Reluctant Witness (47 page)

My apprehension began to grow as I stood
there in my pajamas. Had the hacker turned on my computer again,
this time in the middle of the night? Jeff and the others wanted
the bad guy to believe he was getting away with his hacking. For
the sake of another few hours, I decided I’d be able to live with
the potential snooping, but from now on, I’d make sure to point the
laptop away from the bed, just in case the camera was activated
remotely. The last thing I wanted was a stalker watching me sleep.
That was just too creepy.

Cooper woke me up just after seven, wanting
to go out. I harnessed him, pausing to tell Terry about the
nighttime disturbance. He didn’t seem particularly worried.

“Don’t worry about it, kid. It’s no big deal.
Let it roll off your back.”

“Okay. I’ll be back in a couple of minutes.
I’m just going to take the dog out.”

“Hold on a second. I want to go to the car to
grab something. Why don’t you count to sixty and follow me
out?”

Two minutes later, Terry and I were riding
the elevator down to the ground floor. He left me to go to the
parking lot. Cooper and I wandered along the path, taking our time.
After ten minutes, I was ready to go back up, but I noticed Terry
was having a very animated phone conversation as he leaned against
his car. Shrugging, I scooped up the dog and we rode the elevator
to the top floor.

Nancy was fixing herself a cup of coffee in
the kitchen and she offered me one.

“Thanks.” I took the mug from her, adding
some cream and sweetener.

“How did you sleep?” she wanted to know.
“Tough night?”

“You might say that.” I explained my
experience with the laptop.

“Don’t let that freak you out, kid. As
horrible as it is, don’t forget we’ve got an IT guy tracking every
effort to hack into your computer. We know what that creep is
looking at and doing when it comes to you. So, you ready for your
big performance?”

“Not really.”

“If it helps, you look troubled. That should
really help you to sell it.”

“Great,” I nodded.

Nancy and Terry toasted frozen waffles and
browned turkey sausage, piling their plates high. They sat at the
dining room table and washed their meal down with large glasses of
orange juice. My stomach was doing flip-flops. I was too nervous to
eat more than just an English muffin and a bowl of fruit salad.

“Bad case of stage fright,” Nancy decided.
“Probably just as well you don’t eat a lot, especially if you’re
going to toss your cookies.”

“And on that cheery note,” her husband
replied, “time to get this show on the road.”

Chapter Forty
Two

“Let’s go over this one more time,” said
Terry a few moments later, prepping me for the staged argument.
“Tell me again what you’re going to do, and this time put some
emotion in your response. The more you rehearse your speech,
Marigold, the easier it will come to you.”

We went did it again and again, with Terry
playing Jeff’s role. He changed his words each time, but kept to
the subject matter, forcing me to automatically react to his words.
He said it helped to keep the conversation sounding natural if we
improvised each time.

“I don’t want you memorizing words. I need
your mind focused on the context of the conversation, rather than
scripted words.”

By the time Jeff and Rocky knocked on the
door just after ten, my butterflies had subsided. Nancy suggested I
put Cooper in the crate during the performance, just to keep him
out of harm’s way. I tossed a couple of doggie treats into the
plastic dish attached to the wire side of the crate.

“I’ll be back,” I promised, kissing him
before I tucked him inside. “You be a good boy, Coop.”

It was nice to know the little dog would be
with me in the lonely weeks to come. That made it easier to do what
I was about to do. I paused a moment, watching him happily munch on
the treats, before I rejoined the others in the living room.

Tom called to say he was monitoring the
scene. Not only did he have a lot of digital equipment ready to
record the activities, he had strong telescope that gave him a
bird’s eye view of our building. He would provide any backup that
might be necessary, should things go bad.

Rocky headed out, to monitor the action from
his SUV in the parking lot. He was hoping to catch the bad guy
meeting with his contact.

As the four of us waited for Tom and Rocky to
move into position, we filled the minutes with last minute
chatter.

“Marigold,” Jeff said, his tone serious, as
he took my hand in his. “I just want you to remember that whatever
rotten things I say to you in the next ten minutes, I don’t mean a
word.”

“You plan to be that nasty?” I smiled,
feeling his fingers wrap around mine. I loved the touch of his hand
on mine. It was a delicious sensation.

