by C. L. Stone
We ate quietly for a few minutes while I considered the full meaning of what he was saying. “How did you know it was me? From the start?”
He dipped the edge of his toast into the yellow of his eggs absently. “Ace needs to be careful who he gives information to. He told a mutual friend of ours about you and showed him your wallet to get some background information on you. The problem is, he works for me, too.”
It was like Loïc more than controlled everyone around him. He made sure Soma would give me underwear and I’d say something. He pretended to not know me in the hallway at the restaurant, and he’d been pulling more than a few strings before then.
“When did you start this charity?” I asked. “And why?”
“I don’t know,” Loïc said, holding a piece of toast to his lips. He smiled coyly. “Maybe I read it on a blog somewhere, after Gretta told me about it.”
Gretta...His clothes made sense now. They were hers.
He continued, “Maybe after I read the blog, I got interested in a girl who risked voicing slanderous statements on the internet for a good cause.” He dropped the toast and leaned a little against the counter in my direction. “And maybe someone gave the police a little tickle when I found out that girl was being used so badly.”
I stopped eating, putting the fork down and leaning back a bit too hazardously on the edge of my stool. “You...”
The smirk softened into something gentler. “And maybe someone told Ace to take that deserted old highway instead of the I-26...”
I breathed in deep and held it, trying to still my crazy heart. “I...I was a point. From the start.”
He jerked his head back. “You do know the points are arbitrary, right?” He waved his hand shortly in front of him. “All I’m saying is that Gretta had been keeping up with you and noticed you were a good person fighting a good cause. Maybe I wanted to challenge you, see if it was true. I only nudged the information out a little, exposed it. You made your choices. You decided to run. You decided to trust Ace and join him. It’s surprising. You’ve been the most interesting person I’ve interacted with.”
I wasn’t sure how exactly he did it all, but in the moment, I was angry to not have seen it from the start. My jaw tightened. “You’re pulling strings and pushing buttons,” I retorted. “I could have died out there.”
“I wouldn’t have let you.”
“I’m not yours to let do anything...” I stammered, trying to make my point, but so infuriated that I stood up from my stool, backing away from him. “You were right, the points are arbitrary. Maybe the points are there to disguise to Soma and Ace what you’re really doing. Distract them from your manipulation of people. You’re pushing pieces around the chessboard, trying to goad everyone to do what you’d want them to do.”
He nodded slowly. “And you, Cherie, joined in. And you liked it.” A chime sounded and Loïc pulled a phone out of his pocket, checking the face. “Old Mr. Marple is asking for me. He’s all the way over in the Japanese guest house.” He looked at me and then nudged my arm. “Don’t wait for me to come back. This may take a while.”
He rose and then headed for the door.
“Hey,” I said and he stopped. “Why did you walk right by me the first time? In the restaurant.”
The coy smile returned. “I was testing out how serious you were about Ace, about if you were really falling for him or not.”
“How was ignoring me testing me?”
He shrugged. “Question my methods, but it worked.” He peered over his shoulder to meet my gaze. “You wouldn’t care if I looked at you or not if you were into him. You wouldn’t leave your shawl behind if you were that interested in him. You’d only do that if you really wanted my attention. And you still do.”
I froze as he walked away. The footsteps of his hard-soled shoes faded off.
That was my fault for trying to play games with him. I was falling into his already woven web. The one he built just for me.
How much did Ace really know?
How much did Soma?
How manipulative could one person be? He could have told me what my ex-boyfriend was doing. Instead of warning me, or finding a way to get my ex to be arrested without getting me into the middle, he used it to get me to react. While I hadn’t done everything the right way, scared for my own reputation, he was the one burning it all to the ground.
I slid my fingernail across the polished marble of the countertop, staring at my half-eaten eggs and considering what he told me.
Oliver was right. I could leave now. I could take off and get away from this.
Could I just leave? Where would I go?
And was I just playing into Loïc’s hand more?
I considered my options, the low flame of anger growing inside of me. The more I considered it, the more I wanted to get out of here.
Recover.
Figure out how to come back and show Loïc he couldn’t manipulate people like this anymore. Ruin my career. He wanted to score points but did anyone take them away for misbehavior?
Someone needed to put him in his place, ruin his reputation. Embarrass him until he couldn’t show his face any more.
It was tempting to burn down the entire estate but I subdued that notion. Breaking his stuff wouldn’t have done anything to his ego. As much as I wanted to react in that way, I was sure it wasn’t enough.
I needed help. Someone I could completely trust.
I opened the phone, staring at the screen, trying to think.
After a moment, I dialed.
She picked up after a couple of rings.
“Gretta,” I said quickly. “It’s Evelyn.”
She was silent on her end. “Hi. How are you?”
“I was wondering if I could ask a favor.”
“Shoot.”
“Can you come pick me up?”
“From where? Where are you?”
I told her.
She coughed shortly. “I’ve been there, but girl, what’s going on? Why are you calling me?”
