And who was Zoe? A cleaner? That didn’t seem right. What kind of a cleaner worked at three in the morning in their pajamas? Did Eric have a daughter? Lauren had been too focused on other things to notice much about her at the party.
“See you at eight,” Eric said. He pointed into the bedroom. “The bathroom is just through there. If youneed anything, my room is the one across the hall. Have a good night.”
As soon as Eric closed the door behind him, Lauren turned to look at the room. It was three times the size of her bedroom at home, and a dark, four-poster bed sat imposing in the middle. The ornate furniture was in pristine condition. The walls were painted a deep emerald with a thick, cream crown molding lining the tops.
Zach squeezed her hand and held a finger in front of his lips, signaling for her to remain silent. He led her to the bathroom, closed the door, and turned on the shower.
His fingers brushed over her throbbing cheek. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine. We have a lot to talk about.”
“What did you see?” he asked low enough not to be heard above the spray of water in case someone other than the authorities on the other end of their mics was listening in.
“The blueprints we studied are not for this house.”
Zach’s hand stopped moving in her hair, and his eyes darted back and forth, searching hers for explanation. “What?”
“We saw blueprints for this house, but they were fake. The exterior is at least twenty feet wider, and the rooms on the main floor are smaller than we thought.”
Zach swallowed, bobbing his Adams apple. “He knows he’s being watched.”
“I mean, he should know. I get it that he came frommoney, but this kind of fortune doesn’t come from the cattle auctions he owns.”
Sliding his hand behind her head, Zach pulled her closer. “You’re way too smart for me.”
Lauren rested her head against his chest. “Thanks for coming after me. I don’t know what would have happened if you hadn’t shown up when you did.”
His hand rubbed lazy circles on her back, soothing her tired muscles. “Some woman came to get me.”
Lauren lifted her head. “Who?”
Zach shrugged. “I don’t know her name. She had short, dark hair, and she burst into the basement saying you needed help.”
“Zoe,” Lauren whispered. “I talked to her. Her name is Zoe, and I just saw her in Eric’s kitchen a few minutes ago.”
“That would explain why he didn’t seem surprised to see her in the basement or angry that she’d interrupted the conversation. Is she in the files they showed us?”
“No, but if she’s close to Eric, we need to find out who she is.”
“Can you give them a description?” Zach asked.
Lauren closed her eyes and pictured the woman she’d spoken to at the party. She told the authorities everything she could remember about what the woman looked like through the mic hidden in her clothes. Then she told them about seeing Zoe in Eric’s home before explaining the differences in the building layout. Through it all, Zach kept his armsaround her waist, grounding her to the reality they were in.
When she’d finished, Zach pressed a kiss to her forehead. “You can get a shower if you want. I’ll search the room for cameras and listening devices.”
The allure of a warm shower called to her, but it would surely pull at the edges of her exhaustion. Being on high alert for hours was taking its toll on her body. “Okay. I’ll be quick.”
“Let me get your bag.” Zach stepped out and closed the door behind him, returning a few seconds later to place her bag right inside the room.
The huge bathroom loomed around her. A mirror ran the length of one wall, and she turned away from it. Seeing what one night in this place had done to her was more than she could handle. She turned on the warm water and stripped out of her clothes.
Something inside her shattered as the hot water hit her skin. Her shoulders shook as the tears mixed with the shower spray. All of her preparation and determination crumbled as the memory of Nick’s hand crashing into her cheek washed over her with the water.
She’d spent too many years pushing back the fear, and it was all hitting her at once. What if she missed something this weekend? What if they weren’t careful enough?
The shampoo and conditioner in the shower were ten times better than the generic kind she normally used, and as much as she wanted to bask in theeucalyptus scent of the body wash, she hurried out of the shower.
Tears still hung near the edges of her eyes as she dried her hair with the towel and dressed in the night clothes she’d brought. Knowing there were tracking devices sewn in did nothing to soothe the unease boiling just under her skin.
