Ryan nodded. “Yep. Mom’s even letting me bring my new game.”
Simon’s eyes shifted up toward Vanessa again. “Is that right?” he asked, directing the question at Ryan while his gaze stayed locked on Vanessa.
“Mmm hmm,” Ryan answered.
Simon smiled, looking his ex-wife over again, visualizing her in all her naked glory. The memory of her hadn’t faded from his mind.
“Have a good weekend,” Vanessa said, stooping down for a hug when she was pulled in by her son’s arms. “I love you.”
“Love you, too. See you when I get back.”
She waved and forced a smile to cover the anger, the nausea. She hadn’t had the chance to finish telling Simon that he’d get her in bed when hell froze over, but she was sure the look she stabbed at him the next moment said it all.
Seeing her sneer as he stepped down from the porch, he smiled big.
“Enjoy your weekend, Vanessa. We’ll talk more about our arrangements soon,” he called back over his shoulder.
Vanessa’s stomach wretched and she slammed the door, unable to hear another word from him. The investigator told Zander he’d need at least a month and it’d only been three weeks, but that would have to be enough. Whatever information they had would have to get the job done.
She could keep Simon off of her easily by avoiding him, but what she couldn’t do was stop him from taking action after that. Resisting his advances would surely anger him and, from there, he would most likely try to pull the trigger on whatever legal action he had in mind to take against her. She would have a hard time proving her case when all she had to go on was her word. He was backing her into a corner, a corner she wasn’t sure how to get herself out of.
When a solution didn’t come to her quickly enough, she did the only think she could think to do.
She called Zander.
He’d been her lifeline and she needed that more than ever now. He’d know what to do or, if he didn’t, he would think of something because that’s what he did.
He may not have realized this yet, but… he was her only hope.
*****
The disgust he felt couldn’t be described.
Simon had sunk to a whole new level of low and Zander had no tolerance for men like him. Propositioning Vanessa the way he had… using sex as a ploy to exploit this newly found control over her… it was sickening.
Pacing the floor of his bedroom, he waited impatiently for Mr. McCullough, the investigator he hired, to answer his phone. They’d done everything he asked them to do. Vanessa made copies of her planner because she kept record of the dates Simon had gone in and out of town on business. She made provisions for his office to be searched after hours. And Zander was even willing to double the man’s pay if it meant this process could be brought to a close sooner. After what she told him tonight, time had run out.
There was no way he would ever allow Simon to lay even a finger on her, but he was admittedly powerless on the legal end. Chances are, Simon had his lawyer just waiting for Vanessa to make a wrong move. After that, there would surely be a hailstorm of lies that would rain down upon her, burying her professionally and, in time, winning Simon custody of their son.
None of that could happen, though. Not on his watch.
“Pick up the phone, dammit,” Zander whispered to himself as he paced in front of the window again.
“McCullough,” he answered, allowing Zander to breathe a sigh of relief.
“Please tell me you’ve figured something out.” Granted, it had only been an hour since he first put in the urgent call to let McCullough know time had wound down, but he was too desperate to worry if he was being pushy.
A sigh on the other end of the line made him nervous, but he listened without voicing his concern. “We’ve got a pretty solid case. I prefer for things to be airtight, but there are a few holes. I’m thinking Vanessa could probably fill them in herself if need be, but… based on what turned up… this guy doesn’t really have a leg to stand on.”
Those words were like music to Zander’s ears. McCullough’s findings were still a mystery to him, but all he needed to know was that the scales appeared to have tipped in their favor.
“Thank you for all your hard work and I’ll have your cash when we meet to exchange information. How does an hour from now sound?” He glanced down at his watch, not caring how late it was. This needed to be settled before the weekend ended.
“Not a problem,” McCullough answered. “Just make sure that, when you confront this guy, you’re careful about how you approach him. I’ve seen things turn really ugly very quickly,” he shared. “You’d be surprised what people are capable of when you hit them with something like this.”
Zander’s brow tensed. What on Earth had McCullough dug up?
“Understood,” he answered.
“There’s a coffee shop not too far from my office. I’ll text you the address. We can meet there,” McCullough confirmed.
The line went dead and Zander hurried to change into a pair of jeans. Once everything was settled, he’d update Vanessa so they could decide how to proceed from this point. What mattered most was that they finally had leverage. With that also came a power shift, one they weren’t sure would actually come, but it had. From what Zander could make of McCullough’s tone, Simon would regret the day he decided to target Vanessa.
The game was over and, this time, Simon definitely held the losing hand.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
There was so much to process.
Vanessa’s head was still reeling. It was like… like she’d been living a lie right along Simon for years. Everything she thought she knew about him was tainted by this… this secret sickness of his. Now, so many things made sense.
Her first run-in with him since the veil lifted was almost unbearable. When Ryan returned home Sunday night, Simon picked up their conversation right where it left off two nights before. Apparently, even after going back to his place and thinking things through, his mind hadn’t changed; he still intended to force Vanessa into his bed—a ploy she suspected only served the purpose of weakening her will, putting her in her place.
