Hunter grinned like it was his lucky day, taking out a pair of handcuffs, “Well we might not have enough to put away Royce King, but we damn sure have enough to convict you.”
Cam sighed taking off his glasses and cleaning them, once he put them back on he pulled papers from the inside of his jacket. “Ivan Wendell, I have a warrant for your arrest, I’m going to need you to turn around and—”
“No wait! I’ll take her deal” He pleaded as Hunter put his hands behind his back, naming his charges.
I shook my head, “Enjoy prison Mr. Wendell.”
“I can’t go to prison,” He pleaded again a little more desperate now that Hunter was leading him towards the door. He resisted against him and barely moved, but Macon and Dario couldn’t resist helping anyway. They took him on both sides picking him up.
“Let’s get this bitch out of here,” Macon grunted turning him towards the door.
“No please, I’ll take the deal!” He begged attempting to turn back to me.
I sighed, “Cam.”
“Yes,” He turned back looking at me.
I knew that he needed that testimony, because the FBI had been trying to put Royce Crenshaw away long before we ever met. After a silent conversation between us, I nodded. “I suggest you take your offers a bit more seriously when they’re given to you, Mr. Wendell.”
Danny and Jeff groaned as Macon and Dario reluctantly let his feet touch the ground again. Ivan however, nodded frantically. "Yes, Miss Marshall. So I'll be expecting a call?"
"Yes," I sighed, waving him away, "and you'd better answer, Mr. Wendell, or I will find you."
"Yes, ma'am." He hesitated for a moment and then looked at Cam. “Aren’t you going to free me?”
I shook my head. “They’ll let you go once you are out of my damn building.”
“Let’s go.” Macon chuckled moving Ivan out of the door with more force than necessary.
“Good riddance if you ask me.” Kristen muttered.
I shook my head handing the file off to Hunter. “Here, make sure that Cam keeps that with him.”
“Sure thing Babes,” he guaranteed strumming through it again shaking his head. “Only you can attempt to solve a case and run into a completely different case.”
I muttered, “Just my luck.”
“You had the option of letting it go, Honeyface,” Adrian’s velvet chuckle reminded me kissing my temple. “We could have let the police handle it.”
I nodded, “I know, but I don’t like him.”
“I don’t think he has many admirers Alyssa,” Liam laughed put a hand on his son’s shoulder. “We’re needed downstairs son, we need to explain how Cam ‘stumbled’ upon the evidence Tink found.”
“Yeah she didn’t exactly acquire it legally,” Danny agreed.
There were a few seconds of silence and then the crew burst into laughter. “What, what did I miss?”
“Tink being Tink,” Jackson laughed pointing at his earpiece. “Let’s go get our story straight.”
Adrian ran his finger down the bridge of my nose, “You’re always sexy when you pout.”
“I’m not pouting.” I corrected watching the entire room file out. “I just don’t like being left out.”
Jeff was the last one out, halting in the doorway, “Come on bro, let’s get this done.”
Adrian hesitated. “What if this guy comes while were downstairs? I don’t want to leave her alone until we have the guy we want.”
“She’s not alone.” Kristen noted sounding offended. “I’m right here.”
“Not to mention Doc and Tink on the other side.” I noted jerking my head at the bookcase.”
Adrian sighed giving me his gun. I put it in the small of my back leaving it in plain view, forcing an over sweet smile up at him. He relented kissing the tip of my nose and turning towards the door. “Be right back.” On his way out he stopped in front of Kristen. “If he shows up here….”
“I’ll call you guys right away.” She laughed shaking her head as he walked out of my office.
I shook my head. “Two years of being with him and I will never get use to how overprotective he is.”
Kristen laughed listening intently to her ear piece. “I know right. But I won’t be the one to tell her.”
“Tell me what?” I asked feeling left out that I didn’t have an earpiece of my own.
Kristen put her finger up halting me as she listened to what Doc or Tink was saying. I tapped my foot in expectation. “Alright, alright. Tink says the over protectiveness gets stricter once you’re married. This is true.”
