Chapter 9: Contact
Rourke’s first formal response arrived through counsel: a denial of wrongdoing, a claim that his role had been limited to preliminary advice on “possible future estate simplification,” and a request for clarification of the allegations before any further cooperation.
The message thread and the draft wire instruction made the denial difficult to sustain. A second preservation demand went out. A parallel inquiry into his trust-account activity began. Pressure, applied evenly, did more than outrage would have.
Celeste attempted an indirect approach on the sixteenth day—a message relayed through a mutual acquaintance expressing concern for my “emotional state” and willingness to discuss “a private resolution that protects the family’s dignity.” I forwarded the message to counsel without reply. Dignity was not the resource she had been protecting when she raised the wooden handle over my mother’s head.
Rosa asked to give a supplemental statement after remembering a specific afternoon when Celeste had taken a folder from the house and returned without it, mentioning a meeting in Needham. The date aligned with a calendar entry recovered from Celeste’s imaged devices. Needham was where Rourke’s office sat.
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The circle tightened by increments.
I continued to split my hours between the hospital, the attorneys’ offices, and the quiet of the newly secured house. Sleep came in short segments. Food was functional. The work of the case required steadiness more than speed, and I had learned long ago how to deliver steadiness under pressure.
