by Claire Adams
I wandered aimlessly through a few more stores and then finally stopped to get a cup of coffee and call Alicia. She laughed when I told her what I was doing,
“You do realize that it’s Christmas Eve?” she asked with a giggle.
“Of course,” I said. “That’s why I’m shopping.”
“Well, had you done your shopping earlier, like the rest of us, you could be here enjoying cookies warm out of the oven right now. Mother has been baking all day.”
I wished I were there. I looked around me at all of the last-minute shoppers as desperate as I was to find just the right thing. “I needed to ask you what does one buy a Lord and Lady for Christmas.”
Alicia laughed again, and then said, “Aw, that’s sweet, powerful attorney and CEO of his own firm, at the mall on Christmas Eve worrying what to buy the future in-laws.”
“I’m glad you are amused,” I said sarcastically but with a genuine smile. “Can you help me out, or not?”
“Hmm,” she said thoughtfully. “How about tickets for another Broadway show? They loved the one they saw last night.”
“How long will they be in town?” I asked. I hated to wish them away for Alicia’s sake, but somewhat selfishly I was hoping it would be soon.
“They will be here for another week,” she said.
“Okay, then, show tickets it shall be. Thank you, I love you,” I told her.
“I love you more,” she said before ending the call.
Once I finally finished the shopping, I checked in with Marie to make sure all was well with the plans for the party later that night. She told me that everything was right on schedule. I decided that since I had a few hours before I needed to get ready, I would drive over to Alex’s house and surprise him with the gift he I picked up for him. As an attorney, I was sure there was too much evidence against Alex at this point for him to be innocent. As a best friend, I still wanted to hope.
Alex lived in a home in an upper class neighborhood out on Long Island. When I drove into the driveway, I noticed a large black sedan parked in front. I thought to myself that maybe I should have called first, but I was here now so I figured what the hell. I grabbed the envelope with the Super Bowl tickets I had bought Alex for Christmas. The New York Giants were a sure thing this year, and I knew they were his favorite team.
I walked up to the front door and was about to ring the bell when I became aware of raised voices inside. Looking through the small glass window on the front door I could make out Alex and the back of another man standing at the edge of the living room. Alex looked angry. I stepped to the side of the glass and put my ear to the door. Alex was yelling,
“This was supposed to have gone away by now! You were supposed to have made it look like Brigham was responsible for Vick’s death. You screwed it all up from the start. No one was supposed to get hurt. You were just supposed to shut Vick up and make sure that old blow-hard, Brigham was ruined in the press by this oil spill.”
“Obviously, I did a fine job of setting up Brigham,” the other man said, “Or they wouldn’t have arrested him.”
“I heard the tape. Alicia told him that the FBI is looking at other suspects. What if that’s true? I don’t want the FBI sniffing around here. Do you understand? If they start looking into where the campaign funds are coming from and going, I may as well have committed political suicide. Not to mention the jail time because they’ll think I had something to do with Vick Landon’s and Marjorie’s murders.”
When the other man spoke again, I recognized his voice, or rather his accent. It was Jack Grant. “You just need to calm down. Alicia doesn’t know anything. She was trying to make her client feel more at ease, that’s all. That’s how she does things. She’s a decent person with a big heart. As for you being held responsible, well…I’d have to guess you’re right on target there. That being said, I wouldn’t go shooting my mouth off to anyone.”
“Are you kidding?” Alex said sarcastically. “Who am I going to tell? The police? My best friend whose ex-wife was murdered by people working for me? Don’t worry, Grant, my lips are sealed. You just better clean this mess up in a hurry. Where are you with finding Vick’s boyfriend? That’s another loose cannon there.”
Grant had lowered his voice at that point and I couldn’t hear his reply. I had heard enough, however. I got back in my car and sped out of Alex’s driveway and down the street as quickly as I could. As far as I could tell, neither Alex nor Jack had realized I was there. I drove a few blocks and then stopped my car in front of a plush home with about an acre of lush green lawn stretching out towards the sidewalk. I took out my phone and punched in David’s number.
