"Yes, but when she learns what marrying him means for our family, she'll choose us over him. I know she will."
"She shouldn't have to make that choice. I wish there was another way."
"If there was, I wouldn't do this. But I'm backed into a corner. At this point, I have no other options."
"When are you going to tell her?"
"I'm not sure yet."
"When is Dean officially approved?"
"Not until we vote on it in the fall."
"So we have time. We don't have to tell her right away. Could we wait a few weeks, or a few months?"
"I suppose we could wait, but I don't want to wait too long. Maybe a couple weeks."
"What happens to Dean from now until he's a member?"
"Technically, he's still in the interview process, which means he'll have to complete another assignment."
"Maybe he won't be able to do it and they'll be forced to rescind his membership offer."
"That won't happen. Phillip will make sure of it by giving Dean an easy assignment. The first one was falsifying paperwork and Dean didn't even have to do it himself. And he was rewarded with a large payout. He'll be offered even more money for the next assignment, which is supposed to be more difficult but will likely be another paperwork assignment. I'm confident Dean will get it done without a problem." I glance at the door. "Where's Lilly? I don't want her overhearing us."
"She's in her art studio. She's feeling really down right now. She doesn't understand what's going on and it's frustrating for her. She wants to see Reed but we keep telling her no and not explaining why."
"We've explained why. She just doesn't accept our reasoning. And she won't until we tell her the truth. So if you want me to wait to tell her, then I'm afraid she's going to be feeling this way for a while."
"What if I take her somewhere? A girls' weekend?"
"That's a good idea. I'm sure she'd enjoy that but I don't want you going very far. Now that the organization knows about Dean's connection to Lilly, we're on their radar again. All of us. So we need to be extra cautious."
"Are you saying they'd try to harm us?"
"If they truly want Lilly, then no, they wouldn't dare harm us. But by 'they' I'm speaking in terms of the group, not the individual members. Unfortunately, I still have a few enemies within the organization and any one of them could decide to seek revenge at any time, especially now that they've been reminded of me through my presence at the meeting, and now Lilly's involvement. So if you go somewhere, be extra vigilant about who's around you. And always take your gun."
"I will."
"Where are you thinking of going for this girls' weekend?"
"To that hotel where you gave a speech last summer. I can't remember the name of it but it's that one just north of here along the coast. The hotel has a spa so I was thinking Lilly and I could spend the night. Get massages, facials, pedicures." She smiles. "All that girly stuff you don't like."
I smile back. "I'm sure Lilly would love that."
"Then I'll go tell her." She leaves, and I watch out the window as she goes out to Lilly's studio. Moments later the two of them walk out, heading to the patio. Lilly has a smile on her face, which I was starting to think I'd never see again.
Ever since I told Lilly to stay away from Reed, she hasn't been herself. She's quiet and sad and spends all her time hidden away in her studio. It's been a little over a week since she saw Reed, which normally wouldn't bother her, but it does now because she knows she won't see him this week either, or the week following.
She's been avoiding me, angry at me for keeping her from Reed, but she also knows this isn't entirely my fault. She believes me when I say Reed's father is involved in something dangerous, and I know that's the only reason she's going along with this. Otherwise, she'd likely be trying to sneak out of the house so she could drive down to L.A. to see Reed.
It's going to be difficult for her to give him up. She really does love him and he loves her. It's just like Jade and Garret. I can't believe we're having to relive this scenario all over again. After all I did to keep Garret out of it, I never thought they'd attempt to get Lilly, and they wouldn't have if it weren't for Katherine.
On Saturday morning, we all have breakfast before Rachel and Lilly leave for their girls' weekend. During breakfast, Lilly talks to Rachel but not me. It reminds me of when Garret wouldn't speak to me all those months I tried to keep him away from Jade. I didn't like that time in my life. I felt like I was losing my son and would never get him back and I'm starting to feel that way with Lilly. We've had a close relationship ever since I divorced her mother and I don't want to lose that.
