The bathrooms were decorated with swirling marble floors and counters, and they were full of soaps that smelled like flowers and fruits and things I couldn’t name.
I explored the suite under the guise of making sure ev- erything was in place, and once I was done, I collapsed on the sofa and ran my hand over the fur.
“Get some rest,” said Celia, standing in the doorway.
Knox lurked behind her. “I’ll be down the hall if you need me.”
With one final warning look, Celia shooed the servants away and closed the door behind her, leaving me alone in Lila’s suite.
No matter how lavish it was, I was standing in the middle of my prison cell. I’d noticed locks on the door coming in, and the only window that opened was the small one in the bathroom. Even if I could squeeze through it, I was several stories up, and dropping from that height would mean broken bones at the very least, if not a painful death.
Looking up at the ceiling, I noticed the opening to a vent in the corner. It wasn’t very big, but with some squirming, I might fit. I pushed an end table underneath it and climbed. Using the bookcase beside it as another step, I managed to move the grate aside and get a good grip.
My muscles strained as I pulled myself up and tried not to tip the bookcase over. Finally I made it into the vent, which was made of plastic and surprisingly clean. More important, it extended past Lila’s suite in either direction.
It was a tight squeeze, but no different from shimmying through sewer openings. Easier, even, because unlike the concrete, which rubbed and cut my skin, the plas- tic didn’t hurt. The vent extended in front of me with no visible end, though that wasn’t saying much considering the only light came from the grates. With effort I wriggled through it until I reached the next one, and I peered through the thin slits.
Directly below me, Knox sat at a desk, hunched over a folder full of documents. Relief washed over me. At least now I had a way out if I needed one.
I started to slide back to Lila’s suite, but a faint knock stopped me cold. “Come in,” said Knox, and his door opened and shut. He stood and removed his reading glasses, and I strained to see who was there.
“Knox. So good to see you.”
I cringed. Daxton.
“Sir. I hear your hunting trip was successful.”
“Ah, so she told you, did she?” I could hear the smugness in Daxton’s voice. “What else did she say?”
Knox cleared his throat, and I tensed. He wouldn’t tell Daxton about my deal with Celia, would he? He couldn’t. He’d be incriminating himself, too.
“She’s upset with you, and with good reason,” said Knox, a hint of annoyance in his voice. “You had her already, Daxton. You didn’t have to kill that woman.”
“I know,” he said with a dramatic sigh. “But it was so much fun, and there’s nothing quite like a bullet to make my point for me, now, is there?”
“There were subtler ways,” said Knox. “You’re better than that.”
“If you insist. Do let me know if there’s anything to report, will you?”
“Don’t expect much. She’s scared to blink the wrong way, let alone disobey you.”
“Good,” he said. “Peaceful and controlled, just the way I like it.” I heard his footsteps as he walked to the door, but before it opened, he paused. “No hard feelings about what happened to Lila, yes? It was a shame, but I tried to warn her. She knew the dangers of what she was doing. So did Celia.”
Knox was silent for a long moment. “Nothing’s changed,” he finally said. “Thank you for allowing my father to tell me ahead of time.”
“Of course,” said Daxton. “You’re a good man, Knox.
You deserved the chance to say goodbye.” He paused.
“Don’t forget, poker next Thursday.”
Knox nodded, and after the door opened and shut, he sank into his chair and buried his face in his hands.
He’d known. He’d known Lila was going to die, and he hadn’t done a damn thing to stop it. Had their entire relationship been for show? Had he been using Lila as much as Daxton was using him?
I shimmied back through the vent. He hadn’t snitched on me. That was the important part. And Lila— I forced myself to take a mental step back. What could he have done? Lila had one of the most famous faces in the country. Hiding her would have been impossible, and warning her would undoubtedly have cost him his life. Maybe he had tried anyway. Maybe he’d failed. I had no way of knowing what had really happened.
After returning to Lila’s suite, I used one of the pokers next to the fire to move the grate back to its proper position. Once I was done, I pushed the end table back into place and surveyed the corner. Even if someone noticed something was different, they would probably assume I’d done some redecorating, that was all.
Spreading out on the sofa, I shut my eyes. This was as hellish as I’d thought it would be, but at least now I knew who my real friends were. Daxton could try to secure my cooperation by threatening me and giving me things I would have never had as a III, but I would never trust him. Knox had lied for me. I didn’t have to know what had happened to Lila to feel confident that he wouldn’t let it happen to me.
He’d said he wouldn’t make the same mistake twice.
Now I understood what he’d meant.
A loud pounding on the door shook me from my fading dreams. I was still spread out on the sofa with my head at a strange angle, giving me a crick in my neck. I rubbed it, and my hand brushed the three telltale ridges.
I sat up.
“Who is it?” I said. It was dark now, and all that remained of the fire were glowing embers.
The door burst open, and half a dozen guards entered my suite. I stood, adrenaline chasing away all traces of exhaustion. Were they here for me? Had I done something wrong? Had Daxton somehow found out about my deal with Celia?
“You have to come with us, Miss Hart,” said one of the guards. “It’s urgent.”
I nodded and swallowed the lump in my throat. Silently I followed them out of the room, and it was only when I saw Knox being led out of his that I let myself breathe again. So it wasn’t just me.
Unless they’d discovered Knox had lied.
“What’s going on?” I said as the guards surrounded us.
My face grew hot when I noticed he was wearing pajama bottoms and not much else, but being half-naked didn’t seem to bother him.
“I don’t know,” he said, his brow furrowed. “Did you hear the rumbling earlier?”