Mountains Apart (Mills & Boon Heartwarming)

by Ross, Carol

  Poor Franklin—Cam-Field was his passion, his baby, his lifeblood. And if anyone knew the truth of that, it was Emily. It dawned on her that she had no choice in the matter now. She had to do something. She certainly couldn’t quit. It was true that she couldn’t forgive him for promoting Jeremy over her, but she couldn’t leave him to wallow in this mess, either. She had to help him. She had to help clean this up.

  She turned and spotted Cricket Blackburn just inside the door. She went over to him, whispered in his ear, received a nod in return and then quickly left the restaurant before reporters noticed who she was or that she was there.

  Franklin wasn’t going to win any father-of-the-year awards, that was true, but he had given her a roof over her head, a quality education and a job that she loved, or had for most of her life anyway. Security—Franklin had given her security.

  But Bering had given her love. And his family had shown her unconditional acceptance—or so it had seemed. And she’d thought that Franklin’s betrayal had hurt. Injured pride was a surface wound compared to the icy-cold knife Bering had plunged into her heart. His betrayal cut so deep she was sure it would never pump warm blood through her body again. Right now, security didn’t seem so bad.

  * * *

  “I’M STANDING RIGHT here. You can’t ignore me forever.”

  Amanda sighed dramatically and looked up, not bothering to mask her irritation. “What do you want, Bering?” she said.

  “Where is she?” he repeated again through clenched teeth.

  “None of your business.”

  “Amanda. Come on. Give me a break. I need to see her.”

  “Yeah, well, she doesn’t want to see you.”

  “Yes, I’ve gathered that.”

  Bering had called and called Emily since the meeting and she hadn’t picked up even once. After the press conference, he had stayed, at the request of the senator, long enough to answer questions from reporters. Emily had left before he’d had a chance to explain, and now he couldn’t find her.

  “But I want to see her,” he said.

  “So what? I don’t know what to tell you, Bering.”

  “Amanda, can you please help me out here? What can I do? What can I give you? Money? Anything you want.”

  “Help you out? Sure, yeah. You know what? I am going to help you out and,” she added, her voice now infused with fake enthusiasm, “I’m going to do it for nothing. Now, under normal circumstances I would probably lose my job for this. But since you’re the one who made it his mission to befriend Emily, bewitch her and then stomp all over her, I’m willing to risk it. So here goes—you’re a self-centered, despicable dirtbag. And I suggest that you go find someone else to toy with, because Emily is done with you.”

  “Amanda, listen. I want to explain—”

  “You really hurt her, Bering. If you had any idea what that woman has gone through in her life... She has never had anyone— Oh, never mind. That doesn’t even matter. What matters is that you’re a first-class jerk. There, see? Now I’ve done my good deed. And you don’t even need to reciprocate in any way because I’ve done it purely from the goodness of my heart—”

  “I need to see her, Amanda.”

  Amanda puffed out a stream of air, sat back and crossed her arms over her chest. “Why did you do this to her? You obviously knew you were going to win this thing, so why? It was cruel to get involved with her like you did.”

  The guilt he felt at her words was nearly overwhelming. “I didn’t know all this was going to happen. After a certain point, I was...confident I was going to win, yes, but I didn’t know...everything. I didn’t know her stepfather was the CEO—I don’t know how I missed that one, but I did. I didn’t know the senator was coming to Rankins today, and I didn’t know about the indictments. I knew an investigation had been launched, but that’s it. And I know that Cam-Field has been investigated before and nothing serious has ever become of it. Amanda, I swear to you, I didn’t know...”

  Amanda stared at the wall behind him.

  “Amanda—” Bering continued his plea “—look at me. I have to see her. I have to explain. It’s not like you think. It’s not what she thinks. I never meant to hurt her.”

