Surrounded by Darkness

by Rachel Dylan

  “Olivia doesn’t have to know about it. Let me approach Katy myself. See if I can clean up your colossal mess.”

  Layton stood. He’d had enough lecturing from Morena, but at the end of the day, her bottom line was right. “Good. Let me know how it goes and how much she’s going to cost me.”

  Grant sat with Scott in Grant’s office. Scott had wanted to meet face to face. Grant knew that wasn’t a good sign.

  “Give it to me straight,” Grant said.

  “When I tried to accept their settlement demand, I was told it was no longer on the table.”

  Grant held back what he really wanted to say and instead pushed forward. “How’s that possible? They made the offer, and we accepted. Done deal.”

  “It’s not a done deal until it’s inked, and Eli claims Ms. Ramos is no longer interested at all in settlement. She wants her day in court, and according to Eli, it’s a fight about principles.”

  Grant groaned. “I moved mountains to get the money to pay this settlement. Now you’re telling me there is no way we can get this thing done out of court?”

  Scott looked down at his legal pad. “I’m sorry, Grant. This is highly unusual. I think Eli has fanned the flames of passion in his client. This has become even more personal for her. She wants to see you pay.”

  “Could I have done a better job? Of course. But the way they’re treating this thing is crazy.” And that’s why this was about so much more than Ms. Ramos. For all he knew, Layton was paying Ms. Ramos to push the lawsuit.

  “Listen, I know when you told me the entire backstory I was a little skeptical. Well, a lot skeptical. But given how this is all unfolding, I’m thinking that you’re probably right about Layton’s involvement. I’m not sure if it’s spiritual or not, but we know there’s a connection between Layton and Eli. And the fact that the plaintiff won’t even entertain sure money is unheard of in these types of cases.”

  “Where does that leave me, though? Totally screwed?” Grant could no longer hold back his frustration. “I’m in a no-win situation here.”

  Scott didn’t immediately respond and that didn’t instill confidence.

  “I think we need to be a bit more aggressive than I would normally prefer,” Scott said.

  “How so?”

  “Going after Ms. Ramos. Really searching for the skeletons in her closet and trying to use those as leverage.”

  “And if there are no skeletons?”

  “Everyone has skeletons,” Scott said flatly.

  “Man, I’m not looking to destroy her life.”

  “We’re at war here, and the last thing I want is for your life to be destroyed. Sometimes you must take drastic action. She’s not all innocent here either if we’re right about her involvement with Layton. Don’t go soft on me now. We have to fight or you’re as good as done. What do you say?”

  “Fire away.”

  Chapter Thirteen

  Olivia stood in the lobby of the courthouse waiting for Katy to arrive. She was a little worried that Katy might not make it, but she knew how difficult this was. At the end of the day, if Katy didn’t want to go through with it, Olivia would be disappointed but she would understand. She tapped her foot to a song she was singing to herself.

  “Hey,” a voice said from behind.

  She turned and there was Grant. Her heartbeat sped up just seeing him.

  “Hey,” she said.

  A moment of awkward silence hung between them. “You have something going on today?” Grant asked.

  “Yeah. A hearing for an order of protection.” She didn’t say against who.

  “The clinic work must be going well for you.” He shifted his weight from side to side.

  The tension between them was palpable but it wasn’t unfriendly. Just not their normal, easy connection. “Yeah. It’s fulfilling, but it’s also a lot of pressure to do the best I can for the victims.”

  He took a step closer to her. “Are you holding up?”

  The fact that he seemed so concerned about her made her heart melt. “Yes,” she said quietly. “How about you?”

  Grant ran his hand through his hair. “They pulled the settlement demand off the table.”

  She snapped her fingers. “I knew it. Layton is up to his old tricks.”

  Grant nodded. “That was my thought too. We’ve got the deposition of the woman who sued me coming up.”

  That was big. She knew how important that moment would be. “I’ll be praying about the case. For your lawyer and you.” She wanted so badly to reach out and touch him, but she held back. He had asked for space, and she was trying to respect his wishes.

