Guilty Secrets (Campus Love and Murder Sorority Eyes Romance Book 1) (11 page)

"I'd be delighted."

"My secretary will send details. I look forward to being similarly impressed at the weekend."

I wasn't quite sure how to take that.

"Yes, Dean."

He shook his head. "Out of hours, call me Rupert."

I made a mental note that if Dean Rupert Everhardt was in Davina's social circle then he must be R.E. in Madison's journal.

Davina introduced me to her young, pretty assistant Li Chu and then left to attend other guests newly arriving.

Li was a shy girl, dressed in a long Chinese green silk dress emblazoned with crimson dragons.

Once we were alone she whispered, "Are you my replacement?"

"What? No. Why would you ask that?"

She nodded thoughtfully. "The evening is yet young."

I shot her a quizzical look.

As if by way of explanation she said, "Anything may happen. Beware."

With that she shuffled away.

The crash of a gong caused everyone to abruptly turn towards the double doors at the end of the room where Davina stood.

"Ladies and gentlemen." She glanced at me. "As we are all now here, I formally greet you and announce the festivities have begun."

She opened the double doors and revealed a large room filled with a huge glass tank. A swimming pool. The water glowed a translucent blue. And as we all slowly approached, I could see up through to the surface of the pool and the night sky full of stars.

As I stepped closer, I realized the tank was shaped like an ink bottle. Above it, suspended in the air was a water slide that looked like an old fashioned feather quill.

Once I managed to process the scope of the artistic mind that Davina possessed to create such a thing, I then tried to imagine the enormous cost of building it.

Millions. I made a mental note to look into Davina's finances. Perhaps find a way to hack into her bank accounts and see what the salary was for a top university senior lecturer. Not enough, for these kind of toys I suspected.

But perhaps I was being unfair to her. Perhaps she came from wealth. Then I recalled Harry’s background check on her.

She came from a modest background. No discernible inherited wealth. No history of lucrative entrepreneurial endeavors before or during her tenure here at Kimberley.

So where did Davina get this kind of money from? A secret admirer, perhaps?

A figure, clearly naked swam gracefully beneath the surface back and forth and then pressed a face to the glass.

It was Li Chu.

Along the side of the glass tank, a spiral staircase snaked up the side of the tank and we were all invited to follow Davina as her long legs elegantly climbed.

Everyone clapped and walked by me. This was the perfect moment for me to slip away and search for Davina's secrets.

CHAPTER TWENTY TWO

I tried the handle of the first door I found. Inside the room, bookcases lined each of the four walls. A desk sat in the center. On the desk stood a statue of a snake coiled around a naked woman. Now I could see it in person, I noticed how the snake head had slithered between her breasts and down the woman's stomach where its tongue teased between her legs.

I shivered and turned away to avoid looking at it. I stepped in and softly shut the door behind me.

Next to the snake was a laptop. It was too obvious a place to hide secrets.

I quickly tried each of the drawers in the desk. They were all locked. I contemplated forcing the locks, but I just couldn't imagine any secrets worth keeping would reside in such an obvious place as a locked drawer.

I turned on the spot and surveyed the book cases.
If I was Davina where would I hide a secret?

There were far too many books to search in the short time I had before I was missed. And besides, hiding something of value inside a book was too much of a cliché.

The answer came back to me in a flash:
Hide in plain sight. Where no one would want to look.

I turned back to the statue. I ran my fingers up and down the figure of the woman until I touched the snake's tongue. A soft noise, like a sudden release of a tense and trapped breath escaped the lips of the woman. I peered closer and noticed that between the fangs of the snake a tiny thumb drive had appeared. The drive had a small symbol etched on it. The Knights of Kimberley mask and crossed swords.

I quickly slid my fingers between the fangs and retrieved the thumb drive. I had forgotten to bring a small clutch bag. Just as I had the idea to slip the tiny thumb drive inside one of the cups of my bra, I heard someone turning the door handle.

CHAPTER TWENTY THREE

Davina entered the room. Her gaze was stern and questioning as she closed the door behind her.

