Lie or Die: A Shelby Nichols Adventure (12 page)

After dinner was all cleaned up and put away, it was a relief to hear the back door open and know Chris was home safely. Savannah heard it too, and rushed to tell him about our vacation plans. His face slackened with bewilderment, and I realized I should have warned him over the phone.

With Savannah’s enthusiasm bubbling over, it didn’t take him long to warm up to the idea. My heart softened to see them with their heads together. Josh entered the conversation, and we all migrated to the computer to check the Internet for all the fun things we could do in Orlando. The kids went to bed happy, and contentment warmed my heart.

Chris pulled me into his arms. “I think I’m excited for our trip,” he said, surprised. “You must have cleared the dates with my secretary.”

“Yup. First thing I did after I left you today. How did the rest of your day go?”

“Pretty well. What about you?” He couldn’t discuss the case with me, so he changed the subject. “Find the stolen money yet?”

“No. But I think I’m getting closer.”

While we got ready for bed, I told him about staking out Betty’s Bra Bar and the good deal I got. “I think the shop is a front for something else, but I’m not sure what. I’ll just have to keep digging.”

Chris thought that sounded ominous and wondered if there was more to the story. I quickly got into bed and changed the subject. “I went to Uncle Joey’s to ask him about Webb Enterprises, and why someone might want them to lose.”

“What did he tell you?” Chris climbed into bed, but left the bedside lamp on.

“That he’d take care of it,” I said.

His brows rose. “What didn’t he tell you?”

I smiled. “He thinks the less I know, the better. Which is probably for the best. He’s involved with the company, but I don’t know how. But at least he promised to get to the bottom of it.”

“Without your help?” Chris asked. He knew I wasn’t telling him something.

“Not exactly,” I admitted. “But I’m not supposed to tell you about it.”

“Since when do you do what Manetto tells you?” He could see I was struggling with this. “Shelby, you don’t seriously mean to say that you’re not going to tell me what is going on.” When I didn’t answer he continued. “Remember how that didn’t work so well last time? I need to know so I can help you figure this out. You don’t need to do this alone.”

“Okay,” I capitulated, knowing I could tell him most everything, except for my suspicions. “I’m supposed to go with him to Webb Enterprises tomorrow morning, and see if there’s anyone there who’d want Adam Webb to lose. If I can hear something like that, we’ll know who’s behind this and how to stop it.”

“So he thinks it’s a personal attack on Adam?” That’s what Chris believed.

“I guess,” I shrugged. “Maybe someone is setting him up? Isn’t that what you think?”

“Well…yes. But you’re not supposed to know that.”

“What can I say?” I quirked a smile and shrugged. “It’s dangerous being around me.”

“That’s for sure.” He sighed. “Okay. This could be helpful, and I don’t think you’ll be in any danger.”

“Not considering I’ll be with Uncle Joey,” I said. “I’ll let you know if I find out anything. In the meantime, you need to watch your back.”

“Don’t worry about me.” He pulled me into his arms. “I mentioned the threat to David, and he’s taking it pretty seriously. It reminded me what you said about him being Manetto’s man. What exactly does that mean?”

“I don’t know. He didn’t explain it, and I couldn’t exactly ask.”

“That’s too bad. If you talk about David, listen to Manetto’s thoughts, and maybe you’ll find out. I’d like to know.”

“Yeah,” I sighed. “But it’s more complicated than that. You’re forgetting that Uncle Joey knows I can read minds. It kind of puts a damper on our conversations and makes him suspicious of everything I ask or say. He’s learning how to block his thoughts pretty well. Kind of like you.”

Chris huffed, thinking that having that problem in common with Uncle Joey was disconcerting. It made him dislike Manetto even more.

“How much longer do you think the trial is going to go?” I asked.

“Hopefully, we’ll be done sometime next week.” He was thinking it might even be by the end of this week, but he didn’t want to get my hopes up.

“That means the person threatening you will have to make his move soon.”

“I don’t plan on giving him that opportunity,” Chris said. “If he can’t get to me, then he’s out of luck.”

“Or he might think of something else. Maybe you need me at the courthouse.”

“See what you find out with Manetto first, then we’ll decide what to do after that.” He was thinking he could take care of this himself, and he didn’t want me in the middle of something dangerous. “Oh…that reminds me,” he said. “Why didn’t you tell me about the little girl?” He was thinking it was embarrassing to find out about it from one of the police officers at the courthouse. Especially since they’d told him to tell me thanks, and he didn’t know what they were talking about.

“Oh…well, if you remember, that was the night you stayed late, and ended up at the hospital with Gary. I wanted to tell you, but it was really late, and you were too distracted with all that stuff going on.” 