  “Thanks.” He looked over her shoulder. “I think your client might be here.”

  Olivia turned and saw Katy walking their way. “Yeah, that’s her.”

  “I’ll let you go then. Hope it all goes well in there.”

  “Thanks.” She paused. “It was good to see you.”

  “You too,” he said.

  As Grant walked away, she tried to compose herself. Katy approached, and her cheeks were flushed.

  “Katy, are you all right?”

  Katy nodded. “Yeah, but I need to tell you something. I was getting coffee yesterday and was approached by a woman named Morena.”

  Olivia’s stomach sank. Layton was now sending one of his people to do his dirty work. “I know Morena. What did she tell you?”

  “She offered me money if I dropped this case and left Layton alone.”

  “How much money?”

  “Twenty-five thousand dollars,” Katy whispered. “Morena told me to keep it between us, that you would just complicate matters, but I couldn’t do it after all you’ve done for me.”

  “Are you considering taking it?” Olivia knew how that amount of money could change Katy’s life.

  “Morena told me I could have a completely new life. Move out of town and start fresh.” Katy paused. “But I don’t know if I can.” Katy looked directly at Olivia.

  “This is a delicate situation. At the end of the day, it’s your decision if you’d like to settle this matter. As your attorney, I can’t make that decision for you.”

  “I couldn’t sleep at all last night. If I don’t say anything and just go on with my life, then what’s the chance that Layton will hurt another woman?”

  Olivia couldn’t lie. “There’s a high likelihood he will keep hurting women. Unfortunately, the only way to stop him is to lock him up, and the current case we have is about keeping him away from you—it isn’t the state bringing criminal charges. Does that make sense?”

  “How do we get the state to do that?”

  “We would need a prosecutor to step up, open an investigation, and then bring charges. Given the fact that he went through the attempted murder trial, though, finding a prosecutor to take it on could be tough.” Olivia didn’t think that would happen anytime soon. “But let’s take things one step at a time for now. You need to do what is best for you. There’s a good chance Layton will end up leaving you alone regardless, given how this issue has flared up, but having an order in place demanding it would make me feel a lot better. If you want to move away and start a new life—taking the money—then I will be here for whatever you decide.”

  Katy’s eyes filled with tears. “Taking his money doesn’t seem right. Yes, I could use it, but I want to be able to look at myself in the mirror and not second-guess my decision. I want to move forward with the hearing, assuming you’re still on board.”

  Olivia let out a sigh of relief. “You know I am.”

  “Then let’s do this.”

  Layton walked into the courtroom ready to take on a new challenge. This was becoming an all too familiar occurrence for him. At least today he wasn’t facing an attempted murder charge, but it was a big hassle, nonetheless.

  He’d opted not to have a lawyer here with him today and instead brought Morena. From the conversation he did have with one of his many attorneys, this type of hearing was much more informal than what
he was used to. And he was hoping the fact that he came without a lawyer might help his case. A guilty man would never show up unrepresented.

  Layton turned to Morena. “You weren’t successful in your attempt to make this go away.” She had always been more optimistic about that prospect than him, especially since he knew Olivia was involved in the case.

  “I gave it my best shot, but you messed this woman up, Layton,” Morena said in a hushed tone.

  Layton shrugged as he took his seat in the courtroom and waited for the judge to arrive. “I’ve faced much worse.”

  Morena gave a knowing nod of agreement, but he could tell she was royally ticked off at him. He was mad at himself for not being more disciplined, especially in the current climate. But today he planned to try and make Katy look like a crazy, desperate woman. He’d see if the judge would bite.

  When Layton heard the sound of heels clicking loudly down the courtroom floor, he knew Olivia had arrived. If he was being honest with himself, this was all about him and Olivia—not Katy. She was a casualty in his larger battle.

  Olivia didn’t speak to him as she ushered Katy to the other table, and they had a seat. Katy glanced over at him and then quickly averted her eyes. The woman was scared to death.