“And why were you going to wait to tell me?” I asked skeptically.
Kristen hesitated, but truthfulness was her specialty. “Well, no one wants you to change your mind.”
“I wouldn’t change my mind.” I scoffed. “I love him; he’s seen me at my worst guys.”
Kristen smiled. “Tink says ‘good, good, good’. Now I am going back to my fake work in my fake office. I’ll be back later.”
She wasn’t gone a full ten minutes before her voice sounded through my phone again. “Roman Maxwell is here to see you.”
I sighed, pulling the gun from the small of my back and storing it in the desk drawer. “Send him in please Kristen.”
Kristen let him in with three delivery men in tow bringing in three sets of large vases, all holding a massive amount of long stem roses. Kristen pointed the men to the table where the rest of my flowers were while I greeted Roman.
“There was quite a disturbance on the way up here.” Mr. Maxwell stated with curiosity handing me the card personally instead of putting them with the flowers. “Was that Wendell?”
I nodded after thanking him for the flowers. “Yes it was, he’s been stealing from the company, and he’s just been terminated.”
“I never did like him.” He admitted taking a seat as Kristen dismissed herself and headed back to her office. “He was always attached to Paul at the hip. Sneaky little devil.” He went on.
I didn’t sit at my desk, instead opting to read the card that went with the massive arraignment. “Funeral effect.” I muttered to myself disappointed. “Yes he was a piece of work.” I agreed turning to the man with the salt and pepper hair. “I never quiet understood it though. Paul would have given him more money.”
“I assure you Miss Marshall, he was paid quite handsomely. Some people just can’t be helped, no use stressing your mind over it.”
I nodded turning to face him. “I agree, but Paul isn’t always as tolerable as people think. There aren’t many things that I can handle with him either.”
“Well none of us are perfect.” He pardoned kindly.
I bit my bottom lip, “I hated Paul.” I admitted waiting for a response.
Roman processed it for a moment before meeting me with kind eyes. “Because of your mother correct?”
“Yes,” I nodded, surprised at how much he understood.
“Then why did you take reign as CEO here, if I may ask?”
I sighed, “Truth?”
He waited expectant.
“My life, my family, and my friends were threatened because of Neil Industries, and I had to assure our safety.”
“I’m sorry?” He questioned.
“I was kidnapped a few months ago, as well as my nephew, not to mention ransomed because Paul named me as his successor.”
His eyes widened as he took in my story, seeing that I wasn’t joking. “Goodness…”
“Yeah.” I agreed.
“Poor dear, did they catch the people responsible?”
“Yes, a few of them are dead in fact, while another two remain in Quantico awaiting trial.”
This caused a mild look of outrage. “Why isn’t he on trial? What are they waiting for? A man like that should be put to death if you ask me.”
“It’s a bit more complicated than that. You see, they were ‘hired’ by someone, and we didn’t know whom.”
I was in the rhythm of telling him my st
ory while I looked through other cards as a distraction. “That’s why I took the job here. I was hoping that I could draw him or her out with being accessible.”
“That’s why you came with increased security?” I watched him nod out the corner of my eye as he put two and two together.
“Yeah, they’re really good.” I boasted. “They handled the incident at the benefit with perfect finesse.”
“The teens setting off fireworks?” He recalled a bit confused.
I shook my head. “No, a woman by the name of Zoe Nowak tried to kill me.”
I actually turned to look at his paled expression. “Oh my.”
“Yeah.” I nodded in agreement continuing on. “A delusional woman, she blamed me for all of her problems. She blamed me for their plans being thwarted, their boss pulling the plug when they failed, and her lover becoming obsessed with me. It pains me that all of this started over a pay date that would never come.”
He listened in awe, “Well it seems you’re lucky to be alive, Alyssa.”
