That didn't the change the fact that Veronica had fallen down on the job.
She was still crying. Or pretending to cry.Hell if I knew.
Either way, the question was the same.How could she not know where Willow was?
It was seven-thirty in the morning, for Christ's sake.
I shoved a hand through my hair and tried to think.Maybe Mason had taken Willow out for breakfast while Veronica was still asleep?Wasthatwhy Veronica thought she was missing?
No.Mason might be a dick, but he ran a smooth household – too smooth in my opinion.
But he had a real soft spot for Willow. He'd been a decent dad, too. And I knew damn well he'd never take Willow anywhere and forget to tell the damn nanny.
He was too buttoned-up for that.
A few feet away, Chase was saying to Veronica, "Tell us again. When's the last time you saw her?"
Already, we had dozens of employees walking the neighborhood, looking for a lost little girl.Turns out, she wasn't lost.
Butsomethingwas going on. And I didn't want to discuss it, not in front of Veronica.She wasn't family. And for all I knew, she'd put Willow at risk. Or hell, maybe she'd staged a fake kidnapping, looking to cash in on the family fortune.
A crazy theory?
Maybe.But with the kind of money we had these days, anything was possible.
Veronica was still blubbering when I pulled Chase aside and told him in a low voice. "Mason's got her."
His surprise was obvious. "No shit?"
I shrugged. "That's what he said."
"Huh." Chase frowned. "Weird."
In unison, we both looked to Veronica. She was standing on the opposite side of the room, sobbing alone by the side window.
Maybe I should've felt bad.
But I didn't.
And neither did Mason when he arrived ten minutes later –withWillow, just like he'd said.
Thank God.
I gave Willow a quick once-over. She looked fine, happy even.
But not Mason.He looked royally ticked.
At the sight of Willow, Veronica squealed, "Oh, my God. There you are!" She threw open her arms wide and called out, "Oh, sweetie! Come here."
Willow didn't budge.
Neither did anyone else.
Mason looked down to Willow and said, "Go up to your room. You're still going to summer school."
Willow frowned. "But I'll be late."
With a tight smile, Mason replied, "Then you'd better hurry." After Willow left, Mason turned his attention to Veronica. He wasn't smiling anymore. "Pack your shit," he said. "You're fuckin' fired."
