Truth or Consequences

by Sharon C. Cooper

  “Yeah right,” Wiz said, his fingers flying across his computer keyboard. Malik didn’t know how Wiz could have a conversation and focus on what he was typing. “You’re not done with her. You can lie to yourself if you want to, but the truth is on your face and in your tone. Right now you’re mad because she’s the first woman who’s ever slighted the almighty Malik Lewis.”

  Malik didn’t respond. This whole, yet brief, experience with Natasha was new to him. Wiz was right about one thing: this was the first time in a long time that a woman had kicked his ass to the curb. If he wasn’t still pissed, he’d laugh.

  “Now, if you’re done bitching and moaning, I’ll tell you what I found so far.” He handed Malik a file. “That’s the dossier on the good Dr. Robert Halsey, or should I say Dr. Anthony Hailstock. The name he went by in New York and Texas.”

  Malik opened the file and sifted through some of the pages. He couldn’t believe the type of information Wiz could dig up on a person. His friend’s talent to find the impossible never ceased to amaze him.

  “Check this out.” He pointed a remote to the large monitor hanging over a short bookcase. On the screen were photos of two men. “Guess who that is.”

  Malik’s eyebrows shot upward. “Don’t tell me that’s Dr. Halsey.”

  “Yep. Not only did his identity change on paper, but he had some work done on his face as well.”

  “Wow! He looks totally different.” Malik sat on the corner of the desk. “My thing is, though, I still can’t believe he was able to practice medicine with a fake license.”

  “Apparently you haven’t looked at the license yet.” Wiz nodded toward the file he’d given Malik. “It looks legit. Whoever this lawyer is that helped him pull this off was good. Damn good.”

  Malik continued perusing the file, which included photos of the doctor’s family, information about the foundation that he and his wife created years ago, and financial statements.

  “I expected to find huge sums of money in the doctor’s bank account, but that wasn’t the case. I’m still waiting for some information, but so far, it doesn’t look as if the doctor was killing off his patients for money.”

  “The way Natasha made it sound he was killing them in order to keep his identity a secret.”

  “Surely he had to be smarter than that.” Wiz stood and walked around his desk, leaning on the back of the chair that Malik had vacated. “He had to know that this lawyer guy was going to keep asking for more babies.”

  “Speaking of babies, did you find out anything about underground adoption agencies?”

  “Well, it would help if Natasha could remember the name, but I have some feelers out there. Hopefully I’ll hear something soon.”

  Malik closed the file. “Anything else?”

  “I talked with the husband of the woman who died in the car bombing. Needless to say, he wasn’t in a talkative mood considering the police had been questioning him.”

  “But I assume you were able to convince him to share info.”

  “Of course.” Wiz grinned and walked over to the large window overlooking his huge backyard. He opened the blinds and turned back to Malik. “He’s a retired Marine, so I played the military-brotherhood card.”

  “And?”

  “After his wife was killed, he found a bank account. He knew nothing about it, but it had over sixty thousand dollars in it.”

  Malik smiled. He knew where this conversation was going. “I trust that you’ll be able to trace back the deposits to find out where the money came from.”

  “I’m working on it.” He opened his office door. “I’ll keep you posted on anything else I find, but right now you got to go.”

  Malik laughed and stuck the file Wiz had given him under his arm. “I see how this day is going, and already I’m a little sick of people kicking me out of their homes. Y’all don’t know who you’re dealing with,” he moved toward the door, “I’m Malik Goddamn Lewis! I don’t have to leave until I’m good and ready. You’re just lucky I’m ready.”

  Chapter Fourteen

  “All set?” Stan, the bodyguard Malik had assigned to Natasha, asked when she exited the hospital’s conference room.

  She nodded and he fell in step with her. Natasha was so ready to leave. Meeting with hospital administrators to discuss Dr. Halsey was like reliving the night before all over again. And if one more person asked how she was doing she was going to scream. She knew they meant well, but since the moment Malik walked out of her house earlier, she’d been on edge.

