Suspicions with Murder (A Rilynne Evans Mystery, Book Four) by Jenn Vakey Read Free Book Online

belonging to anyone at the department, I’ll have a cab come by to take you to the manor.”
    By the time Anna handed the stack of papers back to her, the cab was waiting outside. Even though she had worked several undercover assignments in her time on the department, she still felt a knot growing inside of her as they made their way through the city. It was somewhere between nervousness and excitement.
    “You can just leave me at the front gate,” she told the driver as they started up the long, private driveway.
    The driver nodded but didn’t respond. She looked out the window and watched the towering trees pass by. After several long minutes, the car slowed and she looked forward to find a large iron gate crossing the road. It was almost frightening. She wondered to herself if that was the intention when it was built.
    As the car came to a stop, she pulled her bag out of the trunk and paid the driver. When she turned around, she found two large men staring down at her. They were just as intimidating as the gate itself.
    “The agency sent me for the open maid position,” she said, trying her best to sound nervous.
    The larger of the two men, who was built like a gorilla, stepped toward her. She recognized him as Rick Olsen, though his pictures didn’t come close to capturing his intensity. His eyes, though a pretty shade of light blue, seemed to burn through her like a hot laser. It took all of her strength not to back away.
    He grabbed the papers out of her hand and flipped through them before grunting and nodding to the man in the gatehouse. “Come with me,” he said in a deep, scratchy voice. He tossed the papers back at her and turned toward the gate, which was now half opened.
    She dragged her bag behind her as she followed him to a golf cart parked just inside the gate. She thought for a moment that he would help her load the bag onto the cart, but instead he sat down and waited for her to finish. After lugging the bag onto the back, she barely had time to climb into the passenger seat before the cart lunged forward.
    After the length of the driveway they had driven before reaching the gate, she had expected the manor to be only moments ahead of them. Instead, they drove another five minutes in silence before the tree line broke and the grounds appeared.
    She let out an involuntary gasp when the manor came into view. In her opinion, it was closer to a palace. The layout made her think of a chicken’s foot, with three separate wings branching off of the main foyer. The entire manor held twenty-nine bedrooms and twelve restrooms in addition to the dozens of personal and social rooms. From the layout she had been given, she knew that the end of the west wing held the rooms occupied by the staff, aside from nanny who had a room near the children.
    One thing that had surprised her was the bedroom arrangements. Not only were Jared and Cyndi Lewis sleeping in separate bedrooms, the rooms were on entirely different wings. Jared was on the east wing, along with the children, and Cyndi was on the north. Connecting the ends of the three wings was a large, underground tunnel. Looking at the plans, it appeared that the tunnel didn’t extend beyond those points, but it was something she would want to look at herself.
    He drove around to the left of the building, stopping at the end of the west wing. “Come with me,” he said again. She grabbed the bag and followed him through the large French doors. He didn’t slow until he reached an open door twenty feet down the hall. “You will stay here,” he stated.
    “Not much of a talker, huh?” she asked, trying to hide her grin. Without responding, he turned and walked away.
    The room wasn’t as small as she expected. The walls were stone white, except the one sitting behind the large headboard, which had been painted a dark red. To the right side of the bed sat a black nightstand that matched the bed frame. In lieu of a dresser, the bed had six drawers buildin on either