by J. S. Cooper
“What truth does he owe me?”
“I don’t know.” She started crying. “The phone disconnected, and when I got home, the house was ransacked and he was gone. All the papers in his office were on the floor, and I think there were drops of blood as well.”
“Did you call the police?”
“Yes.” She sounded frantic. “But they have no leads. He was taken, Bianca. I’m positive he was taken.”
“I’m so sorry. I don’t know what to say.” My head was spinning. “Did he say anything else?”
“He told me that I should call you, Bianca. I didn’t call yet because I was too upset. But he told me to tell you to look through the papers carefully. He said, ‘The answers are in the papers, but the truth might not be.’ ”
“The papers he gave me in the box?” I questioned frantically. “And what answers? Is he talking about my mother’s death? Is he talking about my dad still being an owner in Bradley Inc.?”
“I don’t know,” she sobbed. “I have to go. All I can tell you is what he said, ‘The answers are in the papers, but the truth might not be.’ ”
“ ‘But not the truth’? Did he say ‘but the truth might not be’ or did he say ‘but not the truth’?” My mind was swirling a hundred miles a minute. What did that mean? And which statement had he actually spoken? If he’d said “but the truth might not be,” then the information in the papers might be valid. However, if he’d said “but not the truth,” it seemed to me that all of the answers I’d come up with might be false. “The answers are in the papers” indicated that clues were in the papers he’d given me, but maybe the clues weren’t as straightforward as I’d thought them to be.
“I don’t remember. I have to go. I’m sorry.” She hung up.
I held the phone to my ear for a few seconds, hoping that she hadn’t really hung up. I needed to know more. What did Larry’s comment mean? What did he know? And more important, where was he? Had Jakob kidnapped him as well?
“What’s going on, Bianca?” Rosie touched my shoulder, and I turned around slowly. I looked at her, but my eyes couldn’t focus on her face. I wanted to be alone. I needed to go through the papers again. I had to have missed something. The answers are in the papers, but not the truth.
All of a sudden I wasn’t so sure of the conclusions I’d made by reading all the papers my father had left for me. Things weren’t adding up, not the way they should be. I needed to analyze the information the papers held. My brain was throbbing with a dull excitement. There were answers to be found, and I was going to find them. I had to do this for both my mother and my father. There were too many questions and I wasn’t going to sit passively by and wait for the truth to hit me on the head. I was going to figure this puzzle out.
Why had Jakob let me go before the merger had been finalized? Why had Steve turned rogue? Where was Steve? And where was Larry? What did Larry’s message mean? Who had been in my apartment the night before? Was Jakob the one sending me the threatening texts as well? Had Mr. Bradley had my mother killed because he wanted to gain control of the company? All of a sudden, everything that had seemed so simple seemed weak and hazy. I’d thought this was just about proving that Jeremiah Bradley had stolen my father’s shares and had my mother killed. I’d been naive enough to think I could just get the information I needed and move on. I’d gone into this whole thing thinking it would be easy gaining access to the company through David. Whom had I been kidding? I was swimming with sharks, sharks that ate fish like me for breakfast.
“Bianca?”
I blinked at Rosie, feeling cold inside. My arms had goose bumps and a hollowness was in my soul. My brain rattled as the unanswered questions knocked against my skull.
“Sorry. He wasn’t in,” I said quickly, and walked back to the couch.
“Oh, that’s it?” Rosie looked surprised. “You seemed to be having a longer conversation than just that.”
“She said that he had a message for me, but she couldn’t remember it.” I sank onto the couch and offered Rosie a weak smile. I wasn’t sure why I was lying to her. Something about the whole situation made me feel too uneasy. Too many holes were appearing in what I thought I knew. I wanted to stew on it all first. I felt guilty as I stared at her furrowed brows. I could tell that she didn’t believe me. “I’m feeling slightly tired.” I yawned and stretched. “I think I need a good night’s sleep.”
“It’s still morning.” She stared at me unblinking.
“Well, a midmorning siesta, like they do in Spain.” I paused. “Well, maybe not technically a siesta, but you know what I mean.”