“Agent Tyler,” I began after David answered. “I have some information for you. It’s urgent that I meet with you today. Can you come to my office?” David agreed to meet me there in an hour. I asked him to bring someone who could sweep for bugs, as well. David agreed readily and didn’t ask any questions.
The office was dark and quiet when I got there. Mac and I had given the staff and associates off until the day after New Year’s. I unlocked the door, disabled the alarm, and headed to my office. Once there, I called the security company and told them not to worry that I was meeting with a client and would alert them once we were finished. As I sat and waited for David I fumed inside. I was furious with Alex for involving himself in dirty politics. I was furious that Grant who was involved in at least two murders continued to present himself to Alicia as a friend, and most of all, I was furious that he had been listening in on Alicia’s private conversations. Thank God I hadn’t spoken to her about her suspicions about Jack while in her office. Thank God I hadn’t spoken to the FBI while they were listening.
David called and said he was pulling up in front of the building. I went down and let him and his associates in. He had two crime scene technicians with him. They were prepared to sweep the entire office building for bugs. David motioned to me with his hand not to speak until they were done.
It took the technicians about twenty minutes to find two listening devices. One was in Alicia’s office, inside the frame of the picture of her and I that had been tampered with the night of the break-in. It was a very small, flat device and would never have been noticed had we not been looking for it. The other one they found in my main conference room. David said he was surprised it had been put there rather than in my office, but I wasn’t. Alex, being my best friend and confidante, knew that most of my important business was conducted in the conference room. My office was mainly for entertaining important clients during which time not much important business was discussed. After they had removed and disabled the devices, I filled David in on what I had heard at Alex’s home.
“So, Fritz said that Grant was supposed to shut Vick up, but not hurt anyone. I wonder how that led to your ex-wife’s murder.”
“I wondered about that, too,” I said, “I still don’t believe that Alex would have tried to have me harmed in any way. Maybe Grant has gone renegade on him.”
“Maybe,” David said. “Tell me again what we said about me?” I repeated what I heard Alex say to Jack about him being a “loose cannon”.
“This we can use,” David said. “Did he say who they were using in the press to smear Brigham?”
“No,” Adam told him, “But my best guess would be Rose Dugan. She has published the worst of the reports on Brigham with regards to the oil spill and his personal life.”
David nodded slowly, “Okay, I’ll work with that,”
“What about the bugs? Won’t they know we found them?”
“Absolutely,” David said. “But they don’t have to know that you know who planted them. The break-in is as of yet unsolved to our knowledge, correct?”
“Yes, that’s true. So in the meantime, what do you want me to do?”
“Nothing, go and have a Merry Christmas with your friends and family. Just remember to act as if things are all okay when you see your friend Fritz.”
“That’s going to take an
academy award winning performance,” I told him, “I really want to punch the son of a bitch in the mouth.”
“In good time, friend,” David told me.
CHAPTER SEVEN
ALICIA
Mother and I both got new gowns for the Christmas Eve party. Mother insisted on paying for mine even though I told her more than once that I could afford to buy my own clothes now.
“Nonsense, it’ll just be an additional Christmas gift from me and your father,”
I ultimately gave in and since it was a Christmas present, I didn’t even look at the price tag. My mother’s gown was an elegant gold satin ankle-length and mine was a white, off the shoulder floor-length gown with very fine red and gold piping around the neckline and one sleeve. We had spent more time shopping than we had planned, so we had to hurry home and get ready. Adam was picking us all up at six p.m. and it was already almost four-thirty.
