One to Hold (14 page)

All night my mind kept running to Derek as I tossed and turned, unable to sleep. One thing Sloan had said troubled me—that even when I was gone he knew every step I took, that I was never out of his reach. When Hal was waiting for me at the airport, I’d mistakenly assumed Sloan had figured out where I went. I thought he’d weaseled the information from my mom or found a stray email on my Macbook. Now I knew the truth. He hadn’t figured it out. Clearly, he was having me watched.

The perfect person who could help me with this was Derek. If Sloan had hired a private investigator to track me, Derek would know exactly how to handle the situation. It was possible he might even know the person or be able to find him or her easily. The only problem was I didn’t want to involve Derek in my disgusting backstory. With everything in me, I didn’t want him to know what Sloan had done. Partly because I was afraid if he knew, he wouldn’t want me anymore. He’d think I was too damaged, or maybe he’d believe Sloan. He’d think I started it and what happened was my fault. I shuddered at the thought.

But if Sloan was having me watched, and I tried to see Derek, it would all come out anyway. I cringed at the prospect. My story was so humiliating and awful. I wouldn’t blame Derek if he wanted to walk, knowing I had a psycho ex-husband lurking around. The pain of these thoughts kept me troubled all night.

By morning, I’d formulated a plan. What if there was a way I could find out who was working with Sloan on my own? What if I could talk to the person, reason with him or her, or even pay the person off somehow? Maybe I could solve my problem without Derek ever having to know…

Bolstered by the idea, I crept to my door and unlocked it. It was ten. Elaine would be two hours into her drive if she’d gotten on the road by eight like she’d said she would. It gave me just enough time to try and investigate. I waited, listening. My end of the giant mansion was completely quiet.

I crept down the hallway to the main staircase, but a voice made me jump straight up. A little squeal leaped from my throat before I could stop it.

“Are you ready for breakfast, ma’am?” Mrs. Widlow.

“N-no,” I said, my heart hammering in my chest. “I mean… Thank you. Is Mr. Reynolds at breakfast?”

Her stern face didn’t even acknowledge my fright. Her grey hair was coiffed in its usual helmet, and today she wore olive green. “Mr. Reynolds has already left for the office.”

“Of course,” I said, pushing my long dark curls back. “It’s ten.”

I could breathe easily. And I’d be gone before he even returned home. Even better, his personal computer would be sitting in his office unguarded.

“I am hungry,” I said quickly. “Would you please see if I could get eggs benedict?” I hoped a complicated breakfast order would buy me some time.

“Of course,” the woman said, turning on her heel.

I watched her walk away a moment before quietly dashing down the main stairs and sneaking to the small room behind them at the bottom.

The door to Sloan’s private office was unlocked, and I hurried around his large desk, opening his notebook computer. The chances of him leaving anything where I might find it were slim to none. He would expect me to search—especially after last night. He would anticipate me going through his things, trying to find out what he was doing. Still, I opened his inbox, quickly scrolling through all the messages, looking for anything, any kind of lead.

Nothing seemed suspicious. It was all travel arrangements, appointments, luncheons, and follow up messages. My heart beat painfully hard. I was running out of time. Mrs. Widlow would be looking for me for breakfast, and this might be my only chance to access this room alone before Elaine arrived. Not only that, I had to make sure I had everything I needed before Elaine did appear. I was never returning to this house again once I left it.

I sat and stared at the computer several minutes trying to think like my soon-to-be ex-husband. He probably had it all on his phone. My shoulders dropped in defeat. But wait! I realized if it was on his smart phone, there ought to be a corresponding email address. And it was possible it might be an online mail provider…

Opening his browser again, I went to the history file and looked for recent mail programs. Hal had picked me up at the airport, so whoever he’d used had been tracking me as recently as that date. I found a link to an Internet mail site and clicked on it, opening a window filled with messages.

My throat closed when I saw the list of names, the numbers, the dates. It was all here—the escort services, the hotel rooms, all over the country… All of it.

For a moment, I only stared stupidly as the tears flooded my eyes. The enormity of his betrayal left me weak and wounded. There were so many.

How had I been so trusting? How had I been such a fool? Years of lies, and I’d never suspected.

With a deep breath, I touched my tears away. This was my past. I didn’t have to carry this with me, and Derek had shown me love was waiting in my future. Taking another cleansing breath, I realized this was also a gift in disguise. It was the insurance I needed, the backup that transformed what happened from being his word against mine into cold, hard facts. Now I had evidence.

I slid the mouse and clicked the printer icon. Twenty verified transactions later, I didn’t want to know any more. It was enough. With these and the other items in my possession, I was sure my case was solid. I had enough to make my soon-to-be ex-husband cooperate. Now all I needed was the name of Sloan’s helper. Whoever it was would have to be moved by the physical evidence of my husband’s abuse and betrayal. And if he wasn’t, well, maybe it didn’t even matter anymore.

I was still scrolling when my eyes landed on the name, and I felt all the blood drain from my face. My hand slid from the mouse, taking my strength with it. I couldn’t breathe.

