“Because my mother never does something unless it would benefit her more than it might cost her, and she risks a PR disaster if the media gets hold of what you’ve done.”
“What have I done, exactly?”
Lila tossed a pair of handcuffs upon the table.
They fell upon the red velvet bag with a muffled thump.
“Stop being cute. It’s tedious.”
Alex’s eyes narrowed, and her gaze returned to Lila’s face. “You’re not Chief Randolph anymore. You can’t arrest me for anything. What would you even put in the report? I have done nothing.”
“The idea came from somewhere.”
“You can’t arrest me for telling stories.”
Lila pursed her lips. Her mother had been right. “It’s called conspiracy, Alex. You’re damn right I can arrest you for it.”
“For telling stories? It’s not my fault if someone acts on something I mentioned in passing.”
“Are you planning on tipping off the media?”
The slave eyed the handcuffs. “Why on earth would I do that?”
“Because you believe it’s your insurance policy. My mother only let it go this far because none of this was ever about you or Jewel or the senator. It wasn’t even about making me prime. It was about teaching me a lesson. She was more than willing to sacrifice Jewel for that, just as Jewel was willing to sacrifice Senator Dubois to get her way. Just like you were willing to sacrifice us all to get what you want. Even me.”
“What do I want?”
“Opportunity. I couldn’t do much for you as chief. You wanted me in a position to help you, really help you, and this was the only way you knew that I’d accept becoming prime.”
“You’ve been around your mother for too long. Too many plots have left you paranoid.”
“I already knew that Dr. Rubio worked for you at Grace Medical, but I took another look at her accounts after dinner. Her financials showed a fairly large salary for an overglorified test tube washer. Why would a medical student get paid so handsomely?”
“I have no idea,” Alex said, turning away again. She snatched up a bottle of Gregorie and dodged Lila’s gaze.
Lila ripped the wine from her grasp. “Why did you pay her so much?”
“I had hundreds of employees. You can’t expect me to remember every one, much less their salaries.”
“Oh, I think you remember her quite well, and I think you told Jewel about her. About how you could depend on her if you need a tough job done as long as you rewarded her appropriately. How else would a girl from a poor family suddenly earn a full scholarship to medical school? What exactly were you paying her to do during all those vacations? What would I find if I dug a little deeper?”
Alex swal
lowed. “Don’t.”
“Why not?”
“Because sometimes secrets aren’t for you to know. They’re not always bad. Sometimes they’re just private.”
“Then tell me about this one.”
Alex didn’t speak for quite a while. She sat at the table and fiddled with the bag’s strings. “If we were ever friends, you won’t ask that of me.”
“Were we ever friends?”
Alex’s head snapped up. “What did you expect? That I would be happy as a maid in your house? That I would be happy at the thought of becoming the next Ms. O’Malley?”
“I thought you’d be happy not to work in the damn mines!”