When it was read after his death, I was stunned.
Catherine was cut out completely. And since England doesn’t have mandatory inheritance shares for children, her anger became boundless. She was dependent on my goodwill.”
“And she used Rosie because she knew how much you care about her.”
Unbelievable.
“In the beginning she was a good mother. Really. It’s only in the last few months everything started to unravel.
She’d drop Rosie off without warning. She drank heavily, sometimes disappearing for days.
I bought her a house, paid for everything.
I just refused to fund her parties anymore.
I told her she needed to work. I even offered her jobs at my company—she refused.
I suggested college—she wasn’t interested.
I’m rich, so why should she lift a finger?
And over time she realized more and more how tightly she had me hooked because of Rosie. ”
“I assume there’ll be a trial?” I ask gently, stroking the back of his hand with my thumb.
“Yes. They’ll press charges. And the press will report on it.
Rosie will be stigmatized. Even if they keep her name and photo out of the papers, people will know I adopted her—that she’s Catherine’s child.
The child of a murderer.” Gabriel looks at me, eyes heavy with sadness.
“You can still leave. I’ll pay you a generous severance so you can help your parents, and… ”
"Forget it." I shake my head, my eyes fixed on him.
"I’m staying. Not just because of Rosie—who needs me more than ever—but also for you.
" I briefly let go of him, cupping his face in both hands, and press a soft kiss to his lips. "For weeks I’ve been worrying about you, watching you withdraw further and further. Why didn’t you talk to me? "
I rest my forehead against his, still holding him close, my fingers drifting from his neck to the nape. "I want to be here for you, no matter how hard it gets. You don’t have to go through this alone."
I’ve been fighting my tears for so long, but now they spill freely, trickling down my cheeks, soaking into my robe.
"I didn’t want to burden you with this," he murmurs.
"Nonsense." I look at him, unashamed of my tear-streaked face. "It’s a much heavier burden knowing you’ve been carrying all this alone. I’m not just an employee, Gabriel.
There’s so much more between us… or am I imagining it?
" My hands sweep softly across his chest. "I’m sorry. I wanted to be strong. I tried not to cry, but it’s so cruel.
Cruel that you’ve been alone with these thoughts all this time. "
"You really want to keep working for me?" Gabriel sounds almost disbelieving, as if he’d been bracing himself for rejection.
"Of course. And not just that. I’ll be here for you—and for Rosie. Always. No matter how hard it gets. Life isn’t only sunshine; you need darkness to appreciate the day."
"The press will surround the company and the house. Paparazzi could hound us for months, maybe years," he warns.
"Let them. You haven’t done anything wrong. Quite the opposite. You adopted Rosie and gave her a home. The only thing that matters is that she and you are okay. Everything else is noise."
"Kim, you’re part of this too. You need to be okay as well."
"Of course." I swipe roughly at the tears on my face. "I’m staying. No matter how bad it gets, I won’t leave you and Rosie. Never." Then it hits me. "And your mother."
Gabriel’s head snaps up. "What do you mean?"
"She took in Catherine—even if it was under duress—although it was certainly an extremely difficult time for her, she still gave a baby a home. Raised her with everything she had. She surely never imagined that baby would kill her husband. This must be a cruel time for her too."
"She doesn’t know anything about it," Gabriel looks at me gravely. "The day she was shot, she survived, but she’s been in a coma ever since. It’s virtually impossible she’ll ever open her eyes again." He forces a smile. "When I said I was visiting my mother, that wasn’t always a lie."
Another heavy blow.
"She would like you, I'm very sure of that."
"Rosie doesn’t know her grandmother at all?" I ask.
He shakes his head silently.
"How do you bear it?" I ask. "Such a weight… it must be agonizing."
"This is my life. I make the best of it."
And I think I finally begin to understand his distance. The company on one hand. The emotional burden with Rosie on the other. The situation with his mother and his sister. Too much for one person. Too much for one heart. For one soul.
"You’re incredibly strong. I can’t take the burden away, but…" I shape his hands as though he’s holding a heavy ball, then slide my palms beneath his. "I can help you carry it."
Does he understand what I mean?
We hold each other’s gaze until he clasps my hands again and smiles. "Thank you, Kim. It means more than I can say that you’re with me."
"Together, we can handle anything." I lean forward, kiss his cheek, and stand. "Tea? Or champagne? We do have something to celebrate."
Gabriel leans back, his gaze gentle. "Tea is enough for me."
"Then tea it is."
I quickly boil the water and tidy the last pots and pans. I love making life a little warmer for him and Rosie—in this role, I completely thrive.
"These are for you." I open one of the tins we bought at the Christmas market. Inside are the homemade cookies Rosie and I baked: heart-shaped, filled with jam. So-called shortbread-cookies.
“The star-shaped ones are yours. The heart-shaped ones in the other tin are for Rosie and me—low-sugar jam and sweetener. We can snack on them too. And of course, we baked some for Steven and Sally to bring to the office."
Gabriel takes one and tries it. "They’re good."