You Looked Down on Me Once Now You Look Up (Patricia and Oliver) novel Chapter 811

Oliver gave Patricia a quick rundown of everything going on with the Padilla family. He told her about the rumors swirling around Golden Bay about the old man, the mess Jaxon was in with his career, and how Pacific Capital had its hands in so many deals it would take forever to explain. But Oliver managed to sum up the important parts in just a few words.

Patricia caught on right away. “So, Dylan wanted to set you up, make you look like a killer, but you’re too hard to get close to. Since he was running out of time, he went after me instead, right?”

Oliver nodded. “Yeah.”

Even if a blind cat runs into a dead mouse, at least it’s something. Better than coming up empty.

Patricia poked at her plain noodles, her face tired. “Do I really look that easy to mess with?”

She didn’t wait for him to answer. “Now that Dylan’s dead, they’re not just going to let this go, are they? Is there any news out yet?”

She set her chopsticks down and grabbed her phone, scrolling through the headlines. The top story was still about some celebrity’s secret kid, the same scandal that had been everywhere for a week. Nothing new.

Patricia was suspicious. If she were in their shoes, she’d be paying big money to stir things up. “So, nothing? Or did you make it disappear?”

Mr. Padilla took a slow drink of water, thinking about how to respond. Patricia propped her chin in her hand and watched him, her sweater sleeve slipping down her slender wrist. She batted her clear eyes, looking all sweet and innocent. “Strategic water break, huh?”

“I’m not someone who can’t handle a little drama. It’s just business, isn’t it?”

She was right. She wasn’t fragile. But Oliver knew this wasn’t about being tough. The tabloids in Golden Bay were nastier than anything in Riverdale. Some of the things they wrote would make your eyes burn.

“There’s nothing out there,” Oliver told her. “They’re too scared to print it.”

Patricia wasn’t convinced. “Then what was all this for? To make things hard for me, or for you?”

Before Oliver could reply, her phone lit up and started buzzing. Colby’s name popped up on the screen. Patricia had a feeling this call would give her the answers she wanted. She was right.

Just as she stood up, Oliver reached out and caught her wrist. “Where are you going?”

“To find Sara.”

He let out a sigh. “Just sit down. I’ll tell you.”

“But we agreed. I can look, but I won’t let it get to me.”

Patricia nodded.

Oliver opened his messages and showed her a screenshot of a news article. Patricia remembered how Sara always complained about the Golden Bay tabloids, how disgusting and shameless they were, way worse than the ones in Riverdale. She hadn’t believed it before. Now she did.