Total pages in book: 154
Estimated words: 144628 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 723(@200wpm)___ 579(@250wpm)___ 482(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 144628 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 723(@200wpm)___ 579(@250wpm)___ 482(@300wpm)
“Will do.”
Vanessa turned back to her system. She had a full day of placing orders and checking in on contractors. The party was coming up, and she wanted everything to run smoothly. She’d already had the florist cancel on her.
Maybe she should call Ava Malone. The woman threw a lot of parties. It might be good to get her advice.
Or she might be fooling herself. She’d loved spending time with Michael’s family. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d felt so welcome in a place. Between the adorable kids and Ava’s obvious maternal love for her boys, that night had been pleasant, and she’d never wanted it to end.
Would it be so wrong to ask Michael for his mom’s number? Would he be horrified?
She was about to text him when her cell trilled. She glanced down at the number and answered, a little worry gnawing at her. “Ruby? Shouldn’t you be in school?”
A sniffling sound came over the line. “Uhm, I was. And that was when the cops came. They hauled me out in front of everyone. In handcuffs. It honestly would have been pretty cool except I cried like a baby. I thought I was scared of them. Then the dude in the suit showed up and made them look like nice guys.”
“What?” She stood, grabbing her purse. “Where are you?”
“I’m fine. I’m home,” Ruby said. “They let me go. I think my hysterical crying made them feel like I’d learned my lesson. Which I have. I’m okay, but I don’t think I’ll be hacking into the US military again any time soon.”
“You did what?” She was fairly certain she screeched the question. She glanced around, but everyone seemed wrapped up in their own work, luckily.
“I went looking for Kyle Hawthorne’s records, and that’s where they were. I’d been talking to some people online, and I figured out how to do it. I should have listened to that one chick. She told me this would happen. Look, I’m sorry, but I have to stop. My mom is freaked out. She took my laptop. I wanted to call you before she takes my phone. I’m so sorry, Vanessa. I think it was him, and all the security around him proves it.”
She wasn’t sure it proved anything except that she’d gone too far. “I’m sorry for getting you involved.”
“You need to stay away from him, Ness.” Ruby’s voice went low as though she was terrified she might be overheard. “He’s bad news. I got the tiniest glimpse at one of his boss’s evaluations of him. He’s a killer.”
Vanessa’s stomach knotted, guilt flowing through her. She’d done this. She’d gotten Ruby in trouble because she’d been too scared to tackle the problem head on. “I’ll do what I should have done in the first place. Ruby, you call me if you need any help. I’ll talk to your mom if I need to.”
“I think that would make things worse. I’m sorry I couldn’t find the proof.” There was the sound of a woman yelling in the background. “I gotta go. I think I’m grounded for the rest of my life.”
The line went dead.
And Vanessa made a decision. The scariest one of her life.
She picked up the few things she’d left on her desk and placed them in her bag. It wasn’t much. Some hand cream. A picture of her and Nicki. A couple of protein bars. It was sad, really. The computer here belonged to the company. She logged off and closed the lid before heading for the elevator. She rode it up six floors to the Lodge Corp floor and marched straight to Julian Lodge’s office, right past his stern-looking secretary who stood and started to come after her.
That let her know she was on the right track, and the man was definitely in his office. She opened the door and there was Julian staring at his laptop screen. A brow arched over his eyes, a regal expression.
“Mr. Lodge, I’m so sorry. She walked right past me,” the assistant said.
“I need to talk to you.” She wasn’t about to turn around now. She was about to find out if she was making the worst mistake of her life. She had no idea what this man would do to her if she was wrong and he was actively involved with what had happened to her sister.
She wanted Michael here. She would feel safer if he was here, but she had to put this in someone else’s hands, and she didn’t want it to be his. She’d already gotten one person she cared about in serious trouble.
“Gwendolyn, I don’t think you could have stopped her. She looks very intent. Please don’t worry about it. Close the door on your way out. I’ll handle this.” Lodge nodded, and she found herself alone with him. “What did you wish to talk to me about, Vanessa?”