“I have to, babe.” His voice was earnest, his
eyes almost sorrowful. As I returned his gaze, I realized he was
struggling with this.

“It will be okay, Jeff. When you’re yelling
at me, I won’t be thinking about what a mean bastard you are. I’ll
be thinking about how much I’m going to miss you when you’re not
here.”

“Really?” His shoulders dropped as some of
the tension flowed out of them. “You mean that?”

“Of course I do. I’m going to miss you so
much....” I started to get choked up, wanting to tell him what was
in my heart, but a hand gave me a shove towards the door.

“Perfect,” Terry said, ushering me out of the
condo. “Go with those feelings. Feel free to cry, Marigold. Just
get the hell out of here now, before you lose your courage!”

He put his hand on the door lever and pushed
it down. I took a deep breath as I heard the latch release. When
the door opened, I stepped out into the corridor. That was the
moment that it hit me -- Jeff was leaving me. What if I never saw
him again? Suddenly, I didn’t need to act. I realized I was
absolutely terrified.

“I hope you understand why I’ve made this
decision, Marigold,” he said sternly, coming up behind me. “You and
I are just two different creatures. It would never work.”

“But....” I started to protest, but one look
at his face reminded me of all I was about to lose. I burst into
tears, inconsolable. “I want....”

“You want! That’s the problem!” His voice got
louder as he worked himself up into a rage. “You think I’m made of
money! I’m the banker! I’m not about to fork over another penny to
you. I’d have to be out of my bloody mind!”

“My watch!” That was all I managed to say
before another wave of tears bowled me over.

“I’ll get it back to you. Vince said he found
it on the RV when he was about to return it to the rental
agency.”

“When?” I sobbed, wiping at my wet
cheeks.

“I’ll send it to you. You’ll have it within a
day or two.” He turned, intending to head back to his condo, and I
felt a sharp pain in my chest. Was it panic or just angst over
losing the one person in my life who meant the most to me? I
couldn’t let him go without seeing his face just one more time.

“Jeff?” I cried. For a second, he paused,
shoulders straight, head held high, but he didn’t turn around.
“Please, can’t we....”

“No.” That was the last word he spoke to me
and it cut me like a knife. I could tell myself over and over again
that he was just playing a role, but it hurt that when I needed him
most, he didn’t turn back to me. Frustrated, I went back into the
penthouse, slamming the door.

“How did it....” Terry began to question me,
but Nancy stopped him.

“Let her go and have a good cry,” she told
her husband. “She needs to get it out of her system, so she can go
on with what she has to do.”

I said nothing. Instead, I walked through the
living room and out to the balcony, where I flopped down on a
chaise lounge and gave up any pretense of holding my emotions in
check. It took me ten minutes to stop sobbing. When the last tear
slipped down my cheek, I wiped it away, blew my nose, and went back
into the living room.

“How are you doing?” Terry wanted to know. I
shrugged.

“I guess I’ll live.”

“That’s good, because it’s show time. Are we
all ready?”

“I am,” Nancy agreed. She turned to me. “How
about you, kid?”

“I’m as ready as I’ll ever be.”

The three of us made our way to the foyer.
Terry stepped outside to make the call to Rocky, knowing full well
the man downstairs would be listening. Nancy made sure the door was
slightly ajar, so she and I could listen. Terry paced up and down
the corridor as he discussed the fact that Jeff wanted to cut me
off, pleading my case and suggesting that, at the very least, I
needed time to start my new party planning business. He wrangled
with Rocky over the details, pointing out that the condo was paid
for through the end of the next month. By the time they finished, I
was almost convinced that I really was about to be cut loose.

Terry, of course, was as pleased as punch and
let us know it the second he stepped back into the foyer. “Now
that’s how it’s done!”

“I’ll be sure to nominate you for a Tony
award,” his wife told him.

An hour later, Jeff and Rocky departed for
Atlanta, never bothering to stop in and say goodbye. When he got
off the phone with Rocky, Terry tipped me off that if I hurried, I
might catch one last glimpse of Jeff over the railing, so I rushed
outside in time to see the back of the SUV as it drove away. It was
no surprise to my bodyguards that I burst into tears. I was
genuinely frustrated, even angry, that Terry waited so long to tell
me. One glance at him told me it had been orchestrated to create
that reaction from me. I understood his strategy, but I didn’t like
it.