After breakfast I carry their bags to the car. Lilly goes around me to get in the car but I stop her and give her a hug. "Have a good time." I hug her tighter. "I love you."
"I love you too," she whispers, then pulls away. She looks at me and I notice her eyes are wet. "I'll see you tomorrow."
She doesn't want to be mad at me. It hurts her to do so. But she feels that she has to. She's angry and frustrated and all that negative emotion has to be aimed at someone, so I'll take it. I just hope it doesn't last. I miss my daughter and want her back. I want all this to be over and for her to be happy again. But it may take a long time before that happens.
Chapter Twenty-One
Pearce
I open Lilly's door and wait for to get in the car. "Wear your seatbelt."
"I will, Dad." She rolls her eyes and gives me a slight smile.
She's excited about this weekend. I'm glad Rachel suggested this. It'll be good for Lilly. She needs to get out of her room and do something fun.
I go around the car to where Rachel is standing. I bring her into my arms. "Thank you for doing this."
"You don't have to thank me. She's my daughter. I love doing things with her. I've been looking forward to this all week."
I kiss her. "I love you. Be careful."
She smiles. "We will. I'll call you when we get there."
As they drive off, I start to panic. What am I doing letting them go off together without me? For an entire weekend!
They'll be fine, I tell myself. They go places all the time and nothing happens. So why am I feeling this sense of dread? This heaviness in my chest? This intense urge to go after them and stop them and make them turn around?
I take a long, deep breath. I'm overreacting. Nothing is going to happen. I need to calm down.
Back in the house, I go to my room to change clothes. I think I'll go golfing. It tends to relax me and will keep my mind occupied for at least a few hours.
My phone rings as I walk in the closet.
"Hello, this is Pearce," I say.
"Pearce, it's Dean. I need to talk to you right away." His words are rushed, his voice panicked.
"What is this about?"
"I can't tell you over the phone. They'll—" He stops. "Just tell me you can meet me."
He's talking about them. He was about to say they'll overhear our conversation because they've bugged his phone.
What does he not want them to hear? And what does it have to do with me? Why is he calling me? Is this about Lilly?
"Where and when?" I ask.
"Right now. At..." He gives me the address of a building in Santa Monica. He said one of his bands used to practice there. It has soundproofed walls and no windows.
His attempt at secrecy is pointless. If they want to hear our conversation they will. Once they even went so far as to drug one of our freelancers so they could implant a listening device under his skin, allowing them to hear his conversations. They were convinced he was telling people our secrets. It turns out he wasn't. But they killed him anyway.
"I'll leave right now," I tell him.
But when I get there, I'm not going in that building. Instead, I'll meet him in the parking lot and we'll talk in my Mercedes with its bulletproof glass. And I'll have a loaded gun around my waist.
I'm always prepared for the worst. This could be
some kind of set-up meant to lure me there, then kill me. From the way Dean sounded on the phone, I doubt that's what this is, but I still need to come prepared.
On the way there, I call Rachel.
"Hi, honey," she answers. "Did I forget something?"
"Don't react when I tell you this. I don't want Lilly to suspect anything."
She pauses, then says, "Go ahead."
"Dean just called and asked me to meet with him. I don't know what this is about but I wanted you to know that's where I'll be."
"Where's the meeting?" she asks, keeping her voice light and casual for Lilly's sake.
"In Santa Monica. I'm just going to go there and listen to what he has to say, then leave. I should be back in a few hours."
"Pearce." I hear the worry in her voice.
"I'll be fine. Just continue on with your trip and act normal. I don't want Lilly asking questions. I'll call you later."
Next I phone Garret.
"Hey, what's up," he answers.
"I'm driving to L.A. to meet with Dean. While I'm there, I need you to check in with your mother. Make sure she makes it to the hotel."
"She's at that one by my house?"
"It's about twenty minutes from your house, but yes. It's the one that overlooks the ocean. We all met there for brunch last spring."
