“Have some brandy, Miss Rayner. It’ll soothe your nerves.”

Tears slid unbidden down my cheeks. “I—I was so stupid. I don’t know what I was thinking, Natty.”

Natalia, my dad’s housekeeper and my old nanny, stroked my head. “It’s okay, Cally, baby, you’re safe now. Take a sip, yes, there you go.”

I swallowed some of the amber warmth offered to me and massaged my eyes. “I must’ve been out of my mind,” I said, shaking my head. “What the hell was I thinking? He had a gun!”

“Shh, don’t worry about that now. Just drink, and, shall I make the guest bed for you?”

“I don’t think so. I-I’d like to sleep in my own bed tonight.”

“Are you sure that’s safe? They haven’t caught him yet.”

“He won’t get far on foot. It’s a maze out there, and it’s dark. He has no weapon…” I thought about Ryder, running around frantically in circles around the estate, trying to evade inevitable capture. He had been a fool to come here. An even bigger fool to rope me into his plan. “Where’s Mom? I want to see her.” I was a frightened little girl, and I desperately wanted my mom to hug me close and comfort me.

“Mr. Rayner told everyone to give you some space. Your mother was hysterical, so we didn’t think she should come up. Don’t think about anything right now. You need rest. At least stay here for a bit until we speak with your father.”

The thought of seeing my dad made my heart clench. I’d betrayed Dad. I’d snooped through his things, which made me even worse than Ryder. I needed to tell Dad, confess to what I’d done, but something stopped me. The photograph. I’d seen it, and worse, I had a copy of it on my phone, which was burning a hole through my pockets. If that photo was real—no, it had to be fake, but what if it was real? Dad would know that I’d seen it, and he’d never trust me again. It wasn’t a crime to keep a photo like that in his drawer, was it? I mean, if that was a crime, then every man in America would probably get arrested for possession of pornography. What did the photo show, really? A half-naked woman in bondage? My mind raced, and sweat dribbled down my cheeks. Possession of a mildly pornographic photo did not make my father a criminal or even a bad person. And it certainly didn’t mean he was a murderer. So why the hell did I feel so afraid?

I struggled to stand, but the brandy made me light-headed.

“Miss, you can’t drive. You’ve been drinking.”

“Call me a cab, then. I want to go,” I insisted, batting away Natty’s arm.

“Mr. Rayner will be here shortly. He wants to speak with you.”

“I don’t have anything to say to him.”

“He’d like to ask you some questions.”

“I don’t know anything,” I blubbered, fumbling for the doorknob. My speech slurred, as if my words had been slipped into a blender.

“All the same, just wait a moment. He’ll be here soon.”

I tried to leave again, but Natalia grabbed my wrist and held onto it tighter. She pulled me back toward the guest bed and pushed me down onto the mattress. Did she seem more forceful all of a sudden, or was I imagining things? My head spun, and my throat was on fire.

“Just a few more minutes, Miss Rayner. Your father will be here shortly,” Natalia repeated. This time, she stood in front of the door with her arms crossed. She was frowning, and I’d never seen her so serious before.

“Okay, Natty,” I whispered. “Okay, I’ll wait.”

After some time, Dad came in, a hunched shadow. His dinner jacket was unbuttoned and his tie loosened. “Hey, baby, how are you feeling?”

“Dizzy,” I said. “Really, really dizzy.” If I didn’t know better, I’d think I was drugged. My thoughts were jumbled, and I couldn’t think straight.

“I gave her some Valium,” I heard Natty whisper. “Just enough to calm her down. She was very distraught.”

“Thank you, Natty. I’d like a moment with my daughter.”

“Yes, sir.”

Once Natty was gone, I looked up at my dad. My vision was slightly blurred by tears I hadn’t realized I’d been shedding. I felt strange, oddly calm. Was I in shock?

“Are you okay, Cally? Do you want to talk about what happened?”

“Did you catch him? Ryder? Did you call the cops?”

“Not yet, but we will soon, I promise. I won’t let him get away with it.”

“He didn’t hurt me,” I found myself saying, though I wasn’t sure why I was defending that monster. “He was just…desperate, I guess. Nervous.” Would this fiasco land him back in jail?

“Shh, you don’t need to say anything. I know he probably coerced you, but we’ll catch him and send him back where he belongs.”

“I don’t…want to press charges. Like I said, he didn’t mean anything by it.”

“He held a gun to your back, baby girl. He meant to hurt you, Cally. Why are you defending that criminal?”

“Dad, listen, I—I don’t know if this is the right time or place for this conversation, but I won’t be able to rest easy unless we’ve talked about it.”

“About what?”

“I found a photo. In your office.” I bit my lips, bracing myself for a lecture. I shouldn’t have snooped. But now that I had, I needed an explanation.

“What kind of photo?”

I struggled with the zipper on my purse and managed to free my phone. Then, I scrolled through my apps and opened up the photo gallery. “This one.”

Dad’s eyes widened with shock. His jaw went slack as disgust took over. “What the hell is this?”

“I was hoping you’d know the answer. I found this photo in your drawer.”

“Don’t be ridiculous. Why would I—”

“Dad, please, I just want some answers. I don’t care if it’s just a pornographic photo. Please tell me it isn’t more than that.”

“Cally, do you really think so little of your father?” Dad stood up and folded his arms across his chest. “Why would I keep—”

“Why can’t you just admit it’s yours?”

“Because it isn’t!” Dad threw his hands up in the air, his expression almost theatrical. “I don’t know what you’re trying to do, but I’ve had enough for one night.”

“I’m not trying to do anything, Dad.”

“Then what were you doing in my office?”

“I—”

“He told you to go there, didn’t he?”

“Yes, but—”

Dad stood up, like an incensed bear who’d just gotten stung by a hornet. “Are you on his side or mine, Cally? Answer carefully. I have no patience for this right now.”

“Dad—”

“I—It’s getting late, Cally. Let me call you a cab.”

“Dad, I was trying to prove him wrong! I wanted to prove your innocence,” I shouted, hoping he’d understand where I was coming from. “But then I found this!”

“Delete that photo. Now.” Dad gestured to my phone, his face pinched with anger. “I am innocent, and I don’t need to prove anything to anyone. Delete it.”

“Why?”

“Delete it. It’s obscene. Vile.”

“No.”

“Cally.”

I stood up. The room spun around me. “I’m leaving, Dad.”

“Cally.”

“I think we both need a good night’s sleep. I’ll call you later, Dad.”

“Delete that photo. Now.” Dad blocked the door, his frame filling up the space between us.

“Or what? Are you threatening me now? I thought you said it wasn’t your photo.”

“Give me your phone.” Dad held out his hand, determined not to let me go until he’d gotten what he wanted.

“No.”

“Cally, if you love me—”

“If you love me, Dad, you’ll let me go this instant. You’re scaring me, Dad. A lot. I feel like a caged animal.”

Without another word, Dad swiped my phone from my hand and deleted the photo before I had a chance to say anything. Then, he tossed the phone back at me. It missed my hand and landed on the carpet. While I bent down to retrieve it, Dad disappeared. As soon as his heavy footsteps faded away, I felt the sting of tears consume me. What had just happened? I’d never been so terrified of my father before. He’d never acted so coldly towards me before. Like a villain. Like a man with something to hide.

Who was the girl in that photo? Was it really Orielle? Her face was so bruised and swollen, it was barely recognizable. Did my dad have something to do with her being tied up and beaten?

One thing was for sure, I needed to leave the estate, ASAP. I grabbed my phone, thrust it into my bag, and got the hell out of the house.