  After a few moments, the judge walked into the courtroom. Layton let out a breath when he saw it was a male judge. He figured a woman would’ve been worse for him given the circumstances. The gray-haired judge looked to be in his fifties and had pudgy red cheeks that probably reflected his elevated blood pressure.

  “Good morning, I’m Judge Lowe. This is a hearing for an order of protection filed by Ms. Katy Leonard against Mr. Layton Alito. Is Ms. Leonard present?”

  “Yes,” Katy said quietly in response.

  “And Your Honor, I’m Olivia Murray, Ms. Leonard’s attorney.”

  Judge Lowe nodded. “Thank you.” He turned and looked at Layton. “I presume you are Mr. Alito?”

  Layton stood to address the judge. “Yes, Your Honor.”

  “And do you have legal representation here today?”

  “No. I didn’t think that was necessary.”

  “Very well.” The judge shifted some papers in front of him. “I’m not sure whether everyone involved here is aware of how these hearings are conducted, so I’ll set out some ground rules. Basically, I’m going to want to hear from Ms. Leonard and Mr. Alito directly. Ms. Murray, you’re free to speak, but you won’t be examining witnesses. I’ll find out the information I need and then render a decision.”

  This guy seemed practical enough, but Layton would have a much better idea once he heard the types of questions the judge asked.

  “Ms. Leonard, I’d like to start with you.”

  Layton leaned back in his chair and tried not to give off any hostile vibes.

  Katy walked up to the witness box and was sworn in.

  “Ms. Leonard, even though we’re going to be very informal here, do you understand that you are under oath?”

  “Yes, sir,” Katy said.

  “Very good. I’ve read your court filings, but I’d like to hear everything in your own words.” He paused. “I know that talking about these issues can be very difficult. At any time if you need a break, just let me know. I’ve got all day and am in no rush.”

  Layton didn’t like the sound of that, but he kept his facial expression neutral.

  “I met Layton about six months ago. Initially I was swept off my feet.”

  “Tell me more about that.”

  Katy looked at the judge. “Layton seemed like the perfect gentleman. Always very professional and charming. He would open doors for me, bring me flowers and other gifts. The gifts did get nicer as we started dating. I knew he was wealthy, so I didn’t think there was anything wrong with that.”

  “And you’re saying at this period, you didn’t feel threatened by him?” the judge asked.

  Katy shook her head. “No, Your Honor. Like I said, he was a guy right out of my dreams. Unlike other guys I dated that wanted to immediately jump into bed, Layton wasn’t like that. He actually wanted to talk to me. Get to know me. He would ask me a lot of questions about my day and my feelings. He didn’t make it about him at all. It was really a breath of fresh air.”

  “When did things start to change?”

  “It was strange because he said he needed a break a few months into things. I figured he was getting tired of me. I always felt he was out of my league, but then a few weeks ago, he called and wanted to see me again. I wasn’t dating anyone, so I was happy to reconnect.”

  “And what happened when you started dating again?” the judge asked.

  Katy blew out a breath. “He seemed like a different man almost from the start. He started getting very possessive and jealous. Demanding to know where I was going and what I was doing. Who I was calling and texting. He hadn’t acted that way before. At first, I thought that maybe he actually wanted to get really serious and that’s why he was acting that way, but then things took a turn for the worse.”

  The judge looked at Katy. “Did you want a serious relationship?”

  Katy bit her bottom lip. “Yes. I did. That was until he started acting like a different man. The original Layton I knew was amazing. The new Layton was scary. It was like he wasn’t even the same person.”

  “Did you convey your concerns to him?”

  “I tried to, but when I started to question him, that’s when he became aggressive. That side of him was completely new to me, and it scared me to death. I’d never been in a relationship before with someone who acted like that.”

  Layton let her words sink in, and frankly, he didn’t think he’d been like that. But this, of course, was her side of the story.

  “Did it escalate from there?” Judge Lowe asked.

  Katy nodded. “Yes. One night Layton got mad at me and slapped me hard across the face. On another occasion he threw me to the ground.” Katy’s voice started to shake. “I was afraid he was going to hurt me badly.”

