Page 85 of Ruthless

“Agreed. But I think we need to look at the larger picture now.”

“What’s that?”

Gideon watched Eve, wondering if she was seeing the handwriting on the wall.

“It’s fairly obvious that someone wants to destroy your family so they can take over the throne themselves or manipulate whoever ends up being the sovereign.”

“Yes,” she agreed.

“So why bring Bennett in?” Ash asked. “As far as we know, he’s been in prison all these years, and now someone arranges for him to not only escape, but replaces him with a look-alike to keep that hidden and somehow gets him inside the palace to attack you.”

“So you’re saying this is all about me?”

“No. Not all about you, but look at it this way. Whoever is doing this is obviously well funded. Why would they need a low-level slug like Bennett? As far as we can tell, he has zero influence and very little money. They could get everything they want without him being involved.”

“I think what Ash is getting at,” Gideon said, “is who hates you so much that they’d bring back your worst nightmare to hurt you?”

She had been pale before, but as the realization sank in, she went three shades lighter. “I have no idea,” she whispered.

“We’ll find them,” Ash said. “Jazz and Xavier are coming back today. Also, Liam and Aubrey have finished the documentary Aubrey was shooting. They’re headed to OZ headquarters. Aubrey’s an excellent researcher and has offered her help. Hawke is working remotely, but he’s also digging. Between all of us, we will find out who’s doing this, and we’ll stop them.”

Eve drew in a shaky breath. “Thank you, Ash.” She sent a curiously vulnerable look to Gideon before she said, “So I guess everyone knows who I am and what happened to me?”

“Absolutely not,” Ash answered. “We’re looking into current events. What happened to you is your story to tell. Not mine or Serena’s.”

“Thank you, Ash. Thank you, Serena.”

“Hey, it’s what family does. We watch each other’s back, and we’re here for you, no matter what.”

“I’m still digging into the list of suspects you gave us, Eve,” Serena said. “So far, there are no substantial red flags.”

“I hear a ‘but’ in there,” Eve said.

“Not really a red flag…more like a slight oddity. Did you know your uncle Jacques has a daughter?”

“No. He’s been married four times, but as far as I know, all those marriages ended without children.”

“Well, he didn’t marry the mother of his daughter. This woman lives in Madrid with her fifteen-year-old.”

“How do you know my uncle is the girl’s father?”

“I found a birth certificate. Also, although he’s hidden it behind a shell company, he purchased a house for them and gives them ten thousand euros a month.”

“That’s a nice chunk of change,” Ash said.

“Is there any indication that any of this is related to what’s happening?”

“No. Just something that he obviously wants to keep secret.”

“That’s the bad thing about digging,” Eve said. “Secrets get dug up, but there’s not always an evil intent to them.”

“I agree, but we have no choice,” Gideon said. “If this isn’t related, his secrets are his to keep.”

“Agreed,” Ash said.

“Something we haven’t covered,” Gideon said, “is the theory—farfetched as it may be—that the Wren Project might have their fingers, or their entire hand, in this.”

“That’s a stretch,” Ash said. “We can’t blame every shitty thing on them.”