“I need you to meet me outside the gates. It’s a long story. Remember when you told me no one misbehaves in this town?”
“Yes. Mostly true.”
“Well...Someone’s been misbehaving bad.”
Short pause. “I see.”
I got off the phone with her, getting her to come find me on the other side of the gate.
It took a while to walk the length of the gravel road that led to the front gates of the estate. I’d no doubt it would trigger Oliver or someone else to come see who was out here.
I wasn’t sure how long it would take them to figure out no one had come in, it was me escaping.
I’d be back. I only hoped I could find more people I could trust.
Epilogue
(Ace)
Ace had arrived with Soma just as introductions started and had remained in the dark while Eva was telling her story to the other girls sitting around the stage. The door to Tissu Deux had been left over, probably in anticipation of their arrival.
It was Gretta that had called them. She hadn’t warned them why.
They’d been looking for Eva for weeks. She’d disappeared completely. Not even Loïc had any clue.
They’d remained in the shadows, waiting and listening.
“Did you know about all of that?” Ace asked. “That Loïc...”
“No,” Soma said in a deep tone. “I’ve had my suspicions for a couple of years but lately...” He stopped and frowned deeply. After a minute he walked forward, heading toward the collection of people at the couches.
Ace sighed and followed him. Soma was never one to wait around for answers. He’d go ask. Ace felt the same way. Time to stop the craziness.
It was Future who stood up, nodding her head in their direction. “Sorry, gentlemen, this is a closed girl club.”
“Hang on,” Gretta said, leaping off the couch to hold her hands up. “No, I invited them.”
Evelyn gasped, the others twisted in the couches mor
e, appearing confused.
“Who are they?” Celeste asked. She scratched a fingertip delicately at her brow. “Exactly?”
“Ace Waris,” Ace said, bowing slightly. “This is Soma.”
Rainee rose to stand and put a hand out in motion of welcome. “Gentlemen, I hope you’ll forgive my cousin, and also our surprise. I personally wasn’t expecting you.” She said this in a sing-song way and directed her gaze to Gretta. “I assume someone else here made the call.”
“We need help,” she said. “People we can trust. They’ve been manipulated too.”
“How do we know they are on our side?” Celeste asked. She turned to Evelyn. “Do you trust them?”
Evelyn had stood quietly, her sunglasses hiding her eyes but her mouth tight. When she finally spoke, her voice was cracking, probably after talking for so long. “I don’t know.”
Soma stepped toward her, arms open. “We had no idea he went that far. Ruining innocent people’s reputations and lives is not what I signed up for.”
“I never would have let him,” Ace said. His heart was thundering in anger at the idea of it. “He’s gone overboard. We have to stop him.”
“How can I know?” she asked. “How do I trust you now?”
Soma turned to Ace. For once in their partnership, Soma seemed distraught, unsure of how to convince her. This was Eva. She’d been through a lot. After her ex-boyfriend and Loïc, he couldn’t blame her for not wanting to trust anyone else, especially two people who have been so closely involved, and she barely knew them.
“Because...” Ace started to say, stumbling over the words. “You should trust us because...We’ll give you access, but we’ll stay out of the way.”
A brow rose above the glasses hiding her eyes. Ace hated them, he wanted to see what she was thinking. No wonder she wore them, he was used to reading her feelings through her eyes. She was protecting herself. “How do I know you’ll do that?”
“We’re your captives,” Ace said. He held up his phone, showing it to her. “You can use this for information. Make us untraceable and unable to reach out to Loïc. Ask us to do anything you want. We’ll do it.”
Soma took his own phone out to show it to her. “Me, too. We’ll sit quietly in a room and out of the way until you’re done, or help you with what you’re planning. Your call. We’re your pawns from this point forward.”
She tilted her head, looking at Gretta and the others. “I don’t know what to do.”
Celeste and Rainee came around closer to her, standing beside her to look at the two of them.
Ace swallowed thickly. Celeste he was familiar with but had never spoke to her personally. Rainee he’d spoken to but only at social events. Usually because she was running it. Having them know about the game they’d been playing in town made him uncomfortable. They’d had good intentions.
At least Ace thought he had. He only meant to improve the city. Knowing what Loïc had done to Eva, he questioned how many more people he’d sacrificed.
Rainee was the one who spoke first. “I feel we don’t need the help of two gentlemen who feel like people’s reputations and lives are games to toy with, even if you thought originally it was helping.”
“But we didn’t know about—” Ace started to say.
Rainee lifted a hand, a motion for him to stop. “However, I’m not beyond allowing redemption.”
“Maybe we should take their points away,” Celeste said with a smirk. “By exposing the exposers.”
“Maybe a public confession?” Rainee asked. “That’s tempting.”
“It’s wrong,” Evelyn said. She stepped forward, away from the others and addressed Ace and Soma directly. “After being humiliated and after what I did to Mrs. Harvey, I understand how pointless that side of it really is. It’s drama. It’s nonsense and doesn’t help anyone. You can do good things without causing a scene or getting attention in such ways.”
