Closing her eyes, she melted into him, attempting to get closer, trying to absorb a little of his warmth and strength into her own body. She kept whispering her mantra ‘I will make it through’ in her head over and over while struggling to keep up with the staggering conversation.
As overwhelmed as she felt with Ophelia standing in the room, she was still in awe of the attention she was getting from the crowd. Her clutch was overflowing with business cards, and she had already been asked to make five appointments in the next two weeks to discuss works to be commissioned. If she could just focus on her moment, instead of worrying over Ophelia, she would be fine.
Looking up at Ethan at her side, for once, she felt like she was accomplished. Not that having a man in her life was an accomplishment, but tasting a little success and having a wonderful man to share in her triumph was overwhelming, and a welcome change to her normal life and career. If she could just get past the worry, past the dread that did not seem to vanish from her belly, she would be in her moment.
From the corner of her eye, Karlyn saw Evangeline Spears enter the room. Another wave of despair threatened to overpower her. As the elder woman glanced around the room, Karlyn saw her take in the main three paintings before finding the pair in the crowd. Smugness marred her features as she grabbed a champagne flute and smiled at Karlyn.
Moments later, a hush spread across the crowd, as three peace ambassadors and a barrister entered the space. Penetrating the crowd, they seemed to make a beeline directly to Ethan and Karlyn.
“Karlyn Bowman, you are under arrest for fraud. Detain her, officer, and read her her rights.”
The thick woman’s meaty hands clasped on her arm just before blackness swallowed her whole.
Chapter Eighteen
Blackness faded away and a dull thump, thump, thump pierced Karlyn’s brain. Mouth dry as the desert, she slowly began to claim consciousness.
Where the hell am I? What happened?
Reality began to slowly creep into her consciousness and the dread began to build a new in her stomach. She had been arrested for defrauding the lottery. Opening her eyes slowly to the braining sunlight peering in from a high barred window at the back of the cell, Karlyn slowly sat up, trying to gather herself. Wiping her eyes with her fingers, she felt the sting of the chemicals they had used to collect her fingerprints. Or maybe that was just the sting of new tears.
She had never been arrested in her life, had never done anything so bad as to have cause for the peace ambassadors to even question her. Her first run in with the law, and it would have had to happen in a very public place when she was on the precipice with her career. Just her dumb luck. No one was going to want to talk to her again, let alone pay her for her art.
Shaking her head and straightening out the wrinkles in the lovely red gown she had purchased with hopes of it becoming wrinkled in a ball at the foot of her bed last night, she worked to hold back the tears that threatened to flow. If she was going to get herself out of this mess, crying was not going to help. She needed to clear her head and think of her next step.
As her thoughts began to crystallize, a peace ambassador approached the cell door, opening it wide.
“Your bail has been made, Bowman. It’s time to get you out of here.”
Karlyn sat looking stunned, until she realized that Sam had saved her yet again. But considering she was the one who had gotten her into this mess, it was only right that Sam come bail her out.
Standing up with as much dignity as she could muster, she exited the cell and followed the officer to the front of the building to collect her things and sign all the necessary paperwork. Once she was cleared to go, she walked to the lobby, expecting to see Sam waiting for her.
Evangeline was there in her place. And looking none too happy. She had two hulking women beside her wearing all black, from the tips of the patent leather shoes to the sunglasses that covered their eyes – indoors. Karlyn walked forward, stopping a foot from Ethan’s grandmother.
“You?” Karlyn stopped to collect herself. “You are the one who brought the peace ambassadors to arrest me. Why on Earth did you bail me out?”
“I brought them? Bringing the peace ambassadors out has caused my name to be tied up in this fiasco. I may have questioned your intentions, and I may have considered having the lottery committee investigate – quietly – but this circus is the last thing I wanted.”
“So why bail me out? Why not just leave me here?”
“So the media can work to get to you? I think not. You need to be squirreled away from the glaring eye, hidden where I can try to control the spin on this. I will not have my name or my businesses affected by this scandal.”
“Well, then, I thank you for my bail. I will return the money to you of course, as soon as I get back to the studio.”
“The studio? That is the one place they will be lying in wait for you. Out of the question. You are coming with me. My aero and driver are waiting out front. These ladies will assist in getting you into the auto before the press hounds can get their clutches on you. If anyone asks you a question, the answer is ‘no comment’. Do you understand me?”
“Yes ma’am.” Karlyn felt like a five year old being scolded for stealing a cookie from the cookie jar. “I will toe the line like a good little girl.”
Venom oozed form Evangeline’s face. “You have created this mess, and I am here to try to clean it up. I don’t care if you like it or not, but you will do as I say and keep your mouth shut.”
Biting the inside of her lip, Karlyn looked the other woman straight in the eye and nodded. So wanting to blast her for what she was saying and doing, she ultimately felt that this battle could wait until she was out of the building and in a safer location.
“Okay, let’s go. My guards will block you on both sides and walk straight for the car.”
As soon as the door opened to the outside, Karlyn was amazed at the crowd of reporters swarming around the stairs. Questions were screamed and a cacophony of voices blasted her from every angle. Standing between the two large women, she was nearly crushed by them as the crowd swarmed, pushing and clawing to get a piece of her.
