“You shouldn’t let her force you to hide away on your own estate.” Sinead appears in front of me, hands on hips. “She’s the one who should leave.”
“I’m fine, Sinead.”
“If she bosses me about, I’ll make her life hell.”
“Good luck with that.”
She tugs on her shirt collar. “Are you sure you don’t want to—”
“Go away, Sinead.”
With a cry of frustration, she tosses a letter down on my desk and flounces away.
I lean back in my chair. I’m about to kick the letter into the pile of correspondence on the floor when I spy Édouard Manet’s seal. I crack the seal with trembling hands.
Gideon,
This is your lucky day, my friend. I may have found your jewels.
I’ve been contacted by a lady who seems legitimate. She described the necklace right down to the ruby eyes on the scarab beetle. She says that she’ll consider selling it, but she’ll only dealwith you. In person. You must meet her tonight in the parking lot of the Grimdale Graveyard. That’s only a short drive from the estate, correct?
I’ve enclosed the details. Bring absolute buckets of cash. Best of luck, my friend.
Édouard
My heart hammers.
Arabella’s necklace.
I completely forgot that I asked Édouard to look for it. I didn’t believe someone could have fished it out of the Seine. But here it is.
Arabelladeservesthat necklace.
I’ve lost her forever. But that doesn’t mean I can’t right the wrong I did her all those years ago.
It can’t hurt to go over to Grimdale and look at it.
Or can it?
Dora’s vision. What did she see?
A dim parking lot. Tombstones. A phone with a blinking message. A dark presence. A painting made of light. And blood…
Dora also saw me holding the necklace in my hands. It’s worth the risk.
“Sinead!” I call out. “Fuel up the Lambo, bring me my best negotiating-a-deal-with-a-shadowy-figure shirt, and pack ten sacks with Merovingian coins. I’ve got a date with an ancient magical relic.”
48
Arabella
Winnie:Come up to the castle tonight. I’ve invited the girls around. We have brilliant plans to cheer you up with quiet reading time by the fire and mercilessly teasing Alaric about his mummy issues. Cleo VII is welcome, too – if you can keep her away from Mirabelle.
IFROWN AT MY PHONEas I climb the steps and unlock my front door. My friends have been trying to help me get over Gideon. It’s working a little. I feel my violent despair transforming into bitter anguish. That’s an improvement, right?
I kick off my Prada boots, set my keys in the Murano glass bowl on my hall table, and move towards the kitchen to let Cleo VII out of her enclosure.
“I’m home, sweetie,” I coo as I press my finger to the pad next to the enclosure door. Cleo VII slithers eagerly towards me as I swing open the interior door. “Have you been a good girl? I’ve got a tasty toad for you—”
