“What isshedoing here?” Stella croaked.
“Who?” Phil said, craning his head around. His gaze landed on the woman, and for the first time since I’d met him, his calm, affable demeanor disintegrated, replaced by something raw and angry.
I returned my focus to Maddie and her cute little innocent blond act. It was devious, really, knowing what I already did about her. Even if Stella were lying, and Maddie hadn’tbeen the one to hit Runa, her list of sins was extensive.
Stella swore and lurched away from our group, beelining toward a side hall. Heads rotated to follow her departure, and that was enough to draw the notice of the very woman she was attempting to avoid.
Maddie caught sight of her through the crowd, a determined expression taking over her face as she excused herself from the people she stood with and headed after Stella. Because of Stella’s angle, she wouldn’t even see Maddie coming.
“Oh, no,” Georgie said, noticing the same thing.
Phil turned to intervene, but I stopped him. “I’ve got it,” I said, following Stella, my strides elongating to catch up to her without appearing like I was rushing. I didn’t want to draw any more attention to their collision course.
Unfortunately, Maddie had no such compunction, rushing straight at Stella. Shit. More people were noticing. Conversations were starting to falter, and heads were twisting toward the pair. These people obviously knew about the women’s history and could sense an impending scene. The hungry looks on their faces turned my stomach, reminded me of a flock of vultures getting ready to descend on a fresh corpse.
I abandoned my attempt to act casual and caught up to Stella with a final burst of speed.
“Go,” I said, my hand on her back to propel her forward.
We cleared the edge of the crowd and reached the mouth of a hallway.
“Stella!” Maddie called from behind us.
“Don’t,” I said, but Stella ignored me.
She stopped short, her face a thundercloud as she turned. “What?”
Maddie stood right behind us, eyes glistening, chin trembling. She took another step forward, and my hackles rose. This emotional display was fake. I could see it in her even breathing, the lack of color in her cheeks, the way her arms hung so loose at her sides, how she looked to the crowd like this was a spectator sport.
“Stella,” I said, my voice low, trying to warn her that this was a trap.
“I just want to talk,” Maddie said.
I expected Stella to explode, scream at Maddie like she’d screamed at me in the car, but her voice came out deathly calm. “About what, Maddie? How you’re ready to go to the police and confess everything?”
Maddie’s face shifted into the picture of innocence. “Stella, please.”
“If not that,” Stella went on, “then you must be here to offer to pay me back for Runa’s medical bills.”
“Why would I pay you back?” Maddie pleaded. “I didn’t do anything.”
Stella snarled and tried to move forward, but I snagged her around the waist.
Maddie let out a scared little bleat and took a half step back as angry whispers rose from the crowd. Shit. If Stella took the bait and punched this woman, I doubted we’d be invited to more parties, and then my plans would be ruined.
I dropped my lips to the side of Stella’s head, just above her ear, and lowered my voice so only she could hear it. “She’s baiting you. Be smart.”
Stella jerked her head up, finally noticing our crowd of onlookers.
Maddie wiped away a tear. “I just thought that after everything you did to me and my family, we could finally talk.”
Stella was a heartbeat away from violence. I sensed it in the way her body practically vibrated with the need to lunge at the other woman. Surreptitiously, I tightened my hold on her.
“Look,” Maddie said in a stage whisper. “I know a lot of what happened was because of your addiction, but I thought that now you’re sober, you might be ready to apologize.”
“You fu—”
I yanked on Stella’s waist, using my body to shield her from the onlookers. My hands quickly rose to her face, forcing her to look up at me. “Go,” I said, my voice a whispered command. “I’ll find you when I’m done with her.”
