All That Lies Broken (Ashmore's Folly Book 2) (16 page)

She knew he watched her as she looked away, her thoughts in turmoil. She thought of disregarding his advice and lying outright in a deposition, but Richard would know she was lying, and she’d know. And what if someone else found out? She’d heard enough about perjury to know what could happen if she got caught. It had come to her in the middle of the night, between verses, that she could delay the deposition and leave before she ever had to testify, but what if she couldn’t come back? What if this divorce dragged on for years? Could she leave Richard – and Lucy – could she leave Laura Abbott behind once again?

I am not ever going to leave him. He’ll have to ask me to go.

She made her decision. “Do you know who I am?”

He looked intrigued. “Other than Lucy’s sister, no.”

“I work as a singer and actress under the name Cat Courtney.” His eyes showed recognition and a certain disbelief. In her white blouse and black linen skirt, the most business-like clothes she’d brought to Virginia, she looked nothing like Cat. “That really does have some bearing on this. Do you know who my husband was?”

He shook his head. “Something to do with the Internet, Lucy said.”

“He was the richest man to die on September 11.” Laura took a deep breath. “There’s another family involved. There’s a will contest – or at least someone who might contest a will – and there’s a potential lawsuit about the collapse of the north tower, and there are hundreds of millions of dollars at stake. There’s an adoption that could potentially be overturned. And there’s a thirteen-year-old girl – my daughter. And it’s all connected to this,” she waved at the subpoena, “through me. So here goes.”

~•~

Laura told Jay Spencer most of the truth. She held back nothing except her relationship with Richard – except for her own strained loyalties, that couldn’t have any bearing on the subpoena. She left out Ash Marine and Cam’s extramarital adventures over the years; no one needed to know about those. But she told him everything else, including the truth about Meg, and the mid-morning appointment stretched until noon.

Jay said that, given the potential threat to Meg’s interests by Emma, Meg needed her own attorney. He called in a litigation associate, a woman Lucy’s age who had a teenager herself, and Laura signed an agreement on Meg’s behalf. He told her that he would send an immediate request to Mark for the adoption papers; the firm would store the papers for her in its safe. Given Mark’s control over Cat Courtney, Inc., he said, she needed attorneys skilled in corporate law and intellectual property in case Mark raised a ruckus over the trademark and copyrights. “He might have ideas you don’t agree with,” said Jay. “You may need to protect Cat Courtney the singer from Cat Courtney the company.” He told her to stop uploading to the Plano servers until the intellectual property lawyers could ascertain what control, if any, that gave St. Bride Data over her work. He had her sign a release so that he could obtain her tax records from SBFA and all her contracts from Cat Courtney, Inc. He told her to fax him a copy of Cam’s will; he wanted the probate division to ensure that Emma could not mount a challenge. He told her to continue separating her affairs from SBFA and suggested that she strongly consider removing Meg from Mark’s household. He recommended a trust officer at a local investment bank who could act in SBFA’s stead for her.

And, he warned her, she must be careful not to divulge Meg’s true parentage to anyone, “and that includes Lucy. She’s Richard Ashmore’s attorney. You have to remember that her first duty is to him as her client, not to you as her sister.”

Within a morning’s time, she acquired a whole army of lawyers, wrote a hair-raising retainer check, and became one of the firm’s most valued clients. The other senior partner came to Jay’s office to meet her; everyone gave her business cards and told her to call with any questions or concerns; she was invited to a party at Jay Spencer’s country club. The power of money, Laura thought. She’d never exercised it for herself before, and it was a heady feeling.

She was sorry that Lucy didn’t work for the firm anymore. Having Cat Courtney and the two St. Bride heiresses as clients would have established her as a rainmaker. She’d have to see to it that Lucy and Tom did not get left out in the cold.

~•~

“So what did you think?” said Lucy. “Isn’t he charming? He used to have
quite
the reputation. That third wife has settled him down.”

No wonder Jay hadn’t turned a hair at the subpoena. “Very nice. Very expensive.”

“Worth it, though.” Lucy sighed. “I wish I could have helped you, Laurie, but I just can’t. Tom’s represented Richard since before we got married. To be honest, we don’t have the resources to represent you. You need a big firm. They’ll take good care of you.”

Laura tried to dig for her keys without dropping her phone. “I’ve got some things you can help me with later on, Lucy. In fact, you can help me out now, if you don’t mind.”

“What do you need?”

“A real estate broker.”

A few seconds of silence. Then, “Be
cause?
”

“Because I want to buy a house.” Laura waited for reaction. “You don’t seriously think I’m going to let you raise that baby without me here to spoil it, do you?”

Lucy sounded distracted. “I don’t suppose you’d like to buy Dominic’s house from Di?”

“No! If Di needs money—” Buy the house where Dominic had bullied her? She couldn’t even if she wanted to. Jay had told her that, while she could continue contact with her sisters and Richard (“I don’t think you’d comply if I told you not to”), until the divorce was over, she was not to enter into any business transactions with them or give anyone any extraordinary gifts. “Oh, I forgot, I can’t. I don’t want to live in that house. I want my own.”

“We both know an architect.”

“I can’t.” Laura wanted to cry. She already hated this divorce. “No business transactions. And I
love
that kitchen. Just find me a broker, okay?”

“Hmmm.” Lucy sounded up to something. “Let me think. I may know a way around that. That reminds me – Richard talked to you about helping on the 4th?”

What one had to do with the other, Laura couldn’t imagine. “Yes.”

