“There are only a handful of people who know of the concession, that we know of.What if one of those people started looking for the paperwork as soon as my father was killed?”Ginger mused aloud, unsure if Sarah even heard her.Stephen had to have told someone about the concession, well before Noah had learned of it.It was the only thing that made sense.
“What do you think we should do?”Sarah asked.
“I’m not sure.”Ginger’s annoyance at not being able to contact Noah was a reminder of how quickly she’d let herself be spoiled by his presence the last few days.She’d spent most of their relationship without the means to contact him.And Lord Helton couldn’t help her now.
As Sarah pulled up to Ginger’s home, Ginger hesitated to see her go.“I would ask you to come in, but I have a dinner at the palace to get ready for.”
Sarah smirked.“You rich people say things like that as though it’s a normal everyday event.I have a less interesting evening ahead of me—watching the sun set over the Nile.Somehow mine seems a bit more appealing.”
Ginger couldn’t agree more.The idea of going to hobnob with society was tedious.“Thank you, Sarah.I’m going to speak to someone I trust about the matter.Then I’ll call upon you again.”
As Sarah drove off, a plume of exhaust drifted from the tailpipe.Ginger was left standing on the pavement, doused in the fuel’s stench.She’d left this morning with such high hopes—that she’d finally be on her way to finding Paul Hanover and the concession paperwork, finally able to help her family.
But she’d just hit another obstacle.
What could Paul Hanover have done with the papers before he’d died?
Sarah’s words seeped through her memory.Paul was murdered.
A grim feeling pressed on her.If Sarah was right, whoever had murdered Paul must not have been able to get the papers from him.Would that person have started his own search?
Ginger shuddered, thinking of how Osborne had reacted.Osborne—who seemed to hate Noah.
What if the person who had known about and murdered Paul Hanover was the same person who had tasked her to find the papers?
Noah had warned her to be cautious with Osborne.
Where was Noah?
ChapterThirty-One
Ared carpet had been rolled out to receive the guests at Abdin Palace.Ginger paused as she exited the carriage they’d come in.Built in the newer, European section of the city, the grand palace was a long stately building in front of Abdin Square.The enormous arched main doors were open as guests filtered inside.
Only two years earlier, Ginger and some fellow nurses had come here for the installation of the new sultan of Egypt.The pomp and circumstance had been a bright, festive occasion.Hard to believe the man had already died since then.He’d been kind to the nurses in Egypt, inviting them on several occasions to dinners and parties, both here and Alexandria.
William stepped out of the carriage to join Lucy, Ginger, and her mother.Ginger eyed his left arm, no longer in a sling.He must have told her family something but Ginger hadn’t been there for it.In typical fashion for her family, they pretended nothing had happened.
“You look lovely tonight, Ginger.”William sidled up to her.He offered his arm.“Would you give me the honor of escorting you in?”
Ginger gave Lucy an uneasy glance.If Lucy truly had formed an attachment to William, Ginger didn’t want her sister to feel bad.
Snubbing William’s proffered arm would be an affront, though.Especially after the previous night’s interaction.She gave him a taut smile.“It would be my pleasure.”
She took William’s arm and they made their way in, her family following.Whatever Lucy thought about William escorting Ginger, her facial expression didn’t reveal.Then again, there was an excited gleam in Lucy’s eyes as she took in the palace.
And with good reason.The cavernous marble staircase practically sparkled from the jewels of the women crowding it.Expansive, stately, and expensive, the five-hundred-room palace was the pinnacle of Khedivate Egypt.This sort of affair was exactly what Lucy had been dreaming of since they’d left England.
They reached the bottom of the staircase, and Ginger removed her arm from William’s.Adjusting the tops of her long gloves, she tried to settle the flutter of nerves in her stomach.She shouldn’t have come tonight.She needed to find Noah and tell him what she’d learned about Paul Hanover and her suspicions about Osborne.
Her time helping the CID felt like an utter sham.She’d been useful, but had it been because she was viewed as truly capable?Or had she been a mere pawn?And why did Osborne no longer want her involved?
Once they’d settled into the gathering, Ginger hung off to the side of the opulent stateroom with her family.The room glittered with majestic grandeur, both in décor and the dress of the guests, but relaxing into a jovial mood wasn’t easy.
She accepted a glass of champagne from a servant listening to her mother and Lucy exchange greetings with some of their friends.
“You look about as ill at ease as I feel,” William whispered to her.Then, a bit more loudly, he said, “It might be nice to have some fresh air before the dinner starts.It’s warm in here.Would you like to come with me, Cousin Ginger?”
A familiar figure across the room caught her attention.