  Amanda stared at him hard. “I love Emily, but I’ve always believed that she works too hard, that her job is too important to her. To my knowledge, the only men she’s ever dated have been business acquaintances and the only socializing she does always has something to do with Cam-Field. That smooth-talking rat Jeremy proved to be the worst of all. And the truth of the matter is that I’ve never seen Emily as alive as she’s been these last weeks that she’s spent with you, Bering. She’s been like a different person—Emily, but better...happy.”

  “Then give me a chance, .”

  She sat forward in her seat and opened the drawer in front of her. She took out a small manila envelope. “Here,” she said and handed it over. Bering opened it and looked inside—a key. He knew immediately what it unlocked. Now if only the key to sorting out this whole mess could be acquired even half as easily.

  Amanda lowered her voice another notch. “There is no doubt in my mind that she would not only fire me, but kill me on the spot if she knew I gave it to you. And as she’s also an incredible person and my best friend, you’d better fix this, Bering. Do you hear me? Fix this.”

  “I’m going to try, Amanda. Believe me, I’m going to try.”

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  BERING USED THE KEY to get into the house, but she was already gone. He didn’t know why he was surprised. He knew the logistics that Emily was capable of. Some of her stuff was still there, but enough of her personal items were gone that he knew she was, too. The only thing he saw in her bedroom, lying on the floor by the side of her bed, was the scarf he had given her. He picked it up and stuffed it in his pocket.

  As Bering walked to his pickup, he heard the familiar and unmistakable sound of a Cessna flying overhead. He stood outside in the freezing wind and he knew. He felt the joy drain from his soul along with the gradually decreasing hum of the plane.

  * * *

  “SO, ESSENTIALLY WHAT you’re telling me here, Stuart, is that Cam-Field submitted environmental-impact reports with incorrect facts and improper documentation?”

  “That’s correct, Emily.” Cam-Field’s longtime attorney slid a paper across the gleaming conference table. “These are all the jobs where the paperwork was forged. Franklin’s name is on the paperwork, but he claims, and we know, he did not sign them.”

  Emily shook her head in disbelief. “He didn’t. He hasn’t signed off on EI reports in years.”

  “I think the best course of action would be to try to pass the buck along to the local governments who approved the work.”

  “Play dumb, you mean?”

  “Plead ignorance,” Stuart corrected.

  “What jury in the world is going to believe that a company as established as Cam-Field is going to make mistakes like this? Mistakes that we’ve never made before? And the CEO of all people? Any good attorney is going to point out that Cam-Field has filled out hundreds and hundreds of these reports over the years. And to have Franklin’s signature on them—there’s no way...”

  “We’re just going to have to show them how it can happen. Bad advice from inept local officials...” He continued to lay out a scenario showing how it could have happened but Emily had quit listening.

  Inept... It dawned on Emily right then and there, as she perused the list, exactly what had happened. She didn’t even need to think it through—it was like a picture coalescing perfectly in her mind’s eye.

  “Wait a minute.” She spoke up and began talking it through quickly. “It’s Jeremy—he was involved with every one of these projects. And they all happen to be projects that I was not involved with. I personally look over every EI report that’s su
bmitted when I’m on a job because local governments can tie up the process for months if it’s not done properly—meticulously even. And they all have their own idiosyncrasies to figure out and maneuver through. So what I’m confused about is how these were all approved so quickly. It’s not at all like most local governments that I’ve worked with. Oh, wait...” She shuffled through some papers and muttered under her breath.

  “Excuse me?” Stuart said. “Moose—what?”

  “I’m sorry, Stuart,” Emily said and ran her fingers through her hair. “What I’m thinking here is that someone has executed some old-fashioned bribery. I would be willing to bet that if you talked to the officials who signed off on this paperwork, you would discover who’s behind it all. And Jeremy is my bet.”

  Stuart seemed incredulous as he asked, “Are you saying that Jeremy forged his uncle’s signature on these papers? And bribed government officials?”

  “I am.” She nodded.