My fingers brushed the front of my dress, then dropped to my side. I shrugged apologetically and explained my absence from the party.

"Wardrobe malfunction."

Davina's expression softened. Her hands moved behind her back and I heard the key in the lock turn with a sharp click.

I felt my breath caught in my chest.

She raised her hands to her chest and slipped the key into her bra.

Her expression changed to one of triumph. She stepped forward.

"Wardrobe malfunction, indeed, Robyn?" she purred.

Nervously I nodded and stuttered, "Yes, I borrowed the dress. It doesn't quite fit."

"Looks fine from where I'm standing. Though I can think of one improvement. You out of it."

I swallowed hard.

"So I'm glad you found me, Davina, but I guess we should be getting back to the party."

She stood before me, stroking my face. "You're glad?"

"Won't your guests be missing out on you?"

Her fingers caressed down my neck and slithered between my breasts.

"Yes, Robyn, but I prefer one at a time. It allows one to linger where most needed, don’t you agree, Robyn?"

My throat ached. I couldn't swallow. No words formed on my lips. I tried to move, but my legs were frozen on the spot.

"Should I take a look at your wardrobe malfunction?"

Once again, Davina's mysterious perfume intoxicated my mind. Her words were the air that I breathed. It was all I could do to shake my head slowly from side to side.

Her fingers glided down my stomach and settled between my legs.

The breath in my body felt trapped. Ready to explode.

Her fingers moved to my side and clasped around my hand. She lifted my hand to her shoulder and the zip fastening.

She forced my forefinger and thumb to pinch the zip fastening tag.

"Robyn, let me show you my wardrobe malfunction."

She stepped away and moved my hand down her body. As she did so, the zip on her dress unfastened with a gentle sigh.

Her dress spiraled down her body to the floor. Revealing her long, slender legs in black silk stockings held up by a suspender belt of a golden snake coiled around her hips.

With her other hand on my shoulder, she pressed down with a sudden jolt, forcing me to my knees. I stared up between her legs.

I realized she wore no panties. I stared up at a thin triangle of neatly trimmed red hair. A subtle hint of intoxicating perfume emanated down from between her legs.

My head began to spin as she explained. Her words hypnotically gripped me.

"Robyn, breathe in my scent. The perfume uses a rare snake venom, whereby the merest hint of the aroma is enough to seduce the willpower from my prey."

As I knelt before her, breathing in her musk, I felt my resistance melt away. I knew, if she asked, I would perform any act she directed me to.

"Robyn, I want you to explore my body."

I felt my arms rise up and my hands move across her hips. They slithered up her stomach to her breasts. My fingers slipped inside her bra and between my fingers teased her nipples.

As I felt my willpower slip away, my mind flashed with a burning question: Had Madison once endured this humiliation in order to discover Davina's secrets? A volcanic anger erupted inside of me.

I felt my fingers grab the door key. I thrust out my hands at Davina, knocking her backwards. She tumbled to the floor as I sprang up onto my feet.

I ran to the door and shoved the key inside the lock. I turned it with all the strength I could muster.

I turned the handle and swung the door open. Outside, the sound of music emanated down from the floor above. I frantically sprinted to the elevator door and punched at the button marked lobby.

The doors slid open and I threw myself into the elevator. As I turned back to the doors, Davina appeared at her study door. Her dress draped over her body like a second skin and as if it had never a moment before been shed from her shoulders.

As the elevator doors slid slowly shut, the corners of Davina's smile slithered up to her dead eyes. She slowly brought a straight forefinger across her throat.

CHAPTER TWENTY FOUR

The elevator doors opened and I ran out into the lobby.

The doorman looked up from his desk. "Is everything OK, Ms?"

I sprinted out of the building, through the courtyard and out into the street. I was running blind, unable to figure out which way back to my apartment. Fighting to see through tears I stepped out into the road.

Car brakes squealed. I looked up and felt my ankle scream out in pain. I fell onto my knees as the fender of a car nudged me.

I glanced up at a blue and white campus police car pulled up. The driver wound down his window. He was a man in his fifties and his badge said he was Sheriff Gonzalez.

