We entered the elevator in the parking garage and rode it all the way to the top. A hotel associate stood behind a podium just outside the elevator as we walked out. He seemed surprised as he looked at Logan and me.“May I see your invitation, Mr. Hatfield? Ms. Whitaker?” he asked.Logan showed him
The room seemed entirely frozen for a terrible, long moment. Then, Mr. Hatfield Senior took a step toward us and everything started moving again.The closer Senior became, the more everyone else seemed to inch away from us. When he finally reached us, it was akin to a wild west standoff. The tension
We traveled back to the apartment quietly, our silence broken only when Logan called Dylan and asked him to meet us there. Once we were all together again, sitting around the table, Dylan broke out his expensive whiskey for him and Logan, while I placed two bottles of white zinfandel in front of M
“We have to find this woman,” I said at once. “We need to make sure she’s okay, firstly, and secondly –”“She’d be a hell of a person to have on our side if any of this is real,” Mabel filled in.“That, too,” I said, though her safety was my main concern.“We’re already on the case,” Maria said. “Mi
Mr. Hudgens led Logan and I through a long hallway to a living room situated at the back of the house. Wide windows opened to a spacious backyard filled with trees and flowers, and let in plenty of light.The room itself was filled with warm tones. Crocheted blankets covered the backs of the leather
The moment we walked into the community center, we were overwhelmed. The place was packed with people. Some I recognized from the gossip columns, high society members. Others I’d seen at work, current employees, or in pictures at work as previous employees. Many I didn’t know at all.Logan seemed to
She worried her hands together. “I worried about that child every day. I feel like I failed him.”“It’s not your fault,” I said, but I could tell my assurances weren’t enough.During a break, I sneaked over to where Logan was pouring himself a fresh cup of coffee. The moment I mentioned the nanny, I
“Yes!” I shouted, so excited that in my rush to stand, I ended up knocking my cup of champagne on the floor. “Oh!”“Don’t worry,” Mabel said, moving at once to grab the paper towels. “We’ve got this.”“I’m so sorry.” I felt like a big fool. “I didn’t mean to ruin it.”“Nothing’s ruined,” Logan said,
“I’ve been in this game for too long,” Senior said. “When I first got the news, I could only think about my legacy. I became obsessed with it. I’m not like you, Walter. I didn’t think about my family, or anyone else. Only myself.” “It’s hard to teach an old dog new tricks,” Mr. Hudgens said. He la
“Janice,” Senior said. All smug arrogance disappeared from his voice. “What are you doing here?” “At first I didn’t think I would come,” Janice replied. “After all these years… I didn’t want to see your face ever again for as long as I lived. Better to leave well enough alone. But… after hearing e
I glanced down at my pink blouse and gray slacks. What was so wrong with my outfits? I dressed professionally… mostly. He really thought I needed supervision to pick out an outfit.Looking at Logan, I saw my own disbelief mirrored back at me. This was absolutely ridiculous.“Is that it?” Walter aske
In front of the partition screen, a large table had been assembled, with rows of chairs on either side, facing each other. We took our side, and Senior and his team of lawyers took theirs. There were so many lawyers that many of them had to stand.Senior sat across from Logan, though his glare of di
“He might surprise us,” Dylan said, a shred of hope in his voice, under a healthy level of cynicism.“Don’t hold your breath,” Frank replied.“The problem is we don’t know fully what to expect,” Mabel said. “Well – other than Senior being a crotchety asshole who will try to cheat us at every turn. W
“It’s time to talk to Logan and Hazel and stop this whole thing,” Dylan said. “You are outnumbered and outmatched, with so many people ready to stand against you.”Opening the top of the folder, Senior glared down at the stack of papers in the stack. “Disgruntled former employees. Fake friends. Fami
“We were just hoping to talk to her,” I said.The man’s brow lifted slightly. “Are you selling something? Wait -- why do you look familiar?” Narrowing his eyes, he gazed at us with suspicion. Then, suddenly, recognition must have struck him because his eyes widened. “You’re those people from the new
Despite the general unpleasantness of the conversation with the mayor and the governor, they eventually agreed to let us go. They had no real reason to hold us, and Logan saw through their veiled threats easily enough.In fact, he even seemed to make them feel to make them feel like unsupportive fri
That day, we changed our minds and decided to release six interviews to the website, with Michael Hatfield’s being the final. Overnight, the story gained so much national traction that the sheriff and two security men show up at our door.“Logan Hatfield? Hazel Whitaker? The mayor wants to speak wit