It wasn’t the diamond waiting in the security office. It was her dog. The tiny white fluff she’d clutched like jewelry now sat in a carrier labeled in thick black marker: FOR RACHEL THE CLEANER. The guard replayed the footage: Vanessa’s husband, Richard, slipping Princess through the staff entrance after a vicious argument in the lobby, staring straight into the camera like a dare. Before I could process any of it, Vanessa stormed back into the hotel, mascara streaked, shrieking for her dog—only to find me beside the carrier and that note with my name. She lunged; Richard blocked her. Then, in a voice so calm it chilled me, he dropped the secret she’d buried for months: Princess had swallowed one of Vanessa’s diamond earrings, the vet had the X-ray to prove it, and Vanessa knew perfectly well there was more than one way a diamond could van… Continues…
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