I sat in the conference chair next to him, placing a hand on his. “You’re very kind Mr. Maxwell.” I smiled, “But luck had nothing to do with it. You see, Terry Windsor, David Grubbs, and Zoe Nowak were idiots. They didn’t know everything about me. And when they ‘knew’—the ones that made it out at least—came at me again.”
He thought about it for a moment before he responded. “Well I’m sure they felt that it was you or them at that point. The need to survive makes people act strange. Maybe they thought the police wouldn’t let them be, nor should they.”
“No, they were marked the minute they did what they did. If someone from my team didn’t get them, I would myself.” I admitted darkly.
“Get them yourself?” He repeated. I looked away from the large glass window that I was facing, giving him one glace at my face to show that I wasn’t joking, before turning back to my view of down town D.C. “Alyssa please don’t tell me that you think you are capable of harming another human being? I mean sure you’re deadly in negotiations, but I don’t think—”
“I am Roman. I’ve killed people before.” I admitted, cutting him off.
This got me a longer pause. “Ok, let’s say that I believe you, Alyssa. Why are you telling me all of this? You capable of hurting people, the reason you became CEO, the abductions?”
I didn’t turn back to face him this time. I had to think about my answer. “I’ve grown very fond of you Mr. Maxwell.”
“Well I’m glad to hear that Alyssa.” He coughed uncomfortably. “Now, you killing others, how did that come about?”
I sighed. “I was in the military.” I answered briefly.
There was another long silence; he was waiting on me to elaborate. I continued in another direction, “You know what I can’t get my mind around Mr. Maxwell?” I asked turning for a brief moment to Paul Neil’s COO. “Why me?”
“Well I think—”
I know that it was rude of me, but I cut him off again returning to the window. “Why would they continue to come after me? When they could have easily just turned on you?”
Silence.
“Once they realized that they couldn’t get the money from me, and that you lead them astray, why would they not turn on you? They would have gotten their money, and could have disappeared.” I continued, staring down at the traffic jam of a five p.m. Wednesday.
“What are you—”
I sighed. “I know that it was you Roman, you ordered for them to kidnap Juan and me.”
“I would never— I didn’t even know you before you came.”
“I was honest with you, so for once, try being honest with me.” I demanded.
I listened to him shuffle in the leather seat in front of my desk. “What do you want to know?”
“I want to know why you—”
I didn’t finish my sentence, because of the whirlwind that flew past my head and the storm that followed into my office. I didn’t feel any pain, only a whisk of air and my heart racing. Kristen was in in the same second, a gun pointed to the man next to me, both Roman and I voluntarily pressed against the large window.
“Drop it Roman.” Kristen ordered making her way over to the book case but never taking the gun off of his head. “Alyssa move away.”
I moved only as far as my desk before turning my back away from him. He was still holding the letter opener from my desk in his hand. It took another second to realize that an attempt on my life had been made.
“Yeah Adrian, I got him. You should have been up here already.” Kristen hissed opening the door. Doc was the first one out with her gun pointed at him too. Shock went across Roman’s face more than ever, Tink filing out behind her. “I said drop the fucking letter opener, Roman!”
He complied this time, and Doc rushed to him first kicking it away, and then using the butt of her pistol to smack him across the face. I flinched each time it made contact. “That was my son you took from me, mine? Why? Why would you do it? And involve a child?”
Roman grunted on the floor with each hit, his arm doing a poor job of shielding him. Adrian and the others were in the room within the next thirty seconds, my fiancé rushing to my side at once. “Are you hurt, Honeyface?” He asked looking me over as the others rushed in and someone shut the door.
I shook my head. “No.” His hands trialed down my shoulders, stopping at a tear in the silk at my collar bone. I didn’t notice it until he pointed it out. “I’m ok.” I repeated.
Adrian murmured a stream of curses before walking over to Roman, picking him up by his collar, forcing him against the glass window. “You and me…”
“Son… sit him in the chair.” Liam ordered pulling the leather chair into the center of the room.
Adrian looked to his dad and then to me, before forcing him effortlessly into the chair. “We promised we’d leave this up to Alyssa.”
