Never Say Never, Part Four (Second Chance Contemporary Romance, Book 4) (5 page)

Emily shook her head, willing the tears back into the depths of her soul. She turned the corner into the shortcut alley she took to get to her place, and the thump of footsteps followed her.
 

“Not again,”
she whispered. She glanced back and gave a low growl, the kind a feral cat would make. There was a man back there, tall and outfitted in black. He was bald, stocky, and he was close.
 

That was one of Ross’
lackeys, it had to be.
 

 
“Got a minute?”
He asked, and she made a break for it.
 

Emily sprinted down the alleyway, at full speed, feet sliding around in her pumps. Her heart raced.
 

“Fuck,”
the guy swore and lumbered after her. This was a part of her life she’d thought she’d left behind, god damn it. She wasn’t a damn stripper anymore, she had no bad debt. Only Brian to chase after her for what she might know. “Come back here, girl,”
he jeered in the darkness.
 

“Bite me, Baldie,”
she yelled back at him. Then burst into the street and carried on down it. Another back road, it was too quiet and he followed her, gaining.
 

“You’re mine now,”
he grunted, grasping the back of her shirt and tugging her backwards. She leaned forwards and the material ripped away. She ran harder, pumping her arms and injecting her energy into moving forward.
 

Into one more step.
 

But he was too close. If he caught her…
who knew? Take her to Brian? Kill her? Rape?
 

Ross had taken it too far this time, he was obviously unstable.
 

Emily sprinted down the road and towards her apartment block, but the thug didn’t give up easy. He chased her, panting heavy and slamming his feet into the tarmac.
 

Too close, the door was a few feet away. She had to reach it! She could lock him out and get a good look at his face.
 

Emily dashed up the stairs ahead of her attacker.
 

He came up behind and grabbed at her shoulder.
 

She grasped the handle and pulled, but he slammed her into the glass and held her there.
 

“Let go!”
 

“You’re coming with me.”
He muttered into her ear.
 

“What’s going on here?”
The assailant sprang away and turned. Joseph stood on the stairs below them, glaring. “Who the hell are you?”
 

The bald man ran down the stairs and across the street, disappearing into the shadows again.
 

Emily leaned against the door, gasping for air, the fear coursed through her still.
 

“Oh my god, Emily, are you okay?”
 

She gripped her throat and closed her eyes, flashing back to Big Nick and the torture of her past. She’d thought she was past this, but her insides were a jellied mess of terror.
 

“I’ll be fine,”
she managed. “You wanna come in?”

CHAPTER NINE

“Are you sure you’re okay?”
Joseph stood at the window, staring down at the street below and clutching his arms.
 

Emily gripped her cup of coffee and balanced on the end of her sofa. “Yes, I’m fine. Unfortunately, I’ve gotten used to that kind of behavior. Brian Ross will stop at nothing to get to me.”

“He’s a dangerous man,”
Joseph replied, then turned and came over to sit next to her. “I’m sorry about the other day, I didn’t mean to upset you or pressure you. I hope you know that.”
He didn’t try to touch her and it was a nice change from his usual cloying attitude.
 

“Thanks, I really need a friend right now.”
Emily rolled the half-empty mug between her palms and soaked up the heat. The windows were closed, but there was a bone-deep fear which had settled in her and sucked the warmth from her soul.

What had Brian wanted to achieve?

The question darted around in her mind, stuck in place and torturing her as surely as her ex-husband had. Mental torture was his forte. Mental torture. She snapped her fingers and Joseph flinched.
 

That was it!

The bald guy was an attempt to fuck with her mind. He wanted to weaken her or scare her. He wanted her to back off!

Bastard.
 

“What’s going on?”
 

“I need a way of getting back at Brian.”
 

“You have everything you need to destroy him in your hands.”
Joseph’s reply was even, and he shifted on the sofa to get a better look at Emily’s face.
 

She raised the cup. “I have a cup in my hands.”
 

“You know what I mean.”
 

“Yeah, I guess I do, but I don’t see a way to do it without bringing Chase down. I can’t risk him,”
she whispered the last sentence, and Joseph moved around again.
 

“Do you have any wine?”
 

Emily shook her head. “No, and I think you’ve had enough wine to last you a life time. Besides, I need you to focus on the problem at hand right now. I do really need your help, Joseph.”
 

“That’s a first,”
he grumbled, and Emily frowned.
 

“I’ve always needed your help.”
She placed the mug on the coffee table with a clink. “What I didn’t need was your agendas.”
 

“Agendas!”
He jumped up and marched to the kitchen then turned and came back. He’d loosened the collar of his shirt and run a hand through his hair.
 

“Yes, I wasn’t born yesterday, Joseph, I know you didn’t want to be my friend for the sake of it. There’s always an agenda.”
 

“You’re too cynical,”
he replied.
 

“I’m realistic. Regardless, I need your help right now. Are you willing to give it to me?”
 

