“And what about the stuff Georgie found?”
“Up against the story of the cheating father of her unborn baby? Nobody will care. Like you mentioned on the phone, she’s likely to pass it off as a charitable donation, or as paying the premium for top obstetrical care.”
I shook my head and fell back into my chair.
“We’re working on it, Fred, but without evidence of Caroline’s extortion, we can’t weaken her position in the public eye. And if we can’t reverse this perception, any pain we inflict on Caroline will inexorably pale in comparison to the hurt Ms. Foster will endure in the aftermath.”
IT WAS NEARLY lunchtime before I got a chance to step out of the conference room and check my mobile. I’d gone over every detail of Rio with my PR team. They’d listened and shaken their heads, more than convinced Caroline was a lunatic, but they agreed with Dave that there wasn’t enough objective evidence to bring her down.
I was knackered and hungry, but Georgie had already called four times that morning, the last of which had only been a few minutes earlier.
“Georgie, you there?” I asked as soon as the call picked up.
“FRED.”
She sounded out of breath and excited. I shoved against the hallway wall, giving space to the lawyers flooding out of the building for lunch.
“What is it, G? Have you gone to the coffee shop yet?”
“Yes! I’ve been sitting at the table right behind Caroline and her dopey doctor for the last fifteen minutes and she hasn’t even noticed!”
“How is that possible?”
“I’ve got a red wig on and everything. I think I look quite cute. Might have to give it a go one of these nights when I’ve the time.”
I pinched the bridge of my nose. “Georgie, have you heard anything?”
She practically squealed. “SO MUCH! I can’t tell you everything right now. I’m in one of the bathrooms and someone’s already knocking on the door. But Fred, get this—the doctor went to university with Caroline, and he’s obviously in love with her. I just know he’s been helping her falsify the pregnancy! It makes so much sense.”
“Has he said that?”
“They only just started talking about it when you called.”
“Get back in there Georgie, and call back on my lawyer’s conference line so I can have him record their conversation. I’ll text you the number.”
The chance that Caroline would say anything incriminating in a public setting was slim to none, but regardless, I ran back into the conference room and explained the situation to Dave as quickly as possible. Just as I finished, the phone rang in the center of the conference table, and for the next thirty minutes we were all privy to Caroline’s conversation. We sat, stunned as Caroline spoke with her friend, Dr. Dunn.
I didn’t care that my stomach was growling with hunger; I hovered over that conference table and listened to Caroline’s voice through the speaker. She was laying on the charm like I’d never heard before, sweet and innocent and disgustingly pleasant as she droned on with her friend.
At first, I thought Georgie had overestimated the content of their conversation.
“This reminds me of the good old days in Cambridge,” he said with a wistful tone.
Caroline giggled and Georgie cleared her throat.
“You know those are some of the fondest memories I have.”
Dr. Dunn leaned closer to the phone. “I did receive your payment the other day, but it would be quite unnecessary if you were amenable to my alternative. Honestly, Caroline. You know I’m mad about you—are you sure it’s worth faking a paternity test just to be with a man who doesn’t love you? You and I could have—”
“Hush, Nick. You know how much this marriage means to me. I love you, you know I do, but I’m too stressed to think about all of this right now. Please don’t make this more difficult than it has to be. You and I will always have something special between us, truly.”
Their tone wouldn’t have drawn the attention of the patrons around them, but to me, her words were good as gold. From “darling, I adore you”, they slipped so easily into the conversation we’d all been waiting for. Dave practically chomped at the bit, hovering over the conference table, tirelessly taking notes on the things we were overhearing.
“We must keep this between us, darling…”
“You’ve been such a good friend to me through this all, you must know how much your help means to me…”
“Freddie insisted on the paternity test as we assumed he would, but he would never suspect your involvement…”
“Sophie will run the story as soon as I give her the go-ahead…”
Caroline had finally slipped up and dug her own grave, and Georgie, the brilliant little detective, had been there to listen to her do it. I’d known for weeks that Caroline Montague was a manipulative, conspiratorial, dishonest woman, and now the world would know too. It was time to finish this whole thing once and for all.