Chapter 20
Evelyn drew a circle next to Sebastian's name too.
She locked the note, picked up her phone, and called Sophie.
"I need you to trace a number for me."
The sound of typing came from Sophie's end. She was clearly busy.
"What number?"
Evelyn read off the number from the text message sender.
Sophie made a sound.
"Anonymous harassment again? What'd they say?"
Evelyn paused a beat.
"Trashing my mom."
The typing stopped.
After two seconds, Sophie's voice dropped lower.
"Send me the screenshot. I'll have a friend look into it."
Evelyn sent the screenshot.
Forty minutes later, Sophie replied.
Prepaid burner phone, bought through a convenience store. No ID registration required. Same method as the anonymous message Mr. Larry got before. Virtual number. Can't trace it to anyone.
Evelyn stared at Sophie's reply for a few seconds.
She pulled up all three screenshots she'd saved and laid them out side by side for comparison.
First message: The one Mr. Larry received. [She doesn't have anyone backing her up now. You know what to do.]
Second message: The one she got today. [Evelyn, having a great time at Parker Group? Don't forget how your mom died. A homewrecker's daughter—you can't wash that off no matter where you go.]
Evelyn's eyes moved back and forth between the two messages three times.
The first one used a rhetorical command—
[You know what to do.]
The second one used a rhetorical taunt—
[You can't wash that off no matter where you go.]
Not a coincidence.
The tone and structure of both messages were nearly identical: state a fact, then close with a rhetorical question or imperative. It was a fixed pattern of expression.
Same person sending them.
Or the same person ordering them sent.
Evelyn organized this observation in her mind, thought for a moment, then picked up her phone.
She didn't call Sophie.
She called Cedric's assistant.
"Mason, can you pass something along to Mr. Parker for me? I received an anonymous text. I'd like to meet with him about it."
The assistant's reply came quickly.
"Ms. Kendall, Mr. Parker says you can come straight up."
Evelyn took the elevator to the top floor.
Cedric's office door was half open. He sat behind his desk with a document spread out on his right side.
Evelyn walked in and handed him her phone, the text message displayed on the screen.
Cedric took the phone and read it.
He didn't say anything right away. He flipped the phone over, glanced at the sender's number, then set it on the desk.
Evelyn sat down across from him.
"I compared this with the anonymous message from the Mr. Larry incident. The phrasing habits are very similar. Both end with rhetorical statements. I suspect it's the same person, or someone acting on their orders."
Cedric looked up.
"You have screenshots?"
Evelyn opened all three screenshots and arranged them in a row on the desk for him to see.
Cedric's gaze lingered on the three screenshots for more than ten seconds.
He picked up the desk phone and pressed an extension number.
"Trace the cell tower location for this text message. I'll have Mason send you the number."
He hung up.
Evelyn sat across from him, hands folded in her lap, silent.
Cedric glanced at her.
"Have you eaten?"
Evelyn paused. It was already four in the afternoon. She'd only eaten half a sandwich at lunch.
"I have."
Cedric didn't call her out. He pressed the intercom on his desk.
"Send up two coffees and a sandwich to the office."
Evelyn opened her mouth but didn't refuse.
When the coffee and sandwich arrived, Mason brought back information at the same time.
"Mr. Parker, we've traced the cell tower locations for both messages."
He placed a printed map on the desk, two red marks circled with a highlighter.
Evelyn looked down at it.
The two markers weren't in exactly the same spot, but they both fell within the same area.
Within a two-mile radius of Ashford Group headquarters.
Evelyn's finger stopped at the edge of the circle on the map.
Her breathing didn't change, but the veins on the back of her hand stood out slightly.
Cedric pushed the map directly in front of her.
"Not a big area. Someone who's frequently near Ashford Group, who knows about what happened with your mother thirty years ago, and who has the means to get your new phone number. Not many people fit that description."
Evelyn pressed her lips together.
Either Sebastian or someone close to Sebastian.
More precisely, someone connected to Sebastian who also knew about her mother's past.
Arianna lived at the Ashford estate. The estate was less than two miles from Ashford Group headquarters.
Right inside that two-mile circle.
Evelyn picked up the map, folded it, and put it in her bag.
"I'm keeping this."
Cedric nodded.
He picked up his coffee, took a sip, and set down the cup.
"About your mother. I had someone look into a few things."
Evelyn froze.
Cedric's voice was unhurried.
"That Hawk family crest. Do you want to know what your mother's actual connection to the Hawk family was?"
Evelyn looked up.
She met Cedric's eyes.
There was no probing in those eyes, no sympathy. Just the calm that comes before stating facts.
"What did you find?"
Cedric didn't answer directly.
He pulled open the right drawer of his desk and took out an invitation. Gold foil cover, the Hawk family's double eagle and pine tree crest printed in the center.
"There's a Hawk family charity gala tomorrow. I have an invitation."
He pushed the invitation toward Evelyn.
"Do you want to go?"
Evelyn looked at the crest on the invitation—identical to the one inside the ring. Her fingers tightened slightly.
She picked up the invitation.
The Hawk family charity gala was being held at Emerald Abbey on the north side of the city.
Evelyn wore a black high-neck fitted dress, her hair pinned up, her mother's small silver earrings in her ears.
Cedric's car arrived at Sophie's building at exactly seven.
Evelyn opened the back door. Cedric came around from the passenger side.
He wore a dark blue suit today, his tie two shades deeper than the jacket.
He glanced at her.
"Let's go."
The car drove for twenty minutes and pulled up to the entrance of the estate.
A row of cars was already parked at the entrance, guests walking in twos and threes along the gravel pathway.
Cedric's car stopped in the VIP parking spot closest to the entrance. A man dressed like a butler came forward and opened the door.
Evelyn got out.
The evening breeze blew down from the hillside, carrying the scent of flowers.
As she walked in alongside Cedric, she could feel numerous eyes turning their way.
Cedric had his own magnetic field at events like this. When he stood somewhere, the air within fifteen feet went quiet for a beat. And tonight he had a woman at his side that no one had seen before.
Evelyn was prepared to be scrutinized.
Cedric handed over the invitation at the entrance. After the butler checked it, he guided them into the main hall.
The main hall was enormous. Crystal chandeliers hung from the vaulted ceiling. Dark red Persian rugs covered the floor. On both sides were curved buffet tables and bars.