“But you’re not Spanish.”
“I just need a rest. I’ve had a long week, Rosie. What with being kidnapped and all.” I offered her a weak smile, but she stared at me with no answering look of understanding.
“Bianca, you’ve just been kidnapped. You’ve had sex with the man that kidnapped you. You lost your dad recently. You’ve been through a lot. I really don’t want to leave you alone.”
“I’ll be fine.”
“How can you be sure that Mattias won’t kidnap you again?”
“Well, he let me go. . . .” I shrugged.
“Why, though? Why would he do that?”
“I don’t know.” A sick feeling hit my stomach and I felt the danger of my situation spreading through me. He had to have let me go for a reason. It didn’t make sense. Unless he fell for you, a small voice in my head whispered to me. I frowned at the little devil in my head. She was getting my hopes up and that was the last thing that I needed.
“It just doesn’t sound plausible, Bianca. Why would someone do that?”
“Sherlock Holmes said that it only has to be possible, not probable,” I muttered obstinately. “If something is possible, it can still be true.” He could like me for real, he really could.
“You’re confusing me.” She plopped down next to me. “What’s going on, Bianca? What else happened to you? Where were you?” She touched my shoulder. “Let me help you.”
“I don’t want to talk about it right now. I’m sorry. I’m just so tired. Thank you for coming over. Come back for dinner?” I gave her an apologetic smile and yawned. “I just really need to sleep for a few hours. My brain has been in overdrive and I’m physically and mentally exhausted.”
“I have a date tonight,” she said hesitantly. “But I can come—”
“No, you don’t need to come back tonight.” I offered her a smile, not wanting her to see how relieved I felt. “I feel awful. I still don’t know much about your boyfriend or anything. I’m sorry.”
“It’s fine.” She clasped my hand. “We can talk about it later.” She sighed as she stared at me. “I don’t know if I want you to be alone. What if someone comes back and tries to kidnap you again? What are you going to do now? I don’t want to just leave you.”
“I’m going to sleep and then I’m going to see if I can watch some movies and write some articles and get my mind off of this whole ordeal for a few hours.” Not that that would be possible. There was no way that I’d be able to just watch a movie, but I didn’t want Rosie to know that. I jumped up off the couch and Rosie stood up as well. I ran my hands through my hair and stifled a half yawn.
“I guess you do need sleep.” She stepped back. “I don’t want to just leave you by yourself, I just got here.”
“I’ll be okay. It was good to see you. I just need to rest, then I’ll be able to tell you everything. I just don’t want to go through all of it right now.” I smiled an apology. “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be sorry, Bianca.” She reached over and hugged me. “I’m the one who should be sorry. I’m the one who blew it. I’m going to make it up to you, I promise.”
“It’s okay. I’m just glad to have you as a friend.” I squeezed her hand. “I’m not sure what I’d do if I didn’t have you in my life. You’re my best friend and I know I can always count on you.”
“Call me if you need anything.” She walked towar
d the door and then looked back at me. “And if you need to talk or figure anything out, I’m here.”
“Thanks, Rosie.” I got up and walked her to the door, then locked it behind her. I felt lighter once she was out of the apartment and I wasn’t sure why. I hurried back to my couch so I could look through the papers again, to see if there were any clues that I’d missed. I opened the plastic bag that I’d removed from Rosie’s purse and pulled out a stack of papers, still feeling unsettled about my conversation. Something she’d said had put me on edge, but I wasn’t sure what it was. I couldn’t put my finger on it, but something felt off.
“Get it together, Bianca.” I shook my head and tried to gather my thoughts. I wasn’t sure if I was imagining things now. Maybe I was just feeling discombobulated due to everything that had gone on. My head was throbbing and my whole body was on edge as I sat there. It was as if I were still waiting for something to happen. I couldn’t relax and I had no idea what I was going to do next.