Given all that had come to light, Vanessa could barely look him in his eyes. She, of course, turned down his offer, but he made clear the lack of choice she had in the matter. As far as he knew, she was at his mercy.
As far as he knew…
Simon was yet to discover how the tide had turned, but Vanessa wanted to watch this play out a very specific way. She and Zander had spent all day Saturday devising a plan, only to revisit it late Sunday after Simon left her house. He was so smug, so rough with his words and disgusting demands. It wasn’t enough to let Zander handle delivering the news. No, she wanted to be the one to make Simon’s world crumble. She’d been trampled by this man for too long not to have this honor. She wanted to look into his eyes the moment he realized his secret was out.
The moment she ruined him.
There was an inexplicable calmness in the air when she arrived at the office Monday morning. Maybe it was because she knew that, soon, this would all be over. Soon, Simon would be put in his place and she’d be free without his threats looming overhead.
Simon gave specific instructions for the evening. He wanted her undivided attention, so she was supposed to call a sitter for the evening. They would have dinner together, and then the night would end at his apartment, with her in his bed, doing his bidding. Vanessa did have a sitter coming over to watch Ryan, but that was where her plan and Simon’s diverged.
Two knocks to Simon’s door and Vanessa stood waiting outside his office to be invited in. Within seconds, she heard his voice and entered, closing the two of them inside right after. She felt so relaxed, so at ease that, for a moment, she feared he might realize something was up. But that was a stretch; he was far too arrogant to think he’d ever get caught.
Expensive brown leather touched the backs of her thighs when she sat, folding both hands in her lap right after. She
met Simon’s gaze and wondered if he, too, was thinking of how rarely she came here, into his space. It was always he who paid the visits, initiated conversation. But today… she made this special trip down the hall for a reason.
“Tonight… let’s skip dinner,” she proposed, as coldly as ever. “I’m pretty sure sitting across from you will ruin my appetite and it doesn’t make sense for us to make more out of this than it is.”
Simon folded his hands on his desk and stared her down, wearing that sinister grin of his. “More than it is?” he questioned.
Vanessa held her ground. “This isn’t a date, Simon. Let’s not dignify what you’re doing to me by masking it with dinner in some classy restaurant.” Her eyes stayed locked on his. “Just shy of getting paid, after tonight, I’ll be nothing more than your whore.”
If she knew how much he liked the sound of that, she might’ve leapt across the table at him. It pleased him to know she was finally getting the picture. She’d been so high and mighty since filing for divorce, it was past time he brought her back down to size.
Simon leaned back in his seat, pondering Vanessa’s suggestion. It wasn’t like he really had any interest in her dinner conversation anyway, so… “Sure. Why not. Be at my place by seven,” he instructed. “Oh! And wear that perfume I love. The one in the gold bottle.”
She nodded as if she’d comply, leaving out the part where she told him she threw that particular scent away the week he left. It reminded her too much of him.
“Seven o’clock it is,” she said in closing. His eyes were on her as she exited and she could feel it. She couldn’t get out of there quickly enough.
That man could get to her like no one else could. His presence took her to such a dark place. Every time.
The sound of her own office door closing after she stepped inside brought with it a sense of relief. Now, with a bit of privacy, she pulled out the phone Zander had given her to keep in contact with him. All she texted was one short statement, letting him know everything was falling into place. The words induced a sigh of relief as she clung to their truth:
“It’s almost over.”
*****
She spotted him, already waiting outside Simon’s building, a dark hoodie shielding him from the rain. One thing Zander insisted upon was that he be allowed to accompany her tonight. He had no objections to staying out of sight, but would be close enough to step in if anything went wrong. McCullough’s warning hadn’t fallen on deaf ears.
Umbrella in hand, Vanessa approached, glancing left to right to take in their surroundings. With the encroaching storm, the streets of downtown Denver were nearly pedestrian-free—an ominous beginning to the task awaiting them. It seemed silly to be nervous because, after all, they were finally at an advantage.
Still, there was this feeling of dread she couldn’t seem to shake.
Zander glanced at the folder she clutched and it was then, when he had to forcibly pry it from her rigid fingers, she realized how tense she’d been.
“You don’t want him knowing you have an agenda before you’re ready,” Zander reasoned. There was an air of solemnity to his voice that wasn’t lost on Vanessa as he hid the documents inside her purse. She was well aware of how much he hated this, the part where she went into Simon’s place alone.
“…You’re sure I can’t talk you out of this?”
Vanessa’s mind was made up. “I’ll be fine,” she answered, trying to conceal her trembling hands. If he knew she was a bit nervous herself, he would never let up.
Her eyes went to her watch. “I have to go. It’s already past seven.”
This was it. She’d done all the compromising Zander could convince her to do.
Damp hands brought rainwater to Vanessa’s cheeks when he pulled her close. She expected a kiss; she expected him to embrace her, but what she didn’t expect was the heaviness in his eyes.
He was worried.
“Promise me you’ll stick to what we discussed.”
She nodded. “I promise.”
He stared a moment longer and then reached toward his back. When his hand came into view again, he discreetly revealed to Vanessa the second condition he wouldn’t bend on. Her heart raced at the sight of it.
