“Out of the blue? Just like that? This oddball caregiver runs into one of the richest women in Britain and offers her services? Think about it, Patrick. Every single one of Poppy’s former clients has wound up dead.”
Patrick snorts. “She did palliative care. Of course they died.”
“So why would Lillith hire someone like that? And why did Angus suddenly die right after she arrived.”
“Oh, for Pete’s sake! You’re not going with this conspiracy crap again, are you?”
“Listen, I was the one who was already assisting Lillith with her affairs. I was the one who convinced Lillith to start her autobiography. I was supposed to help her research and ghostwrite it. Lillith had basically made it clear. We were going to keep it all in the family. Then, poof, this Poppy person appears, moves in, cuts me out? Now Lillith is alone with her. We need to be here. You need to keep an eye on her.”
He stares. Arrabella can see the wheels of his mind turning. Clearly he’s also had concerns about Poppy. He just hasn’t admitted it.
“Not only that,” Arrabella presses, “the moment Poppy arrived at the castle, she started isolating Lillith from other family members and friends. I no longer have access to Lillith at all, without going through Poppy. You carving yourself out of Lillith’s life just makes it easier for her to fall prey to that assistant of hers. Have you noticed how frail Lillith has gotten since Angus died? Her mobility has worsened. She leans so heavily on that cane now. She looks thinner. Her complexion is all wrong. She has tremors in her hands, new tics and twitches in her face.”
Emotion gleams in his eyes.
Sweet Patrick. He does care. Too much. Angus was right—he’s too soft. Which is why he needs her in his life. She won’t be fooled by manipulative little Machiavellis in librarian cardigans and owl glasses.
“You’ll think about staying aboard?” she asks.
“I’ll think about it.”
Relief blooms through Arrabella. But as she exhales, her phone pings. She crosses to her purse on the bed, takes out her mobile, checks the screen. Her pulse spikes as she reads the text.
We need to meet. In person.
Got something big and juicy for you. Call me.
I’m on the ship.
“Who is it?” Patrick asks.
“Um ... nothing.” But her mouth has gone bone dry.
He’s on the ship?Fuck.Why?
She clicks off her phone and slides it back into her purse. “Just a question from work about a feature.”
“What feature?”
She meets his gaze, and forces a casual tone. “A trend piece on how the megarich are rebranding. I assigned it to Mary—you know Mary? She second-guesses everything.” Arrabella skirts her lie close to the truth, because Patrick is ultimately her boss at the magazine, and he could check.
“What does she want?”
“Just something that I suggested she run by legal.”
It’s Criminal:
The Mystery of theBlack Orchid
A Trinity Scott & Gio Rossi True Crime Production
CONT. Reenactment—Theo Pappas—Crew Cabin
Theo leans closer to his monitor, riveted by the altercation between Lady Arrabella Fairfax and Patrick McGregor.
Calliope Sky Villa Interior—Retrieved Footage
Arrabella slips her phone back into her purse, crosses to her fiancé, bends over, and kisses him.
