Peyton’s knuckles were white now; she was squeezing her hands into fists so hard. “How did she do it, though?” she asked. “How the hell did she fake the DNA tests? That’s not possible!”
“Like I said, she wanted to scope out the Mirabella… for two reasons. She wanted to steal a hotel keycard from someone and also find out where your suite was, Peyton.”
“Why?”
“So that when she got the maid job, she knew exactly where to sneak off to during orientation. She used the keycard she stole to get into your room. Then she went into your bathroom, rubbed a wet Q-tip all over your toothbrush, and put it in a standard sample tube she ordered online. And then, she faked the whole fainting flashback thing.”
Peyton shook her head. “I don’t get it.”
Andreas lifted a hand, obviously not done explaining. “When she faked the flashback thing and said she thought she was Allegra, obviously they wanted to take a DNA sample from her to compare to your parents. She knew that would happen. Hence the Q-tip in the tube with your DNA all over it. She kept it on her, hidden,” he said. He took a deep breath, then went on. “The nurse who took her sample at the hospital got a new Q-tip and swabbed the inside of her mouth, then put it in a sample tube which would be sent off to the labs. As soon as she put it down, DeeDee distracted her by knocking something over. The nurse turned around for just a few seconds to pick it up, and DeeDee quickly switched out the tube with her own one.”
I nodded slowly. “So the DNA they sent to the lab was Peyton’s all along. Of course the results showed that the sample came from Vincent and Francine’s daughter, because they were just testing for a familial match. And Peyton is their daughter.”
“Yup.”
“Jesus Christ…”
Andreas nodded. “Like I said, DeeDee was always different. Smart. Very smart. She researched it all for ages; the procedures at the hospitals and labs. She knew they’d take a cheek swab, rather than blood or hair. Apparently it’s called a ‘buccal smear’, which I’d never heard of. But she knew it all.”
“No shit.” I shook my head, unable to believe that DeeDee had gotten away with this for so long.
I hated her for it, but fuck… I had to admit, it was a genius plan, and it worked. Not only had she convinced everyone in the world that she was the long-lost heiress, she’d also successfully messed with Peyton for weeks in her quest to bring her down. She’d driven her half-crazy with her mood swings and weird behavior (knowing everyone else would simply accuse Peyton of being jealous), and then she’d let loose a scandal which nearly destroyed Peyton’s reputation and even threatened her position within the Cadwell empire.
Bitch.
I stepped to Peyton’s side and pulled her against me. She was shaking, and I couldn’t blame her. “I was right,” she muttered. “I thought something was weird about her when she first arrived, and I thought she wasn’t my sister….but everyone told me I was wrong. Everyone told me I was just being a bitch. They even ended up convincing me that I was wrong! But I was right…”
I pulled her closer. “I know.”
“She even called my bluff when I accused her. She cried and said she would go and get more DNA tests done. But of course I felt so awful that I didn’t take her up on it.”
I sighed and nodded. "You're going to be okay," I said softly into the shell of her ear.
She was stronger than she gave herself credit for, so I knew she would be, even though this new development was awful for both her and her parents. And the drama wasn't even over yet. Not by a long shot.
We still had to face the mastermind behind this whole plan—DeeDee. There was no point calling her Allegra anymore. The name was stolen, just like the money she'd spent and the precious moments she'd shared with Peyton and her family, pretending to be their missing loved one.
"Can I go?" Andreas asked, looking completely miserable.
I glared at him. "I wouldn’t leave town if I were you," I said. "You’re an accomplice to major fraud."
His whole face blanched again, but I was past the point of giving a shit about him.
"It was all DeeDee’s idea," he said.
“But you went along with it. And you knew it was wrong.”
“I…” He trailed off, clearly unable to think of a single thing that could excuse what he’d done.
“Give me your phone,” I said.
His eyes went wide. “What? Why?”
“Just do it.”
