Page 26 of Tempt Me
“I was, I swear. I just forgot.”
Letting him off the hook for now, I thank the terrified gardener and make my way back into the villa.
Staring down the hallway, my gaze unwavering as it rests on the housekeeper. She stands calmly with her back to me, dusting the pictures that line the wall, her hands moving with a confident ease. Taking a deep breath before clearing my throat, she turns around, her eyes narrowed in question.
"I'm trying to figure out what happened with the box,” I say cautiously, by now everyone will have heard about the snake.
The woman frowns as she thinks back.
"There was nothing particularly strange yesterday, apart from one thing. Last night I heard a noise in Mrs. Di’Castello’s office. I went to investigate, but I didn’t find anything out of the ordinary.”
“But you still think it was strange?”
She nods slowly. “It was like a thud. Like something heavy was dropped. But when I went in, everything seemed in place. I figured I must’ve imagined it.”
Bowing my head in acknowledgement, I pause, my thoughts racing. So we’ve gone from someone being outside the gates to being inside the villa, andno onesaw them. Or at the very least no onestoppedthem.
It screams inside job. But who could have done this? I need to find out soon before Rue gets hurt. Looking up as Violetta, the head of the staff, a middle-aged woman whose kind eyes have been watching over the family for many years is hovering close by. Striding over to her, I ask, “What do you know?”
“I was already asleep when Sophie heard the noise,” she softly admits. “It was late.”
But then she tilts her head, gesturing for me to follow her somewhere more private. We head into Francesca’s office, the scene of the crime, as it were.
Leaning against the desk, my arms folded, I ask, “What is it?”
Closing the door quietly, her dark eyes find mine. “One of the overnight girls reported seeing a tall figure cloaked in the darkness standing near the grounds late last night. She told Luca…”
That catches my attention instantly. “Luca?”
Violetta nods, and with a pained expression, she confesses to a secret. “Giselle and Luca are having an affair.”
“Really,” I murmur. I’m not sure why that is pertinent other than that this Giselle would go to him with the information she thought was a security issue. But why didn’t he come forward? “She definitely told him?”
Violetta nods. “I see no reason why she would lie.”
“No, not her.”
Every fiber of my being is cursing me for letting Rue drive off with Luca earlier when he is clearly up to his neck in this. Whatever this is – apart from a vicious snake in a box that was meant for Rue.
Meeting Violetta’s gaze, she purses her lips and nods once. She knows not to say anything about my suspicions.
“If your girl can remember anything else, anything at all, come to me.”
She nods. “Of course.”
Violetta slips out, leaving the door open for me to follow. Before I take this to Vik and Fran, I need to have a word with Luca. And when I say word, I mean my fist in his face while he confesses everything.
Nobody hurts Rue and gets away with it.
Chapter15
Isaac
Ihave to find Luca and fast. Heading to the Coe Bay Town Hall, I slam my foot on the gas of the second Range Rover that I found at my disposal. My suspicions of Luca's involvement in the villa break-in the previous night sear through my veins like molten lava.
The sun is bright and climbing higher as I hit the town rush-hour traffic, cursing under my breath as I slow down, feeling a palpable tension in the air.
Finally pulling up outside, I leave the car at the curb, not really giving a shit that it might be towed. Storming into the cool building, I pause, not knowing which way to go.