  “But how can we prove...” He trailed off, and Emily could see the lightbulb flicker on inside his head. He nodded a few times before he spoke. “I’m going to have to dig a little deeper here, Emily. In the meantime, maybe you could talk to Franklin and see what you two can come up with.”

  * * *

  EMILY GRIPPED THE RECEIVER in her hand, willing Amanda to pick up. She did. Emily breathed a sigh of relief.

  “Amanda.”

  “Oh, Em, it’s so good to hear your voice.”

  “Amanda, I’m so sorry I left you to deal with the chaos up there.”

  “Don’t worry about that. It’s my job. I’m good at it. How’s everything there?”

  “It’s rough, to tell you the truth. From a legal standpoint, it doesn’t look good.” She quickly filled Amanda in on her suspicions.

  “I knew he was a weasel, but this is so beyond what I could even imagine,” Amanda said when she was through.

  “I know. Franklin and I are meeting today to go over it all step-by-step. There’s no way Franklin knew about this. He has always insisted that everything be done properly.”

  Amanda agreed wholeheartedly, “No, this has got Jeremy’s greasy fingerprints all over it. It doesn’t jibe with who Franklin is. He loves the challenge of what this company does. Besides, if he was to do something like this, which we know he never would, he certainly wouldn’t have put his signature on the documents.”

  “I agree. It’s just proving it that’s going to be the problem. How much longer before you can get back here?”

  “Just another day or two ought to do it.”

  “Did you find it?” Emily asked and held her breath as she waited for the answer that she feared was forthcoming.

  “No, Emily, I’m sorry. It wasn’t there. I personally packed up the whole place and it wasn’t there. I’ve looked everywhere. Are you sure you didn’t take it with you?”

  Emily squeezed her eyes shut tightly as a wave of disappointment washed over her. “Yeah, I’m positive.”

  “I’m sorry, Em. Do you want me to get you a new one?”

  “No, no, it’s...it was special.”

  Bering had called several times after the press conference but Emily had ignored every one. She’d raced to the office after leaving the meeting, grabbed her laptop and some paperwork. She’d then rushed home, stuffed her essentials in a bag and had taken off for the airport. But somehow, she’d lost her scarf.

  After the conference, she’d wanted to get out of town as quickly as possible—both to get home for Franklin and to avoid Bering. When she’d seen Cricket Blackburn by the door, she knew that he was her quickest ticket out of town. Emily would always be grateful that Cricket had acquiesced right away to her request without an interrogation. His avoidance of the subject had lasted all through the flight. And in Anchorage he’d even arranged for a car and escorted her to the terminal with a quick squeeze of her hand and an assurance that if she ever needed another impromptu “sightseeing tour,” he was available. She’d nearly broken down then, but had managed to hold it together. Then she’d literally walked onto a plane bound for San Diego. She hadn’t even called Amanda until she was boarding the plane. One short layover in Seattle and several hours later, she’d landed and went straight to the office.

  She’d barely left since then, except to briefly visit her mother, who was so distraught that Emily could barely get a word in edgewise. In between bouts of hysterical crying and smothering Emily in hugs—which was a new one for her—she’d pleaded with her, demanding that she resolve it all somehow.

  “Do something, Emily. You know how he’s always been able to count on you!”

  Now Emily sat back in her office chair and tried to retrace her steps again in her mind.

  “Emily, are you still there?”

  “Yes, Amanda, I’m sorry. I’m distracted.”

  “Maybe if I asked Bering, he could have Janie knit you another one and—”

  “No,” Emily barked. “No, Amanda, thank you, but I don’t want anything from him. I don’t want to talk about him. I can’t even think about him right now.” Bering hadn’t called again since the night she left. As soon as she’d left town, the calls had stopped. She’d been right all along, she realized bitterly—Bering had used her. He’d won, and now that Cam-Field was gone from Rankins. his business with her was done. too.