Ace lowered his shoulders and nodded. “I’m sorry for my part in it.”
Soma butted in. “We could have shut down the sweatshop on our own without it all. Among other things we could have done better.”
“And more quietly,” Ace added. “But we’re willing to do that now. No points. No drama. Loïc needs to be stopped and we’re the only ones who can help you get close enough.”
Evelyn nodded and turned to the others. “We’ll monitor them, but...” she lifted the glasses and faced them full on. “We’re not like Loïc. We don’t make them confess. We just need to correct what’s broken. We need to make him stop. For good.”
“Because no one misbehaves in this town,” Rainee said. “And we’ve got other people to take down, too.”
“It won’t be easy,” Gretta said, coming around to motion to the guys. “I called them because I had a gut feeling. If you trust them enough, we’ll get the information we need. But we also need to tell each other what happened with the others.”
Ace relaxed, nervous but sure they were making the right decision. They were betraying Loïc, but they were right. They had been wrong.
He couldn’t imagine what the other girls had gone through. From what they had said before Evelyn had spoken, their stories sounded much more horrifying. Ace shared a look with Soma. He wanted to prove to Evelyn, and even to the others, that they weren’t who they thought they were. “Tell us what else happened. We want to hear it.”
Evelyn lifted her chin, speaking calmly. “Who wants to share next?”
“I think it’s my turn,” Celeste said. She pointed to the boys and then motioned to the couches. “Get comfortable. It’s a long story.”
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Keep reading for a taste of the next book in Charleston’s Leading Ladies, Celeste.
Bond, I Am Not
It was sunlight stabbing me in the eyes that woke me. I bolted upright, sucked down a cool breath of air into my lungs and sat in confusion for a good few minutes. How in the world did I end up sleeping in the car?
The fog of sleep lifted and I remembered: Catching a murderer. Doing an overnight stakeout in your car works a lot better when you don't fall asleep. James Bond would have been severely disappointed.
I found my cell phone, checking the time; a little after six thirty in the morning. How was the sun up so early in January?
I twisted my bra's underwire out from digging into my boob and straitened my clothes, mostly all black. I wiped away condensation around the inside of the glass...
Preston Dixon’s face appeared, blinking in at me. Sunburned in patches from what I knew was a recent trip to somewhere in Europe, and freckles forming around his nose. The shadows under his eyes nearly matched the color, more gray than blue. His red hair brighter in blond highlights.
I coughed once.
He squinted in at me. “Thought it was you.”
The gig was up.
I rolled down the window. Behind Preston, was his father’s two-story brick house. Curtains drawn tight. Red front door motionless. Garage doors closed. His father had shown up last night after work and had completely disappeared. From what I could gather with my borrowed equipment, he watched the news until late into the evening and went to bed.
“At it again?” Preston asked.
A lie twitched at my lips. “Maybe.”
“No maybe, how long have you been out here?” His voice had that Ivy League accent. Heavy and precise with every syllable.
“Since last night,” I said. I straightened, wanting to get out and stretch but knowing I was a mess. “But I’ll go. I thought you were in Europe still.”
“Was until th
is morning. I saw your car as I drove in. You didn’t even hear me.”
I rolled my eyes. I was the worst spy ever. “Don’t tell your dad?”
“Do I ever?” He shook a broad finger at me. “Next time, just call me ahead. I’ll come wake you before he gets up. You’re lucky I came back when I did.”
He angled himself around my car and then through an open gate, which he closed behind himself. He jogged back to the large house, disappearing inside.
Surveillance work was the most boring, but sometimes it proved worth it. I didn't have much of a lead otherwise. I'd been chasing this suspicion for months.
That Mr. Dixon had killed my father to take over Logan Enterprises. Easy enough to put two and two together, right?
Preston thought I was ridiculous, but since I wasn’t a nuisance about it, he let me fly under the radar and snoop around.
My best friend, Gretta, thought I was insane.
I just knew something was off. Gut feeling maybe? They say my dad had a heart attack and fell down the steps. I say he was pushed. Maybe I just never got over the idea he was dead.
And since I didn’t take over my father’s company, I had a little too much free time.
A reminder notification popped up on my phone, that I had to be at work a little later today.
I sucked in a lung full of air through my nose and held it. Getting caught snooping and sleeping all night in my car zapped my energy. I was tempted to call in sick.
I wasn't doing much good here staking out the Dixons at their home, but they’d be awake soon. This had been a bust. Again.
I pulled my black jacket around after I'd been using it for a blanket and thrust my hands into the sleeves. A moment later, I had the engine turning and was ready to roll.
At first, I was moving forward, but then stopped short when I remembered this was a dead end cul-de-sac. I put my car into reverse and rolled backward.
Bump.
For a split second, I was pretty sure I was hitting the curb and stopped. I twisted in my seat to double check.
A black car was directly behind me.