Page 58 of Cruel Riches

I quickly filled her in on the incident with the gray car.

“So I managed to lose it in the end, but how fucking creepy is that?” I said. “It was following me for ages.”

Sascha paused. “Hm. That guy you mentioned sounds like an asshole, but are you sure it was him following you?”

“Who else would it be?”

“Well, honestly, I thought it might be our grandparents.”

“Why?” I asked, brows knitting.

She sighed. “Remember how they really wanted us to leave the island?”

“Yes.”

“They were scared we’d ruin their reputation by telling people that we’re related to them. So maybe they’ve hired someone to watch us and make sure we aren’t doing anything to embarrass them or let our true identities get out.”

I chewed on my bottom lip as I thought about it. “That’s a good point,” I finally said, brows dipping low. I meant what I said, but privately, I still thought it was Nate or one of his frat minions stalking me.

“They’re definitely rich enough to hire private investigators to track us,” Sascha added.

“That’s true.”

“Anyway, about the douchey guy from Blackthorne—if he keeps annoying you, just let me know. I’ll come down there and deal with him.”

“How? Will you suffocate him with one of your canvases? Stab him with a paintbrush?” I said in a teasing tone.

Sascha laughed. “Something like that, yeah.” Her tone suddenly turned serious. “Anyway, how’s your investigation going? The whole Dad thing, I mean.”

“I knew what you meant,” I said softly. I paused for a beat and let out a sigh. “I haven’t really made much progress yet. I’m trying to build up some relationships with his old colleagues to see if they can tell me anything, but it’s a slow process.”

“Right. Be careful, okay? And remember, life doesn’t always have to be about revenge. You’re allowed to enjoy yourself sometimes.”

She must’ve said those exact words to me fifty times by now.

Like our mother, she believed my father was innocent of the Butcher crimes at first, but as the years went by, she eventually decided that he was guilty because of all the evidence against him. She didn’t agree with my position on the matter, and she always worried I’d get myself in trouble with my investigation, but she still tried to be as supportive as she could.

“Thanks,” I murmured. “I’ll be fine.”

“Okay. I better go now. I told my friends I’d go out with them tonight, so I have to get ready for that.”

“All right. Have fun.”

When I arrived back at my dorm, I unpacked my new stuff, did some study for a few hours, and then met Laurel and Ruby for a late dinner. After that, I went back to my dorm and settled into bed for my nightly ritual of stress-eating chocolate and watching trashy shows on Netflix.

A text from an unknown number came through to my new phone at eleven o’clock.

Stop digging or there will be consequences.

Heart pounding, I stared at my screen with wide eyes. Obviously, someone apart from my sister knew about my mission to prove my father’s innocence. Someone who was worried that I might get too close to the truth.

Someone who had my brand new phone number.

I sent a quick message to Sascha. Hey, did you give anyone my new number? And have you ever told anyone about my investigation?

She responded a couple of minutes later. No, how come? Is everything okay?

Me: Yeah, it’s fine. I was just wondering.

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