Sweet Vengeance

by Fern Michaels

  “Wait a minute. I didn’t say that. I just don’t understand. First, it’s the Florida Supreme Court making a ruling that allows my conviction to be overturned, and now you tell me there is a witness?” Tessa informed him. “What kind of idiot do you think I am? Of course I want out of this place!” It was at that moment that she realized why her thoughts of suicide had been nothing more than thoughts, something that she would have never acted upon.

  Because deep down Tessa had always had hope.

  And now hope arrived in the form of a Florida Supreme Court decision and a new witness.

  Yes. I will take my chances.

  Chapter 4

  December 2021

  Tessa was really surprised that the clothes Sam brought her fit. She had lost at least twenty pounds during the ten-plus years she had been locked up. He had a good eye for size. A pair of khaki slacks, a delicate white blouse, and a yellow sweater, along with the fanciest bra she had seen since her incarceration, and soft, silky underwear, a true luxury. He’d sent a pair of leather Sperrys with a set of footies. He’d thought of everything, or maybe Bethany had chosen these clothes. As far as Tessa herself was concerned, she could have worn a flour sack and been satisfied. She had been given one chance to start her life over, and her wardrobe was the least of her problems.

  Once she was finished dressing, Tessa was told to wait in the small office next to the control room where she had just changed into her new clothes. She took a seat and waited for what was to come next.

  On the one hand, the two months since Lee, Steven, and Bethany had come into her life had sped by quickly. Once the guards learned of her new trial, they treated her a bit better. Except for Hicks. She was as mean as ever, perhaps even meaner now that Tessa might not be there for her to torment, and tried her best to get a rise out of her. Tessa knew if she had even the slightest blemish on her record, she could forget about getting out on bail while she waited for her new trial.

  On the other hand, time seemed to crawl as all she could think about was getting out of jail, planning for a new trial, and figuring out how to catch Liam and destroy the perverted son of a bitch in the most painful manner possible. Lee had explained the terms of her release once the judge entered his final order into the record. Her new trial date had not yet been set, so she would be on house arrest and wear an ankle bracelet to monitor her whereabouts. She would only be allowed to leave the house to visit her attorney, and she could go to church if she chose to. She decided she would. She had to believe that it was God’s plan that had sent Lee and his crew into her life, and for the first time since she had lost everything in her life that mattered to her, she was truly thankful to be alive.

  The dark thoughts still lingered in the back of her mind, but the bright light of hope was there now, even if it was only a shimmer. If all went as Lee expected, in a few months she would be a free woman. She would be exonerated of all charges, and her record would be expunged.

  She had millions in the bank, a successful company that still belonged to her. Rachelle was given $5 million a year as was dictated in her father-in-law’s will, but according to Sam, that amount was a small drop in Jamison Pharmaceuticals’ financial bucket.

  The only downside of this change was that she had to return to San Maribel and the house where the murders had taken place. Sam had taken care of the house and assured her it wasn’t the same as she remembered. She certainly hoped not. Just the thought of entering that house again caused her to panic. She had begged Lee to ask the judge if she could rent a place, buy a condo, anything other than returning to the island, but Judge Crider had been adamant according to Lee, whom she now trusted as much as she trusted herself. He cut straight through the flesh to the bone, but she respected that. Life after more than ten years in prison was too short for beating around the bush.

  Tessa waited twenty minutes for the Powers That Be to formally release her. It had been confirmed that she would be released into Sam’s custody, and that made her slightly uncomfortable. She had always liked him, even more so since she had been incarcerated, as he’d stayed with the company, expanding their production of a new trial drug that would possibly slow, or even halt the growth of cancer cells in patients diagnosed with brain cancer. This could put Jamison Pharmaceuticals into position as one of the top pharmaceutical companies in the country. Still, memories of the moment that he placed his hand on her shoulder and her physical reaction made her feel ill at ease. Though it had been so very long since she had been offered any sort of comfort by anyone, male or female, she felt sure that her reaction was normal given her years alone. But a nagging thought that she couldn’t ignore kept popping up: Am I actually attracted to Sam? How can I even have these thoughts at this pivotal moment in my life?

