Page 102 of Devil's Riches

His expression wavered slightly. “No. I said I called a driver for them. As in, a driver for each girl,” he said. “I thought that was necessary, because they were headed to completely different places.”

“Right.” Bullshit. I’d caught him in a lie, and he knew it, but he’d managed to cover it quickly enough to make himself look innocent.

I blew out a deep breath and scratched my head. “So I’m guessing you haven’t heard from Alexis at all?”

“No. Sorry.” Edward’s eyes suddenly lit up. “Actually, you know what? I think I might know where she is.”

“Where?”

“Last night you mentioned something about a friend of hers with a sick cat, didn’t you? I bet they finally got through to each other, and Alexis went over to her house to help her.”

I gritted my teeth. “Hm. I guess that could be it,” I muttered, wishing I hadn’t made up such a specific lie last night. Edward had latched right onto it, and he was milking it for all it was worth.

He patted my shoulder. “I’m sure she’s totally fine,” he said with a reassuring smile. “But if you can’t find her at that friend’s house, and she still hasn’t turned up by the end of the day, please come back and let me know. I’ll get in contact with the driver from last night and see what he says.”

“Thanks, Mr. Paxton.”

“When you catch her, make sure you say happy birthday for me. There’s still a cake here with her name on it,” he said. He glanced at his watch. “Anyway, sorry to cut this short, but I really must be going.”

“I’ll walk you out,” I said, intent on following him wherever the fuck he went. There was no way he was headed to an appointment like the maid said earlier. He was headed to wherever he was keeping Alexis.

He dipped his head in a nod. “Thank you.”

“Actually, would you mind if I used your bathroom first?” I asked. I hadn’t taken a piss since last night because I didn’t want to take my eyes off the road for a second during my stakeout. Now my bladder felt like it was about to explode.

“Of course. I’ll show you where it is.”

He led me out of the sitting room and down a long wood-paneled hallway. A door at the end opened into a large guest bathroom with pristine white tiles.

I looked in the mirror as I washed my hands a couple of minutes later. For a second, I didn’t recognize myself. I looked like hell—bloodshot eyes, dark circles under them, sallow skin. I felt worse than I looked, though. If I didn’t find Alexis, I had no idea what the fuck I’d do.

I exited the bathroom to find the redheaded maid waiting for me in the hall. “Mr. Paxton had to leave,” she said with a polite smile. “I’ll see you out instead.”

My eyes widened. “He’s gone?”

“Yes. His appointment is quite urgent, so he couldn’t wait a second longer. I’m sorry, sir.”

That slippery fucking snake. He must’ve suspected that I was onto him, and he didn’t want to take the risk of having me follow him around.

I strode down the hallway, wondering if I could catch him on the road. He couldn’t have made it very far from the estate. After all, I’d only been in the bathroom for a few minutes.

Then again, I had no idea which way he’d turned once he reached the end of the driveway. Did he go left to Arcadia Bay or right to Avalon City? Or somewhere else entirely?

Fuck.

As the maid led me back into the foyer, I caught a glimpse of an old portrait hanging on the wall—Edward and Deborah Paxton with their children. A light bulb seemed to switch on in my brain, and I turned to the maid. “Is Mrs. Paxton home?” I asked.

Her husband might be a skeevy piece of shit, and she probably was too, but I figured there was a chance she’d talk to me once I dropped my last name. She might accidentally let some information slip during our conversation, and I might even be able to trick her into telling me where Edward was headed this morning.

The maid nodded. “Yes, she’s here. Why?”

“Would I be able to see her?” I asked. “It’s her granddaughter’s birthday today, and I’m stuck on gift ideas, so I was hoping we could talk about that.”

The maid’s face fell. “I’m sorry, sir. She’s far too ill to have any visitors, and the painkillers make her sleep most of the time, anyway.”

My brows furrowed. “Painkillers? I thought she just had a cold.”

“A cold?” The maid’s eyes widened. “No, it’s much more serious than that.”

---