Free Uncovering You 4: Retribution by Scarlett Edwards Page A

even spare one look at me! He didn’t acknowledge that I’m even here aside from that brief initial glance.
    Did I do something wrong? Surely, he did not expect me to greet him on hands and knees?
    No, I don’t think that’s it. When I do something wrong, Stonehart is always sure to inform me.
    After a moment’s hesitation, I stand up and follow him out. I see his shape disappear around a corner. “Jeremy?” I call out.
    Nothing.
    I shake my head, hardly believing that I’m trying to seek an audience with him, but being ignored like this rubs me the wrong way. It also makes me cautious: why is he doing it?
    I start down the hallway after him. Two-thirds of the way there, I hear his voice boom out again. It sounds like he’s on the phone.
    I hover at the entrance to one of the many enormous rooms in the house, waiting. Stonehart is inside, pacing back and forth with his cell pressed to one ear.
    He does not look at me.
    I step in and perch on a seat, back straight. It occurs to me after a moment that this is exactly the same spot where I first met Esteban.
    Funny, that.
    Stonehart continues to ignore me while carrying on his conversation. For all the attention he gives me, I might as well be a mannequin.
    He stands up. I open my mouth to speak—and clamp it shut again as he strides briskly out of the room. He did not even look at me. Infuriating man!
    I do not follow him right away. Maybe this is a test. Why? Of what?
    I can’t tell.
    Maybe he wants to see how far I’ll go to get his attention. Not far , I think with a sneer. A Stonehart who ignores me is infinitely preferable to a Stonehart who makes me the focus of his day.
    Or is that not true? I remember one of his first warnings about what would happen to me if I misbehaved:
    I will leave you in the dark .
    I shudder. That is one punishment I never want to experience.
    I stand up. I’m a little peeved at the reaction I’ve received. I’ve been building up his return in my mind for two days. Being brushed off like this is the definition of anti-climactic.
    I walk out of the room, into the long, empty hallway. The house is silent. An uncanny trickle of disquietude runs down my spine. You could hide a body in here and nobody would ever know.
    Or hide me , I think, without the least bit of humor.
    I start up the stairs toward Stonehart’s room. Maybe he’s unpacking? But he doesn’t strike me like the sort of man to waste time with such trifles. Rose surely does that for him.
    Halfway up the stairs, a shadow of movement catches my eye from outside. I glance back, and see a familiar black limousine pulling up to the house.
    I’ve ridden inside that limousine before , I think with a grunt, then resume my search for Stonehart.
    He’s not in his room. The bed is freshly made and the place is spotless, as usual. I do a small tour of the place, even going so far as to check the surveillance closet, but it’s empty.
    There’s only one place he can be, then. Well, in truth, with a house this side, there are many places he can be, but only one strikes me as likely right now:
    His office.
    Sure enough, when I wander into the hallway leading to the secret door, I find the entrance wide open. I walk inside. The door to Stonehart’s office is closed, but I can hear his muffled voice from within.
    Having nothing else to do, I cross my arms and lean against the library doorway, waiting.
    I stand there for a long time. My left foot starts to fall asleep. I shake it out to regain circulation, sigh, and wait some more.
    Stonehart keeps talking inside the office. I can’t make out his words through the thick oak doors, but his voice is unmistakable.
    I love that voice. If only it didn’t belong to such a monster—
    I stop cold.
    Did I really just use the world ‘ love ’ to describe something about Stonehart?
    Another shiver runs through me. I need to be more careful with my thoughts.
    After a useless half-hour, boredom starts to kick in. Stonehart can’t just expect