Page 69 of Love and Lies

“Yes, that is a shame. It was all just a little… short term.”

The other women looked sympathetic. I knew what they were thinking: the only reason the poor girl had to leave the city was because her sister was such a disappointment. But I kept my anger at the injustice of it in check. I had to get out of here as soon as possible. I couldn’t afford any distractions.

Since the event at the Mirage three weeks ago I’d been placed under surveillance, as if I were some kind of dangerous criminal who had to be reintegrated back into society. I was convinced not even newly released prisoners had such tight parole conditions. I wasn’t allowed to go anywhere unless the family driver took me; I couldn’t go out, meet anyone without permission, eat out, or take part in any college events that weren’t compulsory or were in any way fun. I hadn’t been to Tough Rock since my conversation with Simon, either. I desperately needed to let off some steam, but I obviously couldn’t tell anyone I was doing martial arts. Despite all this, my parents still asked constantly where I was going. Sometimes I felt like I was about to scream. But I had to control myself. After all, I had a mission.

These strict rules meant it had been hard to investigate Valerie’s case lately, but today I’d finally found my chance to talk to Carter Fields. Once a month, my mother went to a meeting held by the Development Society for my old school, where she sat on the leadership committee—along with Carter’s grandmother. And because the gods were finally smiling on me for once, it was her grandson who always picked her up and took her out to eat afterward. I knew this from Valerie and, after a few discreet questions to Lincoln, had discovered that it was still the case. So all I had to do was go to the meeting with my mother, pretend to be interested in whatever issues were facing the school, and then leave a little early to intercept Carter. I knew exactly what I wanted to ask, I’d even come up with an excuse as to why I wanted to talk to him. It was the perfect plan. And this time it wasn’t going to go wrong like it did with Pratt.

Unfortunately, I had severely underestimated the interest older ladies took in young people like me. I stole a glance at my watch. The meeting had officially ended ten minutes ago; I didn’t have a lot of time left.

My mother came over, with the proud expression she always wore when she thought I was acting in line with her wishes. She put a hand gently on my back.

“Everything okay?” she asked quietly.

“Of course.” I nodded. “I just have to… all that tea, you know.”

“Well, you know where the restrooms are. But we have to get going shortly.”

“I’ll be back in a sec.” I hurried outside, checking over my shoulder, but no one was following, so I turned off just before the restroom and headed toward the stairs.

Thankfully, the Bradbury had been my school, or I’d for sure have gotten lost in its antique, wood-paneled halls, but I made it to the exit with no wrong turns. There were several cars parked outside on the street, but Carter’s limousine was easy to identify—it was the only one with the windows open, blasting the latest Weeknd album. He wasn’t sitting waiting virtuously for his grandmother, then. No wonder—she was kind of a dragon. As far as I knew, these monthly meals of theirs happened less out of fondness for her and more as a ploy to get a little extra pocket money.

I went straight up to the car and nodded to the driver.

“Hi, can I talk to Carter a second? It won’t take long.”

He shrugged, indifferent. “Sure.”

“Thanks.” I opened the door and slid into the back seat of the limo.

Carter looked up from his phone, sizing me up with a tilt of his head, before turning the music down. “Okay, Grandma, you’ve gone too far this time,” he said sternly. “We really need to talk about this obsession with looking young. Can’t you just age gracefully?”

I grinned, and it wasn’t even fake. I’d genuinely always liked Carter—unlike a lot of the other guys in our circle, he was funny and didn’t take himself too seriously. But since I hoped he was going to help me get Valerie off the hook, I’d have laughed at his joke even if it wasn’t funny.

“What can I say? The doctor promised me a miracle, and here it is.”

Carter laughed, then regarded me again with a curious expression. “Helena Weston, in my car—to what do I owe the honor?”

“I wanted to see you, and thought this would be a good opportunity.” I stuck to the truth. It wouldn’t be long before his grandma appeared, so I had to be quick.

“Oh really?” He raised an eyebrow and his grin turned wicked. “I didn’t have you down as one of those brazen girls, but hey, maybe England changed you. Or maybe you inherited the same genes as Valerie after all.”

I brushed aside the familiar pang at his mention of Valerie. “Sorry, Carter, I hate to disappoint you, but that’s not why I’m here.”

“Shame.” He didn’t seem offended that I hadn’t gotten into his car to make out with him—he probably got that sort of offer often enough. “I heard you’re carrying on the family tradition, by the way.”

“Family tradition?” I frowned.

“Oh, come on, sweetie, you think it went unnoticed that you and Jessiah Coldwell were all over each other at the Mirage opening? Maybe I should give you a piece of advice and tell you not to follow in your sister’s footsteps.”

I took a deep breath; I wasn’t going to let his words unsettle me. But I needed a moment to get a grip on the emotions that welled up whenever I thought about Jess, or heard his name mentioned in conversation.

The truth was, I missed him. It might have seemed silly—we hadn’t spent that much time together, after all—but the heart didn’t care about reason or logic. It wasn’t like missing your ex, either, an echo of the past, when you thought of something from when you were together and remembered you couldn’t tell them about it. It was the kind of missing where you wished you’d had more time with someone, to learn everything you could about them, to get close to them. I’d never experienced anything like it, this overwhelming need to be with somebody. And it was a really shitty twist of fate that of all the people the universe could have chosen for me, it had to be Jessiah Coldwell.

“I don’t know what you mean,” I muttered, trying to get ahold of myself. I was here because of Valerie. I was doing all this for her. I had to take my chance, get the job done. “Tell me,” I said, getting back on track. “You’re hosting a party next week at your hotel penthouse, right?”

“Oh yeah.” He beamed at me. “Why, you want to come? It’s not for goodie two-shoes, though, if you know what I mean. Could be a bit heavy for you.”

“Heavier than sending a dealer to an engagement party as a gift, you mean?” I hadn’t planned to bring it up so soon, but the opening was just too tempting.