Sweet Vengeance: Ladies (Iron Orchids Book 14)

by Danielle Norman

  Sunday nodded even though Traci couldn't see her.

  "Just hang in there," she said. "I know it's got to be difficult, but we're working as fast as we can over here. We have so much data pulled on Kai, that it's only just the matter of us sorting through it all and making a plan. We'll get him."

  "Please," Traci said, and she sounded more desperate by the moment. "I'm trying not to give anything away, trying to act the part, but I don't know how long I can do this. I'm . . ."

  She didn't finish her sentence, but Sunday knew what she had meant--Traci was scared.

  "You got your gun handy?" Adeline asked.

  Sunday looked at her with raised eyebrows, but Adeline waved her off.

  "Yes, it's . . . it's in my purse," Traci said. "I have it in a little drawstring bag so if he snoops around it won't be easily spotted."

  Adeline opened her mouth, probably to make some comment about proper gun handling, but Sunday shook her head.

  "Just be safe and stay calm," Sunday said. "I'm going to skip work and stay home to work on this. We just need you to hold it together."

  "I will try." Traci's voice shook. "Thanks, ladies. You're the best."

  Sunday rubbed just above her eyes as Adeline disconnected the call. "That poor woman, what a nightmare for her to be living in."

  "Just for now," Olivia piped up from the chair across from Adeline. "I'm sure we will get him."

  "And if he makes any wild moves, she can now defend herself," Adeline said, turning to Sunday. "While you were in the Caymans, I had a few sessions at the gun range with her. We need to take her out again, but it's a start."

  "Hopefully, we can solve this issue before she needs to actually use it," Sunday said, but her brain wandered back to Bo. He hadn't made one attempt to reach her. Even if he was mad at her, shouldn't he have at least reached out by now, tried to talk? Sunday had slowly come to the conclusion that she had only been a willing body in the Caymans, he hadn't felt anything for her, not really. How could he have? If he had felt even the tiniest bit of affection for her, could he really go this long without reaching out, be mad this long at her just doing her job?

  Her heart plunged to her toes. The reality of the situation: he had either played her or he had just been caught up in the moment. Either way, once again Sunday was a loser. It was just like college all over again.

  Pushing away the thought, Sunday finished off her eggs and then took her plate into the kitchen to wash it, dry it, and put it away before returning to her computer. As she sat back down, she tapped the screen to flip the page.

  And then, right in front of her, might have been the answer they had been looking for.

  Sunday

  Friday night, Sunday barely slept. She and the girls had stayed up most of the night, organizing their files, recordings, and pictures regarding Kai Camden. They had an angle to work from, some kind of direction, and it lit a fire inside them. They just had to get everything in order, and they had to do it fast. No one was quite sure what he had intended, but there was evidence of fraud--and lots of it.

  As Sunday flipped through the photos she had taken in the Caymans, her heart clenched. As much as she was thrilled to finally be on the right track to backing Kai into a corner, she still couldn't stop thinking about Bo.

  He hadn't called, and he hadn't texted. Maybe he learned that she was researching him. It was either that or he really was guilty and had just been using her in the Caymans to keep her out of his dad's way?

  The thought pierced her right in the gut. She hated that it bothered her, that she had allowed him to get under her skin so quickly. Maybe they hadn't known each other a long time, but she had felt something between them.

  Sunday ground her teeth as she continued to sort through the evidence. She and the others had barely left the kitchen table in the last twenty-four hours, and her butt was really starting to dislike the chair. If she moved some place more comfortable, like the couch or her bed, she would probably fall right to sleep though, and she didn't have time for that.

  Adeline had just come into the kitchen to brew coffee when her phone rang on the table. The display popped up indicating the call was from Traci.

  "It's Traci," Sunday yelled to Adeline as she scooped up the phone and answered it. "Hello?"

