Chapter Araneae

Jana met us with wide eyes upon our return. “Is everything okay?”

If only there was a simple answer to that question. Instead, I deferred. “Did anything happen while we were away?”

“No, mostly quiet.”

“Please hold all calls—all,” I emphasized, knowing there was one man who could be persistent.

“Ms. Hawkins?” Patrick asked as I headed toward my office.

I turned his way. “Winnie and I need to continue our conversation from the hotel room. We were on a time limit.”

Though disagreement rippled off of Patrick in waves and I knew he wanted an answer to the question he’d texted me, he didn’t return my statement with a rebuttal but simply a nod.

Once Winnie and I were inside my private office with the door shut, I gestured toward the table—the one still cluttered with sketches for Mrs. McFadden. “I don’t have anything stronger, not here. Would you like a cup of coffee or water?” I asked.

Shaking her head, she sat. “I am sorry.”