“So, it’s my fault you didn’t tell me?” he asked.

“Did I say it was your fault?”

“No, but you sounded upset.”

“So did you,” I said. “Plus you were thinking that you were embarrassed that you didn’t know. That sounds a little like you’re blaming me, doesn’t it?”

“Yeah,” Chris replied, and rubbed my arms, instantly contrite. “But I want you to tell me things like that, no matter how out of touch I might seem. It’s important. I mean…you saved a little girl’s life. That’s pretty amazing. Sure I was embarrassed. But I felt left out too.”

“Well…sometimes you’re just so busy with your work that I feel like I can’t impose on your time. Kind of like I have to take a back seat because what you’re doing is more important.”

“Oh,” Chris said, thinking that if I felt that way, it was probably true. It was a shock to think he acted like such a jerk. But there were also times he got the distinct impression I wasn’t telling him everything either, and that bothered him.

“But I should have told you,” I said, not wanting him to feel bad, especially since he was right that I didn’t tell him everything. “I was going to tell you the next morning when you left for work, but you were in a hurry, and it was late. Then with everything else, it slipped my mind. Probably because it was awful to think about finding her…with her head wrapped up in that plastic…and not knowing if she was going to live or die. It was pretty traumatic.”

“I’ll bet,” he said. “Tell me what happened.”

I snuggled next to him in bed, and told him everything. It felt so good to share my feelings, and I realized I needed this moment with him. And Chris needed it too. He didn’t want to be left out of my life, no matter how busy he was. I finished my story and he held me close.

“I’m so proud of you,” he said. “Maybe reading minds isn’t all bad. Just…some of it’s bad.”

“Oh, really?” I pulled away.

“You know what I mean,” he tugged me back. “It isn’t easy for me, and I know it’s been hard for you. But for now, I’m glad you have it.”

“Wow, I never thought I’d hear you say that,” I said.

“Well…enjoy it, because tomorrow I might feel differently.” He leaned over and gently kissed me, smothering the protest coming from my lips. “And I want you to know that I’ll always have time for you. You’re the most important person in my life. Don’t ever forget that.”

I met his kisses with passion of my own, letting him know how much I loved him. Much later I fell asleep, feeling safe and secure in his arms.

Chapter 7

I startled awake at four in the morning from a bad dream. My heart pounded with fear, and my stomach clenched with remorse. I knew it all stemmed from guilt. There were things I’d kept from Chris, and no matter how much I thought it was for his own good…guilt, and worrying if I’d done the right thing, deeply troubled me.

Knowing how early I had to get up didn’t help either, but I managed to doze on and off until my alarm went off at six a.m. I shuffled into the bathroom and turned on the shower while shedding my clothes. The spray hit my face, jolting me awake. Not being a morning person, getting up after such a bad sleep did awful things to my system, especially since I was already cranky.

It made me question things. Like…what was I doing with my life? Was this how I wanted to live? Having my own business seemed cool at first, but now I wasn’t so sure. Instead of getting answers and staying on top of things, it seemed I was just getting sucked deeper and deeper into trouble.

I was making some progress into finding the stolen bank money, but it might be dangerous, and even life threatening, considering that guy who thought about killing me. Did I want to go back to Betty’s Bra Bar? Not exactly. Where did that leave me? Maybe I should just give all my clues to Rob Felt and let him get killed instead of me. I smiled. That thought lightened my mood a bit.

The more important issue, of course, was keeping Chris safe from whoever wanted to beat him up. At least I was doing something about that. This was one of those times I was grateful to have my mind-reading skills. What I did was a good thing. I needed to focus my positive energy on saving Chris, and not worry so much about lying to him.

Feeling more at peace, I rushed to get ready for my day. I decided to wear a blazer and pencil skirt ensemble that made me look more like a professional. Chris was dressed and finishing breakfast when I joined him in the kitchen. “Are you leaving already?” I asked.

“Yeah. I’ve got some things to go over at the office before we head to court.” He set his dirty dishes in the sink and pulled me into a hug. “You look great,” he said. “And smell even better. Good luck today. Let me know if you find out anything I need to know for the trial, okay?”

“Sure.” I smiled, pleased with his complements. “Is anyone else going to be in the office besides you?”

“Yeah, don’t worry about me.”

“You know, you can say that all you want, but it isn’t going to happen. I’m going to worry. I can’t help it. Hey…I know…why don’t you take my stun-flashlight? You can have it until I order a regular stun gun for you. What do you think?”

“All right, sure.” He was thinking it was a waste of money, but if it made me feel better, he’d do it.

