Hearts of Glass (The Glass Trilogy Book 3) Read Free Page B

until I figure out what your future holds. Because I have been toying with the idea of administering a drug to make this wiener of yours stand to attention, although right now isn’t the best time of the month for me. And I’ll need to administer some fertility drugs for myself first. After all, I’m no spring chicken. I mean, at forty-two it isn’t easy. And I always did want a child. Or do you think having a baby would be too taxing at my age? I have to admit, the idea of being woken up to breast feed in the middle of the night is hardly appealing. Actually, it’s pretty gross. I’ll need to mull this idea over first. No, you know what? I don’t think having a baby would be a good idea after all. And I guess, when I’m in charge of your money—well, the money that the greedy trustees aren’t controlling—I don’t really need you to be around at all.”
    I can swear I hear myself groan but Kristin’s verbal diarrhea cannot be stopped.
    “You may be asking yourself why I need the extra money. You think I like just being a doctor? Okay, it is a prestigious job and the pay isn’t bad, but it’s not about that . . . I want fame, Daniel. I want to discover a cure for Alzheimer’s or muscular dystrophy. I want to be a medical star, go down in history books, in scientific journals. That’s why I need extra money, don’t you see? I need my research projects funded. It’s like God is on my side. He wants me to succeed. That’s why I inherited Natasha’s money.” She laughs. A raucous, secret-joke sort of laugh. “Shall I tell you a little dark secret? Maybe I’ll hold on a little longer until I know what to do with you. Then I can let you in on my secret. Well, okay, I’ll tell you. Why not? You might even find it funny . . .”
    She lowers her voice to a conspiratorial whisper: “Wait . . . someone’s coming.”

4
    Janie.
    A S I WAS tucking the Bellagio chip deep into my jeans’ pocket, my cell rang. For some reason it made me jump out of my skin. I was tired, jittery, and starving hungry. It was Pearl Chevalier. I heaved a sigh of relief.
    “Pearl, thanks so much for calling back.”
    “It’s not Pearl,” the stranger’s voice said. She had a French accent.
    “Oh, hi,” I replied. “Pearl’s not there?”
    “I’m her niece, Elodie. Alexandre’s niece.”
    “Hi Elodie, yeah, Pearl once mentioned you to me.”
    “Pearl’s on vacation with my uncle. She left her phone behind.”
    I was amazed that a woman in Pearl’s position would forget her cell, but then I remembered the “no contact” policy.
    “I know you, Janie,” Elodie said.
    I had no recollection of meeting Elodie, but I didn’t want to be rude. “You do?”
    “I saw you in Where The Wind Blows . Crazy, but I feel like I know you personally.”
    That happened to me a lot. Being an actor means you are familiar to complete strangers. It isn’t uncommon for people you’ve never met before to be telling you their darkest secrets. You are their friend, their confidante. In this instance, though, being Elodie’s friend wasn’t a bad thing at all—I figured it would help me get in touch with Pearl.
    “I read your text,” Elodie continued. “That’s why I’m calling you back because it looked important. I’m going to find out more, but I think my mother has mentioned this woman Kristin Jürgen to me. And not in a good way. Her name sounds really familiar.”
    I told Elodie the whole story, trying to keep my voice down so Ethan wouldn’t hear. It unnerved me to be revealing all this to a total stranger, yet at the same time, just sharing all my troubles gave me a sense of liberation. I understood as I spoke, though, she must think it was all really far-fetched. There was silence on the other end of the line. I wanted to scream with frustration. Nobody believed me.
    “I can help you,” Elodie said, finally. “You have no idea the kind of shit I’ve had to deal with in the past.” Deal wiz in zee past, her