“The answers are in the papers, but not the truth,” I mumbled as I stared at the patent and corporation forms in my hands. “What answers?” I frowned as I stared at the words. Everything had seemed so clear when I’d first gotten the papers. My dad had been a partner. He’d been the inventor. He thought my mom had been murdered and the Bradleys had something to do with it. What, then, was wrong with this picture? What was I missing—and where had Larry gone?
The loud beeping of cars outside reminded me that I’d been tied up in the back of a car not long ago. And I still didn’t know why. I wanted to talk to Jakob. I wanted to—I stopped in midthought as I stared at the corporation papers one more time. The law firm that had drawn up the contract was Larry’s. Larry, my father’s attorney, had been involved with Bradley, London, and Maxwell. He’d had access to all the legal information. It struck me that he had to know a lot more than he’d let on. My heart racing, I reread the incorporation papers once again, and realized that the next best person I could talk to would be Maxwell, or someone related to Maxwell. I hadn’t had any luck finding any information on Maxwell, but I hadn’t spent much time trying to find him. I’d put all my energy into the Bradleys, and now it was time for me to expand my search.
I grabbed my phone before I could change my mind and called David.
“Bianca?” he asked, sounding surprised. “How are you?”
“I need to see you.” I didn’t hesitate. I couldn’t afford to be unsure or to hesitate. I needed to forge ahead with my investigation and ignore the fleeting panic that had settled in my stomach.
“When?”
“Are you free for dinner tonight?” I held my breath as I waited for his answer.
“You want to go to dinner?” His tone changed to one of expectation. A small smile broke out on my face. David was still interested in me. I could use that to my advantage. I wasn’t stupid enough to think that he liked me more than anything except as a potential conquest. I knew enough about men to know that they liked a challenge.
I softened my voice. “If you’re free, I’d like to chat.” I couldn’t afford to be too obvious.
“I don’t know.” He sounded unsure.
“You owe me, David. I trusted you. I want some answers.”
“I swear I didn’t know what Mattias had planned,” he said quickly, and I tried not to roll my eyes. Sure, you didn’t. I gripped the phone tightly. As long as he thought I wanted to know about Mattias, he might have his guard down about other subjects; especially if I brought them up casually.
“I’ve missed you. I was thinking about you on the island,” I lied. “I was wishing things could have been different between us.”
“Yeah. You never got to experience a night with me and we never got to—” His voice was husky and I felt my stomach churning. I had no romantic inklings toward David anymore, not even to kissing. I knew I’d have to pretend I was still attracted to him, even if he now revolted me. I’d make him feel that he was obliged to be my Prince Charming. If he wasn’t a sociopath, it would work—but I knew that was also a gamble.
“So, tonight?” I cut him off, not wanting to go down the innuendo road. The last thing I needed was for him to show up thinking that tonight was going to be the night we were going to seal the deal.
“Meet me at a cute place called the Little Owl. It’s in the West Village, on Grove Street.”
“Okay. What time?”
“Seven?”
“That’s fine.” I nodded gratefully. “Thanks for this, David.”
“You’ve nothing to thank me for, yet.”
He hung up and I sat back on the couch, my breathing labored. Part of me was scared that David was going to ambush me. What if he arrived with someone else? What if I was kidnapped again? It scared me to be making such a big move without thinking it through properly. Though this time, I wouldn’t be a sitting duck. I jumped up and went to the kitchen, fishing a serrated knife out of the cutlery drawer. I wanted to take my butcher’s knife, but it wouldn’t fit into my handbag. I wrapped the one I had chosen in a paper towel and placed it in my handbag. At times like this I wished I owned a gun, a small pistol or something.
I stared at the wall clock in front of me and sighed deeply. I had a few hours left to do research before I had to start getting ready for my meeting with David. I was going to have to scrub up and shave every part of my body before I left the house. I wanted to show up looking like a femme fatale. I wanted him to take one look at me and think to himself, I will do anything to have this woman, I will tell her whatever she wants to know. I knew that women had a certain power over certain men. I knew that there was power in sex, or the promise of sex. David was my best bet—and my only bet right now—to find out exactly what had happened all those years ago.
