Set In Stone (The Stone Series Book 3)

by Dakota Willink

  “I’m aware. I think it had something to do with a rookie prison guard. I don’t know the details. Either way, I have reason to believe that Charlie is going to use the story to get Alex to back down on some of the charges. I need you to postpone the trial until I can kill the story.”

  “Miss Cole, that won’t be necessary. No matter what this supposed story is, I have no intention to drop charges or strike any sort of deal with Charlie Andrews.”

  “I believe that. However, Charlie can’t know that.”

  “I’m sorry?” he asked, seeming genuinely puzzled.

  I shook my head in frustration. Trying to convince the DA to do what I needed without specifics was going to be more difficult than I anticipated.

  “Look, Alex is a very influential man in this city. You have first-hand knowledge of this.”

  “I do, but it’s not only the city, Miss Cole. His influence spreads across the country.”

  It does?

  I tried to process what he meant, wondering what else I didn’t know about my future husband. I knew Alexander had a slew of business dealings and properties in the city, many of which I didn’t know about. However, I didn’t know his reach went beyond New York. I had never even thought to ask. I pushed my unease over that bit of information aside, knowing that my current conversation was much more important than Alexander’s real-estate holdings.

  “Mr. Green,” I implored. “Charlie knows things about Alex – things that Alex does not want to be made public. I can’t tell you the details of it, but just the threat of exposure is devastating to him. That’s why I need you to buy me time. I need you to make Charlie believe that you are considering a plea deal. I’m hoping, if you do that, it will make Charlie thinks he has a shot at a plea and will retract what he said to the reporter.”

  “Miss Cole – Krystina, if I may,” he said, and I nodded. “You’re not giving me much to work off of here.”

  I sat back and bit my lip, fretting over what I should and shouldn’t say. My hands were twisting nervously in my lap, when it suddenly came to me. I couldn’t tell him the whole story, but I could remind him of something that Alexander once said.

  “Did you go to the Stone’s Hope Gala? The fundraiser from a few months back?”

  He narrowed his eyes suspiciously at me. I couldn’t remember if Thomas was there that night, but Alexander told me that the newspapers and local networks reported on the speech he gave at the gala for a full solid week afterward. Even if Thomas wasn’t there, it was fair to assume that he would have at least heard about it. However, if he was actually present and was witness to the emotional words that poured from Alexander, the better positioned I would be.

  “I was there. Why do you ask?” Thomas questioned cautiously.

  “If you were there, then you must have heard Alex’s speech.”

  “Yes,” he confirmed slowly, but I could see the dawning in his eyes. Alexander had told a story in that speech. His story, although the people in attendance didn’t know that. Nonetheless, Thomas Green was anything but stupid. He was already connecting the dots. Instead of repeating the speech, I switched tactics.

  “Can you imagine if your children, little Olivia and Tommy, came from a life like that?”

  Thomas seemed to visibly shudder.

  “No, I can’t,” he admitted honestly. “My kids are loved. Protected. If only you could see some of the cases that come across my desk. They can be brutal sometimes. As for the speech Mr. Stone gave, are you telling me that it was…”

  He didn’t finish his question, but he didn’t have to. My sad and pleading eyes told him what he needed to know.

  “Please, Mr. Green,” I whispered.

  He leaned back in his chair, removed his glasses from the top of his head, and ran a hand through his thick hair.

  “I want to help you. I really do. If Mr. Stone was speaking about his own childhood at that gala, I can’t blame him for wanting to keep it hidden.”

  “But?”

  “But I don’t think you’re giving me the whole story here.”

  I began to fidget and squirmed a little in my seat. I was going to have to be more open, but the thought of betraying Alexander even more than I already had, tore at my heart.

  “Alex will kill me for saying this, but I see the front he puts on – all big, bad, and mysterious. But that’s just it. It’s a front. He views his privacy as the only protection he has from his memories. I don’t want him to relive it, or worse, endure press speculation that could cause more damage. I have to protect him. That’s why he doesn’t know I’m here. That’s why I tried to pull the confidentiality card with you.”

