This is the closest we can get to the palatial compound belonging to her ex’s family. The closest when I’m not tailing Vivian around the island in my rented Bentley.
The estate, with all its lush landscaping and security walls, makes it hard to scope the fortress hiding her, but I know she’s in there. The GPS on her gold tracking necklace pings on the west side of the property.
She’s in a guest villa.
For over a week, I’ve shadowed Vivian handbag shopping with a gaggle of women in tropical print dresses. She looked miserable.
They went to the spa twice, took a floral arranging class, then a watercolor class where they painted their best rendition of the groom.
They’ve had a movie screening night on the landscaped grounds, and my favorite, a brunchtime pin-the-tulle-on-the-donkey game with mimosas.
Vivian calls me every morning and texts throughout the day. And every night, she won’t go to sleep until she’s heard my voice, until she comes hearing me come for her.
We’re in this lavish preppy hell while Grant tails her ex.
David’s been at the golf course every day—a sore loser with a big mouth. But at least the sport’s dress code won’t allow him to look like a twelve-year-old.
The sun is rising on our tenth day here as my phone finally chimes with her call. Her new ringtone is Lenny Kravitz, of course.
“Morning, Smokeshow.”
“Morning, big guy.”
“Pft.Bigguy.” Grant can hear us, so I flip him off and leave him by the stern, finding a private spot on the sundeck, where I can talk to her.
“How ya feeling?”
“After mimosas yesterday?” She groans. “Horrible. Clearly, I don’t have champagne taste. My schedule is all off. My stress is through the roof, but it’s worth it. Ruby called me yesterday.”
I grin, staring at the sprawling alabaster Bermuda-style architecture on the property, knowing Vivian’s in one of those villas with cobalt shutters.
“So I heard. She found the server in… What’s his name?”
“Brayton.” She sounds encouraged. “Brayton had a server, and Nash showed Ruby how to search it. She confirmed he had the file on it, then Nash showed her how to scrub it. That’s one server down, hopefully only two more to go.”
I’m glad Vivian trusts Ruby. She should. Ruby would never betray her and share what she saw.
“Delphine’s working on the other server. The other cousin?—”
“Eric,” she clarifies.
“Yeah, him. She’s testing a Wi-Fi jammer for the security system on his house before she goes in.”
“God”—she sighs—“they’re badass.”
“So are you. Hang in there.”
“Yeah, rough life playing wedding Pictionary or the guess-what’s-in-my-purse game.”
I wince. “Don’t think even Navy SEALs could survive that.”
She laughs. “I don’t want to be mean. My sister-in-law… I mean,former sister-in-lawis sweet. I swear, Deborah got all the heart and left the asshole for David. But this is exhausting; pretending like I don’t despise her brother.”
“I understand. It’s exhausting not putting a bullet in his brain.”
“Jace.” She half laughs, half chides.
“I’m kidding.”
