I looked at Fiona.
“She can’t take Fiona from me because he lies, can she?”
“I don’t know what a judge has seen or what he filed. But nobody standing at an airport gets to decide that by himself.”
I swallowed.
David had always been good at certainty.
He said things as if saying them firmly enough made them true.
You’ll never manage without me.
Nobody is going to believe that.
The money is mine because I earned it.
You’re being emotional.
You’re making this worse.
I had spent years confusing confidence with authority.
“I need to call Natalie.”
“Call her.”
I did.
She answered immediately.
“Did you land?”
“Almost.”
“What happened?”
I looked at Luca.
“My husband is at the airport.”
There was a long silence.
“David?”
“Yes.”
“How does he know?”
“I don’t know.”
“Do not go out there alone.”
“I won’t.”
I heard Natalie’s husband talking in the background.
Then Natalie said, “Come here if you can. If you can’t, call me the second you know where you’re going.”
“I will.”
When the plane reached the gate, most passengers stood immediately.
Luca remained seated.
So did I.
Fiona woke and rubbed her eyes.
“Are we in New York?”
“Yes, baby.”
“Is Cousin Natalie here?”
“Soon.”
The flight attendant quietly asked us to wait.
A few minutes later, a broad-shouldered man in a dark suit entered the aircraft and walked toward us.
“Mr. Sterling.”
“Marcus.”
His eyes moved to me.
“This is Blaire.”
Marcus nodded politely.
“Ms. Vance.”
“What exactly is happening out there?” I asked.
“Your husband has been trying to determine whether you’re on this flight. Airport personnel have not given him passenger information. His investigators appear to be waiting in the public arrivals area.”
“Can he stop me from leaving?”
“I’m security, not your lawyer,” Marcus said. “We have counsel on the phone who can answer that. From a security standpoint, we can escort you through a private exit if you want to avoid a confrontation.”
That distinction calmed me more than a promise would have.
Nobody was pretending this could all be solved by rich people snapping their fingers.
There were rules.
There were courts.
There were decisions I would have to make.
I looked at Luca.
“If I go with you, am I hiding from him?”
“No,” he said. “You’re leaving an airport without having an argument in front of your daughter.”