  The door opened, and Tessa’s thoughts were jolted back to the present when the man she had just been thinking about entered the room.

  “Are you ready?” Sam asked. There was no humor, certainly nothing remotely suggestive about his manner, but Tessa couldn’t stop the faintest tinge of uneasiness when her eyes met his. He wore dark slacks, a light green shirt, and a black jacket. No tie, she noticed, but this really wasn’t an occasion where formal dress was required. His dark hair was too long, and his gray eyes were piercing. It bothered her that she even noticed these physical characteristics of his. What did she really know about Sam McQuade? He’d been Joel’s friend since college, loyal to the company, but other than that, she really didn’t know Sam all that well. He’d been to their house dozens of times, yet she couldn’t recall his ever bringing a date to any of the functions she and Joel hosted. It didn’t matter anyway. She stopped thinking about past interactions with Sam and turned her attention to the here and now.

  Tessa nodded and felt a wash of relief when she had no physical reaction to him as he stood next to where she sat. Taking a deep breath, she looked up at him, and said, “I’m not sure how one is supposed to act at a time like this, but I’m more than ready to find out.” When she stood, the weight of her new clothes suddenly felt heavy and scratchy against her skin. After more than ten years in which her only attire was an orange jumpsuit that had softened with time, she almost wished she were allowed to bring her familiar, comfortable clothing with her. But not only did she know that wasn’t allowed, but more important, doing so would be a bad way to get started on what she hoped would be the first stages of her new life as a free woman.

  “I must warn you, your release is being reported on by all the major news networks, and there are several local network trucks sitting outside the prison. They’ll hurl questions at you, but don’t answer. Lee is here, and he will take their questions. Just do your best to ignore them. They all want to be the first one to—” Sam stopped talking for a couple of seconds, then went on. “They’ll want to hear in your own words how you feel about having your conviction overturned, about facing a new trial, and about being released on bail although you are still under arrest for three murders. Don’t react, because if you do, it will be the lead story on the six o’clock news. Stay close to me, okay?”

  It wasn’t as though she had any choice in the matter. “Of course,” she said. “Is there another exit we can use?” she asked, even though she knew that there wasn’t. The freed-convict walk to freedom was always the same; she knew this from being on the inside for so long. But if there were the slightest chance there was another way out, she wanted to know.

  “This is it, I’m afraid. As soon as the warden gives us the word, we’ll leave. I have a car and driver waiting.”

  Tessa felt like a true criminal, being whisked out of prison, all eyes on her, all the TV reporters waiting to catch her first moment of freedom on camera. Even though her new freedom might only be temporary, it was still hot news. It was not every day that the person who had committed the most heinous crime of the century so far in Florida was released from prison. Yes, this was big news all right.

  Warden Kathryn Ryce entered the room with her usual air of self-confidence.
Only one of three female wardens in the state of Florida, she took pride in her position, and while Tessa had no great liking for the woman, she had always treated the warden with respect, and Warden Ryce had always responded accordingly. She was dressed as usual: a dark blazer with a dark skirt and low-heeled shoes, and her auburn hair was pulled into a tight bun. She wore no makeup, but Tessa always thought her an attractive woman in a very plain way. High cheekbones, a full mouth, brown eyes, she was not the angry female many of the inmates claimed her to be. She did her job, and Tessa respected that.

  The warden went to the small desk in the corner of the room and picked through a large stack of papers. When she found what she was looking for, she spoke. “Ms. Jamison, I need your signature here.” She pointed to a space on the bottom of a legal-sized sheet of paper. “This is an inmate’s release form. You may take the time to read through it if you wish, but Mr. Whitlow assured me that he has already gone over all the instructions with you.”

