A Commitment to Love, Book 3 (31 page)

Giving mood? Your daughter is with a serial killer and you’re sipping wine and feeling fine?

“According to Benny’s madman diary, you had some odd jobs in South End that would’ve provided you with a decent income.”

“That’s not a question.” She sipped her wine.

“Did Jasmine really have to pay the electricity bill?” I asked.

“No, but I already told you that in the end, it was a reminder of her debt.”

“Did she know this?”

“I tell people what they need to know at the time they need to know it.”

“So now I need to know these things?”

“Maybe. Benny’s filled your head from that journal. I might as well say what I have to say to steady the balance.”

“He thinks you’re an architect of deception.”

“That’s what he said?”

“Yes.”

“And did he provide evidence?”

“Several journals of it.”

“And now you have questions?”

“Yes, but this is good.”

“Why?” she asked.

I took a chance and simply told her, “Now you can stop pretending to be someone else.”

Silence passed as she crossed her legs and tapped her foot into the air. “Ask away. This should be interesting.”

“After we came back from France, did you know that Jasmine would ask me to pay for your electricity bill?”

“No way.” She laughed. “And she didn’t ask you to pay, did she? I would be surprised if she did. But you, I knew you would find out. You can’t just date a woman and give her privacy. Benny claimed you liked to watch your girlfriends on a 24/7 camera feed.”

“So you knew a lot about me, before I met Jasmine?”

“I found out everything I could, once the last chick of yours died. Figured it was time to do some matchmaking.”

So now we’re really done with pretending? How much do you think I’ve read about Benny?

My mouth went dry. “That’s impossible. There’s no way you could’ve gotten Jasmine and I together. I met her at Equinox’s Garden Party. My corporation hosted the entire event.”

“So then how did Jasmine get invited to your event?” She took another sip and hummed at the taste. “This is really good stuff.”

How did Jasmine get invited?

I set my glass down. “If I remember correctly, her best friend was invited. Vivian.”

“Why would Benny’s daughter be invited to the event?” Sophia signaled for the stewardess to come back over.

She rushed to Sophia. “Yes, Mrs. Montgomery?”

“Do you have any more of those chocolate, nut-covered strawberries?”

“Yes, Mrs. Montgomery.”

“Thanks for getting me some.” She displayed a bold smile. The stewardess rushed off, and my future mother-in-law returned to her wine. “So how did Vivian and Jasmine get invited to the party?”

“I don’t know. Lucy did the list, but you don’t know her.” I stirred in my seat.

“Benny had an invitation. He complained about it all night, claiming you were being an asshole and that you knew he wouldn’t come, just for the simple fact that his seating put him right across from you.”

“How did he know where he would be sitting?”

“He’d stormed to Lucy’s office, yelled about it, and then asked her how far would he be from you? She admitted that Benny would be at the head table.” Sophia traced her finger around the glass’s rim. “What made him so mad was that the event was supposed to be showcasing all of the high-end restaurants in Willow Park. It promised tons of food and wine tasting. He’d planned on taking Jasmine and the other, himself.”

“The other?”

“The white girl. His other daughter.”

“Uh, okay.”

“Then Lucy explained that you would be present and at his table.”

“Lucy never told me all of this.”

“Doesn’t matter. Benny refused to go. Lucy set a place for him anyway. Benny was pissed. He didn’t want you so close to Jasmine, which gave me a bunch of ideas.”

“What ideas?”

“Sun Tzu said many things, but in the end he was a big believer in seizing any opportunity that came. He believed once they were seized, they multiplied.”

What other war books do you read, Sophia?

“I considered this Equinox Garden Party as a great big opportunity. I’d never considered Jasmine as someone you would be interested in. Other rich men, sure, but not you.”

“Why not?”

“Jasmine was too much of a book nerd. Too book smart for her own good, not enough street knowledge to walk down a block by herself at night.”

“She’s smarter than you think,” I insisted.

“We agree to disagree.” She waved my comment away. “Benny decided to leave for business that morning. I’d already been spending the night at his place. All seven of my guards had actually spent the night with Jasmine … and that white girl. They did a big Barbie slumber party all with nail painting, tons of ice cream, and Disney princess marathon. That was what Jasmine considered a fun Friday evening. No, I didn’t think she could keep your attention.”

The more she downed Jasmine, the more a bad taste coated my mouth.

“I took the invitation from Benny’s place. He’d thrown it in his office’s trash can. After putting it in a new envelope, I took it right over to Jasmine’s house, brought it right to the roommate like I’d grabbed in from the mail, picked up my grandkids, and left.”

“How did you know they would go?”

“I didn’t. I just seized the opportunity. If it didn’t work, then something else would come up.”

Shocked, I shook my head. “This can’t be right.”

“Now you have to remember something. The successful way to living life is planting seeds. Every day, you plant several of them. Good ones and bad. Fruits and trees—”

“You’re losing me.”

“The invitation was just a seed. I didn’t think it would grow into anything interesting, but you just never know. In the end, Vivian spotted the invitation and told Jasmine about it. Broke college kids love free food, and the high-end tasting piqued my daughter’s love for the extravagance. They went, and again, I had no idea if anything would happen. But it did. Benny showed up to the party several hours later. The white girl texted him that she was there, and he lost it and showed up just to watch over them.”

“I remember the moment Benny walked in, he wore a scowl the whole time and wasn’t dressed for the event. By that time, he saw me watching Jasmine, and told me not to even think about it.” I picked up my drink. “But it was already too late, I’d called Lucy and told her to hire someone that could research Jasmine’s entire family.”

