Landslide

by Robin Mahle

  “What happened to you, Charlie?”

  “Sometimes you get tired of being just a rung on the ladder. Fifteen years I’ve been in this shit. It doesn’t get easier. It just gets deeper and I’m tired of wading through it. Just play the game, Claire. You’ll be much happier for it.”

  “You said Evan wasn’t a part of this. What’s to stop me from going straight to him now? I’m sure he’d like to know one of his most trusted employees is embezzling from him.” She had to let Charlie believe she knew nothing of their collusion.

  “Go to him—see what he says. But I can tell you, he’s a smart man and won’t risk any further negative exposure. Not after Sea-Tech and Beth Graves. How long do you think it’ll be before the other clients get wind of it? How long would it take him to lay the blame on you as well? You were the one who helped her. Don’t you remember?”

  It was as if he and Winters had rehearsed this very conversation before presenting it to Claire. Negative exposure, bad publicity. She assumed Charlie had worked very hard at eradicating any connection between him and the man in charge. Protect the guy at the top or their entire plan could collapse.

  She pushed up from her seat, a growing sense that her new, self-inflicted double-agent status might become too difficult to manage. “I’ll do what you ask so long as you keep your word.” Claire stepped towards the door, stopping as she grasped the handle. With her back to Charlie, she said the only words that truly amassed her feelings for the situation. “Fuck you.”

  ***

  Her new chair in her new office, Claire sat, contemplating the decision that had put not only herself at risk, but possibly her family as well. There wasn’t a chance in hell she was going to let Charlie get away with blackmail. He’d succeeded in bringing out a side of Claire she had not known existed.

  All she had to do was get enough information to bring them down. The thought occurred to approach Evan, gauge his reactions. Of course, he would already know of the recent discussion. Charlie would have informed him of her newfound cooperation immediately. They had both underestimated her, a thought that gave rise to growing anger. There was an advantage that Charlie perhaps hadn’t considered. Evan’s affections could be manipulated; how far was yet to be determined. Risking another regrettable encounter with him was absolutely not on the table and so it would prove difficult to lead him on without the inevitable reward, but if there was a way, she would find it.

  ***

  Claire left behind the new office, boxes still stacked, work still needing to be finished, opting to act on her idea and speak to Evan now. It was a sham anyway; all the shiny new distractions; the money, the promotion. She hadn’t earned it; it was a bribe, nothing more. A revelation that dealt a crushing blow to her confidence, but fueled her determination.

  “Hi, Sheri. Is Mr. Winters available?” Claire stood patiently at Sheri’s desk, hoping the impromptu visit would be well received.

  “Well, hello, Ms. Claire. How was Portland? Must have been a hoot. You look positively exhausted.” Sheri patted at her oversized, stiffened hair, her words radiating with Southern charm.

  “It was okay. I don’t sleep well in hotels, unfortunately, so I am a little tired.”

  “I can understand that. I have to take my own pillow whenever the mister and I travel. Let me buzz him, see if he’s got a moment. I think he just finished up a conference call, so you may be in luck.”

  “Thanks, Sheri.”

  Claire waited patiently, wondering if Sheri knew of the dealings her boss had been involved in or if she went about her day filled with the blissful ignorance Claire had once had and now missed just a little.

  “You can go right in, Ms. Claire.”

  Claire pressed open the large grey doors to a welcoming smile on the face of a liar.

  “I wasn’t expecting to see you this morning, Claire. What a nice surprise.” Evan pushed up from his desk, waiting for her to approach.

  Claire extended an outstretched hand, a gesture to ensure he would not assume she was there under any other pretense.

  A mildly surprised look replaced his earlier smile. “What can I do for you? The new office is acceptable, I assume?”

  “Yes, very. I’m actually here to apologize.”

  “And why would you be doing that?”

  “Because I may have been unclear as to my intentions. Please understand that I love my husband very much, Mr. Winters, and what happened between us was unacceptable behavior and we cannot afford to complicate an already complicated situation.”

  “We’re back to Mr. Winters, I see.” Evan glided effortlessly away from her, now standing with the harbor view behind him. “And by complicated situation, you mean Charlie’s attempt at blackmail?”

  The light from the mid-day sun was gleaming through the window and bent around his frame. The move seemed an assertion of his control and his face was now cast in shadow.

  She squinted from the surrounding glare, but would not look away and had to remain poised. “What will happen to Charlie? I understand the need not to escalate the matter, but I would like to know that you would not be a party to helping to destroy my marriage.”

  “Of course not, and he will be dealt with, but there are things beyond your periphery right now, Claire, that which I am unable to elaborate on at this time. But, I do hope to in the very near future.”

  He was testing her. She could see he was searching her for a fault he could expose, a reason to give him pause not to go any further; wanting to be sure she would fall in line with the plan before admitting to his own involvement.

  “I can assure you that those unfortunate photographs will not find their way into the hands of your husband or anyone else, for that matter. I will protect you, Claire. I can promise you that much.”

  Evan slowly turned to face the window. The glint of light was now shining in her eyes as he was further disguised in shadow. This was the moment she’d come to expect.

