Page 120 of Don't Say a Word

I responded with:Nine is good. See you then.

Chapter Thirty-Six

Margo Angelhart

Gabriel’s grand house was bustling with our large extended family. Even most of the uptight Rubios showed up—his two sisters brought their families. I didn’t think much of his mother, who I’d only met once at their engagement party. She’d subtly belittled Tess, making my sister uneasy, so I was glad she wasn’t here tonight.

Tess outdid herself for Mom’s birthday. Sure, Uncle Tom—Josie’s dad—was in charge of the food, and Tess had hired his staff to help with the event. But the decorations? That was all her. The house was overflowing with flowers in soft whites and pinks—Mom’s favorite colors. A single banner hung gracefully, and balloon bouquets in pink, white, and gold adorned every corner, adding a festive touch.

Tess had seamlessly transformed into the epitome of the Elegant Hostess. Gabriel, as always, was the perfect Debonair Host. They really were made for each other.

Mom’s fifty-ninth birthday party was everything we could have wanted for her—except that Dad wasn’t here.

I helped myself to food—I was starving because I’d skippedlunch—and stood in the kitchen with Uncle Tom’s staff because I wanted to eat before I socialized. A hungry Margo is a grumpy Margo.

Luisa found me mid-bite. “Flash drive?” she asked.

“One sec,” I said with my mouth full. I swallowed, reached into my pocket, and handed it to her. “I don’t know if what’s on there is going to help, but it was hidden and password-protected, so it could be something interesting.”

“Shouldn’t take me long,” Lu said. “You were followed?”

Word got around. “I lost him. If I didn’t have a kid in the car with me, I would have called Jack and found a way to trap him. If I see him tomorrow, I’ll engage.”

“If you need me, let me know. No classes on Friday.”

“Will do.”

Nico came in. I glanced around for his boyfriend and was grateful Quincy was nowhere in sight. I loved Nico; I didn’t love his arrogant FBI boyfriend.

Nico hugged Lu. “I’m late because of you,” he said to me.

“So I don’t get a hug?”

He kissed my cheek.

“I’m going to hunt down Josie and her new boyfriend,” Lu said.

“Give him hell,” I told her. “He’s in Fire and an only child.”

Lu laughed. “Oh, that’ll be fun!”

“Josie will kill you,” Nico said.

“She already wants to because I accidentally let my nickname for her slip around her partner. But—” I quickly added before Nico could chastise me “—I didn’t know he was in the car with her or that she had me on speakerphone.”

Nico barely suppressed a grin. “I pulled up Elijah’s file. Because the case is fairly recent, I was able to get my hands on hair samples to personally analyze them. There is no sign of long-term drug use.”

“I didn’t think so,” I said. “Does that cover all drugs?”

“No, but almost any long-term drug use will show up in hair.I might not know what specifically without further testing, but I can see a change. I also read the report in detail and there was no sign of long-term use in the organs. The liver usually takes the brunt of the hit, but depending on the type of drug, the lungs, brain, and stomach can also show signs of prolonged toxicity.”

“The detective should have explained that to his mom,” I said. I liked Rachel King less and less with each passing day. “King made it sound like Elijah was a statistic in a sea of overdose deaths.”

“He could be,” Nico said. “It doesn’t take repeated use for someone to die.”

Nico didn’t have to tell me that, but at the same time, knowing Elijah wasn’t a habitual user further validated my theory that someone had poisoned him.

“Did you test the cup found in the trash near the body?”