Page 91 of King’s Ransom

‘And the other times?’

‘Just random meetings, passing each other at restaurants in Vail or West Palm Beach.’

‘Did you converse?’

‘No. If she passed by me, all she’d say was, “Hey, Slut.”’

I nodded.

It was time for an uncomfortable question.

‘Did you sleep with Aristo King while he was married to Shelby Cox?’

Another pause.

Yasmina’s eyes flitted downward.

‘Yes.’

‘Multiple times?’

‘Yes.’

‘And you were aware he was married to her?’

‘Yes.’

‘What about Shelby Cox’s children, Ajax and Cassandra, the ones who were attached to the outside of the tower. You ever interact with them?’

‘Not intentionally. I knew they lived in the tower, which was one of the reasons I rarely went there. I didn’t want to bump into them in the lobby.’

‘Has that happened?’

‘Yes.’

‘And?’

‘They also call me Slut. Ajax was especially hostile. Cassandra, less so.’

I moved on.

‘The nanny who had an affair with your husband, Madison Barnes. I’m guessing your interactions with her weren’t exactly pleasant.’

‘Madison was eighteen when we hired her. It only took her four weeks before she was fucking my husband in his home office while I was out.’

‘She also now has an apartment at 59West,’ I said.

‘Another reason I don’t go there,’ Yasmina said. ‘She seduced him solely to get pregnant. Now she is set for life. Apartment, monthly stipend. She knew exactly what she was doing.’

I sighed inwardly.

A clear pattern was emerging.

Aristo King, the richest man on the planet, waltzed through life moving from one woman to the next, fathering children with all of them.

He’d cheated on Wife No. 1 with Wife No. 2.

Then he’d cheated on Wife No. 2 with Wife No. 3.