Luis helped us up to the apartment with our packages and Lady Winston slipped him something and said, “Thank you, Luis. Merry Christmas to you and your family.” Luis thanked her and wished all of us the same. As he was getting back on the elevator I saw him glance at what my mother had placed in his hand. He looked ready to protest, but I shook my head slightly to let him know that arguing with my mother was a lost cause. He smiled broadly then and just as the doors slid shut, he placed a hand over his heart and gave a small bow.
I looked at Mother as we entered the apartment. She had done a good thing for Luis and his family but gave no indication that I even realized it as she breezed into the entryway calling for my father to bring in the rest of our things. I smiled. I only recently started to notice things about my parents as adults that I hadn’t before. One thing was the fact that no matter how haughty and harsh my mother liked to pretend she was, she was just an old softy at heart.
I was ready for the party by the time Adam rang the bell at six. I opened the door and he took a sharp intake of breath when he saw me. “Oh my God,” he said, finally. “You are the most beautiful thing I have ever seen.”
I smiled. “Thank you. You are quite a vision yourself.”
Adam was wearing a black Armani suit with satin lapels and a green silk tie. His tie clip and cuff-links were gold and studded with small diamonds. He wore a black silk shirt under his suit, and it looked so soft that I couldn’t resist the impulse to touch it softly with my fingers.
“Wanna rip it off?” he said with a grin.
“Absolutely,” I whispered as I stood on my tiptoes to give him a kiss. Even in three-inch heels, he towered over me.
My father was waiting for us when we went into the sitting room. He looked quite dashing himself in a black suit and bow tie with a crisp white shirt underneath. We sat and waited for Lady Winston then. Alicia’s father said,
“I can’t remember a time before I sat around waiting for this woman,”
“But it’s always worth the wait, isn’t it?” My mother’s voice floated into the room before she did. Adam stood up, and taking her hand he bowed slightly at the waist to brush his lips to it, “You look stunning, my lady,” he told her.
I almost laughed out loud when Mother blushed like a school girl and thanked him. “Are we ready?”
We agreed that we were and we all got our coats and headed out to the car.
When we arrived at the large conference center, I was once again in awe of what Marie could accomplish. The decorations were Christmas themed, but subtle and elegant. The buffet table was layered with foods that both looked delicious and exuded a mouth-watering aroma. There was a very large Christmas tree, dressed up with red and white satin bows and ribbon, with a delicate silver star adorning the top. Marie had somehow managed to buy gifts, as well, and they all looked professionally wrapped and covered the floor beneath the tree. Adam and I sat our gifts underneath the tree before taking our place at the large table in front of the room.
Our table had been reserved for senior and junior partners and our guests. I was thrilled to see Kyla. We hadn’t had much chance to spend time together lately due to both of our busy schedules. I introduced Kyla to my parents, and after we were seated, Kyla whispered,
“Your mother is beautiful. I see why you’re so pretty now. And your father, he’s quite the silver fox himself.”
I laughed and said, “You really need a date.”
“Shows how much you know,” Kyla said. “I happen to have a date, and here he comes now.”
I thought that I was seeing things when I looked up and Jack was approaching our table.
“Hi,” he said, taking the seat next to Kyla,
“Hi,” I said back, “You’re Kyla’s date?”
“You needn’t sound so surprised,” Jack told her. “Kyla and I met at the courthouse one day. We had lunch, and have gone out a few times since. I just found out today when she asked me to come to this dinner tonight that you and she were good friends.”
“Yes,” Kyla said in a hushed tone so that the others at the table couldn’t overhear. “I really didn’t know the two of you had a history. If this is weird for you….”
“No, no, of course not,” I said, “I was just surprised, that’s all.”
Kyla smiled, she looked happy that I wasn’t upset with her. I felt bad. I would have to tell Kyla that Jack was involved in some shady business. I couldn’t risk her getting hurt. I would wait until after the holidays, though, so as not to ruin them for her. I saw the look on Adam’s face when he noticed Jack at our table. He motioned his head at me and stood up. I stood up as well, and Adam excused us both. I followed him to a small alcove that led to the restrooms.
