Chapter 12 - Vivian Finally Explained Why She Put Lily There
Vivian’s explanation came months later.
Not an excuse.
An explanation.
She had heard Lily repeating:
“Mommy too.”
That morning, Lily pointed at the gala sculpture and said:
“Mommy ice.”
Vivian panicked.
She believed the toddler memory could connect Caroline to the prototype chamber.
So Vivian made an appalling decision.
If Lily were briefly placed inside the gala display in front of witnesses, then any later statement about “Mommy ice” could be dismissed as confusion from the gala.
She was manufacturing an alternative memory.
A replacement explanation.
That was why she smiled when Ethan entered.
She had intended the scene to look controlled.
Artistic.
Harmless.
Maybe disturbing, but not criminal.
Then Ethan saw Lily crying.
The performance collapsed.
Vivian still insisted:
“She was never in danger.”
Caroline answered:
“That is not the standard.”
Vivian looked at her.
“What?”
“You don’t get credit because the child you terrorized survived without injury.”
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That ended the conversation.
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