  "I have to leave, now," Traci said between sobbing gasps. "I can't stay here anymore, even if it means--even if I have to give up everything. Oh, my god, I can't live with this man--this monster--anymore. I have to go. I have to get out of here. I can't stay here anymore."

  "Whoa, whoa, settle down," Sunday said in her best calming voice. "Take a deep breath and then tell me what happened."

  Traci's stifled crying filled the line, and Sunday exchanged looks with Olivia and Melanie as they waited for her to explain what was going on. She shrugged one shoulder and then placed the phone down and pressed speaker.

  Traci inhaled sharply and puffed out the air before saying, "Okay. Tonight is the dinner party I told you about. I was in the bathroom getting ready and--"

  She dissolved into tears again.

  Adeline held her mug of coffee, but Sunday could see the whites of her knuckles as they all waited for what Traci was going to say.

  "So, you were in the bathroom," Sunday said to prod Traci along. "What happened?"

  Traci sniffled and somewhere nearby on her side of the call, a door closed. "I've been really upset all night thinking about this party, about all of our friends being there, people who have known us our entire marriage. How I have to play up to them. They all think Kai is this perfect husband, you know? No one knows how he really is, and the thought of having to nod along and agree was making me sick."

  "Okay, don't think about that part then, and tell me what happened," Sunday said, trying to get her to move this along. As much as she wanted to help Traci, her patience with everything today was already wearing thin.

  "Right, so I decided to take a bath," Traci continued. "I was in the tub, bubbles up to my chest, with a cooling eye mask on when the door opens. I thought maybe it was Anna, our housekeeper. She doesn't usually barge in, but she had been busy straightening up for the party so it was possible she made a mistake. I just said, 'I will be done in an hour. I'll let you know when I'm out, Anna.' When no one replied, I took off my mask."

  "It was Kai?" Sunday guessed.

  "Yes!" Traci said, her voice quivering. "I know that might not sound off to you, but Kai and I, we aren't that sort, even back when we tried to at least keep up appearances between us. He would have never walked in on me in the bathroom, of all places, even if he knew I was in the tub." Traci continued to take deep, shaky breaths in between her story, but most of the sniffling had subsided. "It wasn't him. I mean, it was, but his face, his expression, the dark look in his eyes . . . I had never seen, even in his worse moments, such hatred on his face." There were several minutes of sobs, Sunday and the girls just exchanged looks with each other. "It's not just that. Sunday, he tried to . . . I was in the tub, and he was standing there staring at me with all this seething animosity, and then he grabbed my hair dryer that was plugged in by the vanity. I knew right then he was going to toss it into the tub. I don't know how I knew it, I just did. I don't know--maybe they have safety on them now for things like that--but in that moment, I just felt like that was it, Kai was going to kill me, right there. Didn't even say a word."

  Sunday chewed her lip and then said, "What did you do?"

  "I screamed," Traci said, her voice tinted with embarrassment. "I screamed and just dove out of the tub, onto the tile floor, naked and wet and covered in bubbles, the stupid eye mask hanging around my head. And Kai just stared down at me like I was a moron, like he couldn't believe he had married such a lunatic. I just panicked."

  It must be horrible to realize the person she had spent her life with--even if it hadn't been the most intimate, loving relationship--resented her and would try to harm her, or at least frighten her into thinking he would.

  "We are on our way.
Do you have those papers from our attorney?"

  "Yes, I have them in an envelope in my bag," she said. "Everything is in my bag these days. It's the only place I feel safe enough he won't dig too deeply. I don't trust anything anymore. I'm surprised he hasn't been spying on me, but that's probably only because he's been so busy with whatever is happening with him. I just don't know what to do."

  "Get your gun, lock yourself in a safe place, we are coming," Adeline instructed.

  "For now, play along," Sunday said.

  "And then what?" Traci wailed, lost all over again.

  "Don't let him see you like this," Sunday said. "We're on our way. He can't know that we are on to him."

  Traci muttered a soft, sad, "Thank you."