  Stan opened the door that led to the stairs. That was one good thing about having a bodyguard; he opened and held doors for her. She had first met Stan when he was assigned to guard her sister, Alandra. Natasha remembered teasing Alandra when Quinn insisted that Stan go wherever she went, and now here Natasha was in the same situation. She had to admit that she liked Stan and appreciated Malik’s concern about her safety, but she didn’t want a bodyguard. Whoever killed Bob was after him, not her. She might’ve been a little nervous about being alone the night before, but today she felt like her old self. Independent and in charge.

  “Dr. Lockham,” a male voice called out from behind her. Natasha slowed and glanced over her shoulder to see Ray heading in her direction.

  “Hi Ray,” she said, actually glad to see him. With her workload and meetings during the past week, she hadn’t had a chance to thank him for the flowers. She turned to Stan. “Can you give us a minute?”

  He hesitated, giving Ray a once over before saying, “Sure, I’ll be right over there.” He pointed to a spot about ten feet away.

  “How’s it going?” Ray asked. “I heard about last night. Were you hurt?” His gaze took a bold stroll down her body before returning to her face, appreciation brimming in his eyes. “You look amazing by the way.”

  Natasha—caught off guard—smiled at him, wondering about his boldness. A couple of weeks ago when he invited her out for lunch, he seemed somewhat shy. Yet, the other day in the hallway, there was almost a cockiness to his behavior. She didn’t know what to make of him, but he seemed like a nice enough guy.

  “Thank you, and no I wasn’t hurt. It was just a case of being in the wrong place at the wrong time.” She downplayed the situation. Many members of the staff were looking for details regarding the previous night and the death of Dr. Halsey, but she was asked not to share specifics.

  “I’m sorry to hear about Dr. Halsey,” Ray said. “I never met him, but I heard he was a good doctor and a nice guy.”

  Natasha nodded. She wasn’t exactly sure how she felt about Bob at the moment. She would never wish death on anyone, but knowing what she knew, she struggled to come to terms with what he’d done. She also hated the vulnerable position he had put the hospital in.

  “Yeah, it’s a sad situation all the way around,” she finally said. “By the way, I was hoping to run into you. I wanted to thank you for the flowers you sent the other day. They were absolutely beautiful.”

  His mouth spread into a wide grin and Natasha thought he was even more handsome when he smiled. “I’m glad you liked them. It was the least I could do considering my outburst the other day. I shouldn’t have taken my shi– I’m sorry, my crappy mood out on you.”

  “Believe me, I understand.” And she did. Today she would have preferred to stay at home behind closed doors and not talk to anyone. It seemed her tolerance level decreased the longer she stayed at the hospital.

  Natasha shifted the strap of her handbag to her other shoulder. Since they’d been standing there, Ray had looked over at Stan at least three times during the conversation. Stan’s expression never wavered and his gaze stayed on Ray. Malik insisted that something was off about Ray, but couldn’t explain the feeling in his gut. Natasha wondered if Stan was picking up the same vibe.

  “Well, I’ll let you get going,” Ray said, shoving his hands into his pants pocket, rocking back and forth on the balls of his feet. “I need to get a quick workout in at the gym before I head to my next job.”


  “Oh, what gym? I recently joined the one up the street.”

  Ray flashed his straight-teeth smile again. “That’s the one I’m at. Maybe we’ll run into each other there sometime.”

  “Yeah, maybe.”

  They said their good-byes, leaving Natasha thinking that he seemed like such a nice guy. If he was a little older and she weren’t interested in Malik Lewis … She stopped herself from completing the thought. Not only was Ray too young, they worked at the same place and she definitely wasn’t trying to be a part of any hospital gossip.

  Stan slipped on his dark shades and they proceeded to the exit.

  “Dr. Lockham!”

  Natasha was blinded by a camera flash, and then another. What the…

  “Dr. Lockham!” a reporter shouted, charging toward her like moths to a light.

  “Dr. Lockham, why were you and Dr. Halsey meeting at the Coffee House on the south side of Chicago last night?”

  “Were you having an affair with Dr. Halsey?” another person asked.

