The Strategist (3 page)

CHAPTER 5

C
amille walked a few paces behind Julia as they made the short trip from the terminal to the parking garage. Physically, Julia hadn’t changed one bit in the two years since Camille last saw her. If anything, she looked more radiant and healthy. From their telephone conversations, Camille knew that Julia’s career had come to dominate her life. She was a corporate attorney on the fast track of some major law firm, which undoubtedly meant long hours, little sleep, and zero social life. But she wore the stress well. Her strawberry blond hair fell lazily below her broad shoulders. Her chocolate brown eyes looked rested and alert. Her ready smile took up a comfortable residence on her sun-soaked face. And as Camille could tell from her yoga pants and fitted warm-up jacket, her shapely body benefitted from a lot of time spent in the gym. If there was one constant with Julia in the sixteen years that Camille had known her, it was the attention she paid to her appearance. Whatever else was going on in her life – and with Julia there was usually a lot – she never failed to look the part of the smart, successful, disgustingly beautiful go-getter.

Camille hoped that the confident beauty she saw walking in front of her now wasn’t merely a matter of looking the part.

“Did I mention you look amazing?” Julia said over her shoulder, as if she were reading Camille’s mind.

“You’re too sweet,” Camille answered with a sarcasm that masked her mild embarrassment.

“I’m serious, Cam. You’ve got that whole Halle Berry with curly hair vibe going on. It’s a great look.”

Camille’s cheeks burned. “Please. I don’t look
anything
like Halle Berry.”

Julia stopped mid-stride and turned to Camille with a genuine look of shock. “Oh my God, yes you do. No one has ever told you that?”

“Only my well-intentioned, yet completely delusional friend here.”

Camille had never been short-changed on positive comments about her appearance. But when she looked in the mirror the last thing she saw was a movie star. A pro beach volleyball player or track and field sprinter perhaps. Her toned, five-foot-nine frame certainly made each a possibility. But Halle Berry? Even with their similar skin tones and hair styles, Camille considered the comparison to be
a monumental stretch at best.

“I know more than a few guys who would seriously beg to differ,” Julia insisted.

Camille sighed. “Had those guys seen me about twenty minutes ago, I don’t think they would have been begging for anything.”

“What do you mean?”

“Let’s just say my stomach was having a hard time adapting to its new environment.”

“Did you get sick on the flight?”

“As soon as we landed. The thin air here almost knocked me out.”

“Are you talking about that altitude sickness nonsense? That is such a stupid myth. We’re not even that high up, and everyone talks about how they can’t breathe when they come here. It’s not like we’re in the Alps or something. Besides, you grew up in Colorado, so you should know better.”

“Okay Doctor Leeds. What does your vast medical experience tell you the problem is?”

Julia pondered for a moment. “Honestly, I think you’ve been scared to death.”

“Of what?”

“Coming back. Seeing me. Seeing your father. It’s been a really stressful time, and I think it finally caught up with you this morning.”

Camille stopped walking.

“Don’t get upset, Cam. I’m not saying that as a negative thing.”

“But it is a negative thing.”

“Given the circumstances, I’d say it’s perfectly understandable.”

Camille’s grip tightened around the handle of her suitcase. In her heart of hearts she knew that Julia was right, but admitting so would open up a floodgate that she had fought tooth and nail to contain. “I’ve been scared of a lot of things lately, but seeing you definitely isn’t one of them.”

“Okay,” Julia said with a nod. “Just know that I understand how you’re feeling. Pr
obably more than you realize.”

Camille relaxed her grip on the suitcase as they started walking again. “I know you do. That’s the only thing that makes this situation tolerable. It scares me more to think of how things would be if you weren’t here.”

Julia’s face stiffened.

“What’s the matter
?” Camille asked, noticing her sudden change in demeanor.

“Nothing,” she answered, her expression unchanged.

“Are you sure?”

Julia drew in a shallow breath as she stopped in front of a burgundy Range Rover. “Your ch
ariot awaits.”

Camille’s concern for Julia was quickly replaced with awe over her car. “I guess someone is doing quite well for themselves.”

“The eighty-hour work week does have its privileges.” Julia opened the hatch and put both of Camille’s suitcases inside. “Memento?” she asked when she saw the duffle bag.

Camille sighed as she took the bag off her shoulder and threw it in the car. “Just another piece of luggage.”

The first few moments of the car ride were spent in silence. The dull gray sky had recently opened up, pounding the windshield with thick sheets of rain. Camille stared absently out the window as they passed green fields of empty earth. So far, nothing about this place felt familiar, and had it not been for Julia sitting in the driver’s seat next to her, Camille would have wondered if she had indeed landed on that alien planet twenty million light-years away.

“I’m afraid it hasn’t changed much since you were last here,” Julia said as she kept her eyes focused on the wet road.

“I’ve noticed.”

“But that’s probably not a bad thing, right? You pretty much know what you get around here. Great skiing, a marginal nightlife, and a ton of people who will be over the moon to see you.”

“Not to mention zero prospects for a job, an undersized bed in my father’s house, and a soul I seemed to have left somewhere on the east coast.”

“Dramatic, are we?” 

“I’m not being dramatic. I’m simply seeing the situation for what it is.”

“Look, I know what happened was horrible. But I’m not going to pretend that I’m unhappy you decided to come home. This is the best place for you right n
ow. You need to be in a familiar environment with people who know and love you. And personally speaking, my life is going to be a hell of lot more bearable because you’re in it.”

