by Sherri Hayes
“Sure. But . . .” I paused. “Could you come soon? I-I don’t want Cal or Jade here. I want it to just be us.”
Emma didn’t response right away. “Are you sure, Anna?”
This was the one thing I was sure of. “Yes. I need to do this on my own.”
“Okay. I’ll get everything together and head over there within the next half hour.”
I waited anxiously for Emma. Cal lived roughly twenty minutes from her office, so I knew it would take her at least that long to arrive. Unfortunately, that didn’t help the butterflies in my stomach.
Almost thirty minutes after her phone call, Emma pulled into the driveway. I watched from the window. She parked her car and strolled briskly toward the front door. Cautiously, I went to let her in. I’d never answered the door at Cal’s before, and the last time I’d done so at Stephan’s, I’d mistakenly granted my father access to the one place I’d felt safe. Even though I knew it was Emma, I still looked through the peephole before reaching for the doorknob.
Emma smiled when she saw me. “Hi, Anna.”
“Hi.” I glanced down and then shifted from left to right, unsure.
“Can I come in?”
“Oh. Yeah. Sure.” Quickly stepping out of her way, I waited until she was clear of the door and then made certain to shut and lock it.
She automatically sat down at the kitchen table, and I joined her as soon as I could get my feet to move.
“I know you’re nervous, so I’ll cut to the chase. After consulting with Vince, the criminal attorney in our office I told you about, we put together what I’m hoping will be an agreeable proposal for all parties involved.”
Emma handed me a stack of papers on her law firm’s letterhead.
“What it says is that you agree to give a full statement against Ian Pierce regarding any criminal activity of which you’re aware, and that you will aid in the prosecution of Mr. Pierce up to and including testifying should that become necessary. In exchange for your full cooperation, both you and Stephan Coleman are granted immunity from any and all charges related to the crimes and prosecution of Mr. Pierce.”
“So I’d have to testify?” Just thinking about it caused me to tremble.
“Not unless the prosecution feels it’s the only way to win their case. We’ve put a provision in there that says you only agree to testify in front of a jury after all other avenues have been exhausted.” Emma reached out and touched the tips of my fingers. “I’ll be honest with you, Anna. I don’t know if they’ll agree to that or not, but it’s worth putting it in there to get the ball rolling. Considering your history and how you are around people, putting you up in front of a jury and having you be cross-examined would be an unknown that I’m hoping their attorney doesn’t want to chance.”
I stared blankly at the document in front of me. This was it—Stephan’s freedom lay in my hands.
“Did you have any questions for me?”
“No.”
She waited, but after several minutes, I still hadn’t said anything. I wasn’t sure what I was supposed to say . . . or do for that matter.
Emma reached across the table and began flipping through the papers I still held loosely in my grasp. “If you agree, I need you to sign your name there at the bottom.”
I swallowed but otherwise didn’t move.
“You don’t have to do this, you know. We can try to find another way or just wait out Agent Marco’s investigation.”
I looked up and met her gaze. “This will protect Stephan, right?”
She nodded. “Yes. If they accept the deal, they can’t charge either of you with any crime related to their case against Pierce.”
Taking a deep breath, I picked up the pen lying on the table in front of her and pressed it firmly against the white paper. Even though he’d taken the time to write me a letter, that didn’t mean anything. I was still broken, and the press haunted Stephan’s every move. As I put the finishing touches on my signature, though, I knew this was right. I was going to make sure Stephan had a future that didn’t involve the inside of a prison—even if that future didn’t include me.
Chapter 13
Stephan
Two sharp knocks sounded on my office door, pulling my attention away from the e-mail I’d been in the process of typing. Since Jamie hadn’t called to announce that I had a visitor, I was fairly confident it was Lily. She was the only person able to get around Jamie without my assistant making a fuss. On more than one occasion, Jamie had given an earful to someone for trying to bypass her to get to me. Even with Jamie’s cooler attitude toward me, that hadn’t changed.
“Come in, Lily.”
With a huge smile plastered on her face, Lily sashayed into my office. She let the door close behind her and, without prompting, took a seat across from my desk. “The final menu came in this morning.”
Lily handed me a printout of the e-mail she’d received. I glanced over it, not really caring about the food that would be served.
Handing the paper back to her, I leaned forward, resting my forearms on my desk. “And you couldn’t have just forwarded that to me in an e-mail?”
“I could have, but I was coming to see you anyway, so I figured I’d bring it along. Two birds with one stone kind of thing.”
“I see. And what else was bringing you to my office this morning?”
Lily shifted in her chair and looked out the window.
I didn’t have the patience for this right now. To be honest, I didn’t have patience for much of anything anymore. “Lily.”
She sighed and once again met my gaze. “I need to know if you’re bringing Sarah with you to the gala or if you’re . . . bringing someone else?”
Taking a deep breath, I tried to steady myself before answering her. As the gala got closer and closer, the weight of knowing Brianna wouldn’t be accompanying me became heavier. This was the foundation’s big night. I wanted her there by my side. Unfortunately, that wasn’t an option. While the political scandal last week had taken some of the vultures away, there were still a handful who didn’t want to move on—too afraid they’d miss something. An appearance from Brianna would only kick up the frenzy once more. I wouldn’t do that to her. “I haven’t asked Sarah, but I will. When do you need to know?”