"Yeah, I got it. I'll check in with her. So why are you meeting with Dean?"
"I don't know yet. He wouldn't tell me over the phone."
"So it has to do with them."
"That's what I'm assuming."
"Dad, be careful."
"I'll be fine. Be sure to check in with your mother."
"I will. Bye."
An hour later I'm at the parking lot. I see Dean's car but he's not in it. I call his number.
"Are you here?" he asks.
"Yes. Come outside. Get in my car."
"I can't. They'll see us. They'll know we're talking."
"If they're truly interested in whatever it is you're going to say, then I guarantee they already know we're talking."
I hear his sharp inhale. "If they hear us they'll—"
"They won't hear us." I know because I already checked my car. I always check for listening devices. I've done it for so long it's just a habit. "Now get out here. I don't have all day."
A door opens in the back of the building and I see him coming out, looking left and right, checking to make sure we're alone. He continues to scan the parking lot as he makes his way to my car.
When he gets inside, I lock the doors and say, "If they were here, they'd be hidden. You'd never see them."
He turns to me. "How long have you been part of this?"
As he asks, I realize we haven't spoken since I saw him at the meeting. I'm surprised he hasn't tried to call me before now.
"Don't ask questions," I say. "It's rule number one. You should know that by now." My patience is already wearing thin after being around him for less than a minute. I find him very annoying, especially his constant fidgeting. He's doing it right now, his hands twisting around in his lap.
"I can't do this," he says, breathing so hard and fast I wouldn't be surprised if he passed out.
"You need to calm down," I tell him. "If you're going to be in this business, you can't display your emotions. You have to remain calm and appear in control at all times. Now hurry up and tell me why I'm here."
"They made me do it." He leans back in his seat, squeezing his eyes shut. "I didn't want to. I begged them to give me someone else. Or make me do something else. Anything but this."
"What are you talking about?" I bark at him. My anger is rising because it's clear that whatever it is he did has something to do with me. "Dean! Look at me!"
He opens his eyes and glances at me, then quickly turns away. "I can't. I can't look at you and tell you what I've done."
"This was an assignment?" I ask, trying to remain calm enough to get information from him.
"Yes."
"And it involves me," I say.
He's quiet and then, "Your wife."
Panic fills me. I grab his tie and yank him toward me. "What the fuck did you do?"
"Nothing. Nothing yet. I just...I just gave the order. I did it this morning. But then I immediately regretted it. I called to stop it but he wouldn't answer."
Adrenaline courses through me. I'm losing control of my rage, the urge to kill this man growing stronger by the second. I haven't felt this urge for years, but hearing him say he did something to Rachel? I can barely control myself. I want to strangle him. Shoot him. Kill him.
"Tell me what you did!"
He doesn't answer, his body shaking, his hands wringing together.
I pull the gun from my waist and aim it at Dean. "Tell me what you fucking did!"
He sees the gun and rears back, slamming into the door. "Don't shoot! Please!" His hands fumble with the door handle but I've locked him in. He can't get out.
"You sent a man to kill her." I clench my jaw as my eyes bore into him, the gun aimed and ready.
"I didn't want to. I didn't—"
"When?" I scream it at him.
He shakes his head. "In a week. Sometime this week."
"You don't know when? You're lying!"
"I'm not." He holds his hands up in surrender. "I'm not lying. I didn't know how it works. I wasn't sure what to tell him. I sent him the package, then called him and he said he'd take care of it."
"You tell them when and where! You never leave it up to them to decide!"
"I...I didn't know. I promise you I didn't."
With my free hand, I yank my phone out and call Rachel. Her phone goes straight to voicemail. I call Lilly, but hers, too, goes to voicemail. Shit. I remember that area by the hotel having spotty cell service. If I'd remembered that earlier I never would've let them go there. I call Garret, who picks up right away.
"Hey, I couldn't get through to Mom," he says. "Her phone went right to voicemail."