  Then the call disconnected.

  Sunday let out a breath and then she glanced around the room at each of them. "That motherfucker" she said, and then pushed to her feet. "Let's get ready, ladies. Looks like we have a dinner party to crash."

  Everyone nodded as they rose, gathering their evidence. They chattered on their way to their rooms.

  Time had run out and now they only had one shot. After tonight, Kai would know who Sunday was and what his wife was up to.

  She just hoped her plan would work.

  Before she left, Sunday grabbed a packet of info that she had recently found as well, one that she hadn't shared with anyone yet.

  Sunday

  As the car approached the Camden estate, Sunday leaned forward in the middle row passenger seat and tried to take it all in. An enormous pond sprawled across the front, with the white porte cochere wrapping around it. Behind it, palm trees glimmered in the early evening sun. It was dazzling, like a mirage.

  Adeline pulled up to the contrasting black gate and buzzed the intercom. As she spoke to security, Sunday tried to put her thoughts in order. She and the girls had all the evidence they needed on them. They just needed to play it cool until the time was right to strike.

  And it had to happen tonight. Traci could not wait any longer, could not live with this man for another day.

  The gate parted, and they headed up the long driveway and then followed the curve around the pond until they reached the drop-off area to where the valet waited.

  "Can you please let me know when we are this rich?" Olivia whispered.

  Sunday chuckled. "I know, right?"

  From the looks of it, the Camdens had everything, and yet, somehow, that hadn't been enough. Kai Camden had wanted more and had taken it from innocent young women. As if that wasn't bad enough, he had some kind of horrible plan for his wife, too.

  At the massive front doors, a butler greeted them, the doors parted, opening into a foyer that could fit a small apartment. Hanging from the middle was a grand chandelier.

  "Tiffany?" Melanie asked.

  "Baccarat," Adeline answered. She would know since her family had come from this kind of money and was pretty dysfunctional as well.

  A woman with red hair pulled up in a bun and wearing a simple black dress stood at the stairway. She smiled at them. "I am Anna," she said. "Mrs. Camden told me to watch for you. Please, come on in and mingle, Mrs. Camden will be down shortly." She nodded once and stepped back.

  Sunday crossed the foyer, and even though she knew she looked stunning with the lace panel top and high-waist asymmetrical black skirt with matching trim, she also knew she was out of her league at this dinner, and with Bo, she thought with a frown. She had known he was wealthy, but she hadn't realized just how different they really were. This was the life he came from, and even though she was doing fine on her own, she had never been a part of high society like this.

  No wonder he had forgotten her so easily. He hadn't spoken to her since the Caymans.

  Hopefully, he wouldn't be attending his parents' function tonight. The thought made her chest squeeze. She had been so caught up in trying not to think about him that she hadn't considered that he might be there tonight.

  Not that she would have. She needed to show up for Traci and the Iron Ladies and help handle this case. She couldn't let pesky things like her hurt feelings and bruised ego to get in the way. Besides, it wasn't as if he this were the first time a guy had ever let her down. She just hadn't become close to any in a while.

  Lesson learned.

  Anna led them through the house and Sunday turned left and right to take in everything before they stepped down into a lounge room. Two enormous half-circle couches stood to the left, facing each other with several black round tables between them. On the other side of the room, behind the conversation area, there was a fireplace made of light-gray stone. The ceiling had been painted a charcoal color that extended down one wall. The rest of the room was white, bright, and airy, aided by the panel of tall windows on one side that overlooked part of the backyard.

  A few dozen people in fine attire sat around or stood clustered together. Everyone held a glass of wine and chatted and laughed, paying little attention as Sunday and her friends entered.

  "I will send the waitress by with drinks," Anna said, and then tipped her head and hurried out of the room.

  "This is some party," Olivia muttered. "I notice both of our hosts are missing."

  Sunday scanned the faces in the room, gritting her teeth at familiar ones she had seen at Sabers, but then she schooled her features as not to give herself away. Olivia was right--not even Kai was present.

