Page 162 of Wicked Brutal

Arthur nods. “That’s what makes the dates more interesting.”

My attention snaps back to him. “What dates?”

He reaches for Ally’s packet. “The withdrawal paperwork Roman signed this morning is new. The application isn’t. The April sixth intake is recent. The final enrollment documents are recent. The first inquiry about placing Alison at Sainte-Catherine was made months ago.”

Something cold crawls up my spine. “How many months?”

Arthur slides a printed page across the table. I take it. There’s a timestamp near the top.

OCTOBER 19, 2025.

For a second, it’s just a date.

Then Cat inhales sharply. Penny sees it next. “Oh my God.”

X looks at her. “What?”

Cat doesn’t take her eyes off the paper. “That was us.”

And suddenly I know.

Arthur says it anyway. “Roman O’Toole opened the initial placement inquiry for Alison on October nineteenth. Within forty-eight hours of Catherine and Penelope’s kidnapping.”

I look at Roman’s name. Then Cat. Penny. Back to the date. “He started planning Switzerland when the Penningtons went down.”

“Not planning Switzerland exactly,” Arthur corrects. “Not yet. This was preliminary. No enrollment date. No withdrawal from Edgewood. No completed transfer.”

Callum leans forward. “A contingency.”

Arthur meets his eyes. “That’s what it appears to be.”

Mom’s expression changes. “He got nervous.”

“Possibly.”

“Arthur.”

“I can tell you what he did, Cassandra. I cannot tell you what he thought.”

“Fine. What he did was begin creating an international exit option for his daughter within forty-eight hours of Garrett and Jon Pennington becoming a liability.”

Thomas reaches for the page. “And Roman knew them.”

Arthur pulls another page from the pile. “The application then sits.”

“For how long?” Dad asks.

“Until the next significant update.”

X sees it. His jaw tightens. “Lucian.”

Arthur places the second date beside the first. “Roman revisited Ally’s placement during the period federal investigators began digging through Lucian’s business relationships.”

My eyes move between the dates. Pennington. Lucian. Roman touching Ally’s file each time. “And then?”

Becca’s face changes before Arthur even speaks. “Hartley.”

Arthur nods. “Yes.”