by K. T. Tomb
When he returned from sending her on her way, Zach had moved to the study, which served as his home office and doubled as a brandy and cigar room for after dinner. Acting as though nothing was wrong between them, Zach was seated with half a snifter and a cigar between his teeth. He had already poured a glass for Robin.
The confrontation had started off conversational while Robin gathered his words for the storm that was about to ensue. The first question caught Zach completely off guard. Robin saw the surprise in his eyes. The damned traitor had assumed that he’d gotten away with it all. His accusation was followed by the lame excuse that Zach had tried to use as explanation.
Zach had told him that Rebecca had done some checking into matchmaking services and discovered that one of them – through a series of layers – led back to a revolutionary front called SLG that was located on the Colombian and Venezuelan border. He had told him that Rebecca wasn’t sure if Robin had met Natalia through that particular agency, but that she was suspicious that Natalia was a paid plant who had been hired to get close to him and extract information. Or to distract him while they made a move, likely on Thorn Industries Commodities Trading in Venezuela.
He’d gone on to explain how they had decided to test Natalia and see if her feelings for Robin were real or if she had been paid to seduce him; thus, Rebecca had come up with the plan of having Zach work his charm and see how Natalia reacted. Rachel presented the idea to Aurora, who had initially been against it because she felt like Natalia was genuine. However, in the interest of the company – and likely because she hoped that Zach would get his face slapped – she had agreed.
Zach explained how he had attempted to flirt with her and make his move throughout the night, but was only met by a tolerant and polite smile. He then told her that when Robin had gone to use the restroom, he had given her an open invitation to hang out with him. The moment he threw down his line, she began to cry and leaned into his shoulder. Through her sobs she had said, “Robin is in trouble.”
Robin had believed the story right up until the last moment. He knew his brother too well. He was a womanizer of the worst kind and always got exactly what he wanted. Robin had never understood what sort of spell his younger brother had been able to cast, but he’d seen it work time and time again. Very likely it had worked on Natalia. She had left in shame and…
As soon as Zach left, the thought hit him suddenly: She might never return. The moment the words formed in his mind, he felt a deep ache in his chest and he started to rub it, hoping to find some relief. What if I never see her again?
Robin was a stoic to beat all stoics and not a man prone to shed tears, but at the moment, he realized that he might have lost Natalia because of some harebrained stunt pulled by people who simply couldn’t bear to see him happy. Zach had sworn that Will knew nothing about it, but Robin even doubted that. They were all out to get him, every last one of them. They wanted revenge for his blackmail and takeover schemes and for the insults that he had laid down concerning Aurora and Will. His heartache built itself into a frenzy of rage as he saw his own helplessness.
It was upon this roller coaster of emotions that Robin rode while sitting in the overstuffed chair in the study and pouring glass after glass of brandy. Though the pain would not cease, the alcohol continued to burn his throat and cloud his mind further until at last, either from the effects of the drink or from pure exhaustion, his head slumped forward and he fell asleep.
Chapter Eleven
Santa Rosalía de Palermo Church,
El Hatillo Municipality,
Caracas, Venezuela
Natalia had prayed and cried until no more tears would come. She came up from the kneeling rail, crossing herself as she arose and sat in the pew. She was about midway down the rows of pews and over into the middle from that position. She simply stared at the cross and the statues of Jesus, pleading for her soul, while the soft eyes of the virgin looked out upon her. She had no idea what time it was, though the church bells had certainly chimed out every hour. She had heard nothing over the hours that she had been there, only the chaos inside of her own mind. She pulled her bag close to her hip and fingered the envelope inside of it, struggling with what it meant.
She had been pushed into a corner, one that she had initially believed she could handle. Though she had taken the envelope full of money, it had such a detestable thing to her that she had hidden it behind a brick in her that had been loose since she was a little girl, securing a variety of treasures.
When the proposition had first been presented to her – no, that wasn’t correct, it was forced upon her – she had no feelings in particular toward Robin Thorn. Being in the position of accepting the proposition or bringing harm down upon her Nana and Buelo, she hadn’t had a choice but to follow through.
She had played her role well, though she had continued to have her doubts about whether she could manage to be convincing. Luckily for her, her beauty had helped to blind Robin and she’d been able to continue with her ruse. It had all begun to become much more complicated while they were on the cruise in the Caribbean and she began to see a more relaxed side to Robin. As they had watched the sunsets each evening, she had felt something growing inside of her and she finally felt her heart surrender to him.
The trip to Georgia had been such a wonderful time as they celebrated in the joy of his family surrounding them and giving their blessing, more or less, to what was forming between them. Everyone had been very excited to meet her except one; Robin’s former assistant, Rebecca. From the first moment their eyes met, something of a rivalry or a challenge had been laid down. Natalia had known nothing about what was behind it, but she laid down her own challenge in the same instant.
