Chapter 35
Islept like a rock.
The morning sun filtered through the blinds, and I stretched and yawned. No emergency calls in the middle of the night. Nobody waking me up in the morning.
I had almost forgotten about Daphne.
That’s when I smelled the delightful aroma of coffee and bacon.
I looked at the clock. It was a little past my normal hour of waking. I figured Jack was in the galley.
I pulled myself out of bed, took a shower, and went through my morning routine. I stumbled down to the galley and got a hell of a surprise.
Daphne grilled breakfast.
She scrambled eggs and grilled hash browns. Wearing those jean shorts and a bikini top, she wasn’t a bad sight in the morning.
My brow knitted with confusion. “How did you…?”
“Haven't you figured it out, sweetie? Handcuffs don't work on me.”
I gave her a look.
"You're out of your mind if you think I'm going to tell you my secret. But feel free to handcuff me again. I'll get right back out.”
I poured myself a cup of coffee.
"I didn't run off,” she said. “I could have easily gotten off this boat and out of this ankle monitor. But I'm still here. I'm going to play it by the book from now on. So you don't need to worry about me.”
My skeptical gaze persisted. "Why the change of heart?”
"I had a lot of time to think about it last night. And after further evaluation, it's just not worth it. I’ve got an opportunity to wipe the slate clean. Why not take it? If I lose $30 million in the process, big deal. My freedom is worth more than that.”
I was still suspicious.
JD stumbled into the galley. “Morning.”
“Morning,” Daphne replied in a cheery voice.
He did a double take, then muttered to me, “Why isn’t she handcuffed?”
I shrugged.
“You didn’t…?”
I knew what he was getting at. “No.”
We dished up plates and chowed down on the sky deck, soaking up the amber rays of morning.
Daphne’s mugshot had gone viral, and she was the talk of the Internet.
Isabella called. “Still looking after your fugitive?”
“She is back in custody.”
“Did you find what you were looking for?”
“Not yet.”
"Well, I’ve got some good news. I was able to hack into Gabby's cloud account and restore the contents of her phone. Let's just say I have confirmation of her affair with Professor Morris. There were multiple explicit texts along with intimate pictures, and a video.”
"Nothing surprising," I said.
"There's something else. Gabby had a half-sister. Cheyenne Tisdale. This is where it gets interesting. She pledged Theta last year.”
I lifted a curious eyebrow.
"Her body was found washed up on the beach last fall."
Now she had my full attention. "Had she been stabbed?”
"No. I'm getting this straight out of your database. Talk to your medical examiner. It was ruled an accidental drowning. From what I can tell, there was a limited investigation by the university. They found no connection to the sorority.”
"Where the hell were we when this happened?”
"According to the timing, I think you were halfway across the world saving my ass. Thank you very much."
"You’re welcome."
"The difference in surnames is probably why the sorority never connected the two. Unless Gabby specifically said she was a legacy, no one would have made the connection.”
The Templeton case was all starting to come together in my mind.
"You're the best," I said.
"I know." It didn't even sound conceited coming from her.
I ended the call and caught JD up to speed. I wanted to have another talk with Joshua. I just needed to figure out what to do with Daphne.