Total pages in book: 179
Estimated words: 173733 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 869(@200wpm)___ 695(@250wpm)___ 579(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 173733 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 869(@200wpm)___ 695(@250wpm)___ 579(@300wpm)
“We work magic. My brother is a hacker, remember? She had it on her hard drive which may or may not have had a nefarious purpose. That’s unclear. She’s on the prosecution’s list.”
I file that away for a moment. “Debbie.”
“Savage just told me. We’re working on solutions. We’re keeping Cat close.”
“I am,” Savage assures me.
“I’m ready to be the only man keeping her close,” I say and turn to Cat. “I need to go.”
“I can’t wait to see what you do with this,” she says, her eyes filled with excitement over this new development. I love the way she’s so inside my world.
I wrap my arm around her and pull her close, my lips near her ear. “You’re everything to me,” and with that, I turn and start walking with Richard falling into step behind me.
“What are you thinking?” Richard asks.
“That I need the boyfriend out of my face and Dana alone in a room.”
We turn the corner to our private office areas and Elsa is waiting at the conference room door. “She’s in there with him.”
I open the door and I don’t even look at Reginald. I focus on Dana. “I need to see you alone.”
She looks at Reginald. “See you later.”
He walks over to kiss her, a tall man with dark hair and an appropriately chosen tattoo sleeve featuring a Harley since he owns a chop shop. He gives me a nod that I don’t return. I’m not convinced he’s innocent. The minute the door shuts, Dana says, “You heard that he setup the prosecutor.”
“Tell me about your father’s assistant.”
“Martha. She’s sweet. I like her.”
“And tell me why she’s on the prosecutor’s list.”
“I assume because she’ll testify about me fighting with my father.”
“And what’s the worst thing she ever heard you say?”
“‘I hate you.’ Probably many times.”
That’s not good, but I’m prepared for it. “Did you know she was fucking your father?”
She blanches. “Martha. No. No way. That didn’t happen.”
“It did. I have proof.”
I toss the envelope on the conference table. She looks inside and shoves the photos out of sight. “Did she do it?”
“If she did, she’s going to come at you hard. What is she going to say?”
“I told you. I screamed that I hated him numerous times.”
“Do not leave anything out. I need to know.”
“I’m not leaving anything out.”
I consider her a moment. “Are you sure Reginald didn’t figure out that you checked his messages?”
“I don’t see how. No. He couldn’t have. We can take down the prosecutor now, right?”
“We can, but that means there’s a potential trial delay. Is that what you want? It gives us time to prove who really killed your father, but it could give the prosecutor time to strengthen his case and it drags this out for you. More money. More time. More hell.”
“They can’t prove I did what I didn’t do, but I want this over with. I also need to trust your instincts. What do we do?”
“We decide at the end of today.”
“Why today?”
“Because Martha’s on the stand today.”
I turn and exit to the hallway to join Richard and Elsa in the hallway. “Are you going after the prosecutor?”
“We decide after I’m done with Martha today.” I look up to find Royce walking in our direction. “Make sure Dana’s head is on right for today,” I say. “I’ll be right back.”
I step around them and meet Royce a few feet away. “Is there any connection between the boyfriend and the assistant?”
“Nothing we’ve found yet, but we always look for connected dots. I suspect the assistant thought she would get some payday, in some way. If the boyfriend wanted the same, they fit together.” He moves on. “Wilson Moore, the attorney I told you was involved with Debbie. We pulled camera footage from places Cat frequents and we picked up images of him following her for a good month now. He’s also in financial trouble, neck deep in debt he took out with some pretty rough people.”
“He’s desperate.”
“Yes. And that’s not the same thing as just scheming for a payday like Debbie. Desperate people worry me. They do desperate things. If there’s a recording of you with Debbie, they’ll use it, but that’s the least of my concerns. They could go after Cat in a bigger way. I think you might want to get Cat out of town.”
“Fuck. She’s not going to leave without me.”
“You’re going to have to make her.”
“It’s time,” Richard calls out.
I scrub my jaw. “I’ll talk to you at the break.”
I turn and meet-up with my client and team, and when I walk into that courtroom and my eyes meet Cat’s, I’m not distracted, I’m motivated. Cat in danger is the best thing that ever happened to Dana. I’m after a confession today from the real killer and I’m going to get one, too. I’m going to end this trial. And then, I’m putting my wife on a plane, with me by her side. Once I get her out of harm’s way, I’ll go after Wilson Moore and Debbie with every ounce of my force.