Lily looked disappointed. Believe me, so was I. “I have to get a final count to the hotel and the caterers by the end of the week.”
I nodded.
“I’ll ask her tonight.” Thinking that was all, I turned my attention back to my computer. Lily didn’t move, though. “Was there something else?”
She looked down at her hands before glancing up again. “I miss her.” Lily paused. “Have you heard anything recently? Anything since the letter?”
Although I hadn’t shown Lily the letter Brianna had sent back to me, I’d shared bits of it with her. The two women had struck up a friendship, and when Brianna cut ties with me, Logan had thought it a good idea for Lily to keep her distance as well—at least for a while. I wasn’t sure I agreed with him, but it was ultimately their decision, not mine.
“No. Nothing new.”
Lily frowned and nodded solemnly. Even so, she seemed reluctant to leave.
“I’ll let you know if I hear something, but I doubt there will be any news before Wednesday.”
“You’re having lunch with Cal Ross again, right?”
“Yes.” I’d told Lily and Logan about the lunches and explained the purpose behind them. Although they were all for anything that protected Brianna, like me, they were still guarded when it came to Ross. I wasn’t sure I could ever fully trust the man. It was bad enough I was being forced to trust him with Brianna’s care. Having to trust him with helping to preserve my public image was a blow to my pride.
Lily didn’t stay long after that, and I attempted to push everything out of my mind but work. It was already the last week in September, and there was a lot to be done in the weeks leading up to the gala that had nothing to do with the event itself. Ev
ery year at the gala, the foundation revealed their new marketing campaign for the upcoming year. Although the marketing department handled most of the grunt work, everything had to be finalized by the board, which was why I was trying to write the agenda for tomorrow’s board meeting.
I was putting the finishing touches on the agenda when my cell phone rang. When I saw the caller was Oscar, I abandoned what I was doing and answered the phone. “Oscar?”
“Hello, Stephan. Is this a good time?”
“Of course. What’s going on?”
“I have some papers I want you to take a look at, and I was wondering if you could stop by my office this afternoon?”
“What papers?”
He paused, which was unlike Oscar. “I’d rather go over them with you in person.”
“What’s going on, Oscar?” I couldn’t hide my frustration.
“There have been some . . . developments. And before you ask, that’s all I’m going to say for now. I’ll wait for you to get here.” Before I could argue my point further, I heard a click on the other line letting me know he’d hung up.
Stunned, I stared at my phone. I couldn’t believe Oscar had hung up on me.
With a quick look at the time, I realized it was already after four. Saving everything, I e-mailed the file to myself so I could work on it later at home. I would never be able to concentrate on anything but the mysterious papers in Oscar’s possession, so I didn’t even try. Shutting everything down, I grabbed my jacket and was on my way to my car in less than five minutes.
It was close enough to rush hour that getting to Oscar’s office took longer than it should have. Every time I tried to take a shortcut to bypass traffic, it backfired on me and I was moving slower than I had been before. I finally gave up trying to hurry and decided to use the extra time to try and figure out what sort of developments there’d been that required me to stop by his office to go over some papers. Unfortunately, every scenario I came up with didn’t make sense with how things had been left. As far as I knew, Agent Marco was still chomping at the bit attempting to put together something against me while Brianna and I kept our silence. Unless something major had changed, I didn’t understand Oscar’s urgency.
I exited my vehicle quickly once I parked my car outside Oscar’s office building. Two cars had followed me, and I didn’t want to give them time to get into position. The pictures they managed to get from a distance were bad enough.
When I stepped off the elevator, Phyllis greeted me as always. “Good afternoon, Mr. Coleman. You can go on back. Mr. Davis is expecting you.”
I nodded and thanked her before headed down the hall to Oscar’s office. His door was open, so I didn’t bother knocking. Just like the last time, he wasn’t alone—Emma sat perched on the edge of one of his high-backed chairs.
As soon as I saw her, I halted my movement. “Brianna?”
“Is fine,” Oscar answered.
Emma, however, looked nervous. Something was wrong.
Oscar walked past me to close the door and motioned to the chair beside Emma. “Why don’t you take a seat? We have a few things to discuss.”
I didn’t sit down, and my gaze never left Emma. “What do we have to discuss?”
My lawyer took his seat and sighed. “The federal prosecutor wants to offer you a deal.”
I was still watching Emma. “What deal?”
“In exchange for your testimony against Ian Pierce, they are willing to grant you immunity.”
Whipping my head around to look at Oscar, I asked the obvious question. “Why? And why now?”
Both of them remained silent.
“I’ll ask again. Why?” I was trying very hard to stay calm, but the little sanity I had left was slipping. What had happened? What had prompted this?
“Agent Marco and the federal prosecutor think your testimony would help drive a nail in Pierce’s coffin.”
I shifted my gaze to Oscar. “You and I both know I don’t have enough firsthand knowledge of what he did to Brianna to convict him of holding her against her will. If I did, we would have had this conversation three months ago.”