  He seemed to be contemplating his words before he leaned forward on his elbows and looked me square in the eyes. When he spoke, he adapted a softer tone.

  “It’s not often that I have people in my office who remember the names of my wife and children and ask after their well-being. I think you have a good heart. And, as much as Mr. Stone tries to come off as a hard ass, I think he does too. I’ve gotten to know the two of you pretty well over the past couple of months. I want you to talk to me – off the record. Not as a DA, but maybe as a friend.”

  I shook my head, knowing that what he suggested was out of the question. Perhaps we had gotten to know each other well, especially when we were discussing the connection I had with my abductors. He knew Trevor wasn’t only a part of the kidnapping, but that he was also my rapist. However, I only divulged that information because it was needed for my testimony. I certainly wouldn’t consider Thomas Green to be someone I could openly confide in about Alexander and Justine. Their secrets were so much bigger than mine had ever been.

  “I already told you. I can’t, Mr. Green. As it is, I’ve said too much. I’m sorry, but it’s not my story to tell. You’re just going to have to trust me.”

  “And if I don’t?”

  I frowned, not wanting to give him an ultimatum. It wasn’t my style, but I was desperate. I narrowed my gaze at him and kept my tone neutral, yet resolute at the same time.

  “The trial is just over three weeks away and I don’t know if that will allow me enough time to do what I need to do. I’m not asking you to drop the case, I’m just asking for time. Only you can make that happen. If you don’t, I’ll retract my statement and planned testimony. I’ll do anything to protect the man I love. I’m doing this for him, Mr. Green.”

  He laughed then, but it wasn’t in humor. It sounded more stoic than anything else.

  “Mr. Stone once told me that you’re stubborn as hell. He couldn’t have been more right.”

  I smiled sheepishly.

  “Yeah, well…so I’ve been told from time to time.”

  “You were pretty emphatic about seeing Charlie go away for a long time. I don’t believe that you would actually throw it all away, especially without good reason. I’m not saying that I’ll try to push back the trial, but your conviction has me curious. What’s your plan?”

  I exhaled the breath that I hadn’t realized I had been holding. I finally felt like we might be getting somewhere.

  “I need to get to the reporter. I’m hoping to give him a new story so that he won’t publish the one Charlie gave.”

  “Who is the reporter?”

  I hesitated before continuing, but ultimately decided that honesty was the best policy at this point.

  “Mac Owens. From The City Times.”

  “I’ve heard his name before, but don’t know him personally. He must not cover many trials,” he mused before continuing. “I don’t know what Charlie Andrews told this Mac Owens guy, but it must be big. You’ve already said that you can’t tell me the details, so I won’t ask for them again. However, whatever story you plan to replace it with has to be bigger. You know that, right?”

  I closed my eyes, knowing this was another potential hole in my grand master plan. I didn’t know if I could go through with what I needed to do, not to mention the fact that I didn’t know if Mac Owens would even go for my o
ffer. However, I refused to just sit on my hands.

  “That’s up to Mac Owens to decide, I guess. But I have to try.”

  “I’ll be perfectly honest. No judge will allow me to move the trial date based on what you’ve told me. However, what I can do is pay a visit to Charlie and feel him out. If he’s going to push for a plea again, I’ll need to plan accordingly. I don’t meet again with the presiding judge for another week. You have at least until then to do what you have to do. Take advantage of the time. You probably won’t get any more than that.”

  I resigned myself to take what I could get at this point.

  “Thank you so much, Mr. Green,” I told him, feeling relieved that he didn’t continue to pump me for information. I was about to stand up to leave, but then I remembered something. “You’ll keep this meeting between us, won’t you?”

  The corners of his mouth shifted to form a frown, but he eventually nodded his head.

  “I will for now. But if Mr. Stone finds out I’ve been to see Charlie Andrews, he’s is bound to ask questions. I will only be able to avoid his calls for so long,” he warned.