  Layton gripped the sides of his chair. She was starting to tick him off.

  The judge picked up the paper in front of him. “I read in the filing your attorney submitted about some incident at Mr. Alito’s house. Can you tell me more about that?”

  Katy shifted in her seat. “I’m not sure what all Layton is into, but it’s not something that I’m comfortable with. It was like a black magic séance he was trying to get me to participate in. Thankfully, I was able to sneak out, but I paid the price later when Layton hit me again. That was the last straw. I feared for my safety.” She paused and looked at Layton. “I still do.”

  Layton had to stop a smile from spreading across his lips. Katy had no idea how much her words thrilled him. He only got stronger by sensing her fear. He looked at Olivia, and she was focused intently on Katy. Layton was anxious to have the judge hear his side of the story.

  The judge asked a series of additional questions, but Layton became preoccupied with what he was going to testify to. Finally, the judge thanked Katy and turned his attention to Layton.

  Layton was sworn in, but he obviously had no qualms about lying. Katy’s version of events had basically been accurate, but of course, he would never cop to that.

  “Mr. Alito, just as I told Ms. Leonard, you are under oath. Do you understand that?”

  “Yes, Your Honor.” Layton looked directly into the judge’s eyes.

  “Now it’s your turn to tell us what you believed happened here. But right off the bat, I have to ask. Do you dispute Ms. Leonard’s account?”

  “Absolutely, Your Honor. Ms. Leonard is a wonderful woman, but it became clear to me after spending some time with her that she has some mental health issues.”

  “Like what?”

  “I’m not a doctor, but she had extreme mood swings, bouts of depression, and severe paranoia. She always thought someone was watching her or was out to get her. I tried my best to calm her fears and say that I would protect her, but it only got worse the closer we go
t.”

  “You bought Ms. Leonard numerous gifts, did you not?”

  Layton nodded. “Yes. I’m fortunate to have a thriving business, and it gave me great happiness to be able to give Ms. Leonard nice things. She was always very appreciative.” Layton looked down, preparing to start the real acting. “I’m honestly very concerned for her mental well-being. When I got served with these papers, I read in extreme surprise the allegations she was making. I’ve never laid a hand on her.”

  Layton stopped and tried to read the judge’s response, but he wasn’t easily read.

  “Ms. Leonard,” the judge said. “Have you ever been treated for any mental health issues?”

  Katy didn’t immediately respond, and Layton was relieved she’d confided her weaknesses in him.

  “I—I have been treated for depression in the past,” Katy stuttered. “But that was a couple of years ago.”

  “You’re not currently seeing anyone for that?” the judge asked.

  “No,” Katy responded.

  Layton decided to push the issue. “I encouraged her to seek treatment, Your Honor. When we reconnected, I was hoping that she would’ve taken my advice. I told her I would be by her side.” The lies rolled off his tongue so easily. He was almost enjoying the story he was weaving on the fly. She had told him about her past struggles, but that had been the end of the conversation.

  “Let’s get back to you, Mr. Alito,” Judge Lowe said. “What do you say about Ms. Leonard’s allegation that you tried to force her to participate in some type of séance.”

  Layton let out a little laugh. “Your Honor, I have absolutely no idea where that came from. I do run a New Age company where we market and sell a variety of products, but I think Ms. Leonard misunderstood what we do and jumped to the crazy conclusion that spiritual well-being had to do with séances. Nothing could be further from the truth. My company is highly respected. When I read those words, I did wonder if Ms. Leonard was having some sort of break with reality. Yes, I did host a dinner party that evening with many esteemed members of the community, including a sitting judge. Ms. Leonard did leave unexpectedly, and I followed up with her the next day to check on her. I never hurt her. Not once. I only wanted what was best for her—and still do. That’s another reason I didn’t come here with a lawyer today. I don’t want this to be adversarial. I want her to get the help she needs, and if that means she doesn’t want me in her life, then I can abide by that.”