“What are you— I don’t—”
“Take it,” he cut in as she stammered, looking over the polished metal of Zander’s 9mm.
She let out a breath. It unnerved her that he even thought this measure might be necessary. Yes, Simon was a lot of things, but she’d never known him to be violent. Then again, based on the information she currently possessed, there were likely several things she didn’t know about him.
“Have you ever used one?” Zander asked.
In college, she roomed with the daughter of the police chief her first four years. Being the protective father he was, he insisted on taking them both to the gun range a few times a year. Back then, Vanessa thought it such an unnecessary skill to have, despite the advice of her friend’s father. He believed all young women ought to know how to protect themselves; Vanessa just never thought she’d be in a situation where the many hours of target practice would actually be useful.
But here she was.
Taking the gun from Zander’s hand, she pulled back the slide to make sure there was a round in the chamber, and then tucked it into the back of her jeans.
“Yes… I’ve shot one before,” she answered.
Without her saying a word, he could tell by how comfortably she handled it, she had experience. His nerves settled just a bit.
“I’ll be right outside in the hallway,” he reminded her.
She nodded and that was it; there was nothing more to say because he knew there was no changing her mind. The hour had arrived and, soon, everything would come full circle.
They entered the building together, but parted ways immediately after. Vanessa took the elevator up alone and Zander the stairs. It felt like it took forever to reach the fourth floor. She stepped off and walked to Simon’s door. Twice she’d been by, but only to pick up Ryan. Not once had she ever crossed the threshold into his actual unit, though.
Upon reaching the door, doubt crept in. With her hand raised to knock, she gazed down the hall. There, she saw Zander watching, waiting at his post where he could easily jump in if things went awry.
Hopefully, it wouldn’t come to that.
The sound of Vanessa’s timid fist as she knocked echoed through the quietness. Even louder was the sound of her pulse throbbing behind her ears. It was enough to have her shifting her weight from one foot to the other while she waited for Simon to answer. But then, when he did, she felt like she hadn’t had enough time to prepare. That couldn’t show through her expression, though. Frustration and anger he would expect, but not fear.
Fear she had to contain.
Faint creases in the corners of Simon’s eyes became more pronounced when he smiled. Stepping aside, he invited her in.
“Welcome.”
Simon’s decorative style was very similar to their office furnishings. He liked dark, heavy tones, but Vanessa sometimes found them overwhelmingly oppressive. Just like him.
She entered and reminded herself, not only of the fact that she was armed with Zander’s gun, but she was also armed with information. Information that would change the game completely.
“Wine?” Simon asked politely. With a sweep of his hand, he directed Vanessa’s eyes toward a spread arranged on his dining room table—an assortment of fruit, a few different cheeses, and crackers. Two white candles burned bright at the center.
Was he so delusional he thought it necessary to set the mood?
It was nausea inducing.
“No, I’ve only got an hour,” Vanessa scowled. “We should get right to the point.” Of course, her idea about tonight was very different from Simon’s, but soon and very soon, he would be made well aware.
Simon studied Vanessa’s posture while she glanced around the room. He couldn’t put his finger on it, but something was differ
ent about her. He expected her to come here tonight with a certain attitude about her, but he had yet to see any traces of that. This visit felt more like business and he didn’t like it.
“You’re sure you won’t have some wine? Might loosen you up a bit,” he teased.
Ugh… she couldn’t stand this too much longer. “I already told you, no” she reiterated, folding her arms across her chest.
There was an understanding between them, Simon thought; Vanessa didn’t have to enjoy this, but he wouldn’t tolerate her nastiness. After all, it wasn’t like he didn’t have plans to make tonight enjoyable for her, too. He intended to be generous with the foreplay and, maybe, she might just get into it.
His manhood rose just at the thought of how wet she’d get.
Large hands braced Vanessa’s shoulders and the feel of them made her shiver… not in a good way. They hadn’t touched in so, so long. She would’ve liked to have kept it that way. Simon massaged her tight muscles slowly. To think, there was once a time she enjoyed this, but tonight? Tonight it made her want to leap out of her own skin. He wasn’t allowed to do this, to touch her. She vowed that the moment she found out about his cheating. Everything about this felt wrong and she was done with the charade.
She moved from beneath Simon’s grasp just as his fingertips grazed her collarbone. His intentions were to wander inside her blouse, but that plan was foiled when Vanessa stepped away and turned to face him. She was aware of everything—the weight of the firearm pressing into her lower back, the thickness of the folder inside her purse, the pictures it contained. All at once, everything she knew about the devil staring back at her came tumbling out.
“Katie Reese. Amelia Dillon. Jennifer Tilmon. Elise Johnston. Kimberly Kennewell. Lori Day. Jill Miles.” Vanessa recited the seven names that would forever be emblazoned in her mind. She’d never forget them, what they represented.
The second she mentioned just the first, Simon’s face went slack and the color drained from it.
“Do I need to continue?” Vanessa asked. “Better yet, do I need to tell you why those names are so important, Simon?” A strange mixture of frustration, anxiety, and vindication caused her voice to shake.
Overdose: A British Bad Boy Romance Page 39
