Page 59 of Never Lie
“What?”
“Nothing. Never mind. Are you okay?”
“I, uh… Doc, I feel…”
“Are you okay?”
“…”
Chapter 34
ADRIENNE
Before
EJ is unconscious.
It happened quickly. So quickly, I’m worried he got too much of the Ativan I ground up and mixed in with the Cheval Blanc. I didn’t know exactly how much to put inside because I didn’t know how much he would drink, so I added enough that even a glass would be enough to knock him out. It turns out, he drank the whole thing.
I rise from my desk and stand over him. His almost too handsome features are slack, with a little drool in the corner of his mouth, and his sun-streaked hair is gelled within an inch of its life. I have a pair of scissors in my desk drawer, and for a moment, I am seized with the almost irrepressible urge to take them out and plunge them into his chest. That would end the blackmail once and for all.
Of course, that would be unbelievably stupid. I’m sure the police would find out that he came here for an appointment and never left. I’d rather not go to jail for murder. It doesn’t matter that the victim really and truly deserved it. That the world would be a better place without him.
Instead, I reach for my phone and send off a text:
Come downstairs.
I walk around the side of the desk. EJ’s phone is jutting out of his pocket. I slide it out gently, although he’s sleeping so soundly, I doubt I could wake him up if I wanted to. He has an iPhone that’s a slightly newer model than mine. I pick up his right hand and press his thumb on the home button. It reads his fingerprint and the screen instantly unlocks. I release his hand and his arm drops limply back onto the sofa.
I go into his Photos. He doesn’t have many of them. I get the feeling that EJ is a bit of a loner—he hardly ever mentions his friends. Mostly, there are a few photos of him standing in front of a mirror with his shirt off. And a few more where he’s flexing his muscles. Then a few more of him completely naked. I scroll through those quickly.
After the naked pictures, there are some of me. These were taken without my permission. There’s one of me coming out of my house. Climbing into my car. And then one fuzzy one of what appears to be my bedroom window. Thank God, the blinds are mostly shut and you can’t see much.
Once I get rid of this stupid video, this man is never coming on my property again. I’ll get a restraining order if I have to.
Finally, I find what I’m looking for. The video from the parking lot. I watch it one more time, the bile rising in my throat. I had hoped it wasn’t as bad as I had thought, but it is. It’s just as bad. I seem so suspicious as my eyes dart around to make sure nobody’s watching me, then slash that tire. The expression on my face is almost demonic.
I nearly jump out of my skin when I hear the knock on my office door. I pull it up open gently—Luke is standing there, a deep crease between his eyebrows.
“Okay,” he says. “I’m here.”
I hold out the phone to him. “This is the video. I want you to eliminate any traces of it off this phone.”
He takes the phone from me, although he’s unable to wipe the disapproving look from his eyes. His index finger hovers over the screen, and I grab his arm. “Don’t watch the video,” I say.
“I wasn’t going to.”
I purse my lips. “You looked like you were going to press Play.”
He lets out a huff. “I can’t delete this video from the phone if you won’t let me touch the screen, Adrienne.”
Fine. I respectfully take a step back and allow him to do his thing with the phone. While he’s working on it, I go back into the office, where EJ is still lying slumped on my leather sofa. I frown down at him, trying to make out the rise and fall of his chest. He is very, very still.
Christ, I didn’t kill him, did I?
Very gently, I place my fingers on his left wrist, over his radial artery. I hold my breath, feeling around for his pulse.
I don’t feel anything. Oh no.
