Page 75 of Into The Rabbit Hole

His smile widened. “Had you all fooled, didn’t I? Did you know I even worked as one of your gardeners for a year and none of you even clocked on that I was the same person when you met me asRichard?”

“How was that possible?” She couldn’t imaginethat.

“Beard and moustache, and I died my hair blonde. Good disguise, but still. It just shows how oblivious and self centered you peopleare.”

“Or that you had nothing better to do with your time,” she shotback.

He didn’t like that comment one bit. The offense he took to it was all over his face as his smile fell. “I was on a mission; your husband killed mymother.”

“That had nothing to do with me. However, this all became everything to do with me, seeing that I now know who you are. You could have done anything you wanted, why did you feel that you had to hurt my daughter the way you did?” It was her right as a mother to defend her children and sort out those who hurt them, physically andemotionally.

“She was a pawn,” Aaron said in a cool, calmmanner.

“Apawn?”

The smile returned to his face. “Yes, my dear Regina. Being a gardener allowed me to get on the grounds of your house. When I posed as an intern at Ben’s office, that allowed me to get access to his accounts and affairs. God, I loved stealing fromhim.”

She’d forgotten that someone was embezzling money from Ben’s companies. Of course, when they realized the seriousness of the situation and all was revealed, guessing that everything was related wasobvious.

“But,” Aaron continued with a laugh, “being Taylor’s boyfriend gave me everything I needed. Everything. No one questioned me being in your house at any time, no one questioned me being atRunway. No one ever questioned me for anything, and I was able to get access to your lives, just likethat.”

It was a creepy thought that crawled inside her and made her feel sick. This man had gone to great lengths to be sure that he hurt them, all ofthem.

It made hersick.

“Where are my family?” She was done talking. “Where’s Ben, Taylor, and Chloe?” She needed proof of life before she did anythingelse.

“Well, despite my attempts, Ben nevercame.”

“What do you mean he never came? You said you had—” She was so stupid. Realization dawned on her. Ben was never here. This was part of thetrap.

Aaron laughed again. “I called him and gave him the same message I gave you, except that I told him I’d send parts of you to him. It’s funny, you two just got divorced and yet you came so quickly to his aid. And he, well, like I said, he’s not here. He never came for you, Regina. How does that make youfeel?”

Feel? She was too numb to feel, so the question was pointless. How was she supposed to feel knowing that a man she was married to for well over thirty years hadn’t come to her rescue when he was told she was indanger?

Now look ather.

“And Taylor and Chloe? Are they here? Is Wade following a wild goosechase?”

“Oh, they’re here, alright. And you’re totally right about Wade. He’s definitely on a wild goose chase, because he’ll never get to them. He’s probably dead by now, knowing my devious little friend and his madskills.”

She drew in a sharp, husky breath and swallowedhard.

“No!” she screamed at him. “This whole thing is off. You’ll never get a cent fromme.”

He sighed, reached into his pocket, and retrieved a hand gun. It was arevolver.

Aaron held it out to her and that manic smile retuned. “Oh, I think I will. Now, one billion dollars,please.”

She froze, unable tomove.