“I was raped?” she asks, fear reflected in her voice.
“No, I arrived in time to stop it, and a doctor examined you, confirming you weren’t raped.”
“You saved me?”
“Yes.”
She studies my face, my statement giving her pause. “How did you know where to find me?”
“You sent me a text.”
“Trish and I were dancing.” She rubs her temples. “Then nothing. My mind is drawing a blank. God, I have a terrible headache.”
“Side effects of the drug. It’ll pass.” I grab the aspirin and bottle of water on the nightstand. “Take these.”
“Thank you.” She pops both pills into her mouth and chugs down most of the cool drink.
“Camden Bailey and Allison Cox, aka Trish, set you up.”
“That can’t be true.”
“You’re so fucking naïve,” I snap. “She’s not an intern at my company.”
“Trish works in marketing.” Tears fill her eyes. “We had… we had lunch together.”
“Camden snuck her into the building through the garage. You didn’t see her before or after that day, correct?”
“No, but we met last week, and her mom had surgery—”
“All lies. She doesn’t attend Duncan University either. The woman is a professional con artist with dozens of aliases and burner phones. She wore a wig and contacts so you wouldn’t be able to accurately identify her.”
“They wouldn’t have gotten away with this.”
“They’re pros and have been doing this for years. They follow a very methodical process that includes bathing their victim after they’re done. You would’ve woken up, sore between the legs, with no recollection of the events, the mysterious Trish gone and Camden pleading ignorance. Trust me, the DA wouldn’t have pursued charges due to lack of evidence. They’re predators, and they led you right to the fucking slaughter.”
“How do you know all this?”
“They were interrogated.”
“So, they’ve been arrested, then?”
“I made sure justice was served.”
“How?” she asks, alarmed. “What did you do?”
“I employ different types of individuals. Some operate within the scope of the law and others do not. The fewer details you know, the better, but they’ll never claim another victim again.”
“Are they… are they dead?”
“No, but they should be. What if I did have them killed?”
“It’s not your place to pass judgment.”
“An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.”
“It’s better to turn the other cheek.”
“Good will never triumph over evil. One day you’ll learn that.”
