Chapter 10 · Daniel's Last Words

Vivian stepped between Silas and the officers.

"He was with me," she said. "All night."

James stared at her. She watched his face do the math. What she was saying. What it meant. The kind of lie you don't walk back.

"Vivian." His voice went flat. "Don't."

"He didn't leave my room until sunrise." She kept her chin up. Kept her hands loose at her sides. "You can ask the staff. They saw him in the hallway when he went back to his suite."

One of the officers coughed. James didn't move. Just kept looking at her like she'd put a gun to his chest.

"You're lying," he said.

"I'm not."

"Vivian—"

"Check with the staff." She turned to the taller officer. "Marie brings tea at six. She saw him leaving my hallway. So did the kitchen boy."

The officer glanced at James. James didn't say anything. His jaw worked. Finally he looked away.

"We'll verify that," the officer said. "But the evidence—"

"Can wait an hour." Vivian's throat was dry. "My father is dying upstairs. If you're going to arrest someone in this house, you can do it after he's gone."

Silas hadn't said a word.