Rania Algafari never asked to be different, and when she escaped the war in Syria and moved to the UK, her only goal was to live her life in peace. Get up, go to work, avoid talking to the dead - that sort of thing.
But not everyone dies quietly, an...
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"Aiden's gone," Will said when he arrived to pick me up from Daylesford Hall.
As it was Christmas Eve, Mr. Weston had sent everyone home early, which meant I'd finished cleaning by seven.
"What do you mean, gone? I only saw him yesterday."
He'd been leaving the kitchen on the ground floor. Aiden Rafferty was one of the few people who understood the concept of loading the dishwasher.
"His house is dark, his car's missing from the drive, and the lady next door said he'd asked her to feed his cat for a few days."
"Do you think he's running?"
"I don't know. Lloyd said Aiden's on annual leave until the new year, but he told the girl who sits next to him that he was spending Christmas at home on his own."
"Maybe he took a last-minute trip?" I asked as I climbed into the car. Will had swapped back to his own vehicle now, but the BMW was still a hundred times more luxurious than the bus.
"Maybe." Will didn't sound convinced.
"What else?"
"When I mentioned Aiden's name, Lloyd was more angry than surprised. Apparently, Aiden had a run-in with Anthony a couple of years back. A proper fist fight. They both accused the other of starting it."
"I'm surprised Aiden kept his job."
"Guess Lloyd understood how tempting it must have been to knock Anthony's front teeth loose. Son or not, the guy's a world-class prick."
Even with the heater on full blast, I still shivered at the memory of Anthony climbing past on the stairs soon after I started work. Although there'd been plenty of space, he'd pressed up against me on more than one occasion. Close enough for me to smell the alcohol on his breath, and close enough for me to feel his arousal. Pervert.
"Even so..."
"Aiden's been their best salesman since he joined. Guess Lloyd couldn't afford to let him go. But my contacts said there was no love lost between the pair of them."
"I guess he wouldn't have been too thrilled to hear that Aiden and Helene were having an affair."
"Especially with Derek lined up as his heir elect."
"So, what do we do now?"
"Enjoy Christmas. Weston Corp's closed until the twenty-seventh, and nobody'll want to answer questions about Aiden while they're opening presents and tucking into turkey."
"What are you doing for Christmas?" He'd mentioned he didn't see his family. "Are you spending it with RJ?"
"RJ gets summoned home every year. Kinda funny—he has to put on a suit and make small talk until his folks keel over from too much sherry."