  A momentary pause and he moved again; this time towards his desk, pressing his palms against the glass top, leaning in to crystalize his point.

  “Here’s what I’d like you to do, Claire. First of all, this is something that I’d obviously prefer to keep under wraps until I know more, so any mention of blackmail to the FBI or anyone else would not be prudent.”

  No longer obscured, she saw his face clearly now, and, for the first time, the veil of her own notion of who he was had also been lifted—powerful, frightening, and very much in control. Evan Winters had her under his thumb and it would be a difficult task to cut it off.

  “I have no intention of going to the authorities to further humiliate myself or hurt my family.” This was where she would convince him of her loyalty. “I will put the situation in your capable hands to deal with as you see fit. Charlie was a good man—once. I understand completely what’s at stake here and I will cooperate, Evan.”

  “You can’t imagine how glad I am to hear you say that, Claire. I think you and I will have a long and mutually beneficial relationship.” He stepped towards her and took her hands. “I understand that you love your husband and what happened between us is truly regrettable. Under different circumstances, I could see this might have played out differently, but I will respect your wishes not to pursue the idea any further. But please know that it is only because you have asked, not because I wish it to be that way.”

  “Thank you, Evan. I’ll leave you to your work. I’m sure you’re very busy.” Claire began to walk away.

  “Oh, one last thing. Not to labor on the issue, but so you understand, there’ll be no cause to discuss this with anyone outside my office from this point forward—anyone.”

  “Of course not.”

  ***

  Evan deliberated over his next course of action. How he wished Claire could have steered clear of this ugliness. He’d hoped to garner her consent through other means; voluntarily, preferably. Not only was the relentless Agent Sanchez practically up his ass, he would now have to keep Claire from destr
oying all of them.

  Evan Winters’ plan was beginning to show signs of strain. For two years, he’d been successfully funneling money from his clients. Falsifying invoices and contracts, allowing additional monies to be collected. A portion of those funds then were distributed among the ones who made it possible, although none of them knew the exact figures. He’d kept that little secret to himself.

  The corporate financials had been inflated as a result of the influx of money. The increase in the firm’s revenue was making the investors happy and that was the end game for Winters.

  He wasn’t far from his goal now. But how much time did he have before one of his associates fell under the watchful eye of Agent Sanchez? Things were going to have to change and in a very profound way.

  Claire still weighed heavily on his mind. He’d grown too fond of her and his desire was dangerously deep from their first meeting. His passion was further ignited by their recent intimate encounter. Of course, he could never tell her that she had had no choice in the matter, the drug rendering her only mildly alert for the duration. It was something he’d hoped he wouldn’t have to use and had hoped that he could sway her to give in to his seduction, but she had proven difficult to conquer. It was the only way to bring her in. Charlie fought him hard on the decision to move forward with Plan B, but Evan had no choice. Blackmail was the only way to stop her from continuing to help the FBI. But what he had conveniently left out was his intent to place further strain on Claire’s marriage; his much desired side-effect of Plan B.

  From the moment he discovered she’d been trying to help Beth Graves, Evan thought the promotion would be enough to buy her loyalty. But when that didn’t work, he was forced to go in another direction. With a little time, his plan could yet come to fruition; ideally, with her by his side.

  CHAPTER 13

  FOR THE FIRST time since returning from Portland, Claire was alone with Colin. The dinner they’d shared remained hardly touched and the air weighed heavy with words that had yet to be spoken. Her words, the confession she was desperate to expose.

  She’d planned it carefully, arranging for the kids to be away at sleepovers, but would she have the strength to do it? He had to sense something wasn’t right. She’d averted her eyes nearly every time he tried to look at her. It was a devastating guilt and Claire begged for the hour to arrive that would bring an end to this unimaginable reality.

  When the time came, when there was nothing left to say, she instead opted to excuse herself to the den to work. Now Claire sat alone, occasionally peering over top of her computer to watch Colin in the family room. A basketball game, or something of equal insignificance to the turmoil brewing inside of Claire, played on the TV. There was no work that needed to be done. It was yet another lie that he had not deserved. Fear and indecision kept her in that room.

  Her cell phone rattled on the desk, shocking her out of hole in which she’d been immersed. Unknown caller ID, which as of late meant that it was probably Agent Sanchez, maybe Huffman. Either way, speaking to them right now, before she’d had a chance to tell her husband what she’d agreed to and why, would have to wait. The call went to voicemail, but no message was left. It was then that her landline rang, showing ‘unknown caller,’ and before she could ask Colin to leave it unanswered, he picked up the handset.

  “May I tell her who’s calling?” he asked. Colin pressed the phone against his chest and looked towards the den. “It’s Agent Sanchez.”

  Damn. Claire reluctantly picked up the phone in the den.

  “Yes?” Her voice was lowered.

  “I’ve been trying to reach you for the past several hours, Claire. Why haven’t you answered your phone?”

  The voice on the other end was unquestionably that of Agent Sanchez. “I’m sorry, but today’s been a—a pretty tough day.”

  “The reason I’m calling is because we have a situation.”

  His stating the obvious served to annoy her. “Yes. I’m well aware of that.”

