Hardpressed (13 page)

“Lil’ bitch. You think you can come here, waltz right in. You tell Blake he can come here and face me!” Her eyes were glossy and crazed with emotion.

She lunged at me and I back away quickly. She lost her balance and stumbled. Trevor rushed to her and she cursed again, swinging her arm back at him.

I couldn’t talk to either of them. The situation was spiraling beyond my control so I slipped out the door and ran down the path toward the Escalade.

Clay jumped out and opened the door for me.

“Drive,” I ordered, glancing over to see Trevor’s mother making her way down the path, Trevor chasing behind her. She was hurling slurred expletives that I couldn’t make out as Clay pulled away, leaving them in the rearview.

*

“Do you want to tell me what the hell you’re doing?”

I could tell by the quality of the call that Blake was calling me from the plane. That he’d bother while he was still in the air was a testament to his hyper concern over my safety, but I bristled at the fact he was scolding
me
when he was the one who’d got us into this mess.

“Blake, for once in your life, shut up and let me talk.”

“I’ve only been in the air a few hours and Clay’s telling me you’re getting chased out of someone’s house.”

“I’m getting to the bottom of a situation that you have been ignoring for far too long,” I snapped. “You can hear me out before you start flipping out.”

I was still high on adrenaline, ready to fight with anyone who crossed me. If Clay hadn’t already dropped me off, I would have strongly considered giving him a piece of my mind for tattling on me to Blake. I’d be like a Chihuahua barking at a bullmastiff, I realized, and filed that scenario under never-going-to-happen.

“Brian Cooper’s brother, Trevor, is running M89.”

He paused. “How do you know that?”

“Before his bat-shit crazy mother came onto the scene, he basically admitted it to me. And that they’d both be eternally happy to witness your ruin. You might be right about the not negotiating with terrorists thing. He didn’t seem open to making peace.”

“So you’ve probably just pissed them off more is what I’m hearing.”

“What he’s doing is illegal. Can’t we just call the police and get his things confiscated?”

“He’s running a virtual operation. If you think he doesn’t have fail-safes in place to cover his ass, especially after what happened to Brian, you’re crazy. Now that he knows you’re onto him, I wouldn’t hold out much hope for the authorities resolving this for you.”

I muttered a curse under my breath before I remembered the envelope. I pulled it out of my pocket to study it again. “Have you heard of AcuTech Investments?”

“No, why?”

“He’s getting checks from them. Like, huge checks.”

“Send me the info. I’ll look into it while I’m out here.”

“Okay.” I calmed down a bit and immediately regretted that Blake was already hundreds of miles away. The past forty-eight hours had been intense in more ways than one, and we’d done nothing but bicker through most of it. “How long will you be gone?”

“Hopefully just a couple days. We’ll see how things go.”

“I miss you.” I worried my lip and fought to keep my voice even. Blake hearing me upset would only add to his frustration at being gone.

He sighed on the other end of the line. “I know, baby. I miss you too.” His voice was lower, softer. “Can I ask you a favor?”

“Sure,” I said quickly, anxious to occupy my thoughts with something other than missing him terribly.

“Can you check in with Heath while I’m gone? Maybe grab lunch or something. I’m sure he’ll be fine, but he hasn’t been back long. I want to make sure he stays on track.”

“Of course.”

“Thanks. I’ll call you later, okay?”

“Okay.”

“No more crazy stunts either.”

“Yeah, yeah,” I muttered. I hung up, collapsed onto the bed, and gave myself over to sleep before the sun had even gone down.

Risa seemed confused when we climbed into the back of the Escalade. We both wore tailored black suits and heels, and for once I felt I’d put as much effort into pulling off a look this morning as she did.

“Who’s he?” she whispered as Clay settled in behind the steering wheel.

I had failed to mention that we’d be chauffeured by my security detail. “This is Clay. He’s my bodyguard slash babysitter.” I made sure he could hear me from the backseat. “He makes sure I stay out of trouble. Isn’t that right, Clay?”

“Yes, ma’am.” He pulled out smoothly onto the busy street and steered us toward our destination.