“How did that research go for you?” She winked at me.

“You hid your true self very well.”

“Maybe. Or perhaps you were so desperate to have a real woman, you might’ve looked over the fact that she was from a rough neighborhood with a messed-up family. You’d lost three girls by then, and believed that one of your current women at the time was killing them. You were vulnerable. It all happened perfectly.” She finished her wine. “When did you find the birth certificate? I didn’t think you’d find that out. It never crossed my mind. That might’ve been my biggest slip up.”

“Lucy brought it to me. She tried to convince me to not go after Jasmine, but—”

“You were already watching her. You were already hooked.” Her smiled widened so hard, I thought her whole face would open and spill out her head’s inside. “Months passed. I moved on to other things. In fact, I’d forgotten about the whole party and you. Other things had my attention. Then Jasmine called me one day, and said that she had a big interview at Stone Industries.”

Sophia laughed. “I figured you had something to do with it. She believed Benny had recommended you. I knew better. However, I still wasn’t sure about you two. I called and called her after her interview. She never answered. I left all types of emergency messages. I doubt she ever heard them. Days passed and she never responded. Then finally, my little princess decides to answer that morning and explain that she’d been in Paris.”

“So you asked her for money?”

“Yes, the electricity bill. She wouldn’t answer the phone so I decided to make it an emergency. I didn’t pay my bill.”

A bad taste hit my mouth. “You test her like this a lot?”

“Sometimes. And it was a test for you. I figured if you really liked her, you would help her. Maybe not this bill. But one bill, some emergency off in the future, you would take the bait. You would want to be the hero.”

“I would want to be a hero?” I said through clenched teeth.

“Yes.”

“How?”

“Benny told me a lot about you. Your father, his friends, and you, he hated rich, powerful boys.”

“And so you listened?”

“That’s what smart women do. They listen.” Her cheeks lifted into the cruelest smile. “I used to listen to your father, too.”

I grimaced. “I keep forgetting that you knew him.”

“I did, but don’t worry. He’s not Jasmine’s father.” She leaned back in the chair like a queen. “So what did you read in Benny’s journals? Now you’re all jumpy, when I come close to you. What did Benny have to say?”

“A lot.”

“So are we still friends?”

“Of course, Mrs. Montgomery. You’re Jasmine’s mother.” My skin shivered as if reacting to slimy snakes slithering over me. “We will always be friends.”

“Good boy. I always knew you would be perfect for my Jasmine. I just never thought you would take the bait.”

“The bait?”

“You may want to learn things day-by-day. Getting it all at once might blow your mind away.” She raised her hand to her head and mimicked an explosion. “Sometimes we can’t all get it at once. Our minds are delicate.”

“What do you mean the bait?”

“Benny said you had a problem with keeping girlfriends alive. Thought the shit was funny. I hated hearing about those poor girls.” She shook her head. “You know, I figured it was that Lulu chick.”

“Lucy?”

“Yeah. I thought it was her. Benny told me all about that girl’s life. Rape makes you crazy.”

Lucy’s face flashed in my head.

“Let’s leave that alone,” I said. “Let’s talk about something else.”

“Awww, is the conversation over already?” She pouted. “Do you have any more questions?”

I parted my mouth and wasn’t sure which one I should ask.

Too much raced around in my head. She’d planned the event that had scarred Jasmine and Troy for the rest of their lives, and then played matchmaker to my tesoro and me.

What do I need to know right now? What will change the game?

I asked the only thing I could think of that wouldn’t reveal how much I figured out about her. “Who’s Jasmine and Troy’s father?”

“How significant do you think that question is to our present dilemma?”

“I think it’s important.”

“Their dad isn’t
your father
. That’s the only thing you should be worried about. Other than that, Jasmine and you are in the clear. Is Benny the father? Does it really matter? No matter what, my kids don’t need to be around him. And regardless, he’ll still need to be dead.”

“Why?”

“Because it’s time, Chase.” She rose and strolled to the back. “It’s time for Benny to die.”

If Sherman is right, then his mother had Benny go after Lucy. But why? That would get me more involved, but I’d already been trying to get rid of Benny. I didn’t need to be motivated anymore. It was only the moment he took Jasmine that I united with her.

I tapped my fingers on my arm rest and ran everything over and over in my mind.

Why kill Lucy?

The only way I would work with Sophia was if Jasmine was gone. Sophia had come to my office many times, asking for money and demanding things.

Did she even need all that money? It sounded like she had enough. Maybe she couldn’t use all of it. The biggest problem with dirty money is cleaning it so you can spend the bucks and not get caught.

I glanced over my shoulder. Sophia stared at me with vacant eyes. Her mask was slowly slipping away from her face. It would be harder for her to hide the demon inside now.

My giving her an allowance allowed her to spend money freely. Everyone in the city knows she’s my girlfriend’s mother. If she bought a house or two, she could point to me. No cop in the state would check up on her, gossip in the streets or not, they’d have to mess with me. My family vacationed with the state governor and sipped champagne with most of the senators and house reps.

My tapping increased. At this rate, I would make a tiny hole through the solid plastic.

Why kill Lucy? Why start this, if she did? What are the benefits, getting rid of Benny and tying Jasmine to me?

If she’s my mother-in-law, she would be safe to do what she wanted in South End. Now I’d bought the Chops. In her eyes, I bet she figured she owned it.

But how did we get to that? Fuck. I needed to find Jasmine.

The stewardess walked up to me. “Mr. Stone, would you like anything to eat? We’ll be landing in thirty minutes.”