Total pages in book: 90
Estimated words: 82767 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 414(@200wpm)___ 331(@250wpm)___ 276(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 82767 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 414(@200wpm)___ 331(@250wpm)___ 276(@300wpm)
“There isn’t,” I said. “Honestly, I don’t know why Keegan has been arrested; I don’t know what they have got on him. I couldn’t find anything. Whatever is happening, it has got nothing to do with me.”
“But it’s more than that, Freya. I know you too well for you to hide something from me.”
“I trusted him,” I said, choosing my words carefully. “I believed in him.”
“And that’s all?” she looked cynical.
“I liked him, okay?” I said, raising my hands as if to show her I had nothing to hide.
“You liked him,” she said, raising an eyebrow.
“Yeah, I really… liked him. And I’m finding it hard to believe he has done whatever it is they think he has done.”
“And?” Beatrix waited for me to continue.
“And I haven’t heard from him since we got back,” I added. “So, it looks like… maybe I was wrong.”
“Sure,” Beatrix shrugged. “But that doesn’t explain why you can’t look me in the eye right now. Unless, of course, you more-than-liked him.”
“All right!” I said, getting angry with her now. “I more than liked him. But that has nothing to do with Clover House or Dynasty or Drew. And it’s none of your business!”
“You’re right, it’s none of my business. But that is a bit rich coming from you. You are an idiot,” she said shaking her head, but before I could argue or defend myself she added, “But you aren’t a bad judge of character, and if you trust him, then who am I to argue?”
“Really?” I said, screwing my face up in disbelief. “Because I have a horrible feeling I got him very, very wrong.”
“Time will tell,” she said. “The most important thing is that he doesn’t drag you into this with him.”
We changed the subject, but her words kept going round in my head. Just a few days ago I would have trusted him with my life, and now I was worried he might ruin my life.
I said goodnight to Beatrix, and on my way home I realized that I hadn’t asked her a single thing about her life, how things were with Stan or how she was coping. I felt like a shitty sister and a selfish friend, and I promised myself I would call her tomorrow.
Back home, I fell into an exhausted, dreamless sleep, the stress and the time difference catching up with me. When I woke, it was to the sound of knocking on the apartment door. I pulled on some clothes, calling out that I would be there in a minute, and ran to the door. This was it; Keegan would explain everything. I felt a fizz of excitement bubble through me at the prospect of seeing him, of talking it all through and taking him in my arms…
It was two police officers. They came in and stood awkwardly in the hallway, apologizing for intruding, but they didn’t have a telephone number for me, and they would like me to go in and speak to them about some matters at work. I begged them to just talk to me here in the apartment, but they said I would have to go to the station. I agreed to meet them there in two hours, and then spent most of those two hours pacing the apartment in a complete panic. I didn’t have a lawyer, and I couldn’t expect Dynasty Games to foot the bill for my stupidity. I looked through my phone, considering a call to Beatrix, then Taylor, and even Drew. But this was something I had to do alone.
“So, your reason for taking the job at Clover House was not an honest one?” the officer asked, taking notes as we sat at a desk.
“I just wanted to be part of Clover House, to see how it worked and to establish if there was a culture of borrowing ideas from other companies…” I had planned what to say to this, no accusations of theft, no admission of anything they could pin on me. I was playing the silly girl card, and I had no shame in doing so if it got me off the hook.
“So, you were spying, so to speak,” he pushed.
“I was doing the job. I never looked at anything I wasn’t allowed to see.”
“Okay, Ms. Hamilton – and can you tell us your impression of Keegan Callahan? What was he like to work for?”
“He was fine. He knew what he was doing when it came to numbers,” I said, shrugging. “I mean, he was kind of grumpy, but it was fine.”
He smiled a patronizing smile. “Sure, and while you were ‘just doing the job’ and not ‘spying,’ did you happen to find any evidence that suggested he might be engaged in anything… unusual?”
“No,” I said, firmly.
“And you’re sure about that?” he looked down at his notes.
“Look, I would remember if he mentioned stealing an idea for a game from my family business…” I said peevishly.