I caught the hint of a smile in the rearview mirror. I grinned in reply though I wasn’t sure if he saw it. That was as much of a scolding as he was going to get from me. Bryant’s office was out of the city, so I sat back and sifted through the emails on my phone to kill time.

“Oh, no.”

Risa stared down at her phone, her hand cupped over her mouth. My heart sank, hoping she didn’t have bad news about the site.

“What?”

“Breaking news. Mark MacLeod was found dead in his apartment this morning. He was the one you were dancing with at the gala, wasn’t he? Max’s friend?”

I stared at her blankly, my jaw agape and no words coming out. What could I say? I shut my mouth and made an effort to mask the panic. My mind spun, trying to make sense of the news.

“What happened?” My voice wavered. I swallowed hard, pressing my damp palms to the seat.

She scrolled through the article for a few more seconds. I wanted to rip the phone out of her hands to read it myself but refrained. “Apparent suicide but they aren’t saying how. Says a toxicology report is pending.”

Mark was dead. Dead. I silently repeated the fact over and over in my mind, willing myself to believe it.

The worst nightmare of my life was gone forever.

I stared out the window, trying to grasp the magnitude of the news Risa had just shared. I waded through the emotions that flooded me. The relief was unmistakable. No longer would I live in constant fear of the man, dreading how his presence would color every moment spent getting to know my father.

As these realities slowly dawned, a heaviness lifted. As if I’d been given a gift, a prayer answered. Tears welled, and I bit my lip to still its quivering.

“Did you know him really well?” Risa’s voice was quiet and laced with all the appropriate sympathy one should have in a moment like this.

What she didn’t know about the truth of the matter could fill volumes.

I cleared my throat and straightened. “No. I’d met him briefly before through Blake’s investment firm. I think he had a thing for me, but I barely knew him. It’s shocking… Sad.”

Was it?
This wasn’t a tragic accident, and as relieved as I felt, I couldn’t shake my uneasiness. Mark had killed himself, but why? With everything he had going for him, I couldn’t understand it. Mark seemed to take special interest in tormenting me emotionally since he’d come back into my life. What else could be at play? I knew nothing about him except the personal hell he’d created for me.

Clay dropped us off at the building entrance a minute later. Risa and I made our way to the elevators as I tried to regroup emotionally.

“Are you okay? I think I could probably do this meeting on my own if you need some time.”

I punched the button to go up. “I’m fine. Let’s do this.”

She took a deep breath and smiled. Normally I would have been nervous, but nothing seemed as important next to the news I’d just heard.

Our meeting with Bryant’s marketing director was mercifully quick, which was good because I was having a really difficult time concentrating on anything the man said. He didn’t have a lot of time blocked out for us, so I let Risa take the lead presenting the details of our proposal. She was appropriately concise and delivered well. Whenever she hesitated or stumbled, I chimed in. Between the two of us, we made a pretty compelling pitch. The director seemed satisfied and said he’d run it by his team and get back to us as soon as he got approval.

On our way back, Risa released a heavy sigh in the car and relaxed back onto the headrest.

“Were you that nervous?”

She smiled. “Kind of. I’m really glad you came.”

“Me too. We made a good team.”

I held out my hand for a fist bump, which she met with a laugh. I was anxious to keep the mood light and our conversation focused on work. I couldn’t handle any more questions about Mark right now.

“Definitely. Whether this goes through or not, I think I can definitely use this as a stepping stone to connect with some other retailers. Maybe Max has some more connections.”

“Maybe.” I wasn’t sure about overusing Max’s resources, but he seemed willing. I had nothing to lose by letting Risa work her magic with him.

As soon as I got back to the office I slipped into Mocha. I pulled out my laptop and searched the news. Details of the story were slowly being released to the public. I got halfway through the article I was reading when my phone rang, Alli’s face lighting up the screen.

“Hey,” I answered.

“Oh my God, have you been following the news?”

“Yeah.”

“I’m in shock. Does that seem like him, to just off himself?”

I blinked and stared at the photo of Mark on the screen. A portrait of him taken for the law firm, looking professional and more than ready to take on corporate America. The smile that made me sick to my stomach was plastered all over the news.