“That’s a big statement.”

“It’s a true one, Camille. And I’m not the only one who feels that way. I don’t know if you want to hear this, but no one is crying over you right now. You want to know why?”

Camille’s stomach tightened. “I’m not sure I do.”

“Because you’re stronger than any of us even realize. No one is crying because if there is anyone on the planet who can go through all this heinous crap and eventually emerge on the other side of it a better person, it’s you. You’re down right now, we all know that. But you’re not staying down.”

Camille rolled her eyes. “Man, I feel like I just walked into a Tony Robbins seminar.”

“Screw you, I’m being serious. You dealt with stuff everyday that the average person only sees in movies. And you kept your head completely together through most of it. Everyone has their threshold, and you finally reached yours. That doesn’t make you a failure. It makes you just like everybody else. Frankly, I would be more worried if those things didn’t bother you.”

“Yeah, but I wasn’t supposed to be like everybody else, Julia. I was supposed to be able to handle more.”

“No one expected you to be super-human just because you carried a gun and an FBI badge. I know there was all this pressure because of who your dad is. But he of all people should understand what you’re going through. You don’t think in all the years he was out there that he never thought about quitting?”

“So what if he thought about it, Julia. He never did it.”

“You did the only thing you could do, Camille. There’s no way he’s going to think any less of you because of it.”

Camille shook her head and bit down on her lip. “I love you, and I love that you’re trying to make me feel better. But can
we please change the subject?”

Julia looked at her like she had more to say, but decided on a simple nod instead. “Whatever you say.” Then after a long silence: “So what do you want to talk about?”

Camille looked in wonder at the smooth, leather upholstered interior of Julia’s car. “How about we start with this Range Rover? The last time I was here, you were in a Toyota Camry that was, let’s just say, well-driven. When did you graduate to this?”

Julia smiled as she stroked the steering wheel. “She’s a beauty, huh? And it only took seven hundred billable hours to pay for her.”

“I’m sure you loved every second of it.”

“Love is a very strong word.” 

“Please. You’re the biggest workaholic I know.”

“Maybe my priorities have been out of whack.”

“Wonderful. So does this mean you’re ready to quit your job too? Maybe we can start a knitting circle with all the other washed-up hags.”

The smile faded from Julia’s face and she tightened her grip on the wheel. “I just made junior partner, Cam. I think it’s a little late for that.”

“Easy. I was just joking. It’s called lightening the mood.”

Julia eased her grip on the wheel. “Sorry. I guess I get a little bent when
it comes to work these days.”

“Clearly.” Then Camille took another look around the car. “At least the perks seem pretty good.”

“It’s not about that.”

“Since when?”

Julia laughed like she was on the verge of becoming annoyed. “Since I began to see what can happen when people value the perks too much.”

“By people you mean all those snobby Yale-educated lawyer types you work with?”

“Watch it, I’m one of those Yale-educated lawyer types.”

“True, but notice you left out the word snobby. Besides, there is nothing wrong with having nice things. Try spending eight years driving around in a government-owned Grand Marquis that needs an oil change every five hundred miles.”

“I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with having nice things. I work hard for my money and I enjoy spending it. But I also know how to keep life in perspective. I’m not one of these assholes who lives and breathes for money. Look around my firm and you’ll realize within five minutes that I’m in the clear minority. It’s almost criminal how shallow they are.”

“If it’s that bad why don’t you do something else? Wasn’t the plan to go to law school to be a prosecutor? There’s always a market for that.”

“That was the plan if I stayed ay CU. Unfortunately I got accepted into Yale, which made my track very narrow.”

“Just because you have a big student loan bill to pay back doesn’t mean you have to be miserable doing it. You have a lot of options.”

“I don’t have nearly as many as you think.”

“Okay, now you’re getting all cryptic on me. I’m not a fan of cryptic.”

Julia’s posture became rigid and tension hardened her soft features. “What can I say, Cam? I hate my job.”

Camille was quiet as she studied Julia’s face. Eyes that were bright and curious minutes earlier had now become strained with
worry.

“Are you sure that’s all it is?”

Julia shifted in her seat. “It’s not like I’d be the first person in the world to despise what they do for a living. What else would it have to be?”

“Did you suddenly forget who you’re talking to?”

“The woman who knows me better than I know myself? How could I possibly forget?”

“Be sarcastic if you want to, but you know it’s true. Remember, I once made a living out of reading people. Most of the time they didn’t have to say two words to me before I knew exactly what they were thinking. And that was after knowing most of them for no more than five minutes. Imagine what I can do with you.”

“Okay, so what are your finely-tuned instincts telling you right now?”

“That you’re holding out on me. I don’t know if it has to do with your job, the assholes you work with, or something more personal. I just know there’s something else going on and for whatever reason you’re not talking.”

Julia looked at Camille with damp eyes. “The FBI’s loss truly is my gain.”

“What does that mean?”

“It means that they’ll be hard-pressed to find someone as talented at reading people as you.”

“In other words my instincts are right.”

Julia sighed. “We’ll talk about it.”

“When?”

“Soon. For now, let me just enjoy having you home.”

Camille sat back in her seat, willing to let the subject go for the time being. “Okay. But don’t think you’re going to get away without it coming up again.”

“I know you entirely too well to think otherwise.”

They spent the next few moments in silence. Julia directed her focus back to the water-soaked road while Camille stared out her window. Now instead of empty green space, she saw empty industrial space. But at least she sensed the makings of civilization.