that, didn’t you?”
Mosely smiled benignly, and once again Nadia was tempted to do something imprudent.
“If you knew he was there, then you know that someone saw Nate alive after I left. Why are you questioning me instead of Bishop?” Not that she’d wish Mosely on Bishop, of course.
Mosely’s smile hardened. “Because Kurt Bishop is missing. Evidence suggests he stabbed Nathaniel to death and then fled the scene. I am trying to ascertain whether you might have been Mr. Bishop’s accomplice.”
Nadia’s mouth dropped open in shock. She was hardly Bishop’s biggest fan. As far as she was concerned, he was a bad influence on Nate, and there was a hard, bitter edge to him that made him difficult to like. But he would never hurt Nate.
“You’re way off target, Mr. Mosely,” she said. “I had nothing to do with Nate’s death, and I’m sure Bishop didn’t either.”
Mosely rolled his eyes. “Yes, yes, I’ve already heard about Mr. Bishop’s saintly innocence. The fact remains he is the prime suspect, and his refusal to turn himself in and account for his actions is most suspicious.”
Nadia didn’t find it suspicious at all. Mosely had already threatened to detain her, the daughter of a president and the presumed fiancée to the Chairman Heir. If he dared issue such a threat to someone of her station, God only knew what he would do to a nobody like Kurt Bishop. She refrained, however, from sharing that opinion with Mosely.
“Why would you suspect me of conspiring with Nate’s valet?” she asked instead. “What could I possibly stand to gain from Nate’s death? For that matter, what would Bishop have to gain?” Especially when they both knew Nate’s death would be temporary, thanks to the Replica technology.
“One assumes it was a crime of passion of some sort. Perhaps Nathaniel threatened to dismiss him and Mr. Bishop reacted violently to the news.”
Nadia shook her head. “That’s ridiculous.”
“Nathaniel’s Replica shares your conviction in Mr. Bishop’s innocence,” Mosely said. “I believe he will make his own attempt to locate Mr. Bishop, with the intention of helping him escape justice.”
If Nate’s Replica was just like the real Nate, then yes, he probably would. There was no way he’d believe Bishop was guilty, and he would do everything in his power to protect his boyfriend. Including reckless, dangerous things that could get him killed again.
“You are Nathaniel’s confidant,” Mosely continued, and Nadia shivered in premonition. “If you would agree to share with me whatever you might learn about his efforts to locate Mr. Bishop—or about any contact he might have with Mr. Bishop—then I would be inclined to release you into the custody of your parents.”
The blood drained from Nadia’s face as she absorbed the implications of Mosely’s words. “You want me to spy on him. To betray him.”
“He is a young and foolish boy, blinded by idealism. Bishop is a murderer, and he must be brought to justice, despite the stars in Nathaniel’s eyes. You wouldn’t be betraying him—you’d be doing him a favor. And he would never have to know.”
She shook her head. Even if she believed Bishop were the killer, she couldn’t betray Nate like that. The Nate she’d grown up with might be dead, but if she helped Mosely locate Bishop, she’d be betraying his memory. Not to mention his Replica, whom she’d one day find herself married to.
“I won’t do it,” she said, shaking her head. “I can’t do it. Nate would never forgive me.”
Mosely folded his hands on the table and leaned forward, pinning her with his stare. “Let me make the situation perfectly clear. You will do this. You will learn Nathaniel’s every plan, and you will share them with me. For Nathaniel’s own good. If you refuse, you will spend at least a week at the detention center, where you will be questioned more rigorously about your involvement with the murder.”
“You can’t do
Learning to Kill: Stories