I grabbed my purse and took out the stun-flashlight. “It should fit in your pocket. Do you think you can get it past security in the courthouse?”

“Maybe,” he said. “I’ll put it in my briefcase and see what happens.”

“Okay. I’ll give you a call at lunchtime.”

“Good.” He kissed me and hurried off.

As I finished getting ready, Josh and Savannah came downstairs and grabbed something to eat before leaving for school. Between getting them and myself out the door, I panicked that I wouldn’t make it to Uncle Joey’s on time.

I pulled into the parking garage with only two minutes to spare, and dashed to the elevators. I exited on the twenty-sixth floor, hoping Uncle Joey wasn’t a clock-watcher, and wouldn’t be angry with me.

Ramos stood with his arms crossed, waiting at the doors to Thrasher Development. “Oh good, you’re here,” he said. “I’ll get Mr. Manetto.” He was thinking that I’d barely made it. Manetto hated waiting for people. Of course, in my case it was different. Manetto had a soft spot for me, which was a good thing, since Ramos did too. Had I just heard that? He glanced at me, and I turned so he couldn’t see my face. My satisfied smirk would have given me away for sure.

Uncle Joey left his office with Ramos trailing behind. “Let’s go,” he said to me. I followed closely and tried to pick up what he was thinking, but the only thing I heard was that he was glad I’d dressed up, and that I looked good. After that, he successfully blocked the rest of his thoughts, and I wondered if he was hiding something. Ramos drove, and I took my place in the back seat beside Uncle Joey.

“You can sit in on the first part of the meeting, but you’ll have to leave when we vote since you’re not a member of the board,” he said. “I’ll introduce you as my personal assistant. Here’s a binder from the last board meeting so you can follow along. It’s typically the same agenda each time.”

“Okay,” I said, taking the binder. I shuffled through the pages to get familiar with the topics they would be covering. “Is this a summary of expenditures and profits?”

“Yes,” he said. “You will be excused at the end when we decide if we want to keep going the way we are or diversify. Several of the members will make proposals that we will vote on. Those are the ones I want you to listen to carefully.”

“Okay,” I said, puzzled. “How does that help Chris’ case?”

He wasn’t expecting me to question him, and his brows rose. “It will help us know if someone wants the company to fail. Before the vote, we’ll take a break and you can tell me what you’ve picked up. Then I’ll know how to vote.”

“Okay,” I said. This was getting strange. Why would anyone on the board want the company to fail? These people held stock in the company. It wouldn’t make sense. They’d lose money. “I don’t get it, but I’ll do it.”

“Good,” he said. A trickle of anticipation slid past his barriers. Having me there was going to be tremendously helpful.

Ramos pulled the car in front of the building, and opened the door for us. My stomach did nervous little flip-flops, and I worried about what I was getting into. I realized it was a natural reaction whenever I showed up someplace with Uncle Joey.

Webb Enterprises was located on the fifth floor, and we entered the suite behind several others who had arrived before us. With our entrance came a polite greeting from the secretary, and others acknowledged Uncle Joey with a handshake. While not enthusiastic, most seemed resigned to having Uncle Joey there.

He introduced me as his personal assistant, and I picked up a stray thought from a younger man. He was thinking that Manetto had never brought a personal assistant before, so maybe I had other duties. Duties like… I sucked in my breath and frowned, narrowing my eyes at him until his leering smile dissolved. Take that, you pervert.

Several others were curious as to why Uncle Joey needed a personal assistant. One man thought he was the type to flaunt his standing in the company, and this was just another way to say he was better than the rest of them. That came from the man in charge, and I decided to keep my eye on him.

We followed the secretary through several corridors to a large conference room. Uncle Joey took his seat, and a chair was brought in for me to sit behind him. I took out my pen and noted the names of the people from their nameplates, and where they sat around the table. There were twelve in all, and I hoped I could keep their thoughts straight.

The first part was pretty straightforward and boring. It wasn’t until we got to the proposals that it got interesting. I was shocked to realize that Uncle Joey held almost half the stock in the company. He had the most power and control in the room. But the others were still eager to see the company succeed.

Nothing seemed deceitful with the proposals, and I wondered what Uncle Joey had expected me to find. Then someone asked about the trial. They were all worried about the outcome. If Adam Webb was found guilty, it would ruin them. Most all of them figured it had something to do with Uncle Joey, and they blamed him for the charges in the first place.

My head began to pound from the strain of listening to all of them at once, but I knew this was my chance to hear something important. I focused on them, one at a time, but could find no evidence of guilt, or deception from their thoughts.

I even listened to Uncle Joey. He wondered which one of them had betrayed the company and turned over the initial evidence to start an investigation. He knew they didn’t like him, but to take down the whole company over the way he was compensated was stupid. If it weren’t for his initial investment, there wouldn’t even be a company. He hoped I could figure out who did it.

