Chapter 29

The days after Ace's terrible treatment of Natalie at dinner were a tumultuous, bizarre game of cat-and-mouse around the huge manor grounds. He seemed to take pleasure in tormenting her at every turn, his presence a foreshadowing of further degradation. But Natalie refused to be the frightened captive he had clearly intended. She shadowed his movements with a barely contained ferocity, like a cat pursuing its unwary prey through the underbrush. Every calculated smile and offhanded remark he sent her way just fueled the banked fires of her hatred. Natalie finally took advantage of an opening during one of these predatory circuits. Ace had led a pair of suspicious business associates on a tour of Hawthorne's immaculately manicured gardens and residential wings. Natalie followed them between shaded archways and groomed hedgerows, watching and waiting. Her moment arrived when the group arrived on the south patio. Natalie struck while Ace leaned against the stone balustrade, telling his gu