  "That doesn't seem good," Sunday said in a low voice. "Maybe we should split off and mingle. Try to keep casual."

  Olivia nodded and then parted and meandered around the room. She smiled and made eye contact with the other guests, acting as if she belonged there. With her blush-colored flowing maxi dress with long lace sleeves, she fit right in.

  Adeline stepped forward and stopped a passing waitress with a try of drinks to ask questions Sunday couldn't quite catch. She had dressed the most scandalous, in a strappy black dress that left her with enough flexibility to tackle a man that was as long as the dress stayed on.

  Melanie nudged Sunday. "Pretend you are looking for the bathroom and go wander the hallways. I will do the same, looking for the kitchen to tell them about my terrible nut allergy."

  Sunday nodded, but she hung back to give Melanie a head start. She didn't want to look suspicious with them both exiting the room at the same time. Instead, she watched until Melanie's vintage red, open-back dress with the enormous bow on the small of her back was no longer visible. Then, she counted three minutes before sauntering across the room and slipping into a hallway.

  She had no idea the layout of the house and just tried to keep track of where she had been so she could find her way back to the lounge area. In the meantime, she wanted to try to find Traci and verify she was safe.

  The hallway was wide, the floor tiled in white with large offset black squares that caught the intense lights from above. The walls were painted a light, stormy gray that contrasted the otherwise open brightness of the rest of the house so far. It did not look like a place where a man as deranged as Kai should live.

  Occasionally, the hallway opened into recessed areas containing closed doors. There were no indicators of what lay beyond them, and she wasn't inclined to start peering into rooms and get busted, so she stopped at each one and leaned closer to listen for sounds from the other side. If she caught Kai harassing Traci, all bets were off--she would intercept. For now, though, she hoped she could get Kai alone, at an unsuspecting time, and back him into a figurative corner.

  She kept wandering down the hall, her shoes making a small click-clack sound as she went. The noise seemed to carry behind and in front of her, and she hoped no one would notice.

  She smirked to herself and took a turn in the hallway. More doors, more gray walls and white tile. It was well done, but a bit monotonous at this point

  Ahead, the hallway came to an end so she started to turn around and head back to try another direction.

  The door opened. Bo stepped out and paused.

  Sunday froze
. Their gazes met, and Sunday couldn't find any words at all. Part of her wanted to run to him, jump into his arms, and kiss him. The other part of her wanted to just run.

  She didn't have a chance to do either before Bo blinked, his expression unreadable, and he stepped back into a room. The door closed behind him.

  Sunday's heart cracked the tiniest bit, the piece that had started to feel something for him. She had been so happy to see him, ready to tell him all the things that she had learned, ready to forgive him for standing her up, and ready to pick up where they had left off.

  How foolish of her. It wasn't as if she hadn't already concluded he had no real interest in her. How could she be stupid enough to believe they had something special? That he cared?

  She turned and hurried back toward the lounge area, refusing to let herself cry. This wasn't the time and place. Besides, it would ruin her makeup.

  She sniffled a little and then remembered why she was here.

  Swallowing hard, she forced herself to straighten. She adjusted her dress, patted her hair, and then inhaled a long, deep breath.

  Bo wasn't going to derail tonight. No one was. Her singular focus was on Kai, no one else.

  With that in mind, she spun around and stormed back down the hallway. Instead of taking the hallway that led to Bo's room--a dead end in every sense--she went to the left. She had made it all of about twenty paces when footsteps thudded behind her.

  She spun around, fists clenched.

  Anna stood a few feet away.

  "Are you looking for something?" she asked with a polite smile. Her tone gave away nothing, but Sunday wondered if she was suspicious of them. Or, perhaps, Traci had clued her in on what was happening and Anna was subtly asking if Sunday needed help.

  Sunday nodded. "Yes, I'm trying to locate the bathroom, please."