Page 33 of Final Cost

“Auckland. New Zealand.”

A ripple of shock goes around the room at this revelation.

Jeannie shakes her head, not bothering to hide her disbelief. “Ravenna, if this is all true, you achieved the perfect disappearance. A real-lifeGone Girl. Why come back? No one was looking for you. You were legally declared dead. You could have stayed gone forever.”

“I had to come back. I heard that Lucien was involved with someone,” Ravenna says.

“Jesus,” Daniel says. “How would she know something likethat?”

“One of the maids, probably,” Lucien says. “Someone who hasn’t been with me for a while.”

“She’s evidently a woman too young and naive to know what she was getting herself into,” Ravenna continues. “Maybe it’s foolish, but I just couldn’t turn my back and let someone else suffer the way I did while I hid like a coward.”

“Can you believe this bullshit?” I mutter to no one in particular, choking back an unwilling laugh. “You almost have to admire her artistry, don’t you? Leonardo Da Vinci was the perfect renaissance man. Ravenna is the perfect liar. She’s like the Terminator of liars. She was made for it.”

“So, you did it to save Tamsyn Scott?” Jeannie says, incredulous now. “That’s very generous toward your husband’s girlfriend, isn’t it?”

“It’s not generosity,” Ravenna says, fully into her Joan of Arc routine. The only thing missing is a golden halo encircling her head. “It’s basic human kindness toward another woman. The kind of thing I would’ve wanted someone to do to protect me.”

I thought I had myself under control, but sudden outrage gets the best of me. “You tried to kill me, you psychobitch,” I shout at the television. “Why doesn’t Jeannie ask her aboutthat?”

“Because they shot the interview before she tried to kill you, Tamsyn,” Lucien says gently, but this reminder is no consolation for these outrageous lies. “Remember?”

Yeah, I remember. Ravenna wins again. “Fuck you, you bitch,” I shout at the TV, the most unhinged and impotent moment of my life.“Fuck. You.”

“Tamsyn. It’s okay,” Roman says soothingly.

“No, it’s not,” I say. “She wrecks everything. Think about everything she’s destroyed in her lifetime. Think about the final cost of all that malice. It’s incalculable. And she never had to pay a price.”

“She paid with her life,” Daniel says somberly. “That’s the ultimate price, isn’t it?”

The glaring truth of the statement shuts me up. Frowning, I turn back to the screen.

“What would you want to tell Tamsyn Scott if you had the chance, Ravenna?” Jeannie says. “Or our viewers, for that matter? And what are your plans now?”

Ravenna takes her time, frowning as she formulates her answer. Then she turns her head and looks directly at the camera and I feel the jolt of that bright green gaze boring into mine as strongly as if she was alive and here in the room with us right now. “I’d tell Tamsyn — or any other woman involved with a sexy and powerful man like Lucien — to not trust yourself. Your instincts are bad when it comes to him. He will never change. You can’t trust him. He will hurt you in the end. You have to get out and stay out. That’s it.” She nods and takes a breath, seemingly emboldened by her courage and honesty. “And I want everyone to know that my plans are to get a divorce and finally be free from Lucien. So I’m telling you now. I’m in perfect health. I’m not suicidal. If anything happens to me, no matter how it looks, it’s because Lucien did it —”

There’s more, but it’s cut off by Lucien’s vicious curse and the explosion of his whiskey tumbler as it hits the middle of the TV with brutal force and shatters into a million pieces, distorting Ravenna’s image and sending shards of glass and droplets of liquid in every direction.

The rest of us cry out and leap to our feet, shocked and not quite sure what to do. I hurry forward, reaching for his arm as he starts to walk off.“Lucien…”

“Apologies, Ms. Scott.” Lucien’s smile is twisted and flat. His muscles are tight as he shakes me off. He never breaks stride. “I’m too tired to talk tonight. I’ve got to bury my beloved wife tomorrow.”

14

Tamsyn

I catchRoman in the hallway outside Lucien’s study just after midnight the following night. The lack of a summons from Lucien and lack of information about the funeral, the criminal investigation or anything else has forced me into the desperate act of coming down here. I’ve done the best I can to remain above the fray, but now my aloof ex-girlfriend routine is showing signs of serious strain.

I was cordially uninvited to Ravenna’s small family funeral and would have cheerfully RSVP’d fuck noif I had received an invite. Still, I watched from the shadows of the heavy draperies in the upstairs hallway as Lucien, Roman and Daniel somberly piled into a limousine this morning and sped off. I give myself an A for effort at keeping myself busy while they were gone. I finally discovered where the barn is and walked over to give Orion and his compatriots fresh apples. Then I came back and went for a swim in the pool. But I was back at my post in time to see the mourners return, their faces downturned as they filed back into the house and had their luncheon. I ate lunch by myself, then dinner by myself. I binge watched a season ofBridgertonfor the millionth time and read romance novels. I felt the house’s leaden silence inside every bone in my body. I waited for a text for Lucien. But none came.

Now here I am, hurrying forward to intercept Roman as he emerges from the study looking exhausted.

“Roman. Hi.”

He’s still dressed in his navy suit from the funeral and had reached up to yank his tie free, but now he glances around at me, startled. “Tamsyn. Hey. We just finished up our video conference with Hong Kong. You can go on in. Lucien will be glad to see you.”

Wait, what? Video call? “Today?” I blurt before I can stop myself. “But Lucien just buried his wife. Couldn’t it wait?”

---