Encore of the Avenging Muse (Sylvia and Rupert) novel Chapter 574

"Am I supposed to know her?" Rupert took a sip of his coffee, trying to ease the discomfort in his body.

"She’s… the new girl at work. She sent me here to treat you to dinner."

As Fay’s name came up, Sylvia shot a glance at the heavy oak door.

Did Fay lock them in here?

Rupert caught her look and said quietly, "You two have some history, don’t you?"

"Can I plead ignorance?" Sylvia still felt completely baffled by the whole thing.

Rupert spun the chunky silver ring on his finger, a frown creasing his brow. "Whoever locked that door definitely knew we were in here."

Sylvia caught on instantly.

She held out her hand to Rupert. "Your phone."

"Someone spilled a drink on me. It’s fried."

"Really? That’s a little too convenient," Sylvia said, suspicion clear in her voice.

"Want to frisk me?" Rupert held both hands up, palms open.

The overhead light made the garnet ring on his hand look even more striking, not to mention the wedding band sitting snugly on his middle finger.

Sylvia tore her eyes away, pretending not to notice, and racked her brain for solutions.

Rupert followed her gaze, glancing at his own rings, then lowered his head and absently rubbed them.

"There’s a hidden cabinet in the back, behind the scotch bottles. Inside, there’s a safe. Orson keeps a spare phone in there."

Sylvia nodded and went searching, but came up empty.

"Where exactly?"

"All the way in the back. What do you see?"

Rupert’s eyes flicked toward the velvet curtain in the corner.

Sylvia remembered—she’d changed clothes behind that curtain once, at Rupert’s last private wine tasting.

Taking a breath, she stepped through the curtain. This was Rupert’s secret tasting room, all mahogany shelves and dim lights. She pushed aside a rack of rare bourbons and found a built-in wall safe, about as tall as she was.

She called out, "It needs a code."

Rupert was silent for a moment before finally saying, "Try something you think I’d never use."

Sylvia scowled. This was no time for games.

She punched in Orson’s birthday. Nope.

Maybe Chris? Wrong again.

Sylvia was about to ask what the plan was when she heard footsteps approaching from the hallway. She tensed and turned toward the sound.

...

The wine cellar door swung open.

Sylvia was surprised to see who’d come in.

"Reese? Mr. Sanford?"

"Sylvia? Mr. Rupert? What are you two doing here?"

Before Sylvia could explain, someone else squeezed through the doorway.

"Sylvia! I was wondering where you’d run off to—turns out you were sneaking around with another woman’s fiancé!"

It was Fay, of course.

"Fay, don’t start," Lester snapped, voice sharp.

"Oh, please! Am I wrong? She sneaks off alone with someone else’s fiancé and you think that’s innocent?"

Fay jabbed a finger at Sylvia, her face flushed with anger.