“He tried to kill me.” My voice rasped looking around at the room of my friends and crew.
Tink pulled back the hammer of her gun pointing it at Roman’s head. “Well that answers that.”
“Margaux,” Jackson chided taking her gun out of her hand, pulling her away from Roman, and slowly releasing the hammer back to its place. “I think there are a few unanswered questions we need answered first Darlin’.” He stored the gun in the small of his back while Margaux huffed.
Jackson and I both knew that he didn’t give a damn about the unanswered questions, and if someone were to shoot him blank right there he wouldn’t lose sleep over it. However, it couldn’t be Tink that did it. She was the only one amongst us that had never taken a life. She had an innocence about her, that would be lost if she ever did and Jackson, he planned on keeping her that way if he could help it, and I wasn’t against it myself.
“Why would you involve my son in all of this?” Ross hissed, barely keeping Doc at bay. He didn’t say anything at first; his head hung low only showing the bloody pulp that was the side of his face. For a moment I thought he was unconscious.
“If you value your life, I’d answer the woman.” Dario cautioned threat laced in his Italian accent.
“I thought he was Alyssa’s…” He rasped in a low voice.
Danny scoffed in discuss. “And that makes it better?”
Roman looked down at his Rolex, and he seemed to be deliberating in his head.
Jeff chuckled. “If you’re thinking about blowing the bottom floor out of this building, we’ve already removed your bomb. The only thing you have on your arm now is an expensive watch.”
“How did you figure it out?” Roman asked, looking in my direction. This caused most of the room to tense.
I wasn’t afraid of him. I let my guard down earlier, mainly because he was old enough to almost be my grandfather, but I was more than prepared for anything now. “You were very good at not bringing suspicion to yourself, only a few mistakes lead us to you.”
Doc took the reins. “The first, using the same private investigator that the Neil’s used t
o investigate Alyssa. The man you hired, the one that talked to Adrian at Margaux’s wedding, I recognized him. I saw him once when we were first opening the Gravity office, a few weeks later, Paul showed up at the grand opening.”
“She never forgets a face.” Ross added. “So when she saw him at the wedding, it took her a while, but she put it together.”
I stayed wrapped in Adrian’s arms as I spoke. Finding comfort in his over protectiveness, “The only other time, was when we were talking alone in my office. About why you helped me, you said that you helped Paul with whatever he wanted that you were to help me with whatever I wanted, and you would do the same for my son when it was his time. Juan has never been in this office, and only the kidnappers made that mistake.”
“That’s when she asked me to look into you more.” Tink went on. “You see, when Paul wanted to keep C&K open, despite what the board suggested, Paul attempted to personally finance until business went up, and you did the same, wanting to support his attempts. It went under any way, and you lost close to thirty-million in the process.”
“But why? You could have easily made more than that, hell you have since Alyssa took over here.” Kristen sneered pacing in front of Macon.
He wiped the blood off of his eye with his handkerchief, “I know that.” He snapped a tad gruffer, tired. “I pulled away, called it off. I was suspicious at first, when she showed up here.”
“You had any member of the actual Neil family that you could have ransomed off at any time. Why her?” Adrian demanded roughly.
He didn’t answer at first, keeping his head low, until Macon yanked it up to look in the direction Adrian and I were standing. “Answer him old man.”
“It was Paul.” I answered for him.
He looked at me, as did everyone else in the room. “Did we miss something else?” Danny asked confused, speaking for everyone.
“It was, wasn’t it?” I asked looking at him, making sense of his thought process. “You wanted to get back at Paul right.”
“I’ve worked for this company since I was twenty-one. Paul Sr. hired me ten years before he retired. I’ve worked with Paul for over twenty years, covering for his indiscretions, making risky business plans, and taking heat. I did all of that, and when he gives up being a CEO, he doesn’t pass it along to me, and instead he offers it to you. He confided in me several times about your relationship.”
The Law of Motion (Law Series) Page 51
