“They almost succeeded,” I whispered.

“They underestimated your grandmother,” Daniel said.

“And they underestimated you,” he added.

I looked up at him, his face serious in the dim light of the flashlight.

“Thank you, Daniel,” I said. “You risked your career to help me.”

“I did what was right,” Daniel said. “Your grandfather hired me when I was young.”

“He was a fair man. I could not watch his family destroy his work.”

We walked back downstairs to the kitchen.

Evelyn was still sitting at the table, sipping water from a glass.

“Are you staying here tonight, Emily?” she asked.

“Yes,” I said. “I am not leaving this house again.”

“I will stay in the guest wing,” Evelyn said, rising slowly from her chair.

“My old bones do not like the draft, but this is my home too.”

“You can stay as long as you wish, Grandmother,” I said.

She smiled, a small, tight movement of her lips, and patted my cheek with her cold hand.

“Sleep well, child,” she said.

She turned and walked slowly toward the back stairs that led to the guest wing.