The Little Owl was a cozy restaurant on the corner of two quiet streets. The red facade and blue awnings made me smile. This place didn’t take itself too seriously. I walked inside and smiled at the commonplace wooden tables and chairs. This wasn’t fancy or ostentatious. I immediately felt comfortable.
“Bianca!” David stood up and waved to me from a table by the wall, his face bright as he watched me walking toward him. I stopped at the table and took in his appearance. It was hard not to compare him to Jakob. Next to Jakob, David was a boy. Handsome, yes, but roguishly attractive, no. His face and build seemed almost babyish when compared to Jakob’s wall of muscle and sinew. David was a prince to Jakob’s king.
“Hello, David.” I smiled at him weakly as he stepped forward to give me a kiss. I turned my cheek quickly so his lips didn’t meet mine. I saw a slight frown on his face and knew it was going to be harder than I’d thought to fake it with him.
“You look stunning.” His eyes showed their appreciation for the efforts I’d made.
“Thank you.” I nodded and took a seat as he pulled my chair out. It was almost as if we were on a first date and his brother hadn’t kidnapped me.
“How are you?” He took a seat across from me and I kept my face passive, though a storm was brewing inside me. How do you think I am, motherfucker? I smiled weakly and turned to the side. My body froze as I saw someone on the street peering through the front window. I furrowed my brows to get another look. Was it Steve? My heart was racing and I looked back at David, searching his face to see if this was a setup.
“What’s wrong?” He frowned and grabbed my hands.
How could I ever have thought he was cute? My stomach churned at the softness of his fingertips on my palms. “Nothing.” I looked back toward the window and the figure was gone.
“You look great.” He leaned forward. “Really beautiful.”
“Better than what you expected for someone that just came back from being kidnapped?” I raised an eyebrow at him and pulled my hands back. I wasn’t going to let him get away with this so easily.
“Bianca, I . . .” He sighed and sat back. “You’re mad at me?”
“Are you joking?” I shook my head. “Am I mad at you?” I laughed bitterly. “W
hat do you think?”
“Well, it sounds as though you have some anger toward me.” He pursed his lips, and I think only then did he understand that this wasn’t about to be a night of hot sex between the two of us.
I leaned forward and went on the offensive. “Why did Mattias kidnap me?” This was my new strategy. I was going to go hard on the Mattias angle, even though I knew David was unlikely to tell me the truth. I hoped if I pushed hard on that point, he would answer my other questions without becoming suspicious.
“You were asking too many questions.” He shrugged.
“Did he kidnap me because he was worried I’d stop the merger from going through?”
“Bianca”—he bit down on his lower lip—“I really don’t know what to tell you. Mattias makes these decisions without me. I wish I could tell you what he wanted.”
“Mattias told me something about Maxwell when we were on the island.” I causally sipped some water, hoping the redness in my face wasn’t betraying my lie.
“Oh yeah?” He picked up a bottle of wine and looked at my glass. “Would you like some?”
“No, thanks.” I shook my head. No way was I drinking wine with David. I didn’t want to be drugged, and I didn’t want to end up in his bed either. “I’m sticking to water.”
“Fair enough.” He placed the bottle back on the table. “Shall we order before we get back to the deep conversation?”
“If that’s what you want.”
“I recommend the arctic char, though the pork chop with brussels sprouts is divine as well.”
“I’m not really a pork eater.” I opened the menu and looked down. I couldn’t afford to go too hard too fast or that would be it.
“You can’t go wrong with any of their entrées.”
“I might get the chicken.” Safe, plain, boring chicken. It was pretty hard to mess chicken up and I’d know if it was raw.
“The chicken is good.” He smiled widely. “So, Bianca, Bianca, Bianca, I was surprised when you called me.”
“Why?”
“I don’t know.” He shrugged. “The fact that Mattias kidnapped you and tried to scare you on the island with his henchman Steve?” He looked at me with a sad expression. “I’m so sorry. If I’d had any idea what he was capable of, I never would have told him you were looking for him.”
