Furious.
Shaken.
And more confused than ever.
ChapterThirteen
Henry
I sat behind my desk, the glow from the monitors washing the room in cold blue light.The hum of the servers filled the silence, steady and low, like a heartbeat I couldn’t shut off.Schaffer’s files filled the screen in an endless scroll.Appointment calendars.Billing statements.Encrypted medical reports.
But instead of focusing on it and trying to find a clue, my thoughts kept returning to Ariana.
Her voice echoed in my head, telling me I was treating her just like Victor had.
It stung.
But she was wrong.
I wasnothinglike Victor.
Was I keeping her here?
Of course, but it was for her own good.
What was it going to take for her to see that?
The door beeped, and I looked up as Blake walked in, ensuring the door locked behind him before strolling across the room.
“How’d last night go?”he asked, dropping onto the couch.
“Schaffer admitted to drugging Daphne.”
He leaned back, resting his ankle on his knee.“Did you ask about the call from Victor?”
I nodded.“He told Schaffer to kill Daphne.”
“Bastard.”Blake scrubbed a hand down his face.“Why would he want her dead?He’d already made it so she was halfway out of her mind.”
“Maybe to manipulate Ariana?Or flush her out of hiding?He knows how much she loves her mother.If Daphne died, Ariana would want to say goodbye.”I paused.“It sounds like something he’d do.”
Blake nodded grimly, then glanced toward the monitors.“What’s all that?”
“Schaffer’s patient files.At least the ones I could access.”
He narrowed his gaze on me.“Do you think there are others like Daphne?”
“There could be.But that’s not what I’m looking for.”
“What are you then?”
“Schaffer mentioned that Victor had also been having him sterilize women.My guess is they’re the women he’d been sleeping with to ensure there wouldn’t be any Victor Juniors.”
“I’d say he did us all a favor.”He flashed a smile before his expression sobered.“Did you ask about Sarah?”
I blew out a breath.“He couldn’t confirm anything.It’s most likely a complete waste of time, but maybe Victor’s hiding out with one of these women.”
“Like you taught me years ago… Leave no stone unturned.”
