Deadly Deception (Deadly Series) (17 page)

“Mrs. Montgomery, are you feeling all right?”

“Yes. I am not keen on flying.”

She knew that was a lie.  Carter would be waiting for her at their new residence.  That thought burned through her and not in a good way.

“Before we reach the airport, I have something for you.”

Robert reached for a small black box.  Reaching back, he handed it to her.  She stared at it with wide green eyes.  The last time she had opened a mysterious package, it released a whirlwind of lies and betrayal.  She bit down on her lip.  With shaky fingers, she lifted the top.  She released her breath with a sigh.  A black phone sat on top of a folded note.  Anne placed the phone gently on her lap.  She unfolded the paper.  It read:

I am looking forward to meeting my new sister-in-law. This phone will be your direct line to me. Tell no one, especially your husband! We will be in touch soon.

Michael Montgomery

She looked at Robert.  He nodded.  Quickly, Anne realized that she had an ally and she would need him to execute her plan.  And she knew Robert would keep her secret.  Her nerves calmed at the thought.  Anne Montgomery would destroy her husband.

***

The abandoned school house sat on the outskirts of Savannah, Georgia in an overgrown field of weeds and nocturnal creatures.  The warped wooden structure swayed in the southern night wind.  She ran her hands through the cloak of champagne that spilled over her shoulders and onto her dark silk blouse, while Robert escorted her to the white-chipped door that was guarded by a gruff looking man.

The windows were concealed with layers of dust and grime but a soft glow flickered through the years of neglect.  A gust of damp wind swirled around them, knocking Anne off balance.  Robert grabbed her arm.  She could feel her heels sinking into the mud and the screech of an owl sent her clutching onto the middle-aged driver.  He chuckled.

“It’s just an owl, Mrs. Montgomery.”

“I feel like I am in the middle of a horror film!”

He patted her arm.  The man at the door instructed her to raise her arms. 

“Why?”

“We don’t take chances.”

“Right, I have a rifle hidden up my skirt.”

The dark-haired man was not amused and continued his pat down.  Anne pretended she was at the airport being searched by a trained security guard, not being felt up by a dirty criminal in the middle of a swampy field in Georgia. 

He stepped back and opened the door.  It squeaked and chips of paint blew off in to the wind.  Anne turned back and looked at Robert.  He motioned for her to go in, he was remaining outside.  With a thick swallow, she twisted forward to view the candle-lit room. 
The odor of damp rotten wood and animal decay wafted by her as she breeched the threshold.  The plank floor groaned beneath her.

Anne felt four sets of eyes observing her arrival in the flickering illumination.  A lanky, authoritative man, wearing tailored black trousers and a crisp crimson oxford shirt approached her.  The shadows of the room shaded his unruly dark locks and ethereal eyes.  He leaned down and placed a kiss on her cheekbones.  Anne graciously welcomed the affection by returning the gesture on his smooth face.  She smiled at her half-brother-in-law. Anne had spoken with him a few times as she settled into her new life.  He never indicated animosity toward her but she knew to keep her secrets bound to her soul.  He was, after all, a ruthless Montgomery. 

“Anne, it’s nice to finally meet you.” Michael Montgomery’s tone was warm. 

“Michael, it’s a pleasure to meet you, as well.”

“I apologize for not attending your wedding. Last minute is hard for me these days. You understand?”

“I do. I know you have a lot going on.”

“You mean my bastard half-brother stealing Montgomery Incorporated right out from under me immediately after my father suffered a debilitating stroke? Yes, you could say I have a lot going on, Anne.”

She knew the term bastard for Michael meant more than just a derogatory term, but that in fact, Simon Montgomery had been busy having a sleazy affair with Carter’s mother, Rita Leeds, thirty-five years earlier. Surprise, it’s a boy! A boy Simon had wanted nothing to do with.

“I apologize. You know I understand your anger.”

“I know you do.”

“How is your father doing?”

Michael sighed.

“My dear brother has him tucked away in a private facility in Atlanta. The asshole won’t let me see him. Some doctor, whose name starts with an R.”

“Rasmussen.”

Anne couldn’t help the disdain she attached to each syllable. 

“Yeah, Dr. Rasmussen updates me.  The closest I’ve gotten to him is just inside the door of his room.  This whole situation is fucked up. How could my father have been so careless with the company’s legalities?  He practically handed the company over to Carter on a silver platter.”

Anne took two cautious steps toward him.  She didn’t care who ran Montgomery Incorporated, as long as it wasn’t Carter.  Anne needed Michael to trust her implicitly.

“Michael, you’ll get the company back. You are the true Montgomery.”

“We’ll get it back.”

“No—no, I’m not a Montgomery by blood, just marriage—if you call this forced arrangement a marriage. And you’ve just met me.”

She felt the weighted black diamond hang on her finger.  It was a chain to the devil.

“You are more of a Montgomery than that piece of shit will ever be. Just because his whore mother slept with my father doesn’t make him family. It makes him an enemy. He may be the eldest son and may have successfully accomplished a hostile take-over. It’s a loophole I plan to close.”

“I am flattered by your words, thank you. What I want is to have my life back.”

Her eyes glazed over with tears.  She swiped them away quickly, not wanting Michael to see her crumble—not when there was so much at stake. 

“We have many things in common, Anne, and I assure you, what was stolen will be returned. I promise you that.”

She believed him.  He wasn’t one of the good guys but he was her family, even if it was all a lie.  Anne’s twisted family tree had long since burned to the ground and was buried beneath her feet.  She needed Michael to help her protect the people she loved and to rid her of Carter, once and for all.

“He doesn’t suspect anything, does he?” Anne asked.

“No, our new-found reconciliation has satisfied him. I need to find out why he moved the company down here and away from Chicago. How is he at home?”

“Decent, and I wouldn’t call that a home. He has been away for the past few days, but I’ve kept busy.”  

She winked.  Anne took advantage of her Carter-free schedule.  When he would phone her, he would ask, “What did you do today, my Anneliese?” She would reply, “Networking for the company.”  He was pleased with her enthusiasm and pro-active demeanor.  Anne resolved her feelings of guilt with the fact that it wasn’t a complete lie.  Carter didn’t need to know with whom she was networking.  She could see in the dim light that Michael was smiling.

“I don’t doubt that. I do have a contact of my own monitoring him very carefully.”

“May I ask who?”

“The person will be in touch with you before the business dinner next week.”

Michael glanced at his gold-banded watch, and then motioned to his entourage.

“I have to go. Midnight poker game, twenty-five grand. Want in?

“Oh no, that’s too rich for my blood.”

“Not anymore it isn’t.”

Anne said farewell to Michael and walked out of the dilapidated school house and the brusque man who smirked at her.  Robert ushered her into the waiting SUV.  Once secured inside, she pulled out a crisp one hundred dollar bill and reached over Robert’s shoulder.

“Thank you, Mrs. Montgomery.”

“You are most welcome, Robert. And I should be thanking you.”

Before she forgot, Anne took the secret black cell phone from her purse.

“Oh, and this.”
 

He took the phone from her hand and slid it inside his coat pocket.  She hoped that one day Robert would forgive her for bringing him into the tangled web she was weaving.  He believed every one-hundred dollar bill she slipped to him an act of graciousness.  But Anne called it bribery. 

Andrea makes her home in North Carolina with her husband, son and fuzzy canine son. She is a neurotic, sarcastic, OCD, and cracked (but fun), wife, mother, homeschool teacher, writer, daughter, friend and everything in between.

You can find her at

http://www.andreajohnsonbeck.blogspot.com/

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She also writes monthly articles for Homeschool Mosaics and In-Depth Genealogist