With shaky hands, he pulled out his cell and gave it to me. I immediately threw it on the ground and stomped on it, shattering the screen and rendering the phone useless.
“Now he won’t be able to warn her that we’re coming for her,” I said to Peyton. “Not before we get to her.”
We turned away from Andreas and began to head back to the Mirabella.
"I'm sorry," Andreas called out to our retreating backs, but neither of us graced him with a response. He didn't deserve one after everything he'd done. The only response he’d be getting any time soon would be from the police when they arrested him.
"Are you okay?" I asked Peyton, and she nodded, sniffling a little. "I'm so sorry, Pey, I knew something was going on with Allegra…I mean, DeeDee… but I never expected this to happen."
"It’s not your fault," she said, a grim expression crossing her face. "There's only one person to blame for all of this—DeeDee. And we’re going to make her pay….”
27 Peyton
“Are you actually going to tell me what this promo is about?”
DeeDee tapped me on the arm as we walked through the halls of the Mirabella, our stiletto heels clicking on the tiles.
I turned to her, forcing a friendly smile onto my face and trying not to retch at the thought of her touching me. “I told you before, there’s no time to explain the whole thing. But I just know how much you love the camera nowadays, so I thought it would be cool if you joined me. I’ll do all the talking for the promo. All you have to do is smile and nod at everyone,” I said.
Her face brightened at the mention of cameras (and therefore attention). She nodded. “Right.”
I stopped for a second and put on a contrite expression as I looked into her treacherous eyes. “Look, I feel as if we’ve been a bit weird with each other lately. You know, with the stupid argument we had the other week, and then this whole dumb scandal about me. But I think doing stuff like this will help us get close again. We’re sisters, after all. We should stick together.”
DeeDee nodded. “Yeah. You’re right,” she said, flashing me a sickly-sweet smile. “And did you say Melissa Maynard is going to be there?” she added, bringing up an uber-popular YouTube reviewer.
“Yup.” I gritted my teeth and checked my watch. There wasn’t much time left now.
I’d asked security to make sure Andreas couldn’t get back onto the property at all, and Kaden had smashed his phone before we walked away from him in the parking lot earlier. Still, there were other ways he could contact DeeDee to let her know the proverbial cat was out of the bag, so I needed to carry out my plan as fast as possible.
In the last two hours, I’d made a lot of calls to a lot of people with the aid of Kaden and also Bianca, who we’d brought in on our scheme. Now everything was coming together, and I was going to make sure DeeDee got what she deserved before the police carted her away.
They say revenge is a dish best served cold, but it was even better when served in full view of the paparazzi and upper echelons of the gossip-blogging world.
I’d gone up to DeeDee’s suite about ten minutes ago, pretending to play nice, and she’d fallen for it… especially when I asked her to help at a little product promotion appearance I’d recently booked.
Well, allegedly booked.
As soon as I mentioned that there would be cameras, gossip bloggers, Instagram influencers and YouTube personalities at the promo appearance, my faux sister practically salivated with excitement, and I knew I had her right where I wanted her.
My
phone suddenly buzzed in my hand, and I looked down at the text I’d just received from Kaden. All sorted? I’m with your parents now. We’re about to leave.
I quickly tapped out a response as I stepped closer to the massive central courtyard of the Mirabella, where the media appearance was happening. Yes. Thank you for being there for them. Looks like almost everyone is able to make it here. Just give me five more minutes.
I put my phone away as DeeDee and I finally reached our destination, and I pasted on a wide smile as I stepped onto the makeshift podium Bianca had set up for us earlier. DeeDee followed me, and we waved to the people gathered in the courtyard, standing there with their cameras and pens poised.
“Is this about Kaden Pierce? Are you finally going to talk about him?” a particularly-nosy gossip blogger immediately called out. “Was that really him in the photo that’s been going around?”
“Are you together?” another chimed in.
“And were you really helping him spy for his parents?” yet another one called out.