“What is he doing here?” Adam asked.
“He’s Kyla’s date,” I said with a pained expression.
“Oh Jeez, that’s just what Kyla needs! I hadn’t had time to tell you yet about my afternoon. I suppose now it’s imperative that I do.”
Adam told me about going to Alex’s and the conversation he had eavesdropped on between Alex and Jack. He also told me about meeting with David and discovering the bugs in the office.
I was appalled. “Jack was in on the murders? I knew he was into some risky business, but I never would have imagined…murder? Oh my gosh, Adam, we have to warn Kyla.”
“I know,” he said. “Let’s wait until tomorrow, though. She’s here with all of us tonight so we know she’s safe. Kyla has no stake in anything that has been going on. Jack would have no motive for wanting to harm her.”
“Okay,” I agreed. “But if she tries to leave with him, I don’t know if I can sit back and just watch it happen.”
“Let’s cross that bridge when we come to it, okay?” I nodded and he kissed my forehead softly. “Let’s go eat, drink, and make merry for now. I’m postponing the espionage until after the holidays. Care to join me?”
“Alright, 007,” I teased, “We’ll resume the spy vs. spy routine later. Let’s go get a plate before all of the lobster is gone, it looks delicious.” Adam smiled and put his arm around her waist, “I’ll never figure out how you eat like you do and keep looking so hot.”
“Good genes,” I said. “Look at mother.”
********
Dinner was excellent. After it was over, Mac and Adam took the small stage and microphone at the center of the room. We thanked all of our employees for coming, and for all of their hard work and dedication over the past year. Envelopes were handed out one by one then, with bonus checks inside for all.
When they finished, the gift exchange took place, and then the live band started playing music for dancing. Adam and I danced to a slow song, and as we swayed slowly to the beat, the party and the rest of the room disappeared for a while. We both knew this was right, and couldn’t wait for the day when we were husband and wife.
While we were taking a break from dancing, I noticed Jack and Kyla on the floor. She looked radiant in her red dress with the plunging neckline and her dark, blonde hair pulled up high and small curls falling down around her face. I felt another pang of
sadness that I would have to dash my friend’s hopes about this man.
I looked around the rest of the dance floor. My parents were dancing together, holding each other and in perfect step. I hoped that mine and Adam’s marriage was still that strong after so many years. I saw Adam’s partner Mac and his wife dancing. They looked happy, as well. Christmas was a magical time of year, no doubt about it. It had a way of erasing all of the bad things that had happened the year prior, if only for a little while.
I looked back at Adam and noticed him watching Jack and Kyla. He looked as if he could hardly control his emotions. I knew that he was thinking of Marjorie and what Jack had done or had arranged to be done to her. I reached out and put my hand on his arm. He slid it around me and pulled me in close to his side.
“When this is all over, I’m going to punch that SOB in the mouth,” he whispered in my ear.
“Me, too,” I agreed, making him laugh.
The evening was a big hit with everyone. I put my parents into a car around midnight and they headed back to the apartment. Adam and I stayed until two am, when the party finally started breaking up. As I hugged Kyla and said goodnight, I couldn’t help it I said,
“You’re not taking him home with you, right?”
Kyla looked at me with a raised eyebrow and said, “What kind of loose woman do you think I am? We’ve barely started dating. There will be no sex for a few more weeks.”
I smiled. God, I loved this woman. “Be safe,” I whispered to my friend. “We’ll see you tomorrow, right?”
I was having a brunch at the apartment for my family and close friends. “Of course, see you then. Merry Christmas, friend.”
“Merry Christmas, Kyla, I love you.”
“Love you, too,” Kyla told me before taking Jack by the arm. Jack wished me and Adam both a Merry Christmas and as they walked towards the exit, I wanted so badly to yell “stop” and make him leave Kyla there with us. I glanced at Adam’s face, and realized that he was having a hard time not acting on the same impulse.
