“Damn it! I’ll strangle him in his sleep!” I shouted not long after Bryan fled from the room following his revelation. As I spun around to hastily grab my cell phone, the cape twisted around my legs and I let out a roar of frustration.

“FUCK!” I yelled as I yanked the cape off and tossed it on the nearby chair.

I dug my fingers into my hair and groaned. I needed to think—not freak the hell out. How could I fix this? How would Evelyn react?

She wasn’t supposed to hear it from someone else. I was supposed to tell her. I was supposed to explain why I did it and have the opportunity to apologize if she felt at all deceived. I wasn’t stupid enough to think she hadn’t already figured it out and was currently drawing her own conclusions about my motives.

Would she feel manipulated? That hadn’t been my intention at all! How the hell was I supposed to repair this damage?

The mere idea of her leaving after discovering the truth left me cold. I pulled together the remains of my shattered composure before stalking out of the room and weaving around the labyrinth-like second floor until I reached the security office.

“Lose your girl again?” Kevin asked without looking up. “Haven’t seen her.”

“I haven’t either,” Jerome chimed in.

Without a word, I spun on my heel and continued my march. I typed out a quick message to Jonas to keep an eye out and make sure Evelyn didn’t leave before shoving it back into my pocket.

When I reached the area Fiona had been working in earlier, there was no sign of her. With a growl, I headed for the staircase. I supposed it was worth checking to make sure she wasn’t still in the music room. That area wasn’t currently being monitored by the cameras, which would explain why Jerome and Kevin hadn’t seen her.

I went the long way to avoid the guests, checking all the rooms on the hall with the music room only to find them empty. It was clear she’d visited the nearby restroom, the toilet paper in the small wastebasket stained with her lipstick was evidence enough of that.

The ballroom was the next logical place to check. As I was heading there, I noticed a sly grin on the face of one of the nearby guards. It was enough to give me pause.

The man didn’t look at all surprised when I asked, “Have you seen a blonde cat recently?”

“She passed by not even five minutes ago.”

“Which way did she go?”

“Looked like she was heading for the foyer.”

I clenched my teeth at the thought of her heading to the door. I quickly checked my phone to see if Jonas had spotted her and frowned at the lack of response to my text, uncertain of why else she would have gone to that room if not to leave.

I muttered an apology and practically ran for the door, ignoring the calls of the guests who recognized me. I stepped outside and scowled at his abandoned post.

“Where the hell is Jonas?”

“No idea,” the doorman said in a bored tone. “But if you find him, will you tell him to hurry the fuck up with whatever he’s doing? This is dull.”

Normally, it would piss me off to be talked to in such a manner by someone in my employment. In my current state of panic, however, all I could really do was let out another growl of pure rage and rush back into the house.

Where the hell was Evelyn? Where were Fiona and Jonas? What the fuck had happened to my carefully laid out plan?

I felt like I was cracking apart. I raced back up the steps, intent on returning to the security room to see if they had noticed either of my employees at any point.

Before I made it there, Jonas turned a corner and stopped dead in his tracks.

“Where have you been?” I demanded as I approached him.

“I was looking for you. There’s a situation that needs your attention.”

“What? Is this about Fiona? Where did she disappear to? And have you seen Evelyn?”

He opened his mouth and snapped it shut, his eyes narrowing as he scanned me from head to toe.

“Sir—with all due respect—you’re looking a bit unhinged.”

“That’s fair. Now answer my questions. What’s this situation?”

“Where is your cape? We need you front and center. You looking like you’re on the verge of a nervous breakdown won’t help matters.”

I looked down, already having forgotten about the fit of rage I had when I tore it off. With a dismissive wave of my hand, I said, “I left it in the guest room. It was annoying me.”

A toned down version of what really happened, but true all the same.

“You should probably put it back on. I’ll find Fiona and meet you in the ballroom.”

“Fine. Just keep an eye out for Evelyn as well, understand?”

“Of course, sir.”

I swore I caught a flash of a smile before he jogged past me, but I couldn’t for the life of me understand why. I pushed aside the temptation to stop at the security office again, deciding to get the cape first and attend to this mysterious problem that required my presence.

Besides, Jerome would text me if either of them saw Evelyn. I was certain of it.

Back in the guest room, I stalked to the corner and stood in front of the chair where I threw my cape. I stared dumbly at the vacant spot, glancing around the room briefly before returning my gaze to the seat.

Where the fuck did my cape go?

“Looking for this?”

There wasn’t enough time for me to stifle my reaction and I jumped before spinning around to face the open bathroom door. Evelyn stood just inside the darkened room, my missing cape dangling from her hands. I found myself unable to move or speak as she stepped into the light with a small smile on her face.

“Is there something you want to tell me, Professor Stone?”