“You’re right. Alone, you don’t.”
It didn’t take a genius to put the missing piece of the puzzle together, and before I knew it, I was flying across the room toward Emma. Her eyes widened at my sudden advance. “You were supposed to protect her! How dare you throw her to the wolves like that? You had one job. One!”
Oscar suddenly appeared between us, pushing against my chest, which was probably a good thing. I wanted to get my hands on Emma. I wanted to hurt her for doing this to Brianna. She was supposed to look out for her! Take care of her when I couldn’t. How could she do this?
“Stephan, calm down. You aren’t helping anyone this way.”
I didn’t budge, my nostrils flared with my anger. If looks could kill, Emma would be a dead woman.
“Stephan, please. Calm yourself.” Oscar’s voice was forceful as he tried to get me to see past the red in my vision.
Flexing my fingers, I attempted to get a grip on my emotions. It wasn’t easy, but finally I was in control enough that I ripped myself out of Oscar’s hold and marched across the room away from Emma. Truth be told, I couldn’t look at her. She’d betrayed Brianna. She’d betrayed me.
The only sound I could hear was my ragged breathing. The rise and fall of my chest gave testament to how upset I was. I wanted to punch something, break something—anything.
Leaning forward, I rested my fists on the window ledge and gazed out at the city. I’d done everything I could to keep this from happening. Obviously it wasn’t enough. I’d failed her.
Someone approached me on my left. I closed my eyes, willing myself not to do something I would regret.
“I know you’re upset, Stephan, but I think this is a good thing. It might not be a perfect solution, but we knew going into this that something was probably going to have to give somewhere along the line.”
I listened to Oscar’s words, but they sounded hollow.
“What if I confess to buying her? Will it change anything—keep her from having to testify?” I sounded desperate, and I was.
This time Emma spoke—brave of her, all things considered. “No.”
I whipped around. “What do you mean ‘no’? Why wouldn’t it?”
“Anna’s already signed her part of the deal. To be truthful, you don’t have to agree to what is being offered to you in exchange for your testimony. Anna already secured your immunity by agreeing to give the federal prosecutor her full cooperation. The only thing this will do is help put Pierce securely behind bars where he belongs and would decrease the likelihood of Anna having to actually testify. The more evidence they have against Pierce, the less likely the case will go to trial, and he will likely make a deal.”
“So you’re saying if I agree to this, Brianna won’t have to testify?”
I had to give Emma credit, she looked me square in the eye and didn’t back down. “It would be unlikely. There are no guarantees, however.”
Swallowing, I asked the one thing I had to know. “What all does she have to do?”
“Don’t you want to know what you have to do, Mr. Coleman?”
“No.” Once again, I marched across the room, closing the distance between the two of us. I felt Oscar’s presence close by, but I ignored him. This was between me and Emma. “I couldn’t care less what happens to me. Brianna is always my first concern. Always. Are we clear?”
She surprised me by laughing.
I, however, was not amused. “What, may I ask, is so funny?”
“You two sound exactly alike.” I must have looked as confused as I felt, because she continued to explain. “I can’t tell you how many times Anna has told me that keeping you safe is the only thing she wants.”
Frowning, I turned my attention away from Emma to Oscar. He looked as if he were lying in wait, ready to jump in and break Emma and I up again if need be. While I still wasn’t happy with her at the
moment, or Brianna for that matter, it appeared there wasn’t much I could change on that front. The only thing left to do was ensure that Brianna didn’t have to testify. In order to accomplish that, I needed to be involved. “Where do I sign?”
“Don’t you want to know the details?”
“I agree to give my statement and testify against Ian Pierce in exchange for immunity. What else is there I need to know?”
Oscar stared at me for a long minute before he sighed, reached for a pen, and pushed the papers in front of me.
Without waiting, I flipped to the last page and signed my name.
Pushing the documents back across the desk toward Oscar, I faced Emma again. “I want to see Brianna.”
Although I was addressing Emma, it was Oscar who spoke. “I don’t think that’s a good idea, Stephan. At least not yet.”
I lifted my eyebrow in question. I could go see her on my own, or even call Cal or Jade to arrange something, but it would be easier with Emma’s and Oscar’s help. The press was still an issue.
“As soon as Agent Marco and the federal prosecutor announce this. And believe me, I have no doubt they will make an announcement—this case has already drawn enough media attention. With this new ammunition, they will be doing everything they can to put pressure on Pierce.”
“I won’t continue to stay away from her, Oscar. Not if there is no longer a danger. She left to protect me. That’s no longer an issue.”
“Do you want her to be hounded by the press?”
The look I gave him must have been answer enough.
“That’s what I thought. Just let things cool down for a few weeks, and then we’ll see about setting up a meeting between the two of you.” He paused. “But Stephan, it’s going to take some time for things to cool down. This is a huge deal. It’s not every day a man like Ian Pierce is prosecuted for human trafficking. If you want to be with her—long-term—then you’re going to have to have patience.”
Patience. That was one thing I had in short supply. I had no idea if I could make it through another day without seeing Brianna, let alone weeks.