Nancy took the little dog and me for a long
ride; it was her attempt at consoling me. I cried most of the time.
When we returned to Cinnamon Beach, I was red-eyed and miserable.
Even a late afternoon trip to the beach didn’t cheer me up. I sat
on my beach chair with the dog, moping.

Two days later, I was
sitting in the shade out by the adult pool, reading
A Whisper of Ginger
.
Terry, back from the local FedEx office triumphant, hailed me as he
sauntered into the pool enclosure. In his right hand, he carried a
manila envelope.

“Look what’s here,” he announced. He dropped
the package into my waiting hands. With fingers trembling, I tore
open the flap and unwrapped the bubble packaging. The watch looked
as I had remembered it, still a shiny, sparkly piece of bling, with
its diamond-crusted mother-of-pearl face.

Terry sat down beside me. He seemed to sense
my hesitation. “Why don’t you put it on?”

Mixed emotions took over as I held it in my
hands for the first time in weeks. It was a reminder of the
relationship with Jared, something I desperately wanted to forget.
But it was also a symbol of my future. This was what my tormentor
needed. He was waiting for this, so he could make his next move on
me, and my protectors were ready to stop him. Good or bad, my life
was about to change. Taking a deep breath to steady my nerves, I
slid the band over my wrist.

“Why don’t we go out for lunch today?” Terry
suggested casually. “Come upstairs in twenty minutes.”

“I can come with you now,” I replied,
slipping my bookmark into place.

“No, no. Twenty minutes will be fine. I
wanted to have a private word with Nancy. I hope you don’t mind,”
he apologized. “We were having a disagreement this morning and I
said something that I shouldn’t have. I just want to smooth things
over with her.”

“Sure,” I smiled. “Twenty minutes.”

I tried to pick up the story where I left
off; Nora was vacationing with Jean-Claude in Oahu, in a borrowed
condo on Waikiki Beach just after their wedding. I should have been
enthralled in the honeymoon, but it was difficult to concentrate.
Why did Terry need me to stay here for twenty minutes? I didn’t
really believe he had an argument with Nancy. Something else was
going on. Was I being observed? Had Terry brought me the watch at
the pool so my stalker could see the package in my possession?

I glanced down and noted the time. I had
fifteen minutes to kill and a mind that was anticipating the worst.
What if we missed something? Would the contract killer approach me
at the pool and shoot me at point blank range? No, I reminded
myself. My unofficial witness protection program was better than
that, I insisted adamantly to my doubtful self. Terry would have
hung around. He would never leave me that vulnerable. Or would
he?

I skimmed through another two chapters,
keeping my eyes on the pages of the paperback, before closing the
book and tucking it into my tote bag, along with my towel. Slipping
on my sunglasses, I emerged from the shady oasis. It took a moment
for my eyes to adjust to the bright Florida sunshine. I followed
the path from the oceanfront adult pool back to our building. As I
stepped into the vestibule, an older man joined me. He was huffing
and puffing, sweating profusely. For a moment, I thought he might
be having a heart attack.

“Sorry,” he moaned, obviously in pain. “It
must have been something I ate. I’m not feeling well.”

“Do you want to sit down?”

“No, no. I just want to get back to my place
and lie down. My wife’s a nurse.”

The elevator door slid open and I stepped
aside to let him go first. He pushed the button for the second
floor before slumping against the wall.

“Oh dear, I don’t...think...I’m going to make
it,” he told me weakly. “Can you...can you help me?”

He leaned heavily on me as we stepped out
onto the second floor corridor. With a wave of his hand, he pointed
to his front door. “It’s that one.”

I leaned forward and rapped on it anxiously,
even as I held up the sagging figure. The door opened seconds
later. I expected to see a middle-aged woman. I expected the
stricken man’s wife to rush out and do something, anything. Call
911. Ask for an ambulance. Lay the patient down and make him
comfortable. Give him medicine. But there was no wife standing
there. Instead, I got the shock of my life.