AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Rachel shrugged. "Well, you know, I just figured that he'd like to know where you are."
I set my wine glass down. "Sorry, what? You think my boyfriend needs checking up on me?"
"No, more so, I just didn't want him to worry."
My hands pressed into the cool marble. "Is it that you didn't want him to worry, Rachel, or is it that you want every opportunity you can to get as close to the White House as possible?"
Rachel's entire demeanor changed. Her voice lowered. "I'm offended by that accusation, Olive."
"Holy shit." Both Rachel and I turned at the sound of Helene's voice.
She was standing in front of the television, sipping her wine glass faster. The news was playing the story about Quinn's death, but the headline had been updated.
Local bank teller killed in shoot out after robbery at mayor Isaacs’s mansion.
"What is it?" Rachel asked.
"Quinn," Helen said. "He's dead."
Rachel blinked quickly, looked between Helen and I, and cleared her throat. "Who's Quinn?"
Helen's expression froze. Her eyes darted to me and then back to her wine. "I-uh-used to work with him."
They were both in on this. I knew it in that moment. Whatever part Helen had taken in blackmailing Isaacs, Rachel had either known about it or been involved.
I gravitated toward the television, leaving my wine glass behind. The screen switched to a video of Mayor Isaacs’s hallway as a man emerged from a closed door and darted across the hall to his office.
In the background, the reporter continued. "This video was taken shortly before Mr. Zinger was discovered attempting to rob Mayor Isaacs."
"How sad," Rachel whispered.
Helen finished her glass of wine. "Terrible." Her eyebrows lifted. "More wine?"
I hesitated. None of this made sense. There had been no shoot out at Jessie's, I was sure of it. Not when Quinn had been on the run and hiding from Isaacs’s people. If Quinn was dead, then it was because they'd finally tracked him down.
So what the hell was this video about?
"Actually, can I use your bathroom?"
"Of course," Helen said. "Down the hall to your left."
I glanced out the back window at the playground where Claire was still running around.
"Don't worry," Rachel said. "We'll keep an eye on them."
That was exactly what I was worried about. I'd need to make this quick.
I found a laptop in an office in the back room. It was clear by the photos that her husband was a doctor who worked in other countries, which explained why I'd never seen him around before. That meant one thing.
This computer was only been used by Helen—and she didn't even have a password. It took less than a minute to find the email I was looking for.
Dear Mayor Isaacsand Senator Carter,
I was hired by my business partner to secretly film you when we partied at the Hilton last week. Surprise, surprise, I'm not just some whore you picked up. Neither my partner, nor I, expected to see how idiotic you both are. Because of the information you revealed in the video, my partner and I will release this video to the public if you don't deposit the amount of four hundred thousand dollars into an account I will be sending to you in the next few weeks. If you both value your careers, then you will continue to obey to my wishes.
Speak soon.
Except this wasn'tthe only email in the chain. There were two other emails bcc-ed in and a group chat between them discussing what they'd heard in the video. Rachel had literally responded from her personal email with her own name, and from reading their conversation, it became clear that she'd originally wanted to gather proof that Senator Carter was cheating on her.