The meeting with the man in the shadows and the envelope of money being given to her had been unbearable, but she simply had no idea what to do. She had to protect her Nana and Buelo, but she wanted nothing to do with the money. She had hidden it until she could think of what to do. The temptation to present it to them had been strong, but she knew that if she did, they would ask her hundreds of questions about it and give her no peace until she told them the truth. Lying to them was not something that she wanted to face, so she had simply avoided it.
She had somehow mustered up the courage to keep playing the role that she was being paid to carry out, mostly out of fear, but partly because she could not possibly be away from Robin’s side. It had all gotten easier and harder at the same time the evening before when Zach showed up. Watching the two brothers had delighted her. She could tell that they were renewing a kinship that they had shared since they were children, something that she remembered and cherished having with her brother. She did not envy them in it, but simply sat back and admired it while recalling her own fond memories. It had become harder, however, as she realized that as a traitor, she was hurting not only Robin, but Zach and the entire family as well. How would she be able to tell them?
When Zach had made advances toward her throughout dinner, she knew what he was after and had tolerated him politely. She had seen all sorts of playboys and womanizers in her life and she knew exactly how to put them in their place; however, with the guilt that was building up inside of her because of her betrayal, she was on the brink of tears as they teased each other and drank wine on the terrace. When Zach made his final advance, all she could do was cry. She was already a traitor, but not the type that Zach had taken her to be; she was not unfaithful to the man she loved.
She wanted desperately to tell him, to tell them both, what had taken place, but she simply couldn’t find the words. All she was able to do was blurt out that Robin was in trouble as she sobbed.
When Robin returned, though he seemed to hide it, she knew that he had seen them and had drawn the wrong conclusion. She could see the hurt and the jealousy in his eyes. Perhaps she should have explained it all, but she simply could not find the words to expose herself to them. She would have incurred their instant wrath, especially Robin’s, and she couldn’t p
lace her Nana and Buelo in danger.
Sitting in the church in the early morning hours, she had still not arrived at any answers. The problems still lingered, though they had now multiplied themselves. She could only imagine the confrontation that had taken place between the two brothers after she had left, but it hurt her to dwell upon the fact that she had caused them so much pain and damaged what they had been repairing. “I’m helpless and hopeless,” she whispered to the icons at the front of the church.
“Surely it isn’t as bad as all of that.”
She started at the voice and turned to see that one of the nuns from the local parish, Sister Katherine, had silently slid into the pew beside her. The noise inside her had been so loud that she had heard nothing.
“I’m afraid that it is, Sister Katherine.”
“More than the Virgin and the King of Kings can handle?” she asked, nodding toward the two statues.
“Certainly more than I can handle.”
“If we would only arrive at that conclusion sooner, sometimes, what a great deal of heartache and trouble might be saved.”
Sister Katherine sat beside her in silence for a moment and for the first time since she had arrived at the church, she heard the bells chime three times indicating the hour.
“It must be serious indeed to have you sitting here at such an hour.” The nun was gently attempting to coax the story out of her.
“It is grave indeed. I am hurting so many people, but if I do not, then others who I love dearly might be hurt worse or lose their lives.”
“That is indeed serious.”
“Worse yet, I have received money for betraying someone and it is a detestable thing to me.”
“Why did you accept the money then?”
“I had no choice. They threatened to harm my Nana and Buelo if I did not do it.”
Sister Katherine had known Natalia all of her life, she knew exactly who she was talking about. She knew how protective Natalia was of her aging grandparents and how faithfully she tended to their every need. She also knew their poverty and wondered if Natalia had initially been tempted into what she was doing in order to alleviate it. Assuming that she had most of the picture, she moved forward with her advice.
“Sometimes we are tempted into the wrong thing for the right reasons, but later we regret falling to the temptation, though our hearts had initially been in the right place.”
“But that’s just the thing. I wasn’t tempted, I was forced.”
“You were forced to accept money for hurting others?”
Natalia saw the confusion on Sister Katherine’s face and decided to tell her the entire story from the beginning. When she had finished, the elderly nun sat in shocked silence and crossed herself. The entire thing was well beyond anything she had ever dealt with before. After a few moments, she spoke.
“My child, your situation is truly desperate. I fear that no matter what takes place, someone is going to be hurt.” She hesitated for a moment. “But it is still not more than the Virgin and the King of Kings can handle.”
As Sister Katherine spoke, an idea suddenly popped into her mind. Sister Katherine had been the main director of the local orphanage when she was younger and still continued to be active there, though she had taken on a much lesser role. Without thinking further, she reached into her bag, pulled out the envelope and laid it in Sister Katherine’s lap.
“For the orphanage,” she said simply, answering the nun’s questioning eyes.