  “Did you see the killer?”

  Questions bombarded her from every direction. Stan shielded her from the onslaught of microphones and pushy reporters, making her happy that he was there.

  “No comment,” he growled and pushed his way through the small crowd, guiding her through the parking lot. Trying to keep up with him in her heels, she took three steps to his every one. When he led her away from the direction of her car, she wondered why, until she spotted his Lincoln Town Car.

  “Get in.” He opened the back door and she practically dived into the car, shocked that reporters had followed them. Despite the dark tinted windows, she covered her face from the flashes bombarding her from outside of the vehicle.

  Stan charged out of his parking spot, as if not caring that reporters were blocking his way. Natasha heard him curse a few times, but he managed to get them out without killing anyone.

  “You okay?” he asked, glancing back at her through his rearview mirror while speeding down the street.

  Natasha ran her hands up and down her arms. Despite the seventy-degree weather, chill bumps covered her arms. “Yes,” she finally answered. She had often seen the same scene play out on television with celebrities, but never in a million years did she expect to be the subject of media attention.

  “Vicky, I need to speak to the boss,” Natasha heard Stan say. The car must’ve contained a hands free telephone system because she didn’t see a cell phone and he didn’t have an earpiece. “We have a situation.”

  “What’s up, Stan?” a woman asked, her voice bouncing off the interior of the vehicle. “Everything okay?”

  “It is now, but the media was outside of the hospital.”

  “Is Dr. Lockham all right?”

  “Appears to be. Is the boss around?”

  “No he’s not, but I’ll see if I can get a hold of him. In the meantime, bring her here.”

  Stan shot Natasha another look and she shook her head no.

  “That’s a negative, Vicky. I’ll take her home and wait there until further instructions.”

  Natasha really wanted to see Malik, but right now, she just wanted to go home and climb into her own bed. She was still reeling from her conversation with Martin, the meeting at the hospital, and now the media.

  She thought back on the incident at her house that morning. Malik might have been hurt that she asked him to leave instead of Martin, but he should have said something. Instead, he stalked away like a stubborn child. All she wanted to do was talk to Martin alone to make him understand that what they once had was over. Maybe she could have handled both situations differently, but after what she and Malik had shared only hours earlier, he should have known that she wasn’t saying good-bye to him.

  “Do you need to stop anywhere before you head home?” Stan asked from the front seat.

  “No, but thanks for asking. Also … thanks for what you did back there.”

  “No problem.”

  Natasha closed her eyes and settled in for the short ride home. Instead of flashbacks of the scene at the Café the night before, she recalled her night with Malik. A night with him and suddenly she couldn’t imagine sleeping alone.

  Two days later, Natasha stepped off the elevator and on to the floor where Malik’s company was located, followed by Stan. She didn’t know what type of money Stan made working for Malik, but whatever it was, he earned it. At first, she was leery about having him around, especially in her house, but if Malik trusted him, she trusted him.

  Natasha glanced around, impressed by the sheer size and décor of the space, taking in the amazing artwork and statues. She didn’t know what she expected, but the office looked as if it should belong to a Fortune 500 company more so than a personal security firm.

  The words Supreme Security Agency stood out in big, bold silver lettering on the wall behind the customer service desk.

  “Hey Stan,” the cute, petite brunette behind the desk said. She nodded at Natasha and gave her a friendly smile.

  “Hey, can you get the boss?” Stan asked. “Tell him Dr. Lockham is here.”

  “Okay.” She eyed Natasha, as if unsure of whether something was wrong, and made a brief phone call. Finally, she spoke to Natasha. “His assistant will be with you shortly. You’re welcome to have a seat over there if you’d like.” She pointed to several cushioned chairs. “Stan, Vicky said she can take it from here.”

  He nodded. “All right.” He turned to Natasha. “You take care,” he said and returned to the elevator.

  Instead of sitting, Natasha roamed around the space and admired the paintings as well as the large black and white photos gracing the walls. A gorgeous photo of the sun peeking behind a few clouds over Lake Michigan caught her attention.