  Tessa nodded, took the paper, and signed it. She knew its contents. Rules to live by once she walked out the door. They included notifying the local San Maribel Police Department, the Lee County Sheriff’s Office, and the Lee County Probation Department. She was required to make all of them aware of her release as though she were a new danger to the community. The judge had explained that since the island was still U.S. soil, and she would be monitored via an ankle bracelet, she would be allowed to stay there.

  “If I may, Ms. Jamison?” Warden Ryce asked when she returned the paper to the stack on the desk.

  “If you may what, Warden Ryce?” Sam asked, his tone stern.

  “Mr. McQuade, I simply wanted to wish Ms. Jamison well. She has been one of the state’s most cooperative prisoners, and I simply want to wish her well.” She said this as though Tessa were out of hearing range.

  “Thank you, Warden. I can’t say it’s been a pleasure, but I appreciate your kind words,” Tessa said, letting both know that she was quite capable of speaking for herself.

  “You may go,” Warden Ryce said.

  “Yes, uh . . . thank you,” she said even though the warden had no part in her early, albeit possibly temporary, release from prison.

  “Good luck,” she said, surprising Tessa.

  Tessa gave the warden an acknowledging nod and wondered briefly if the warden really meant it or just said it to every inmate about to leave the prison. Does it really matter? she asked herself.

  Without another word, Sam escorted her out of the office, through several long hallways, through two steel doors, and finally, the door that led to the world outside the prison gates, a world she had not seen in over ten years.

  The door to freedom. The door to a new chance at life.

  The door leading to her search for Liam Jamison.

  And when she found him, she would make him pay for killing her family and robbing her of the last ten years of her life.

  Chapter 5

  “How does it feel to be free?”

  “Are you going to take over at Jamison Pharmaceuticals?”

  “Will you have more children to replace the twins you killed?”

  Tessa looked up and appeared ready to commit mayhem when she heard the horribly cruel words a local TV reporter had just uttered.

  “Don’t say a word,” Sam cautioned, guiding her to the shiny black SUV parked close to the area where the members of the press were gathered. “All they want is to get a response from you, preferably a negative one. Remember, you don’t want to be the lead story on the six o’clock news. Be assured that I have noted who it was who asked that last question. And once this is over, I will personally see to it that she never again works for any television, radio, or newspaper company again. And you can take that to the bank.”

  She walked as fast as she could, Sam’s arm around her waist holding her close to him, away from the reporters, with their hands outstretched, holding smart phones and recorders in hopes of getting a comment on the record. Trying to absorb as much of the outside as she could, Tessa raised her head, letting the warm December sun of Florida caress her face. A cool breeze carried the scent of the inmates’ next meal. She reveled in the fact that she would no longer be subjected to the tasteless slop they tried to pass off as food. Seafood, fresh vegetables, and fruit would be her diet for as long as she was free.

  She took a deep breath, inhaled the noxious odors for what she hoped was the last time in her life, then, as soon as she reached the vehicle, a door opened, and she slid across the smooth leather seats. She inhaled the rich scent of leather and remembered her own vehicle. Briefly, she wondered if Sam had taken care of that as well but recalled she had asked her attorney to donate her vehicle and Joel’s to a worthwhile charity.

  Slamming the door as soon as he was inside, Sam spoke to their driver. “Get us out of here, and make sure we’re not followed.”

  Tessa felt as though she were in another world, sort of like Alice in Wonderland, through the looking glass, this large vehicle her own personal rabbit hole, where everything was the same but somehow her perception of it was warped, almost freakish. She closed her eyes and opened them again, hoping to dispel the distorted image.

  “Where are you taking me first?” Tessa asked, realizing she had not bothered to ask exactly where she would go immediately upon her release. The words sounded false to her ears; she couldn’t even imagine what they sounded like to their driver and Sam. She had been told the process, but until she had actually walked out the prison door, she had resisted really taking in anything beyond getting out the door to the prison.

