She stood up, her pulse buzzing in her body, a fresh sweat breaking out on her forehead. She bolted for the door, hardly stopping to say goodbye. No. I’m going to find that necklace before I have to.

CHAPTER TWENTY TWO

So this is what it’s like to be a wanted woman.

Diana looked up and down the street as she descended the stairs to the shuttle, where the driver was parked, waiting for her. There were no detectives dressed in raincoats, no hooded figures hiding in the shadows, tracing her every move, and waiting for her to do something wrong. At least, none that she could see.

Right now, she just wanted to get away from accusing eyes.

She quickly ducked into the shuttle and directed the driver to take her back to the inn. The sun was slipping behind the buildings and it was getting darker. Lights were popping on all around, and in the distance, she spied the Eiffel Tower, awash in a gleaming rainbow of color. Everywhere she turned, it was like it was screaming at her to come and be a part of it. Yes, the City of Lights was beautiful, and she should’ve wanted to enjoy it. But she had no interest in a nice dinner out in Paris. She just wanted to be alone in her room and think about her next steps.

As she was trying to catch her breath and stop herself from cringing over her latest missteps, her phone rang. It was Lily. She answered. “Hello, dear,” she said tiredly.

“Mom! You sound tired.”

“Well, I am.”

“Too much exploring?”

She wished. She wished that she’d been gallivanting all over Paris seeing the sights, and now she was returning to the hotel for some rest. After all, that was the way this adventure was supposed to go. But she didn’t want to go into it. “Yes.”

“Mom? God! What’s going on? First you go abroad and don’t even bother to call me for days to tell me that you’re okay, and then you give me one-word answers. Something’s not right.”

Diana sighed. “I’m not in the clutches of axe-murderers, if that’s what you were thinking.”

“Okay, well, then tell me! How was Notre Dame? The Eiffel Tower? The Louvre? And that ball? Was it everything you hoped it would be?”

The shuttle pulled up to the curb. She was already thinking of ordering a big glass of wine to take the edge off. Maybe two. Maybe a bottle. The last thing she wanted to do was recount the events of the past few days. And she wasn’t even in the mood to make up little white lies about it. So she climbed out of the shuttle, waved at the driver, and mumbled, “It’s fine, but I really have to—”

“Mom! I want details!”

Right. This was Lily she was talking to. Lily was always the one who needed to be in the know. Diana sighed, “All right. I’m just getting back to the hotel. If you give me a second,