Page 189 of Maksym

Grace shifted one page on her legal pad.

The movement was almost gentle.

“Let us discuss Madelyn’s phone.”

Sloan’s face went still in a new way.

There was another door.

“When Madelyn was at Ironwood, did she have uninterrupted possession of her phone?”

“No.”

“Who took it?”

“I don’t know who physically took it first.”

“Did you later return it to her?”

“Yes.”

“Who gave it to you?”

Sloan hesitated.

The truth spell hummed, warning not punishing.

“One of Sage’s tech department heads,” she said.

No name. Good. We did not need one yet. Roles could be subpoenaed. Names could be extracted. Grace knew when not to clutter clean testimony.

“What did that person say when the phone was handed to you?”

“That Maddie had left it somewhere and I should give it back.”

“Did you believe that?”

“Yes.”

“Did you know at the time that messages would be intercepted?”

“No.”

“Did you know messages sent from the phone would be answered by someone other than Madelyn?”

“No.”

“Did you have any role in altering or deleting her communications?”

“No.”

Grace watched her for a moment. The truth spell remained steady.

I heard Maddie’s breath leave her.

Not relief exactly. Something more complicated. Betrayal had many rooms; discovering one person had not entered all of them did not restore the house, but perhaps it left one wall standing.

“Did you later learn the phone had been tampered with?” Grace asked.