Galilee Rising(82)

"I see prison has turned you into a Zen master."

"I do have nothing to do but meditate, but no, you're missing my point. He can work the odds, sure, but in the end it all comes down to the people around the table. Our player has done his homework. He's determined the other player's psychology, quirks, etc. as the game wears on."

"What does this tutorial have to do with Rebecca and Daisy?"

"You were right. Part of the reason I disposed of them first was for the shock. To all of you. The act sent all my players into a panic, exactly as I anticipated. That was the face value, but ask yourself, what did the Thorntons really signify to Justice?"

"Love. Family. Hope for the future."

"Justin Pendergast was a rich, dashing man who due to his orphaned state craved a family. Their deaths were a tragedy, no doubt, but in the end they were replaceable. Pretty faces are a dime a dozen. And supplemental. Justice was his real self, Justin Pendergast was the front. And to Justice, you were the linchpin to his destruction. The living, breathing, cussing embodiment of all his sacrifices and the importance of his life."

I want to protest but can't open my mouth.

"I knew all about your mutual history through Grace, who continued the research during my first unfortunate incarceration. I knew you were the first person he rescued so soon after his father's death. I knew that you were in love with him, and he was oblivious. I also knew you had no idea of his alter ego. Logically, with my maelstrom swirling, that tidbit would have to be revealed. And when it was, and you loathed him to your very core, I pounced before you could forgive him. Well, tried anyway."

"How did you know when I found out?"

"Multiple avenues. One, I knew you brought Logan in. Then my surveillance team followed you to the mansion, then the apartment where I heard you venting to your then boyfriend."

I blink. "Wait. You bugged my apartment?"

"Of course. Yours and Rebecca's houses had surveillance cameras. We attempted to hide some in the mansion but the butler was always there, so we settled for Justin's office and phones. So, with all this intel, I could plan, rehearse, adapt, and plan again. This is what you're up against, Joanna dear. And Cain's IQ reportedly topples even mine. I do not envy you."

"So, what should I do?"

"Only one thing to do." He pauses. "Pray."

I sit in silence for a few seconds staring at the monster who demolished my life and feel…nothing. "I have to go. Plane to catch."

"My meeting with Grace?"

"Working on it."

"Thank you. I do hope I was helpful. Really."

"You were." The words stick in my throat, but I say, "Thank you."

"Just keep in mind what his endgame is and do your best to circumvent it. Might give you a chance."

"I will. See you next week." And the pieces finally fit. I was right. One cockroach just helped me figure out the other.

After jotting down a quick note, and slipping it in my pocket, I rise from the chair. I find Dobbs in the kitchen wiping the counters. "Hello, Miss Joanna. Ready for the airport?"

I move beside him. "Almost," I say, covertly palming him the note. He reads the paper with confusion, and then shakes his head to answer no. Still. "I wanted to borrow that book for the flight. Is it in your room?" I ask, eyes jutting toward the door.

"Yes. Come with me," he says. I follow him through the other kitchen door into his apartment. Like the rest of the house, it's filled with antiques and faded red carpet. I shut the door behind myself. "What is going on, Miss Joanna?"

"I know you said Cain didn't enter the kitchen, but we should be careful. He didn't come in here, did he?"

"No. I was in here the majority of his stay. I know he was upstairs for a time as we spoke when he was descending the stairs. He said he was using the bathroom, which I found odd as he had a satchel with him at the time, but you know all this."

"Do you know anywhere else specifically he went?"

"Just the living room, but I didn't watch him. He had free reign of the house."

Wonderful. "Okay, I need you to walk me through what happened after he left again."

"I heard the front door shut about thirty minutes after you arrived home. I thought you two had gone to dinner as he claimed. Perhaps two hours later, Mr. Darby was at the gate. I let him in and told him you were at dinner with Dr. Ambrose. He appeared shocked by this, but wanted to use the computer regardless. Five minutes after that, he began screaming for me. He had you on the couch in the living room attempting to revive you. The ambulance arrived ten minutes after that, and I escorted them in. Mr. Darby told them he found you out on the patio, then went with you to the hospital."