As she extracted the cash from her purse, something else came out along with it. She hardly noticed it at first, but not wanting to litter in the church, she reached down to retrieve it from the floor. It was the business card that Aurora had given her as she and Robin were about to get into the car to leave for the airport back in Georgia. Suddenly, she knew exactly what she needed to do. She already felt a great deal of relief after having given up the money, but with the realization that there was a way to fix it all, she had allowed a smile to creep across her lips as well. She snatched up her bag and moved toward the aisle crossing herself as she went.
“Where are you going, child?” Sister Katherine asked.
“I just found an answer,” she responded as she hurried down the aisle toward the door.
“La Virgin acompañarte,” Sister Katherine called after her.
Chapter Twelve
Stone Mountain Estate,
Georgia
“This is very grave indeed,” Will muttered into his folded hands as he placed his face into them to think.
John, Zach, Rebecca and Aurora all watched him, waiting for a response to the three different sides of the same story that he had received from three of them. He glanced at his father, who shrugged his shoulders and cracked a half smile. The signal was clear, he was the CEO and he was going to have to be the one to come up with a solution to the problem that was presenting itself.
He was slightly irritated with Rebecca and his wife for having sent Zach on the ill- thought-out errand. He understood the feeling of betrayal by his brother; however, he also understood that under the circumstances, it had been necessary for them to act in a rather unconventional way. In the end, their actions had forced the issue out into the open.
“What do we know about SLG?” he finally asked whoever in the room was willing to answer. He was not surprised when Rebecca jumped in; she had initiated the entire thing and she was stepping up to take responsibility. He understood why Aurora valued her so much as her assistant.
“SLG stands for Soldados de Liberacion de la Gente, essentially Soldiers for the Liberation of the People. They are a revolutionary front that is active in Colombia, Ecuador and Venezuela. The politics of that particular region are complicated in some ways, but also quite simple.
“When Venezuela, Colombia and Ecuador won their independence from Spain in the early 19th century, they were all part of one great nation called Gran Colombia led by the Liberator, Simon Bolivar. However, they didn’t last long together and separated into three countries. When the U.S. commandeered the land that is now Panama away from Colombia in order to build the canal, it actually became four countries. Colombia was eventually paid for the real estate, but all of that is getting away from the point.
“All three of the countries have struggled with dictatorships, democracy and various forms of socialism throughout the past hundred and ninety years, creating a very volatile situation, which of course came to a head with Pablo Escobar and the Colombian drug cartels.
“Colombia was the first of the three countries to make a commitment to a democratic republic state and wrote a new constitution in 1991. Following closely on the heels of that and with the help of U.S. Special Forces, the Colombian military was able to assassinate Escobar and then begin to unravel the cartels. The cartels, in essence, were gangs or juntas that were all vying for position to become the next ruling party. With the constitution and a great deal of unity in Colombia – as well as the continued support of the U.S. military and DEA – it was becoming increasingly more difficult for revolutionary groups like SLG to continue their operations. Consequently, groups like SLG tend to hang along the borders between either Colombia and Venezuela or Colombia and Ecuador because Colombia’s two neighbors are both socialist states and much more tolerant of their ideology.
“Chávez, whom some would call a mini-Hitler, had enormous imperial goals in mind for reuniting the three countries and Panama together again as a new Gran Colombia; under his form of a communist totalitarian state, of course. Though his ideas were grand, he simply did not have either the economic, military or power of influence over his own people to achieve anything of the sort. Colombia’s military was much too strong for him to deal with and with Brazil and Peru as allies, Venezuela and Ecuador were and still are, basically, inept when it comes to gaining any sort of power foothold in that particular region.”
“So, if Venezuela has been friendly ground for SLG, why would they be making a move to foul up arrangements between our commo
dities exchanges for the government of Venezuela? Jealousy? A coup attempt?” Will was trying to follow, but things weren’t quite adding up.
“When Maduro was elected in 2013 to succeed Chávez – who had basically handpicked him as his successor – there was a great deal of sentiment that the elections had been fixed. You recall seeing the riots and other challenges that were taking place.”
“Yes, of course,” Will responded.
“To keep the peace and to quiet things down, Maduro made some compromises that helped the boiling pot to simmer.”
John jumped in at that point. “Which, of course, we seized upon.”
“Exactly,” Rebecca agreed.
“So, is it safe to assume that SLG is simply not happy with our arrangement and looking for a way to derail it? Is it really that simple?”
“We think it is,” Aurora put in. “After Natalia filled in the picture for me, it became rather obvious what was taking place.”
“Where is Natalia now?”
John jumped in again, clearing his throat. “I made some arrangements for her and her family to be relocated to a safer place.”
“And Robin?”
“He refuses to budge. Won’t talk to me and has even ignored Aurora and Rebecca as well. He still doesn’t believe it all.” Zach finally inserted himself into the conversation after spending most of the time swirling the brandy in his glass and looking bored.
“Well. I don’t know as I blame him. The scheme the three of you cooked up was a bit irresponsible.” John hesitated a moment and directed his glance toward Aurora. “Though I suppose, all in all, it has served its purpose.”