"Are you OK, ma'am?"

I sat on the curb and sobbed.

He got out of the car and knelt next to me.

"Ma'am, care to tell me why you're upset?"

I shook my head.

"OK, but it's not a good idea to be out alone at this time of night unless you're capable of walking home without getting run over?"

"I'm OK."

"No you're not, ma'am. Get in. I'll drive you home."

He helped me stand and guided me to the passenger side of his car. He opened the door and told me to take a seat.

I did so and he climbed into the driver's seat.

He flicked on the cabin light and peered at my face with kind eyes.

"You're Harry's girl. Robyn, right?"

I blinked away the tears and stared through the windshield into the night.

"Harry talked about me, Sheriff?"

He laughed. "Everyone calls me Charlie, not Sheriff. And did he talk about you? He didn't have to. He was in sixes and sevens, nervous as a kitten the day of your first date. The next day he couldn't shut up about you. The way you wear your hair. Your dimples when you smile."

I flushed hot.

"My dimples?"

Charlie drove slowly down the avenue.

"Oh yeah, the boy's smitten alright."

Maybe it was because I was shaken up, but news of how Harry felt about me felt strange. This news of Harry felt like a life ring to a drowning woman. I knew it wasn't what I wanted. But right now it was what I needed.

"Thank you sheriff."

He shot me a stern look.

"I mean, Charlie."

"Yep, Robyn, it's just like last time, with Madison. We loved her like she was family. Right up until she split on Harry and broke his heart."

Sooner than I expected we arrived outside Mai's apartment building.

I motioned to open the door, when Charlie placed a gentle hand on my shoulder.

"Just a minute, Robyn."

I turned in my seat towards Charlie.

"Robyn, you seem like a nice girl. Maybe a little confused, mixed up about things in your life, but none of that's my business. But Harry is a different matter."

"How do you mean, Charlie?"

"My wife and I were never able to have kids. Harry’s like a son to me. His last girlfriend up and left him. Cut him up inside real bad. I don't want to see Harry get hurt again. You get my drift?"

My eyes narrowed and my jaw jutted out. "You're telling me to stay away from Harry? Who the Hell are you to tell me what to do?"

He shrugged. "Oh I know, right now you're young and carefree and don't pay much heed to anything beyond the length of your nose. But mark my words, when you think of settling down, you’ll see Harry from a different angel."

"I don’t understand."

"You rich kids are from a different world. Harry is on a cop's low salary. His pension in twenty five years ain’t worth spit in a bucket. Ask my ex-wife. She'll tell you that poverty, Robyn, kills romance. "

He sighed and touched the edge of his hat in my direction.

"Robyn, have a good night's sleep and tomorrow you'll know I'm right."

"Charlie, you have no idea what Harry and I want out of life."

I opened the car door and stepped out. As I was about to shut the door, I hesitated.

I leaned in and said, "You're wrong about me."

"When you reach my age, you don't want to hold a mirror up to yourself and see what others been too afraid to tell you. It hurts now, but in time you'll thank me."

I shut the door and watched Charlie drive off. I ran to the apartment.

Once inside the apartment, everything was quiet. No sex noises to contend with, thankfully. I ran to my bedroom.

I flopped into my bed and opened up my laptop.

It was time to find out all the secrets Davina had been keeping.

CHAPTER TWENTY FIVE

I reached into my bra and retrieved the tiny thumb drive. I slotted it into my laptop.

A series of documents popped up across the laptop screen. Financial records. Payments of large sums leaving bank accounts in the name of Kimberley College. These corresponded with exactly the same amounts sent to offshore bank accounts in the name of various companies.

Company details listed shell corporations owned by one person: Rupert Everhardt, Dean of Kimberley. The respected head of one of the most prestigious universities in the world was defrauding the organization to the tune of millions of dollars.

I wondered if any of that money had gone into financing Davina's luxurious apartment.

I slumped back on my bed and stared out through the window at the star-filled night sky. I tried to picture the pattern of possible blackmail.