“Did you steal the ticket?” A microphone was pushed into her face before one of the women was able to push it away, propelling her forward, and closer to the car.
“Your bank IP is suddenly very full…” Another microphone nearly smacked her in the face.
“Was he worth it?” A microphone came from behind her, almost choking her as she moved forward.
“Has Bailey’s death impacted you?” The words whipped through her like she was sucker punched. She stopped on the last step, frozen and unable to move. The guards tried to push her onward, but Karlyn was rooted to the step. Turning towards the voice she had heard, the question was repeated and a microphone was pushed into her face.
“Has Bailey’s death impacted you in any way? Have you been in contact with Ethan this morning to see how he is handling the news?”
Karlyn stood in shock, staring at the woman and the microphone she held in her hand. Wetness pooled into her eyes, and her legs suddenly felt like rubber. A camera was focused on her face, capturing her reaction for the world to see. The guards pried her from the spot and pushed her into the waiting car.
Once seated, Karlyn looked across the luxurious cabin at Ethan’s grandmother.
“Bailey?”
Karlyn noted the wince in Evangeline’s face before the woman took control of herself and looked like she was made from steel once again. “She had an aneurism last night. It was a concern they had going into the surgery, and unfortunately they did not catch it in time. She died about the same time you were incarcerated.”
“Ethan…” Her heart broke into a million pieces and the tears she had been holding onto precariously all morning broke free from their bonds. “Where is Ethan?”
“I saw him at the hospital last night. He completely destroyed the hospital room she was in, and I had to talk down the peace ambassad
ors to prevent him from being in the same building I just got you out of. I paid for the room to be repaired and he was released. He left the hospital soon after and I have not seen him since.”
“I have to find him.”
“You will do nothing of the sort. The lottery committee is investigating the matter, and you will be going to trial. He will more than likely be put back into the lottery, as he spent a good deal of the money on Bailey’s surgery and cannot repay them. Just stay away from my grandson.”
“You have absolutely no heart. Bailey was the last member of your family who loved him, unconditionally. He has nothing left now, and does not need to be alone.”
“And you think you can console him?” One elegantly manicured eyebrow went up.
“Since you don’t have a caring bone in that body, who else would do it?” Karlyn was angry, not just at the lack of compassion this woman had, but for all the pain she had felt growing up with a mother who was so very much like Evangeline. “He has given up all respect for himself as an individual to save his sister’s life. He was forced to sell his very soul to the devil to give her life, and now that has been taken away from him.”
Evangeline looked out of the window as the countryside streamed by at two hundred miles per hour. Pursing her lips, she looked thoughtful.
“Are you just going to sit there and ignore me?”
“My son broke my heart.”
“Pardon?”
“I gave him everything, spoiled him rotten. Gave him every single thing he ever wanted. He grew up to be a despicable man. He drank too much, gambled too much, and even cheated on his wife from time to time, yet she loved him so much she turned a blind eye. Why, I will never know. I saved him from scrape after scrape, bailing him out of jail, covering his gambling expenses, and trying to make right the wrongs I did as a mother.”
Evangeline sighed, looking out of the window wistfully. “One day, I had just had enough of him. I told him that I was done bailing him out, and that I refused to help him or his family ever again, hoping it would scare him straight. Instead, he went behind his wife’s back and completely destroyed their estate.
“It was no simple car accident that took Ethan’s mother and father. A shark sent out a death squad to scare my son into paying his debts, and evidently, according to my sources, it went a little further than planned. The car swerved into ongoing traffic and the rest is history.
“My son and daughter-in-law had spoiled their children, Ethan more so than Bailey, and Ethan was becoming a splitting image of my son, in more ways than one. That accident broke my heart. I had put my foot down; trying to fix the broken son I had, only to end up getting him killed. And then I had two daily reminders of what was left behind.
“Ethan had been originally welcome in my home, but he was too spoiled, too arrogant, and within two weeks he walked out, and I didn’t try to stop him, told him he was not welcome to come back. Bailey assumed that meant I was throwing him out. He was so like my son, in looks and actions, and seeing him just made me angry every day at what I had lost. I kept Bailey while she was in school, but she could not forgive me, and she left after graduation, moving on to college. I offered to pay for her education, which she refused.
“I have watched out for them over the years, trying to help move obstacles out of their way from behind the scenes, but never letting them know of my involvement. Unfortunately, I could not fight off Ophelia, without showing my hand, which is why I was angry that you may have been working with her.”
“I am not working with Ophelia.”
“I know that. My investigators have gotten the whole story. Your ticket was purchased by your college roommate, Samantha Figueroa. You are the person you say you are. Which is why I have had you released and will get you the best attorney I can afford. It’s the best I can do for him.”
“Have you considered being there for him now? I didn’t know him in his youth; I can’t say what kind of man he was then. But now, he is a good man who has lived through hell. He may protest it, he may push you away, but trying to be there when he needs you, regardless if he admits he needs you, may be a step in the right direction to fix this relationship.”