  “Beautiful, isn’t it?” a woman’s cheerful voice asked from behind her.

  Natasha swung around and came face to face with a woman who could have easily been a supermodel. “Yes it is.” She glanced back at the photo. “Do you know who the photographer is?”

  “As a matter of fact I do. It’s Wiz’s wife, Olivia Miller. She’s responsible for all of the artwork and photos in the entire office.” The woman stuck out her hand. “By the way, I’m Victoria Bracero, Malik’s assistant. It’s a pleasure to finally meet you, Dr. Lockham.”

  Natasha accepted her hand, surprised that Victoria knew of her. “Please, call me Natasha.”

  Victoria nodded. “All right, Natasha it is. If you’ll follow me, I’ll take you back to Malik’s office.”

  Alandra had mentioned that Wiz’s wife, Olivia, was an artist, but Natasha had no idea how talented she was. Natasha stopped periodically along the way to admire some of Olivia’s pieces, impressed by the vast uniqueness of each item.

  “These are amazing,” Natasha mumbled as she got back in step with Victoria.

  “They are, aren’t they?” They continued their walk down the hallway, passing several closed doors along the way. “If you haven’t attended any of her art shows, you’ll have to check one out. They are always well attended. I’ve been to a few here in Chicago and one in New York, and her work just seems to get more impressive each time I see a new piece.”

  They approached an area enclosed with glass and stepped through the double doors. The space wasn’t as big as the one they’d just left, but impressive nonetheless. Two large desks sat on each side of the room, with a small sitting area in the corner.

  “Hey Tasha.” Wiz stepped out of the office closest to Victoria’s desk, closing the door behind him. “It’s been a while. How are you?” They hugged.

  Natasha liked Wiz from the moment she met him in L.A. He had a quiet spirit about him, but since he was a retired Navy SEAL, she’d bet there was a dangerous side to him, like Malik and Quinn. Built like a linebacker, Wiz wasn’t as tall as Malik, but still towered over her. He had skin the color of café au lait, and the most unique hazel-greenish eyes she’d ever seen.

  “So how’ve you been?”

 
“I’m all right.” She wanted to tell him that Malik wasn’t accepting her calls and ask Wiz how she should go about making things right, but she didn’t.

  “Malik’s on the phone right now,” Victoria said, standing at her desk. “Once he’s off, you’ll be able to go on in. I have to warn you, enter at your own risk. He’s been a bear the last couple of days.”

  Natasha wasn’t sure what Malik had told Victoria about her, but she was surprised that Victoria was comfortable talking about her boss in front of her.

  Wiz’s eyes sparkled and he chuckled. He rubbed the slight stubble growing on his jaws and chin. “Yeah, I noticed he’s been wound pretty tight, but I think Natasha’s just what he needs.”

  Natasha ducked her head, her cheeks burning as Wiz and Victoria gave her a knowing look. She and Malik hadn’t put a name or a title to what was going on between them, but she had a feeling that what they felt was mutual. Or at least she hoped. If she could, she would take a do-over of the other day and not insist on him leaving without explaining why she wanted to speak with Martin alone. Looking back, she could see how he might have interpreted the situation differently.

  “Well, I’m going to head out,” Wiz announced. He touched Natasha’s arm in passing, but moved closer and whispered, “He’s as stubborn as a mule, but stand your ground and I think you’ll be able to soften him up some.” He squeezed her arm and smiled. “Good luck.”

  “Thank you,” she said quietly. She appreciated any inside information she could get.

  “Vicky, I’ll catch you later.”

  “Okay, Wiz.” She threw him a small wave. When he left, she sighed and covered her heart with her hand. “He is such a sweetheart.”

  “He seems like it,” Natasha added.

  “Okay, you’re on. Malik’s off the phone.”

  Natasha blew out a breath. “Wish me luck.”

  “Good luck, but I don’t think you’ll need it. His bark is worse than his bite. Uh, I take that back. When it comes to you, his bark is worse than his bite. But he gives everyone else hell.”