Tracy stared at the wine glasses, sure that the poison was lurking inside one of them. Jenna had no way of knowing that Tracy knew her plans as she handed Mr. Hayes a glass of champagne. Tracy didn't think, she just moved.
"Don't drink that!" Tracy cried out, pushing the glass away from him before he could take it and nearly spilling it down Jenna's dress.
Shock and disappointment filled Mr. Hayes' eyes. "I thought we were past this, Tracy."
"What's the matter?" Jenna asked, confusion painting her pretty face. Tracy wanted to smack the look right off her.
Mr. Hayes turned to Jenna. "Tracy thinks you're going to try to poison me tonight."
A momentary flash of anger and then horror that Tracy knew and that she would suggest something that was going to ruin her plans. Jenna quickly recovered before anyone but Tracy could notice.
"That's ridiculous! Here." Jenna took his glass of champagne and took a sip of it, then took a sip of her own champagne. She shrugged as nothing happened, looking rather pleased with herself.
Mr. Hayes turned back to Tracy, his arms crossed. "Are you satisfied?"
Tracy frowned at the glass and the smug look on Jenna's face. The poison wasn't in that glass. But, Jenna would be plying Mr. Hayes with drinks all night long. Thinking about it, It would be less suspicious if he didn't fall over dead right after his speech. But, falling over dead after drinking far too much... there would be no blame laid on anyone and it would simply be labeled a tragic death.
Tracy couldn't watch Mr. Hayes' drinks all night long. All it would take was one moment, one turned head or a trip to the bathroom for Jenna to slip her poison into his drink. The dark gleam in Jenna's eyes told Tracy the dream was real. Tracy wasn't crazy. There was only one way for her to prove it, though.
"Please, Mr. Hayes, just look in her shoe,” Tracy begged. “Check to see if there's anything in the compartment."
The color drained from Jenna's face, but again she recovered quickly. "Look, Tracy, I'm sorry that you're jealous. I should have known that the other night was a mistake, but I can promise you that Paul's place is by your side. I'm not here to replace you."
Mr. Hayes' jaw tightened. Jenna's words were exactly what Mr. Hayes needed to hear to turn against Tracy. "Tracy, I'm going to have to ask you to leave. Jenna has done absolutely nothing wrong and your jealousy is out of control."
Tracy felt sick to her stomach. She could feel him slipping away, as much from distrust as the threat of poison. "Mr. Hayes, please! If you check her shoes, I promise I'll leave and give you as much space as you need. I can go quietly or I can make a scene."
She hated making the threat. She hated that it had come to this, but now that the words were spoken, she didn't really have a choice. Not if she wanted to save him.
Mr. Hayes' eyes flashed with fury. If Tracy weren't so frightened for him, she would have been terrified of that look. "You know what? Fine. I'm sorry to do this Jenna, but please take off your shoes."
Jenna turned completely pale. "N… no."
Mr. Hayes chuckled and put his hand on her arm in a comforting motion. "It's fine, I'll return them immediately. I'll even buy you new ones if Tracy damaged them."
Jenna looked towards the exit. She took a step backwards. "You can't see them."
Mr. Hayes turned to face her completely. His hand dropped from her arm."What?"
Jenna looked as if she had something else to say, then suddenly ran for the door, surprisingly fast for someone on high heels. Tracy knew there was no way for her to catch up, and Mr. Hayes was in shock. "Stop her!" Tracy cried out.
There was too much security at the door for her to just run out. One of the security guards caught her before she could escape. Jenna cried out hysterically, obviously terrified. Tears streamed down her face as she struggled to get free. Tracy pitied her. She pitied the girl for what was going to come next. Paul Hayes was not one to take this kind of thing lightly.
Chapter 15
There were six people in the upstairs room of the mountain chalet while the rest of the party bustled along downstairs unknowing of the treachery above. John Tice sat in a chair in the corner, his head in his hands. Tracy and Mr. Hayes sat next to one another on a love seat with their hands held tightly together. Greg, the security chief, and James, Mr. Hayes' personal assistant, argued about what should be done, while Jenna sat with her hands zip-tied to a chair.
The vial had been small, small enough to fit in Jenna's heel compartment. Greg's men had whisked it away to be analyzed, but Greg had smelled the hidden compartment it came from. "Smell the almond smell? Cyanide. You would have been dead before you hit the ground if you’d drank it."
At first, John had fought the men to try to get his daughter released, but had relented when they said that they hadn’t called the cops yet. He was obviously a powerful man, but he knew when to quit. Something about him made Tracy uneasy, as if he could turn on them in a second, but Tracy assumed it was simply because his daughter had just tried to murder her boyfriend.
As the men argued in front of Jenna, John turned to his daughter and asked, "You weren't going to kill Paul, were you?"
"Yes, I was," she replied, matter-of-factly. Tracy's blood ran cold to hear her say it so calmly.
John's face turned beet red. "I forbid you to say another word until our lawyer gets here," he commanded, and she obeyed. She always obeyed him.
Eventually, James and Greg went to talk to John. They spoke in hushed tones, then the three men walked over to Mr. Hayes and Tracy. The two of them stood as the men approached.