The tone on Emily’s phone jingled and Joseph handed her the handbag. She pulled out her smartphone and swiped on the message icon.
 

Lucky girl. Lucky, lucky, girl. Oh well, there’s always next time.
 

It was a text from an unknown number. She stared at the screen, biting her bottom lip, and Joseph slid in next to her.
 

“What’s wrong?”
 

“He’s after me. If I go after him, he’ll try to destroy me or the kids or Amanda.”
The burning rage was there, but this time it was accompanied by anxiety. If he hurt the kids, she’d never forgive herself.
 

Joseph took the phone from her limp hand and examined the screen. “How do you know this is from him?”
 

“Who else? There’s no one who’d want to hurt me except for him. He just doesn’t want to incriminate himself.”

“Does he know you have his confession?”

“Of course not,”
Emily said, then pushed her fingers through her long blonde hair. “I’m not stupid, but I did confront him about what happened, so he knows I know the truth.”
 

“Then he’s trying to keep you off his back for long enough.”
 

“Long enough?”
 

“He’s going to do something big.”
Joseph cocked his head to the side and gave her the smartphone. “It makes senses, think about it, he’s distracting you or threatening you long enough to come up with a method of getting rid of the threat for good.”
 

“That sounds like Brian. But how do you know?”
 

Joseph hesitated then broke away from her gaze. “I’ve seen it before. Brian is a manipulator and he doesn’t want you to do anything. He’s trying to scare you off.”
 

“It’s working,”
Emily admitted, and a well of shame exploded inside her. She’d been so afraid of him before, then found the strength in the hopes of a better future for her children, and now this.
 

Joseph gripped her arm and pulled her focus around. “Don’t ever give up, Emily.”
 

“How can I do this on my own? I was so angry at him for what he did, so determined to get back at him, that I didn’t stop to think whether it was even possible to get that revenge.”
She stared at that blank TV screen again.
 

“You’re not on your own,”
he said, then paused and cleared his throat, “you have me. I mean, if you want my help after everything that’s happened.”
 

“I do. I need your help, Joseph, I don’t just want it. I don’t know where to start with this. I have the resources, but I just don’t know what to do with them.”
She smacked tears off her cheeks in frustration.
 

“Hey, relax, it’s okay,”
Joseph whispered, grabbing a box of tissues and offering her one. “We’re going to do this together.”
 

She blew her nose noisily and he chuckled, but waited for her to speak.
 

“Thank you, Joseph.”
 

“No problem,”
he said, dusting off his pants. “Are you ready?”
 

“For what?”
She chewed her lip and reached for the cold coffee, then grimaced and left it on the table instead.
 

“To take down Brian Ross.”
 

Emily gritted her teeth. “Absolutely.”

CHAPTER TEN

Emily straightened her pencil skirt and squared her shoulders.
 

The door swung inwards and Joseph gave a warm smile. “I’m so glad you could make it. I’ve got a few propositions which I think you’ll approve of.”
 

“What kinds of propositions?”
Emily’s suspicion gauge went crazy. This didn’t feel right to her –
could she really trust Joseph on this one?
 

“Come on in and relax.”
He opened up wider and she entered the leather-festooned office, decorated in different shades of brown and burnt orange. “Trust me on this one, I’ve got your best interests at heart.”
The door clicked closed and he turned the key.
 

Alarm bells went off in her mind, but she didn’t try to leave. Instead, she strolled to the leather chair and plopped down in it. Hopefully, he’d come to a solution which she couldn’t.
 

Joseph circled to his side of the expansive desk and took a seat, flipping the top of a dossier open and closed in idle play.
 

“So,”
he pronounced, opening it again, then glancing down and clicking his tongue. “Brian Ross needs to be taken down and there are two ways you can do it.”
 

Emily’s heart leapt into her throat –
Brian had to go down for what he’d done, the country had to know what they had to deal with too.
 

“Give it to me straight, no sugar coating,”
she commanded, fiddling with the tote on her shoulder. She swung it off and into her lap, then scrunched it into place.
 

“Option one,”
he said, raising his index finger, “is to take Brian Ross to court for perjury in a court of law, defamation of character and a whole host of other things. It will cost a lot of money and take a long time, but your results will likely be fruitful.”
 

“Likely?”
 

“Well, Brian Ross is an influential man.”
Joseph smoothed his fingers over the desk, laying it out for her. “He’ll want to settle out of court to prevent the media from getting to much information about the case. God knows, he has enough connections to get out of a jail sentence without trouble –
I travel in those circles, trust me, I know. His main concern will be the media fall out.”
 

“I see. So, costs a lot and not going to bring justice in the end.”
A sour taste spread over her taste buds. Just what she needed: Brian Ross on the streets, free to torture her and the kids for the rest of their natural lives.
 

“Exactly,”
he said, with a bob of his head.
 

 
“I have to have him off the streets, Joseph, I can’t have him near my children and I need to win custody.”