I Married a Billionaire: Lost and Found(46)

"All right, fine." I took the phone away from my ear briefly, to glance at the address as it came in. It was only a few blocks away from where I was now, but I had to admit that Kelly was right. Flo was dangerous and unpredictable. I didn’t want to go into this alone.

And really, there was only one person I could call.

***

Daniel’s phone only rang twice before he picked up.

"Hey," I said. "Are you at home?"

"No," he responded, sounding slightly hesitant. "Why?"

"I’m at…" I hastily glanced at the street signs and rattled off the names. "I need you to get down here, as soon as you can."

"Why? What’s happening?" His voice was tight with anxiety, and I could hear his keys jangling as he shoved them in his pocket.

"It’s a long story. I’ll explain when you get here. Just hurry."

"I am hurrying. I’m coming now. Will you just tell me?"

I took a deep breath. "Okay. Don’t be mad, but I hired a private detective."

"You hired a private detective," he echoed. "For…what?"

"To investigate, you know. Everything." I cleared my throat. "The pictures. I wanted to find out for sure if it was Flo."

"Jesus Christ, Maddy." I could picture him, pinching the bridge of his nose. "You didn’t think it might be a good idea to tell me about this, before you go around blabbing secrets to everyone?"

"Hey. She takes her detective-client privilege very seriously."

He sighed. "That’s not a real thing. Listen - okay. So what’s happening, then? What am I walking into?"

"Well, it turned out it was her. She’s meeting with your broker again," I said. "And she’s leaving from here, and if you hurry we might be able to catch her in the act."

Suddenly, I heard the roar of an engine around the corner, loud enough to make me jump a little. I turned to look - it was sleek, black affair, some kind of make I didn’t recognize - European probably, a sports car, definitely. The windows were tinted dark. Annoyed, I lifted the phone back to my ear.

"Sorry, some self-important *-" I stopped as the car idled up beside me, and the window rolled down.

"You were saying?" said Daniel, craning his neck over from the driver’s seat.

"Oh, for…" I climbed in, grimacing as I sank down into the ridiculously low seat. "Really?"

"It’s what I had when you called." He shrugged. "You said to hurry. Now, where is she?"

As if on cue, she came out of the door of one of the nearby buildings and started walking towards a gray sedan parked on the street. Daniel quickly rolled up my window. The light changed, and a steady flow of traffic started. At first it seemed like we’d both be stuck here for ages, but Flo saw a dubious opportunity and took it, maneuvering herself into the flow.

"Shit. Shit." Daniel threw the car into gear, pealing out into a tiny gap in traffic. A few people behind us leaned on their horns, but he seemed completely oblivious. Flo made it through the next light, but stopped at a yellow, so she must not have spotted us.

"Does she know what this car looks like?" I asked, sliding down in my seat.

"No," said Daniel. He shook his head. "Yes. I can’t…I’m not sure. I don’t remember."

"How many cars do you have?"

The light turned green, and he didn’t answer. He was staying two or three cars behind, almost as if…




"Have you done this before?" I asked, incredulous.

"Is that really an important question right now?" He was staring at the stoplight as if he could force it to change through sheer will power. "Ten. I have ten various automobiles. Not all of them are in drivable condition. Some are antiques. I keep them in a garage in Brooklyn. And no, I’ve never been in a car chase before." The light changed, and he started to creep forward with everyone else.

"I was just cur - shit!" He’d just taken a turn so sharp that I hit the passenger door and almost slid completely down onto the floor. "Jesus, calm down. We’ll find her one way or another. I’ll get Kelly on the case."

"Kelly," he said. "That’s your private detective, then, is he?"

"She," I corrected. "And yes, she is."

We were flying down an alleyway so narrow I was sure he’d scrape the car, or at least knock over a garbage can. But he was surprisingly skilled, especially for someone who barely ever seemed to drive at all.

"I’m going to be honest," I said. "What with John and everything, I wasn’t even sure you had a license."

"Will you please stop talking?"

We emerged just before another busy intersection, and Flo was the first at the light, tapping her fingers impatiently on the wheel. I hunkered down again.

"Will you stop that?" Daniel shot me a look, sidelong. "She’ll recognize me before she’ll recognize you."

"I just want to minimize the risk," I grumbled, straightening up, with my arms crossed.

Finally, she pulled into an anonymous parking lot down an alley. Daniel waited a few beats and then followed her. Dusk was settling heavily over the city, and I knew it would be dark soon.