The last trace of restraint inside me snapped. She had once called me her friend. Cheerful. Sweet. Loyal. Now she was about to meet a version of me she had never seen.
“Eva,” I said calmly, “do you know where Lynda and her friends usually hang out? I think it’s time I paid her a visit.”
“Oh,” Shanna said eagerly, “can I come too? I can be your backup. Should we bring a baton, just in case?”
“Shanna,” I replied flatly, shooting her a warning look, “we are not committing murder. It’s just a friendly visit. Over coffee.”
She grinned, clearly unconvinced.
We definitely did not want to look like unhinged adults in front of a kid.
But friendly did not mean harmless.
Chapter 30
BAILEY
Who would have thought my ex best friend, Lynda, the same girl who once sneered at rich people for being fake and pretentious, now lived the very life she claimed to hate? And here she was, at a country club, mingling effortlessly with her wealthy friends.
As I approached, I noticed a few members stopping by her table, hugging her, whispering words of sympathy. They probably thought she was the victim. Or worse, that I was the one who had ruined her engagement. I would not have bet against it. Their eyes flicked toward me as I walked past, subtle judgments hidden behind polite smiles.
Lynda had not noticed me yet. She was too busy being consoled.
Her two friends, Donna and Angela, froze the moment they spotted me. I had met them once before, when Ashton and I had lunch together at a restaurant. Donna’s oversized sunglasses did nothing to hide her surprise. Coincidence? I did not think so.
Before they could react, I reached the table. Lynda’s confident smile wavered, her eyes betraying the faintest flicker of unease.
“Excuse us for a moment,” I said to the older woman standing beside her. “We have something to discuss. It will not take long.”
The woman hesitated, clearly unsure who I was.
“I do not believe you are a member,” she said cautiously.
“No, I am not,” I replied, my tone calm, almost casual. But the smile I gave her was sharp and deliberate, the kind that hinted I was not someone to underestimate. “Lynda is an old friend. I just wanted to catch up.”
The woman studied me for a moment, then stepped away, sensing this was not her business.
“How dare you show your face here? I will call security!” Donna barked, springing to her feet.
I let my gaze linger on her, unflinching. “Go ahead. Call them. Call the police if you want. Let’s see if they can find the person who vandalized private property. After a stunt like that, do you really think this club can keep me out?”
“I do not know what you are talking about,” Donna snapped, trying to sound defiant.
“Of course you do,” I said, leaning forward slightly, my voice quiet but edged with steel. “I have witnesses. I have not decided whether to report it yet. Right now, I am just here to see my friend.”
Lynda’s hands froze in her lap. Her two friends shifted uncomfortably. Every polished smile, every composed posture, faltered under my calm, controlled presence.
I was calm. I was polite. But I was also a storm she never expected to face.
“Why did you do it?” I asked, finally turning my full attention to Lynda.
“I do not know what you are talking about,” she said, standing and folding her arms, smugness creeping into her posture.
“If you had an issue with me, you should have come to me directly,” I said. “Instead, you hired kids to vandalize Marie’s shop. How could you do that? That place means something to all of us, and you never even considered it.”
Her smug expression faltered for a fraction of a second before she masked it.
“Whatever happened, I am sure you deserved it,” she said coldly. “And yet here you are, shameless enough to accuse us. We are not beneath you. Do you really think you won by destroying my relationship with Ashton?”
