At least she knew the killer was miles away and not in her immediate area. And now they’d find him. Relief flooded through her. They would get this lunatic, and then she could breathe again. As she showered, she told herself that it was going to be okay. Anderson would find whoever was doing this and lock him up. She was drying her hair when her phone rang. Anderson.

“Did you get him?”

He cleared his throat. “By the time we got there, they’d turned the phone off and were gone. We know they used some sort of texting app that delivers over Wi-Fi. We were able to trace the IP address to that particular Starbucks. But once the phone is off, we can’t track it.”

“Did you question everyone? Maybe the person was still there.”

“We did. The place was busy, but no one noticed anything unusual. I’m sorry. We’ll be going through the video footage to see if anything looks suspicious—there are cameras everywhere. Of course, if they did it from the bathroom, we’re out of luck.”

The weight of her disappointment was crushing. She hung up the phone, dejected. Whoever was doing this was smart. Maybe too smart to get caught.

8

Tonight should have been a big night for Kate, Blaire reflected, the annual fundraiser for the Children’s Heart Foundation. Originally it was to be held at Kate and Simon’s home. But Kate was in no shape to host anything or go anywhere, and when Selby had stepped into the breach and offered to host the event at her house, Kate had asked Blaire to go in her place. Blaire was sure that Selby hadn’t taken kindly to that, but she’d agreed without hesitation.

She pulled around the circular drive to Selby and Carter’s enormous home in Greenspring Valley, which she had read about in Horse and Rider. They’d bought the seventy-five-year-old mansion right after they got married and spent five years on a meticulous restoration, pouring hundreds of thousands of dollars into the project. She stopped next to the fountain in the middle of the circle, and a valet opened her car door and extended a hand to help her out. Hugging her cashmere stole closer, she hurried up the expansive stairs to the black double doors, which were easily over ten feet tall. As she entered, she admired the elegance and sophistication of the grand foyer, with its silk pastel wallpaper and glittering chandeliers. She had to admit that Selby’s taste was impeccable.

Blaire gave her wrap to a uniformed butler. As she walked past an immense dining room, its lengthy mahogany table awash with silver candelabra and serving dishes, she saw Selby coming toward her, Carter at her side. She’d seen him across the room at the funeral reception and wondered again how this overweight middle-aged man could be the same good-looking guy she’d almost married.