"Yes, I know," I say, keeping my eyes on Dean. "I need you to go to that hotel. Right now. Get in your car and go."
"Why? What's going on?"
"A freelancer has been hired to go after your mother. He could be there right now."
"Holy shit!" I hear him running. "Jade!" He's out of breath as he yells. "Jade, I have to go. I'll explain later."
"Do you have your gun?" I ask as I hear his car starting.
"No. I'll go get it." I hear more noise as he runs back inside.
"It won't be today," Dean says, still shaking. "I...I told him later this week."
"They don't fucking wait." I narrow my eyes at him. "They get their payment when it's done. They want their goddamn money. They don't fucking wait."
"Dad, I got the gun," Garret says. "I'm in the car. I'll try calling her again on my way. I'll call you when I get there."
"I doubt your phone will work. The service there is spotty. Just get to the hotel and find your mother and go to a safe area. Then stay there until I arrive."
"How long before you're there? Where are you calling from?"
"Santa Monica. But I'll be leaving soon. I have to go. Be careful."
"I will."
"And Garret?"
"Yeah?"
"If that man is there...if you see him and you know it's him...kill him."
"What? Dad, I've never—"
"Do it!" I yell. I take a breath before my anger overtakes me and I pull the trigger on Dean. Seeing him sitting there, knowing what he's done...it's taking all my self-control not to shoot him right now.
"I've taught you," I say to Garret. "You know what to do."
"Yeah, got it," he says. I hear the fear and reluctance in his voice but there isn't a choice here. Once a freelancer is given an assignment, he doesn't stop until it's done. So this man, whoever he is, has to die.
I set my phone down and focus on Dean again. "Do you have any fucking idea what you've done? There is a man out there trying to kill my wife. And Lilly is with her. They could BOTH be k
illed!"
Dean nods repeatedly. "I know. And I'm so sorry. I...I didn't want this. I swear I didn't. I didn't know they did these things. I knew they forged documents. Rigged elections. But killing people? I didn't know until it was too late. And he said if I didn't do this, he'd hurt Reed."
"Who told you to do this? Phillip?"
"Yes. He said Rachel betrayed them. That she told their secrets."
"It's a lie!"
"I didn't know. I—"
"He offered you money." I hold the gun up to Dean's chest. "A great deal of money. So much money you couldn't refuse the job."
"I DID refuse. But then he threatened Reed and I couldn't let him harm my son." He swallows. "Why did he want to kill Rachel? I don't understand."
"Phillip is my brother-in-law. Or he was until my divorce. This is all a personal vendetta against me. My ex-wife put him up to it. I don't have time to discuss this. Hurry up and tell me exactly what you told the freelancer."
He does, and as he's talking I get my phone out and call Rachel, once again getting her voicemail. The same for Lilly's phone, and Garret's.
"What is the freelancer's number?"
He hands me the business card that Phillip gave him.
"I'm leaving now," I tell Dean. "And if I arrive at that hotel where my wife and daughter are and find that one or both of them are dead, you will meet the same fate. You can run, you can hide, but I will find you."
He's shaking even more now, his face white as a ghost.
"This conversation never happened. You will not repeat a word of what was said here today to anyone, including Phillip, or Katherine, or anyone else. Do you understand me?"
"Yes," he whispers. He raises his voice back to normal. "I understand."
I hit the button next to me and hear the click as the doors unlock. "Get out!"
Dean quickly opens the door and stumbles out. I take off, and I as look back, I see him keeled over, vomiting. A small part of me feels bad for him but then I consider what he did and any compassion I felt for him fizzles away.
He knew he was getting involved in something bad when he signed up for this, but he still did it. He wanted the money, the executive job, the perks. And I know if he'd been assigned to kill someone else, someone he didn't know, he'd have no problem doing it. He's not the good man he pretends to be. I can sense he has an evil side. Because I have one too.
Lilly and Reed: A Kensington Family Novel Page 21