“I’m not sure,” I admitted. “I saw him two nights ago at the Spirit Gala. He came onto me, totally freaking me out. I wouldn’t have guessed something like this could have happened.”

“Well, it’s not like you knew him well.”

“You don’t think it has to do with me, do you?”

“Jesus, are you blaming yourself for this, Erica?”

“No, but—”

“Okay, you’re going to stop that shit right now. Mark was a terrible person. You should be happy he’s gone and out of your life now. Good riddance.”

“I don’t know. I guess I’m in disbelief.” I had a hard time celebrating anyone’s death, even someone I loathed as much as Mark. Daniel and Margo would probably be beside themselves with grief right now. “Says he didn’t even leave a note. Doesn’t make sense.”

“What would he have written? A confession of all the horrible things he’d done?”

Simone brought over my usual latte without my even asking. I mouthed a thank you to her and stirred it slowly as I contemplated Alli’s words.

“I guess you’re right. I’m still trying to wrap my head around all this.”

“Try to think of it as a chapter in your life closing. You can finally move on now.”

I shook my head, knowing full well that his death could never erase what he’d done to me.

*

I forced myself to finish writing the Bryant’s contract, though Mark’s death barely left my mind as I pushed through work. I was about to give in and check the news again when Risa popped in.

“How’s it going?” She beamed in front of me.

“Almost done with this. How about you?”

“I was able to book two more meetings with retailers next week.”

“Wow, you’re on fire.” I raised my eyebrows, genuinely impressed.

She smiled broadly, and then her expression became more serious. “Have you been following the news?”

I stayed focused on my screen. “No, what’s new?” I couldn’t help but ask.

“They said he shot himself. His blood alcohol level was twice the legal limit.”

I closed my eyes, fighting the vision of what that scene must have looked like. Of all the ways to attempt to end his life, he chose the one he was guaranteed not to survive.

“Funeral services will be on Sunday. Do you think you’ll go?”

“Risa, I told you I barely knew him,” I snapped. Bloody hell. I really wished she would mind her own goddamn business. I wanted nothing more than to be alone with my thoughts, and she was in the front row trying to read them.

“Okay, sorry. I thought you’d want to know.”

“Now I know, thanks.” I started typing up the last of the terms into my open document, hoping she’d take the hint that I was busy.

She did and left wordlessly. I relaxed again, immediately regretting that I’d been so rude. My head was so messed up, and the one person I really needed wasn’t remotely close.

I waited until after five when everyone had left to call Blake. I heard him talking to someone when he picked up.

“Blake.”

“Hey.”

“Mark is dead,” I said, my brain working hard to believe the words. I still couldn’t believe it.

There was silence on the line as I waited for him to respond, to ask me how and when. Surely he’d have as many questions as I did. If anyone hated Mark as much as I did, it was Blake.

“I know.”

“What do you mean?”

“I saw it in my news feed. I’m sorry, I wanted to call but I’ve been tied up in meetings all morning. Hang on a second.”

“Okay.” My voice was quiet, my throat tight with emotion. I wanted to be angry with him for not calling, but all I could think about was how much I missed him. The noise was muffled on the other end, and then the voices in the background disappeared.

“Are you okay?” His voice was softer.

I drummed my fingers on the desk, wondering how to put into words how completely not okay I was. “When are you coming home?”

He sighed on the other end. I winced. I was becoming the emotionally dependent girlfriend that he probably really didn’t need. Not to mention the kind I never thought I’d turn into.

“Sorry, just do what you need to do there, Blake. Don’t worry about me, okay? I’m fine.” I bit back the tears that threatened, trying to sound as unaffected as possible.

“I’m coming back as soon as I can.”

“I’m fine,” I repeated, willing both of us to believe it as I wiped away the tear that fell down my cheek. “I’m just kind of a mess right now, but I’ll be fine.”

I heard the voices in the background again and he muttered a curse under his breath. “I’ll call you tonight, okay?”

“Sure.”

I hung up and let my head fall into my hands. Why did I need Blake to put me back together? What had changed in these past weeks that I needed him like I needed my last breath? I couldn’t make sense of it, or of the insane thoughts I was having about hopping on the next red-eye to San Francisco to see him.