  She’d known that when Cam-Field was finished in Rankins she and Bering would be, too. But she hadn’t been prepared for it to end like it had. She hadn’t been prepared for it to end at all. Because who was she kidding? In her heart she’d longed for the fairy tale. Even though she knew it couldn’t possibly happen, she’d thought they would at least part amicably. Maybe even keep in touch. She’d even fantasized about him visiting her in California and her traveling to Rankins occasionally. She had been hoping that it would all work out somehow. How naive. How utterly love-struck. It was embarrassing. It was worse than embarrassing—it was humiliating. It was heartbreaking. And what was worse was that she’d been a willing participant in the disastrous circumstances that were now her life.

  * * *

  “OKAY, FRANKLIN, WE have been over the charges set forth in the indictment, and we ourselves know your signature was forged.” She thought for a second and then said, “But we have to prove that somehow. McFarland has a legal team working on it, but in the meantime I need to run something by you. It’s not going to be easy to hear, I’m afraid.”

  “What is it?”

  Emily looked her stepfather straight in the eye. “I think Jeremy is behind this.”

  “Emily, what are you saying?”

  “It all adds up. He was involved in each of these jobs, and they all happen to be jobs that I wasn’t working on. And I don’t want you to think that I’m speaking from a case of sour grapes here, but his work has always been sloppy. He’s managed to cover it up by constantly delegating virtually everything. But truthfully, Franklin, he doesn’t even really know the industry. I would have thought in the years he’s been with Cam-Field he would have learned certain specific things, but that doesn’t appear to be the case. Anyway, I think it’s why he chose jobs that I wasn’t working on. It is no secret that I’m a control freak. I personally oversee every aspect of the process. It would have been impossible for anyone to get away with this malfeasance if I had been on these jobs.”

  He didn’t say anything for a long while, so Emily continued, “The employees don’t like or respect him and I—”

  “Emily, this is a rather harsh way to speak about your fiancé, don’t you think?”

  Emily blinked at him dumbly for a few seconds. “My what?”

  “Your fiancé,” he repeated.

  “What—Jeremy, my fiancé? Franklin, Jeremy and I are not engaged. Where in the world would you get that idea?”

  “Why, from Jeremy. I know he hasn’t officially proposed yet
, but you do have an agreement, right? Jeremy reassured me of this only last week.”

  Emily laughed at the statement. “That’s totally ridiculous. Why would he...? Jeremy and I broke up, and we weren’t even that close to begin with.”

  It seemed so pathetic to her now that her relationship had been such with her stepfather that he wouldn’t have been clear on something as important as her relationship status. It was even worse that Jeremy could have convinced him so easily that things were fine between them. She was still intent on sticking with the career change she’d decided upon in Rankins; it had just been delayed a bit. As soon as things were straightened out, she was going to tell Franklin that she was quitting and leaving San Diego. But for now, she was going to mend whatever she could of this relationship between herself and her stepfather. They could communicate just fine where business was concerned; they should be able to succeed on a personal level, as well.

  Emily looked over at him and saw that his normally vibrant color had faded to a dull gray. She was afraid he might be cracking under the stress. He’d had some minor heart issues in the past. She sat forward in her seat and placed her hand on top of his, something she never would have done before....

  “Franklin, are you okay?” But she knew he wasn’t okay. Emily could see now that he was angry.

  He sat up straight and cleared his throat. He placed a hand on top of hers. “Emily, my dearest, I’m afraid I’ve made a terrible mistake.”

  Emily felt her heart sinking. She knew that if her stepfather was admitting to making a mistake then it had to be bad—very bad. She prayed it wasn’t anything illegal.

  “Here’s the thing,” he said. “Jeremy convinced me to promote him over you because he told me you two were going to be getting married. He assured me it was something you had discussed—that you had an agreement. He asked me not to say anything to you about it because he hadn’t officially proposed. He wanted to ‘do it right,’ he said. Naturally, I was rather surprised, but also quite happy for you. Needless to say, your mother was thrilled that you were finally going to get married and live a ‘normal’ life.” He grimaced before continuing.