Now I knew he suspected one of them, but he was wrong. None of them had done it, I was sure of it. So who wanted Chris to lose the trial? Who would benefit? It didn’t make sense to me, but maybe Uncle Joey would know. He must have a lot of enemies. It could be any of them. But how did they know he had underhanded dealings with Webb Enterprises? It seemed like only someone in his organization would know that, someone who wanted Uncle Joey out of the picture. On the other hand, it could be someone who just had a beef with Adam Webb, and maybe it didn’t have anything to do with Uncle Joey.

The meeting adjourned for a ten-minute break, and Uncle Joey escorted me out of the room. We walked out of the office and down a corridor until we found a place away from anyone who could hear us. “Well?” he asked. “Who is it?”

I twisted my lips, and shook my head. “It isn’t any of them. They all want the company to succeed. They’re worried about the trial, and they think it has something to do with you, but they don’t want the company to fail. That means the threats must be coming from someone else. Think about it. Who would gain if Adam Webb lost the trial? Would losing the trial expose you? Could you go to jail?”

“Those are good questions,” he said, his brows furrowed in contemplation. That’s why he had David Barardini working on the trial, so he wouldn’t go to jail. “You’re sure it isn’t anyone on the board?” It was still hard for him to believe.

“Yes,” I said decisively.

He frowned, disappointed that finding the culprit wasn’t going to be as easy as he thought. “Okay,” he said, resigned. “Let’s get back.”

I followed him back to the conference room, but when we arrived, I wasn’t allowed back inside. The secretary gave me a tight smile and told me I could sit on the couch in the waiting area. She returned to her work, but not before thinking she was glad there were rules for people like Manetto, who’d just break them left and right if they could get away with it. Then there was me. No respectable person would work for a guy like Manetto. What I did for him probably took the position of personal assistant to a whole new level. Cheap trash.

Anger washed through me, turning my face red, and I unconsciously drew my fingers into clenched fists. How dare she? Who gave her the right to judge me? I wasn’t any of those things. Why did everyone assume the worst? I mean…sure I was with Uncle Joey, but that didn’t make me his plaything. I wanted to tell her to get her mind out of the gutter, but that was out of the question. Instead, I focused on the pictures on her desk.

“Are those your little boys?” I asked, trying to sound calm.

The question surprised her. “Yes,” she said. “But this picture is out of date. They’re teenagers now.”

“Oh really? I have a fourteen-year-old son myself. He’s always hungry. I swear that kid eats more food than a horse.”

She laughed, and we shared a few stories of what it’s like to have teenage boys at home. Before we knew it, the meeting was over, and it was time for me to go. “It looks like they’re done,” I said. “It’s been nice chatting with you. Good luck with your boys.”

“You too,” she answered, thinking what a nice person I was. She must have been wrong about me.

I smiled, feeling lots better. Uncle Joey came out talking to Ramos on his phone, and we walked to the elevator with some of the other board members. This time, I put my shields up. Hearing stray thoughts I could do nothing about was taking a toll on me. That meant I couldn’t hear Uncle Joey either. But so what? I didn’t need to know what he was thinking all the time.

We exited the building and waited for Ramos. Uncle Joey glanced at me, a faint smile on his face. He raised his brows like he was asking a question, and I realized I’d missed something. I dropped my shields. “Oh, I’m sorry. I had my shields up. Did you think something?”

“You put your shields up?” He could hardly believe it. What was I thinking? He thought I was force to be reckoned with, and here I’d put up my shields? Maybe he shouldn’t worry so much about what I’d pick up from his mind after all, although he thought I was smarter than that.

“Well…yeah,” I said defensively. “You wouldn’t believe what a lot of the people in there think about me and you. It’s pretty disgusting.”

“What do you mean?” He stopped cold, wondering if he’d have to break somebody’s arms or legs.

Oops. I should have kept my mouth shut. “It doesn’t matter,” I said. “What did you want to tell me?”

His eyes narrowed, and he pursed his lips. He had a reputation to uphold, but he couldn’t start beating people up because of their thoughts. He glanced at me, trying to remember what was he going to say. Oh yeah. “Since the threat isn’t coming from Webb Enterprises, there’s another source we’ll need to check.”

We were interrupted when Ramos pulled the car to the curb. As we climbed into the back seat, Uncle Joey was thinking about a match of some sort, and I couldn’t figure out what he meant by that. Ramos started driving away, and he continued. “There’s an event at my club tonight. I mentioned it yesterday. We might be able to find out what’s going on there.”