Apparently, one of Andrew’s connections happened to be the city’s greatest private investigator, retired police detective Anthony Jones. In a couple of weeks, he managed to track down the accountant’s—John Brown’s—current location and some key information that I could leverage against him. One piece
“Thirty-three percent,”Susan said.“He needs more convincing.” I looked away. He had to be unnerved by the intense eye contact by now. “Mr. Brown, I know that you’re scared of Bob. I am, too. I’m sure that he gave you a sizeable amount of hush money to disappear too, if you bought a property this l
It took almost two hours to get through Mr. Brown’s testimony—and he claimed that was the abridged version—but by the end, there was more than enough evidence to back up the paper trail that Noah had uncovered. Soon after we finished, I thanked Mr. Brown for his cooperation and left him to his solit
As I hung up the phone with Noah, Andrew was on the phone with his head of security. “Yes, yes, let them in,” he said. “We need to cooperate. Just make sure that the paparazzi don’t come in with them.” He let out a frustrated groan as he ended the call. “The police are here,” he told me. “They’re
“Thank you, Officer Dunnigan, Officer Kibet,” he said, his tone unchanged. “That’s all I needed to know.” “Her bail is being set at $2,000,000, if you want to know,” Officer Dunnigan said. “Thank you. I will keep that in mind.” Andrew did not even look at me. Instead, he stared into the distance,
All too quickly, we pulled up to the police station. Processing went fairly smoothly, and the officers were nice enough. I suppose that they remembered me from my vampiric abduction, or they thought that I was pretty enough to overlook the fact that I was being brought in on suspicion of murder. Pr
My mind set on going to prison, I finally started to fall asleep early in the morning. Sunlight drifted in through a nearby window, draping across my face. Although I squinted from the glare, I felt content in the warmth. “Crystal Blanchard,” the female officer called as she approached the cell. I
Monday morning, I awoke to an urgent text from Lily. Video call me. Immediately. I got out of bed and brushed my hair as quickly as possible but did not dress myself otherwise. I knew that Lily wouldn’t care how I looked, considering how early it was. Besides, whatever this was…I just wanted to ge
That night, long after the last of the guests had left for their rooms, Andrew and I returned to the presidential suite to find that the staff had decorated it in preparation for our stay. All the décor, right down to the bed sheets, had been switched out for matching red and gold pieces. The light
Andrew’s eyes met mine as I approached the altar. He smiled at me, and I smiled back. He looked so handsome in his classic black tuxedo that I could hardly wait for after the reception to be with him. As I took my place across from Andrew, I handed my bouquet to Lily. The priestess bega
One month later, I stood in a suite at a private beachside resort, admiring my wedding dress. It hugged my curves in all the right places while still gently brushing against the ground like a low-hanging cloud. Crystals glistened in the room’s fluorescent lights, and the train flowed behind me effor
“Let’s continue this in the bedroom,” I said, breathless. Andrew nodded his agreement. I pulled Andrew to his feet as he stuck the ring box back in his pocket. Then I dragged him back to the bedroom, leading him by the tie. Not that he needed to be dragged; he would have followed me anywhere by th
Andrew texted me and said his flight was delayed by a few errands he had to run, so I waited. And waited. I waited for an entire day, and even began to worry that Andrew had changed his mind. Then I heard a knock at my door. I leapt off the couch and rushed to answer it. Stopping just short of the
Noah left the next day. I took him to the airport, we exchanged a hug and a brief farewell, and then I watched him walk through the gate. That was the last time I ever saw him. With a heavy heart, I returned to an empty apartment. All our furniture and my belongings—what little I still had—were the
Sensing the urgency in Noah’s voice, I leaned in closer. “What is it?” I asked, trying to suppress the anticipation in my voice. Noah’s grip on my hands tightened. “I’m going to study financial law in the human world.” I froze. My heart thumped hard against my ribs, so hard that I thought th
The nightmares did not stop. In fact, they got worse. By the end of that week, I was having at least one every night, and it was showing in behavior during the day. I could scarcely stay awake. At my new branch of Ever After Weddings, I had to sneak off into the breakroom whenever there were no cu
I dreamt of the Lunar Festival. Noah and I walked hand-in-hand through the stalls, enjoying the sparkling lights and the company of our new pack mates. Yet something was off. I could feel a chill in the air, a foreboding that I could not quite shake off. “We should get out of here,” I said, tryi