  “I know,” I acknowledged and began to fidget again nervously. “I’ll be in touch after I talk to Mac Owens. Keep your fingers crossed for me, will you?”

  “You’re going to need more than superstition on your side, Krystina.”

  “Trust me. I know that too.”

  Thomas Green and I said our goodbyes and I told him I would keep him posted on my progress. Even though I didn’t achieve what I set out to do originally, I still felt somewhat optimistic about the DA meeting with Charlie.

  As I was walking down the corridor to exit the building, I felt my phone buzz in my purse. I pulled it out and saw that it was a text from my mother. I had no idea what she wanted, as I didn’t read the text. I was too distracted by a different notification that was also on the screen. I had a missed call. No voicemail was left, but I recognized the number. It belonged to Mac Owens.

  My heart started to race. He must have returned my call when I was meeting with the DA. I slid my finger over the touch screen to unlock the phone. I wasn’t due to meet Alexander and the architect until three. Hopefully I could arrange a meeting with the reporter sometime between now and then.

  Too preoccupied with what I would say during the phone call, I was paying little attention to anything around me as I began to dial Mac Owens. Unexpectedly, I slammed into a person in front of me. I stumbled back and my phone went clattering to the floor.

  “Shit!” I swore, and bent over to retrieve it quickly.

  That damn cold medicine is turning my brain into a hazy fog.

  When I stood back up to apologize to the person I had so rudely bumped into, I froze.

  It was Hale.

  19

  krystina

  Time moved with no sense of reason as I followed Hale out to the waiting Porsche Cayenne. His determined footsteps echoed down the steps and onto the pavement toward the car, drowning out the noises of the city. When he opened the car door for me, his glare was icy. He never looked at me that way before. It was almost frightening.

  I’m so screwed.

  I got into the car and Hale closed the door behind me. I waited as he walked around to get into the driver’s seat. As soon as he was seated, I started rambling.

  “Hale, I’m sorry. I don’t know how you knew where I was, but you seem angry. Please don’t tell Alex about this. He’ll be –.”

  “Miss Cole!” he snapped. He turned around in his seat to face me and held up his hand. “First of all, I have access to the GPS tracking on your phone. You know this. Now imagine my surprise when Samuel comes to me about your supposed doctor appointment. You and I both know that you didn’t have a doctor appointment.”

  I shrunk under his words. Hale wasn’t just angry. Yes, his tone was near murderous, but there was worry in his eyes too.

  “No, I didn’t have a doctor appointment,” I whispered, feeling ashamed. “Are you going to tell Alex?”

  He pursed his lips to form a tight line.

  “Tell me why you lied and ditched your security detail,” he demanded, rather than answering my question.

  “Like I said, I’m sorry. I just didn’t know any other way.”

  “Any other way to do what?”

  A sudden wave of emotion hit me, and tears began to sting my eyes. Perhaps it was from lack of sleep. Or maybe it was because I was just caught in the act. No matter what the excuse was, deep down I knew the underlying issue. It was because I was overwhelmed with worry for Alexander.

  I blinked the tears back, feeling frustrated. I didn’t know how to explain this all to Hale. I didn’t know how to explain the many nights Alexander was tormented by nightmares. I didn’t know how to describe the shadows that plagued his eyes during the mornings afterward. But most importantly, I was fraught with worry over the possible legal ramifications Charlie’s interview might hold for Alexander. There were no words to depict how bad my heart ached over the possibility of losing the person I loved above all else, and all because of a gambling addict’s greed. The compulsion I felt to save Alexander from the past, to make it disappear for him, was overpowering.

  Hale is Alexander’s protector. If he couldn’t do the very thing I was seeking to do, what made me think I had that power? I’m a nobody.

