Chapter 8 - THE RETURN TO WINNETKA
Two weeks after the gala, in early January, I received an unexpected phone call from Dana Ruiz.
"Vesper," Dana said, her voice filled with quiet intrigue. "Lenora Sterling’s Winnetka property just entered pre-foreclosure."
I stopped writing in my journal, looking out my office window at the falling snow. "Foreclosure?"
"Yes," Dana explained. "When Theron lost his position at Sterling Heritage, he was no longer able to subsidize Lenora’s mortgage payments and property taxes. The estate carries $1.8 million in back debt, and the lender is putting it up for private auction next Tuesday."
I remained silent for a moment, processing the news.
The Winnetka estate was where I had spent five years being treated like an unpaid servant. It was where Lenora had hosted her country-club luncheons while I cooked in the kitchen. It was where Cressa had slapped me across the face and spilled soup over my dress.
"Purchase the note, Dana," I said quietly.
Dana paused. "You want to buy the house?"
"I want to buy the mortgage note," I corrected her. "Pay the full $1.8 million cash through our secondary real estate holding company."
Three days later, on a bitter Tuesday afternoon, I drove my black Range Rover up the long, winding cobblestone driveway of the Winnetka estate.
The property looked neglected. Snow piled high on the unplowed stone balustrades, the formal gardens were buried under grey slush, and several exterior window shutters swung loosely in the freezing winter wind.
I parked near the front porch, stepped out into the crisp cold air, wrapping my cashmere coat tightly around myself, and walked up the front steps.
I knocked on the heavy oak door.
A minute later, the door creaked open.
Lenora Sterling stood in the doorway, wearing a old cardigan sweater, her hair unstyled, her face pale and lined with age.
When she saw me standing on her porch, her eyes widened in shock. "Vesper...?"
"Hello, Lenora," I said softly. "May I come in?"
Lenora stepped back, opening the door wide. "Yes... of course. Please."
I walked into the grand foyer. The house was freezing—the thermostat had been turned down to save on heating oil. Dust covers draped over several pieces of antique furniture in the living room, and the grand dining room where the birthday party had taken place was empty and dark.
"I heard about the foreclosure," I said, leaning against the marble archway.
Lenora bowed her head, tears filling her eyes. "The bank gave me thirty days to vacate. I... I can't afford the property taxes anymore. Cressa’s salary isn't enough to help, and Theron can barely pay his own rent in Colorado."
She looked up at me, her hands trembling. "I am losing my home, Vesper. The home where my children grew up."
I pulled an envelope from my coat pocket and set it on the foyer console table—the exact spot where Cressa’s designer purse had sat the night she slapped me.
"What is that?" Lenora asked.
"That is the deed of release," I said smoothly. "I purchased your mortgage note from the bank yesterday morning."
Lenora gasped, clutching her chest. "You... you bought my house?"
"I bought the debt, Lenora," I explained. "And I have transferred ownership of the property into a private irrevocable trust under your name. You will be allowed to live here for the rest of your life without paying mortgage or rent."
Lenora stared at me, completely paralyzed with shock. She couldn't speak. She couldn't breathe. Tears streamed down her face as she looked from the envelope to my face.
"Why...?" Lenora sobbed out, falling against the wall. "Why would you do this for me after everything we did to you? After how terribly we treated you?"
I looked at the marble floor where the truffle soup had spilled six months ago.
May you like
"Because, Lenora," I said softly, "I don't need to ruin you to prove who I am. You thought I was your housemaid. I just wanted you to remember that I was the one who owned the house all along."
I turned, walked out the front door into the snow, and left Lenora Sterling weeping with gratitude inside her quiet, empty mansion.