“I’m supposed to get together for lunch with Mel McIntire – his partner’s wife – to firm up the details. But I’ve got this contract due at two – would you mind going for me? We’re supposed to meet at 12:30 before she goes on shift at the ER.”

“Okay.” Her nap could wait an hour or so. She’d keep her eyes open a bit longer. “Where?”

~•~

As soon as Laura disconnected, Lucy smiled to herself, a dangerous smile that would have chilled Richard’s blood, and placed a call.

“She took the bait,” she said. “You’ll know her. She looks like a younger version of Di.”

“Got it,” said Mel McIntire above her kids’ voices. Lucy heard them tearing around in the background. “It’s chili day at Mac’s, so you know the guys will be there. Now what am I looking for?”

Lucy thought a moment. “I don’t know,” she said. “But I think
you’ll
know when you see it.”

~•~

To: Lucy Maitland, Esq.

From: Melanie McIntire, M.D.

Subject: Reporting in

Boy, did I know! And have they got it bad. And is it serious.

OK, can I say this first? I like her a lot more than I ever liked Diana. She’s very sweet, although a bit quiet and reserved. When she’s not so tired, she’s probably a lot of fun. For someone with all that money, she seems down to earth and not at all fancy or stuck on herself. She’ll fit in well with the Queen Bees.

She apologized for yawning and said she’d been up all night writing a song. But she’s willing to help. I confused her because Richard told her there was nothing to the party, which of course there isn’t, so I had to make it sound a lot more complicated than it is.

One thing, before I tell you what happened when the boys showed up for their chili fix. She seemed interested in my ER work and asked how I handle it with the kids. Then she hemmed and hawed around and finally asked me to recommend a GYN to her because she needs a prescription. I sent her to yours. She got out her planner to write down the number, and her stray papers fell out, so I bent to help her pick them up, and guess what she had? That picture of the man himself from his book. It looked like she cut it out. I did that kind of thing in high school.

She turned all shades of red, and she was stuffing everything in her purse every which way, and that’s when I saw a pink plastic case in there. You don’t have four kids and a husband like Scott and not recognize every birth control device known to man. That was a diaphragm case, and I’m hazarding a guess she needs a new one. So – yes, she has a new love interest.

So then the guys came in, right on schedule, since heaven forbid they miss chili day at Mac’s. I acted surprised and delighted and waved them right over. I was trying to keep one eye on her and the other on him and keep Scott from saying something like, “You know I never miss chili day at Mac’s, why are you so surprised?” So maybe I missed something, but I saw enough.

Both of them froze. She was drinking iced tea, but she stopped when she saw him, and he seemed to hesitate just a teeny bit before he came over. Scott sat beside me, so that left nowhere for him to sit except beside her. And you can’t believe how stiff they both were, not even looking at each other. I thought you might be totally off-base, because these two people acted like they couldn’t stand each other.

Except it was so deliberate. I tried to watch them without watching them, if you know what I mean, and I picked up on a lot of tension between them. Then she started looking at him, but not directly – some sideways looks where she seemed to be looking beyond him but she wasn’t. Her face was slightly inclined to him. I’m not sure if I’m describing this correctly, but, believe you me, I got the impression that, for her, it’s all about him, and forget anyone else. Him – he kept a straight face, but he knew she was watching him.

Scott asked what the lunch was all about, and Laura said you had asked her to meet with me about the hostess duties for the party. Richard gave me a look, since he knows damn well all we do is sit there mainlining margaritas. But then things got interesting. While Laura was talking, the waitress brought her some iced tea with a lemon slice, and without even looking at him, she leaned over and stuck the lemon on his glass for him to use. Now if she hasn’t seen him in 14 years and they’ve been fighting nonstop since she came to town, how did she know he drinks ice water with a truckload of lemons? And how did he know to ask the waitress for more pink packets when there were at least 20 blue packets, and then, when the girl brought him some,
hand one right to Laura without asking?

Another thing: how did he get gray cat hair on his pants? Not a lot, but you know me. I can see that sort of thing a mile away thanks to Scotty’s allergy. Now I know he doesn’t have a cat, but I assume someone with the name of Cat Courtney does.

And the whole time, he didn’t look at her.

OK, so none of this is smoking gun stuff. Just circumstantial, as they’d say on
Law and Order
.

BUT!!! Smoking guns to follow.

Scott started joking about how Richard has been scarfing down all the GS cookies in the office freezer and the staff is about to declare an official Thin Mint shortage. So Richard said he’d decided to give up smoking once and for all, so he’s snacking to keep from running outside for a smoke break. Now, he may have been talking to us, but he was really saying it to her. It makes sense; she’s a singer; he can’t smoke around her. That’s when she stopped pretending and looked at him as if he hung the moon and the stars combined. Then she said she’d make cookies for him so he wouldn’t run out of munchies, and even Scott caught on, because her voice was really saying,
I will do anything for you. Lay down my life, bear your children, just name it.

Then the
coup de grace
. Are you ready?

We all ordered dessert. She got that strawberry thing. Scott finished before me, and, as usual, started eating my dessert before I was done with it. He had his arm on the back of my chair –
hey, world, this is my woman
. The guys were talking about the Charleston job, about the cracked foundation or something and how they need to jack up the estimates, when, without asking and I guess without thinking either,
Mr. Manners leaned over and stuck his fork into one of her strawberries and ate it.
And, instead of sticking her fork into
him
, which is what I would do if some man I hadn’t had four kids with ate my dessert without asking, she pushed the plate over to him so he could finish it.

And that’s when I saw
his
arm on the back of
her
chair.