I resisted the urge to roll my eyes, and I waved a hand instead, forcing my lips into a good-natured smile. “Come on, guys… I’ll answer questions about that later, okay? But for now, I really want to tell you all about a start-up that a friend of mine has created. It’s super-exciting!”
DeeDee smiled and nodded at everyone, just like I told her to. At least eighty percent of the gathered bloggers and influencers looked disappointed that I wasn’t going to discuss the Kaden scandal—yet—but they stayed silent anyway, waiting for me to go on.
I pulled a large envelope out of my handbag. “So,” I said dramatically. “A friend of mine started this whole thing a while ago. He’s a genius, and I love it. It’s a personal genomics company. I know that sounds crazy-boring, but trust me, it’s awesome. Let me explain.”
DeeDee still had no idea where this was going, so she kept smiling for the crowd and happily posing for the cameras.
“His company is called MeNA,” I went on. ”Basically, you send a sample of your hair or saliva into this place, and they analyze your DNA for you so they can give you a glimpse into your very own genetic makeup and history.”
Everyone in the courtyard looked suitably confused now. Usually I promoted shoes or clothing lines, not biotech start-ups.
I paused and looked over the crowd to see Bianca standing in the background with her phone aimed high, filming the proceedings. I nodded at her, and she nodded back at me, giving me a thumbs up.
I went on with my speech.
“It’s super cool, because you can find out all sorts of things about your heritage, and you can even find out if you have certain genes that predispose you to having certain personality traits,” I said, keeping my bright smile plastered on. “Anyway, I thought it would be way more interesting to you all if I gave you a live example of how cool the results can be!”
I held up the envelope, and DeeDee’s smile faltered for just a second.
“I sent my own sample in, and I also sneaked into my sister’s room the other day and stole a bit of hair from her brush when she wasn’t looking,” I said, feigning a half-cheeky, half-guilty look. “And these are our results. So you’ll all get to hear them! I can’t wait to find out our exact heritage mix…it’s so interesting, right?”
DeeDee’s face blanched.
Of course the envelope didn’t really contain any sort of results, and MeNA wasn’t a real company. It was all made up; all part of the little plan I’d concocted within the last two hours.
But she didn’t know that.
“So let’s open this envelope, huh?” I went on. “Let’s see how my sister and I compare!”
DeeDee shook her head and held up a hand. “Wait, no,” she said, a panicked expression filling her eyes.
I cocked my head to the side. “What’s wrong, sis? You don’t want to know our heritage?” I said, playing dumb.
“I… I just… you can’t open that!” she stuttered.
“Why don’t you want me to open it?” I said as loudly as possible, making sure everyone heard.
DeeDee was shaking now, whipping her head around and looking for somewhere to run. She looked just like a trapped animal. “I just… I….”
“Don’t be silly,” I said. “It’ll be fun to look at!”
I smiled and began to tear the envelope open. DeeDee immediately shrieked and launched herself at me, wrenching the envelope out of my grip. “No!” she screamed. “No! You fucking bitch!”
She tore the envelope into shreds and threw it all on the ground before stomping on the tattered remains like a petulant child. I simply stood and stared, trying to stop myself from smiling triumphantly, and everyone else in the courtyard watched with confusion and fascination as DeeDee threw her screaming tantrum.
Curious murmurs spread through the crowd, and it only took a few seconds for some of the brighter journalists to realize what was going on; why DeeDee didn’t want to have the alleged DNA results opened up in front of everyone.
They didn’t exist, but if they did, they’d show that we weren’t related. She knew that, so she couldn’t risk me opening it in front of everyone. Hence the tantrum.
DeeDee looked down at the remains of the envelope she’d just shredded, and it was only then that she noticed it had been empty the entire time. She looked up at me with horror, realizing I’d been bluffing.
I smiled brightly at her, enjoying the wide-eyed shock on her face. “Got you,” I murmured, quietly enough so that only she could hear.