  “Claire, Beth has decided not to help further with the investigation nor will she testify.”

  “What happened? Why would she change her mind? For God’s sake, they threatened her.” Without Beth, the entire case would rest on her shoulders.

  “I don’t know what changed her mind. My guess is she just wants to be home with her children and, frankly, I don’t blame her for that. But the problem is we still need your help if we have any hope of casting a larger net. Claire, she’s going to take the fall for this. Without her cooperation, I’m limited as to bargaining on her behalf.”

  “But you have no proof that she did anything wrong.”

  “We have enough to know that it was her credentials that were used to move the money. Even if we don’t know where the money’s at yet, Claire, it’s all we need. With Winters pressing hard for me to arrest her based on that, well, it is enough. She’ll go away for at least eighteen months, maybe two years. But I can assure you, she will be indicted. We very much need your help now, more than ever, Claire.”

  She pressed her thumb and forefinger against her eyelids, keeping them tightly shut in an effort to stem the flow of emotions that was rising. There was no place to turn. Even Beth was giving up.

  “I told you before, I just don’t have the information you need. I’m trying, believe me, but with the traveling and the new position, I’ve hardly had a chance to.” She stopped cold. The password. Lucas had the password. How could she have forgotten? She’d been so preoccupied with guilt that she’d forgotten that there could yet be a way out.

  “Claire?” Sanchez asked.

  “I did find something. I don’t know how useful it will be to you, but it’s all I’ve got.”

  “I’m listening.”

  “I found what appeared to be a password written on a sticky note hidden beneath Lucas Abbot’s keyboard. It was a couple days before I left for Portland, so I hadn’t had a chance to tell you.”

  “This password, why do you think it’s important?”

  “Well, I figured out that it was Beth’s password. I don’t know if it was old or new, or whatever, but I know it belonged to her. She used her kids’ initials and the months they were born.”

  “And you found this in Abbott’s possession?”

  “I did.”

  Sounds of rustling papers traveled through the line. “Can you give it to me?”

  Claire had already deleted the note in her phone for fear of being discovered, but had committed it to memory.

  “Okay. I’m going to get this to Computer Forensics. Our access to the company’s servers is minimal, but our people should be able to determine whose password this was, when it was last used, and by whom. That will get us somewhere on the right track. This is very helpful, thank you. In the meantime, keep doing what you’re doing and I’ll be in touch.” Sanchez ended the call.

  “That should buy me some time, I hope,” Claire said.

  “What’s that, honey?”

  She looked up to see Colin, leaning over the armrest of the couch. “Nothing. I’m finished for tonight anyway.”

  “Good. Come in here and sit down with me for a while. The game’s almost over.”

  Claire switched off her computer and shuffled towards the family room. The couch felt comfortable and she wanted nothing more than to curl her feet up and rest her head on Colin’s shoulder.

  It was too late tonight to throw a grenade onto her marriage. This latest blow meant she needed Colin now more than ever. She couldn’t lose him. But Claire wondered why Beth would risk going to prison unless the threats to her had become so severe that no other option was left. The thought chilled her, realizing that if prison had been the lesser of two evils, what might happen if Evan and Charlie found out she was playing them? It was up to her and her alone now to prove Beth’s innocence and to see these men pay for what they’d done. But not tonight. I can’t handle anymore tonight.

  ***

  The pleasant aroma of freshly brewed coffee drifted along the s
taircase. Claire breathed it in as she began her descent, her bathrobe wrapped tightly around her slender waist and socks protecting her feet from the cold floor. The fear and guilt that consumed her for the better part of last night was pushed deep into the dark corners of her mind after the intimate night with Colin. Unable yet to face the veracity of her betrayal, she kept it down there, where no one would find it, especially her.

  “The coffee’s waiting for you right here, babe.” Colin pushed the mug gently along the breakfast counter as she approached the kitchen.

  “This is exactly what I need.” She inhaled the most inviting scent and took a sip. “Are you going somewhere?”

  Colin was dressed in a blue polo shirt and khaki pants, finishing up what remained of his breakfast. “I mentioned to you yesterday that I was going golfing this morning with Rick. I could use the break.”

  “I forgot about that. Of course, you should go golfing. Clear your head.” With his job still in question, he had suffered through stress of his own, a fact she’d selfishly overlooked.

  Colin leaned in to kiss Claire’s cheek. “When are the kids due home?”

  “Karen is dropping Anna off sometime before lunch and I told Robbie to be home no later than one. I was thinking we could all go see a movie this afternoon?” It seemed strange, trying to be normal again.

  “That sounds great. I’ll be finished by one or two at the latest. I’ll text you when I leave the golf course.” Colin patted her backside and proceeded through to the garage.

  A quiet Saturday morning alone would likely help to clear her own mind, to plan her next moves carefully. Calling Beth would be a priority; firstly, to make sure she was okay, secondly, to get to the bottom of why she’d reneged on the deal. Did Beth fully understand the ramifications? It didn’t matter that Sanchez would frown on it. Everything had changed now and Beth was essentially on her own. Would she really be safe? Without her willingness to cooperate, Beth would no longer be under any federal protection.