  Suddenly, I felt foolish. There would be no satisfactory explanation for my actions. The lies, the sneaking around. I had always been a straight shooter. However, I had irrationally allowed desperation to take over who I was. In fact, desperation didn’t even begin to describe how I felt. I yearned, with every fiber of my being, to go back to the place Alexander and I had been when he proposed to me on a hilltop in Westchester. In that moment, it had been just us. Now, it was as if it were the two of us against the world.

  How had so much changed so fast?

  The tears I had been holding back came flooding down my cheeks. Words came bubbling out of me as the pent-up frustration boiled over.

  “I just…I just needed to do something!” I sobbed. “The article, Charlie, Justine. Alex’s constant quest for answers. The threat of losing him. Everything! I tried therapy with him and it was a disaster. I’ve tried to get him to talk it out with me, but he shuts down – especially after he’s had a nightmare. I don’t know what else to do! I can’t just sit by and watch him suffer anymore, Hale. I just can’t. It’s not fair that he’s being threatened the way that he is. He was just a child and he doesn’t deserve this!”

  Hale watched me curiously and his expression softened, revealing a certain amount of compassion over my sudden outburst.

  “Vivian was right,” he eventually said.

  “Vivian?” I asked, confused as to why he would bring up Alexander’s housekeeper – our housekeeper.

  “She was right about the nightmares. She had her suspicions and she voiced her concerns to me. Not to mention, I’m familiar with the haunted look Mr. Stone has at times. I saw it often when he was a boy. You just confirmed what I suspected.”

  I sat quietly for a moment, composing myself as I contemplated Hale’s words. I thought about Vivian and how she was always there, yet she wasn’t. I barely saw her, but I knew she was in the penthouse several times a day. Whether she was delivering fresh laundry, bringing groceries, or preparing a meal, our meetings were always polite and brief. For me, getting to know her was an odd concept, as I still wasn’t entirely comfortable with the idea of having a housekeeper. I didn’t know how to act. However, I was now beginning to regret not getting to know the woman who had been with Alexander for years.

  How much does Vivian know about Alexander’s past?

  I made a mental note to try to engage in conversation with her in the very near future.

  “What were you doing at the DA’s office, Krystina.”

  Hale’s words broke me away from my thoughts. As he sat there, waiting patiently for my answer, I knew hiding the truth from him would be futile. Knowing Hale, he’d find
out anyway. I hastily brushed the tears from my face and composed myself.

  “I’m trying to help Alex, but I need time. I was hoping that Thomas Green would be willing to push the trial back.”

  I went on to explain everything that transpired since I read the article. Well, mostly everything. I left out the part about my experience on the St. Andrews Cross for obvious reasons. When I finally got to the part about my plan to talk to Mac Owens, Hale’s eyes darkened again.

  “Did you tell the DA about the contents of the unpublished article?”

  “No, absolutely not,” I quickly replied. “I would never jeopardize Alex or Justine like that.”

  Hale seemed to relax a bit, but his expression remained bleak.

  “You will not talk to that reporter, Miss Cole.”

  His tone mirrored one that Alexander would take with me sometimes. It was maddening.

  “But I have to try something!”

  “You’re a smart woman, but you’re being incredibly naïve at the moment. Mac Owens has been trying to dig up dirt on Mr. Stone for years. What kind of story could you give him that would convince him to drop the one he’s always wanted?”

  I slumped back in my seat, not sure if I wanted to tell him about what I wanted to do. Hell, I wasn’t even sure if I could do it. Just the thought of it caused my heart to pound with trepidation.

  No. I have to do it. It’s my only shot.

  “I kept thinking of all the press reports and speculation Alex constantly warns me about. He keeps me hidden away and shielded from reporters at all costs. However, I know how reporters were chomping at the bit over Trevor’s death.” I paused for a moment, my mouth tasting like ash at the mention of his name. “He came from a prominent family. His father was the CEO of some dot com company and used to be a member of the New York City Council. The details of Trevor’s involvement in my abduction were kept very hush, hush. I can only assume that his father paid people off.”

  “What are you trying to say, Miss Cole?”