“I’m afraid it is probably too late for that.”
Silence filled the vehicle, a sense of despair emanating off Evangeline. Karlyn sat staring out of the window, heartbroken, needing to be with Ethan with every fiber of her being. The aerocar propelled them further, finally entering the wide iron gates of the Spears estate. Traveling down a wide swath of land, bordered by stunning weeping willows and lovely landscaping surrounding a charming pond, she could not soak in the beauty encircling her.
As the vehicle approached the wide marble front steps of the mansion, Karlyn caught a glimpse of something sitting on the stone. Her heart leapt in her chest, as he came into view. And just as quickly, a deep cut sadness filled her as she saw how broken he looked, with his head in his hands, resting on his knees.
Before the vehicle had actually stopped, Karlyn opened the door and rushed out. Nearly tripping before catching herself as she exited, she ran towards Ethan, who looked as though he had slept on the streets all night. He raised his head as she neared, his swollen eyes blank, lifeless.
Looking up at her as if awakening from a dream, he began to stand, catching a glimpse over Karlyn’s shoulder at his grandmother. Karlyn rushed forward to hug him to her, wrapping her arms around his torso, holding on to him with all the love she could muster. The strong smell of alcohol surrounded him, and made her sick.
Pushing her away, he looked down into her face. Anger stormed within his eyes. Pushing harder, he moved away from Karlyn, looking between himself and his grandmother.
“So you were working for my grandmother. Is that it? Is she the one who got you the ticket? No way she could make my life any more of a hell, so she needed to make it a sport? And to think, I had fallen…” Rage filled his face as he grabbed her shoulders, shaking her slightly. “You bitch, how dare you play with my life, my sis…my sister’s life?”
“Ethan, I was not working for your grandmother. Sam bought me the ticket. You know that.” She worked to calm him, not knowing if it were possible in his state.
“And suddenly my grandmother knows what is going on in our lives and takes an interest. The morning after your very public arrest, and my sister’s death, you arrive in luxury to her estate, a free woman? Bullshit. She was behind this from the start, I can see that now. Once I came to her for help, she found a way to break me.” He narrowed his eyes, as if the sight of her was too much for him. “So who’s the whore now?”
Shock froze within her, her veins turning to ice. Her stomach pitched, not sure if anything she said would get through to him. “Ethan, you know that is not how things happened…”
“I am not stupid. That old cow does nothing without a cause. She would have no reason to collect you from jail unless it served her own purpose.”
Turning to Evangeline for support, she saw the older woman watched the drama unfold, saying absolutely nothing. “Aren’t you going to say anything?”
“Anything I say, he won’t believe Karlyn, especially in his condition. He has never believed a word that has come out of my mouth.”
“Stay out of this, your heartless bitch.” Turning to look at his grandmother, he snarled. Stalking towards the elder woman, he stopped mere inches from her face. “You have wanted to break me my entire life. You did it. Are you happy now? You gave me a taste of real life, with love and happiness and you ripped it all away. Well, you got your wish. I’m done. I’m broken. I have nothing left.”
“Ethan, I did not wish this on you. No matter what you think of me, one day you will see the truth. I’m not the heartless bitch you think I am. And I bailed your girlfriend out of jail to protect her, and you in some small way.”
“Girlfriend?” Twisting his sights on Karlyn, his eyes ablaze with angry light, he spit out more venom. “She is nothing to me, but some whore who strung me along, and sh
e was so good at it. She made me care, and made me a better man, and then threw me away, just like every other woman out there.”
“I did not throw you away. I was taken into custody.”
“Just shut up. I don’t want to hear anymore of your lies.” With that, he ran past the pair, pushing one of the guards and the driver out of the way, loading himself into the pilot seat of the aerocar. The other guard, tried to wrangle the wheel from him, but he pulled the vehicle to a hard right and the force disconnected the two. Before they could stop him, he was speeding away at top velocity, a cloud of dust left behind him.
Karlyn watched him go, hoping like hell he didn’t kill himself. And her fear was that was exactly what he was trying to do.
Chapter Nineteen
Karlyn came down for breakfast two days later. After a day and a half of moping in the room Evangeline had given her, she knew it was time to wake up and work on getting her life back in order. She had hid out in the room, as well, as investigators had picked up Ethan and returned him to his grandmother. Karlyn had heard it all from the upstairs foyer.
Evangeline had had him cleaned up and locked in a guest room to sober up.
Finding Evangeline in the bright, airy sunshine filled breakfast room, she sat down beside her, looking over the plethora of small vid screens covering half of the table. Most were covered in one or more news stories about the whole drama, as if there was nothing more newsworthy than her debacle with Ethan.
Lifting the first one to catch her eye, she inwardly groaned at the picture of her being hauled out of the community center by the swarthy peace ambassadors. The next picture showed the Lottery Commissioner questioning Ethan through an office window. An inset picture showed an image of him and Bailey in their younger days, standing on the porch of a beautiful columned home, before Bailey had been sick. She was beautiful when she had met her in the hospital, but before her illness, she had been breathtaking.
The Lottery Page 17
