Page 103 of A Violet Obsession
I’m about to object to the questions again when Lorelei speaks. “The social worker is walking away. The door closes behind them. Where are you?” Lorelei’s voice is soothing.
Lily sucks in an awful gasp, clutching her stomach. “Floor. I’m on the kitchen floor. Stop. Please stop.” Her body curls as if she’s trying to protect her midsection. Then her hands are at her throat, clawing at something that isn’t there anymore. “I won’t say anything. I swear. Don’t hurt her.” Tears are streaming down her face, and she’s not breathing right. I’m out of my chair and two steps forward when Lorelei pins me with a glare.
“She’s all right,” she says in a low voice. “She is not experiencing pain. She’s only remembering it.”
“I don’t give a fuck.” I snarl, not caring if it’s a memory. It’s hurting her.
“If you startle her now, you could cause her more damage.” She turns back to Lily. “Scott’s gone, Lily. You aren’t there anymore. Nothing is hurting you.” Lorelei begins counting, and Lily relaxes again. “You’re safe. Nothing reaches you here,” Lorelei stares at me until I return to my seat.
My heart is hammering, and I feel I can’t get a whole breath. Lily told me Scott threatened to hurt my sister, but until this moment I don’t think I fully realized exactly how horrific Lily’s life had become. She believed he’d hurt Emma because he didn’t hesitate to hurt her. I wish the man wasn’t dead because I wanted to kill him with my bare hands.
The door behind me opens quietly, and I turn my head to see Nora take her place standing next to Tate.
Why is she here?
“I’m going to bring you forward now,” Lorelei says. “To this year, to the night the auction house was robbed. Dawn brought you cookies,” Lorelei says. “The night of the auction. Do you remember?”
“Dawn is learning how to bake, but she doesn’t like sugar. But she knows I do, so she brings me cookies.” Lily smiles. The warmth in her voice is so much worse, knowing what we know now.
Did Dawn start baking purely to acclimatize Lily to accepting her offerings? This plan must have been in motion for a while.
“Did you eat the cookies?”
“Yes.”
“What happens next?” Lorelei asks.
“I’m packing up the sold items.”
“That’s right,” Lorelei coaxes. “You cut a piece of foam and put it in a box.”
I realize Lorelei has seen the security video and is trying to move Lily to just before she removes the necklace.
“The ormolu clock is going to London.” A pause, and then a wide smile spreads across her face, and she huffs a little laugh.
“What is it, Lily? What’s funny.”
“Bryce turned off the classical playlist on the PA system and put on country music.”
My spine straightens. The footage didn’t have sound.
Lily’s face changes, and I recognize the expression from when we were dancing.
“Ask her what song she hears.” I say, surprised at how hoarse my voice is.
I can feel Tate and Nora’s eyes on me, but Lorelei asks the question.
“I don’t know.” Lily shakes her head, getting agitated, but begins humming a few bars, and I go cold.
“She reacted to that song two nights ago, the same as in the video.”
A small crease forms between Lorelei’s eyebrows. “It must be the trigger.”
Which means either Dawn changed the playlist, or one of the guards was in on it, too.
“There’s something I have to do.” The confusion in Lily’s voice is real.
“Did someone give you instructions?” Lorelei asks.