  “You’re going home, Tessa,” Sam stated. “It’s what you agreed to. They”—he nodded toward the back window of the SUV—“won’t follow us all the way to San Maribel. Though I suspect we’ll have our share of media to deal with there, too.”

  She nodded, admitting to herself that she had not thought that far ahead. It was her fear of her twin girls’ exposure to the jackals of the media that had sent her running to San Maribel all those years ago. And that fear had cost her everything she valued in life. She wouldn’t fear the media this time around. She might even find a way to use them to her advantage, but that was for a later time. When she had had a chance to think, time to plan how she was going to get at Liam Jamison, the son of a bitch.

  “As soon as we get your ankle bracelet, you’ll have some time to yourself.”

  Tessa inhaled and slowly exhaled. “At the sheriff’s office?” She knew this but wanted it confirmed.

  “Yes, that, too, was part of the judge’s conditions for release,” Sam explained.

  “I know, it just seems a bit, I don’t know . . . sort of like collaring an animal or something.”

  Sam turned around in the front seat to face her. “That’s pretty much the point. While you aren’t going to have prison bars around you, you won’t be able to come and go, at least not until after a trial or the charges against you are dismissed.”

  “Of course, I know that, but it still doesn’t keep me from thinking it’s barbaric. What happens if you remove it?”

  “Tessa, that’s not—”

  “I know, Sam. But humor me. I am just curious. What would happen if it were removed?”

  “First, you’d need a massive pair of cutters to remove it, which would then send a high-frequency signal to a receiver. A phone rings, and whoever is in charge contacts the proper authorities, and they begin a search for you. If you leave it on, you’re fine. As long as you don’t leave your assigned area without permission, you won’t have a problem, but they can track your every movement if you do since it’s equipped with a GPS. Just so you know.” He was dead serious.

  “Of course I wouldn’t dare remove it. I realize it’s what I have to do until after the trial. I’m fine with it, Sam. Really,” she added, and gave him a halfhearted smile.

  “I know. I’m sorry it has to be this way.”

  “Me, too, but it’s okay. Really.” She had not asked Sam why he’d brought her case to Lee
Whitlow, but now she needed to know. “Why did you go to all this trouble? Bringing my case to Lee?”

  Sam rubbed the bridge of his nose, then raked a hand through his hair. “Because you’re innocent.”

  Not sure of what to say, she said nothing. No one had ever said these words to her. At least not as directly.

  “Does Rosa’s story have anything to do with your belief in my innocence?” Tessa asked. Since learning about Rosa’s story, she was sure this had influenced Lee and his team probably even more than the Florida Supreme Court’s ruling.

  “No. I have never doubted your story,” Sam stated. “No one in their right mind could do . . . you would never have harmed your girls, or Joel. I know that, Tessa. I have always known that. But I was never called as a witness.”

  “I don’t think your testimony would have changed anything. There wasn’t any evidence that required your testimony. In fact, when you get down to it, there really was no evidence against me at all.”

  “I could have vouched for your character,” Sam said. “Not that it would have mattered. The district attorney had his eye on you from the beginning. Any evidence that could have turned their investigation around, they simply ignored. If Rosa had not decided to speak up, they would have fought like cats and dogs against your being released even now. I seriously doubt that they even care whether or not you are guilty. All they care about is not having their precious theory shown to be the garbage it is and always has been and their utter lack of competence exposed to the world.”

  Rosa. Tessa remembered her well. She had been in her early forties when she came to work for them. The girls were four. It was during this time that Tessa had considered going back to work part-time, with the knowledge that both Piper and Poppy adored Rosa, and she loved them in return.

  Tessa had spent many sleepless nights pondering her decision. In the end, she had decided to stay home with her girls. Rosa was a great sitter and kept their large home in shipshape order. Tessa had suspected there was more to Rosa, but her being an undocumented worker who had entered Florida illegally had not been anything she suspected back then. Joel had hired her as soon as Tessa gave her seal of approval. He’d personally taken care of the financial side, and Rosa took charge of their home. To think what Rosa might have witnessed blew her away.