“No,” she said softly, shaking her head. She raised her voice as she went on. “No! You’ve ruined everything, you fucking slut!”
I gave her a cold look. “No. You ruined everything all on your own. If you hadn’t been so hell-bent on destroying my reputation so that you could be the only one in the family who got attention, then I wouldn’t have felt the need to start looking into things. I would’ve never discovered that you’re not really my sister. Not a Cadwell.”
“No,” DeeDee repeated, shaking her head. “I…no… I can’t….”
“Don’t worry,” I said in a conciliatory tone, gesturing around at the wildly-flashing cameras. “Now you’ll be famous forever. And in the end, isn’t that what you really wanted?”
Her face turned white, and she sank to the podium floor, hugging her knees to her chest. There was nowhere for her to run, and she knew it.
It was over.
I looked up to see Mom and Dad entering the courtyard, accompanied by Kaden. While Bianca and I had been setting everything up to take DeeDee down, he’d been with them, quietly explaining what Andreas had admitted earlier today.
Mom’s cheeks were stained with tears, and Dad’s lips were set in a hard, thin line. My heart broke for them, just like it broke for myself when I found out the truth earlier.
My parents had been so convinced that they finally had their daughter back, but it was nothing but a scam. DeeDee had played us from the start, all so she could get the money and fame she felt she deserved for no apparent reason.
She was smart, but she wasn’t smart enough. If she’d simply kept her head down and shied away from attention (and scrapped her plan to take me down) she would’ve gotten away with her scheme. Permanently. She would’ve gone to her grave as Allegra Cadwell, and no one would have suspected a thing.
But she went too far. Her ego was too big, and she let it get in the way of her logic and rationality.
And now she was done.
Two police officers were pushing through the crowd now. Right on time. They quickly reached the podium, and I stepped aside so they could reach DeeDee.
“DeeDee Brown, you’re under arrest on suspicion of conspiracy to commit fraud,” one of the officers said, pulling her to her feet. She didn’t resist or say a word as he restrained her with plastic handcuffs and read her Miranda rights to her.
She remained silent as they hauled her off the podium. The crowd of gossip journalists parted to make way for them as they escor
ted her through the courtyard, and I followed, stepping grimly behind them until I reached Kaden and my parents.
My mom hugged me, and Dad murmured something in her ear.
She nodded at him, then looked back at me. “Peyton, we have to go with the police to talk about this… this whole thing,” she said softly. She sniffed and wiped her eyes, which were tearing up again.
I nodded. “I know.” I hesitated, then motioned toward Kade, who was staring at me with concern flickering in his eyes. Despite my horrible mood, my heart lifted a little at the sight of him. “Kade should come. He helped figure this out.”
My parents nodded. “I know,” Dad said. “Seems like Kaden has helped us figure out a lot of things in recent days.” He cleared his throat, then patted Kade on the shoulder and went on. “We’ll all go together.”
And just like that, I knew my parents had accepted him.
Together, we stepped out of the courtyard amidst the roar of the crowd still gathered there. They’d finally broken their collective stunned silence, and they frantically shouted questions at us as we walked away.
We didn’t turn around.
“I guess they all know we’re together now,” Kade murmured as we trailed behind my parents.
I grabbed his hand and smiled despite my somber mood. “Yeah. But I doubt they care. It’s last week’s news now that the truth about DeeDee is out. It’ll be the scandal of the century.”
“True.” He stopped for a moment, letting my parents slip out of earshot. “Pey, I know how hard this has been on you and your family, and how hard it’s going to be for a long time. But I just want you to know… I love you, and I’ll support you through anything. I promise.”
My eyebrows shot up with surprise. I hadn’t been expecting that. “Kade…”
My voice trailed off as I thought about everything we’d gone through. Everything we were still going to go through, now that DeeDee’s sick game had been revealed.
Suite Hearts Page 26