There it was, the name of the person tracking me for my husband,
[email protected]

Chapter 14 – Off the Record

My vibrating phone roused me. I’d sat with my forehead on Sloan’s desk for minutes that felt like hours. In one line of text, all the life had gone from my body. My warm light was snuffed out.

I should be crying. The little flicker of hope I’d held so dearly all these days had been cruelly extinguished, and I was left shivering in the cold darkness alone. My entire body braced for the breakdown, but it never came. Only quiet sadness held me unable to move.

The vibrating started again, and finally I lifted my hand to check it. Elaine’s face and number blinked at me, but I only stared at her. I couldn’t seem to care. I wanted to slide under the desk and stay there forever. Still, my friend persisted.

And even with all the hope sucked out of my life, I knew if she were here, she’d say all the right things. I had to get up. I had to get out of this place and go to the new life I’d been working so hard to establish. Once I was there, I could break down, but not while I was still in this place of danger.

Before I left, however, something in me wanted this last bit of evidence, this last piece of betrayal. I moved the mouse over the print icon and clicked, waiting as the email printed out, not even reading it.

I left Sloan’s office quieter and far slower than when I’d entered. I walked down the passage and climbed the stairs to my room before I pressed the button to call my best friend back.

“Melissa!” Elaine’s voice was frantic when she answered. “I’ve been so worried. I couldn’t even sleep.”

“Where are you?” I managed to ask through the thickness in my throat.

“I’m minutes away. Are you ready?”

Relief washed over me in a wave so powerful, I had to sit on my bed. “Yes, I’m ready. I’m ready now.” I felt the breakdown threatening, but I had to be strong. “Oh, Elaine. Thank you so much.”

“Oh, honey,” she cried. “I’d be there even faster if I could.”

I ended the call and pulled myself up by force of will. I had to collect the last of my things. I had to make sure I wasn’t leaving behind anything I couldn’t live without. I was never looking back.

Opening my closet, I dug through the remaining shoeboxes and old photo albums. The good news was most everything I cared about was in Wilmington now, and as depressing as it sounded, there was very little I wanted to keep from these days in Baltimore. I was just zipping up the large suitcase when I heard the light knock on my door. Looking up, I saw Sloan standing there, a severe line between his light-brown eyebrows.

“What’s going on?” he demanded.

I jumped back from the suitcase as if electrocuted. “Why are you here? You’re supposed to be at your office.”

“Gladys said you were acting strangely, and I should come home.”

“Mrs. Widlow,” I breathed. As if a switch inside me was flipped, the whole idea that every single person in this house watched me like a rebellious teenager and reported back to Sloan set me off.

The depression I’d been feeling over Derek turned into rage, and I jerked the suitcase off my bed. “There’s nothing strange going on,” I said, stalking over to my dresser and jerking open the small top drawer. I grasped the pepper spray canister, aiming it straight at his face. “I’m leaving this place. And if you try to stop me, I’ll spray you.”

Sloan’s eyebrow cocked, and he held both hands up as if I’d just pulled a gun. “By all means, leave,” he breathed a short laugh. It only fueled my rage.

“Don’t test me, Sloan. There’s nothing I’d love more than to burn your eyes out.”

At that he dropped his hands and walked out. “Have a safe drive,” he called over his shoulder.

Just then, Elaine jogged up the main stairway. When she and Sloan met each other, they both stopped. For a moment, I wasn’t sure what might happen. My best friend looked at my almost ex-husband as if he were Osama bin Laden, and he looked at her as if she were a witch.

I jerked up the handle on my suitcase and stalked down the hall, rolling it behind me. “I’m here, Elaine!” I called. “Don’t bother with him. It’s time to go.”

Her brow softened, and she turned from Sloan to me. “Let’s go,” she repeated.

On my way out, my eyes landed on a stack of envelopes sitting on the small table by the front door. The mail! I paused only briefly to spread them out, and my breath caught when I saw it—Aunt Bea’s check! It came! I nearly burst into tears at the sight of it. The envelope restored the tiniest bit of hope I needed. I was going to survive this. I was going to be okay. I might be alone, but I was going to make it through.

I snatched it up and walked out the door not looking back. I would never look back.

We lifted my huge suitcase into Elaine’s car and jumped inside. I watched as she guided us out of the long driveway away from the Reynolds mansion, but when we reached the main road, I put my hand on her arm.

“Wait before we get going.” My chest ached with what I was about to ask my best friend, but I didn’t have a choice. I had to have closure. “There’s something I need to do first. Will you help me?”

Her brows drew together, but she waited. “Of course, what is it?”

I pulled out the three pages that included Derek’s email and Sloan’s response. “I printed this off Sloan’s computer. Would you read it to me?”

Elaine was still frowning, but she took the sheets from me. “To [email protected]...” Instantly she lowered the pages and looked at me. “Is this… Derek?”

“Please just read it,” I said, every muscle in my body clenched.

“Derek, I hope you remember your old mentor Sloan.” She stopped again, taking a breath and staring at me, brows clutched.

“Keep going,” I whispered.

“I found you online, and I hope you might be willing to do a favor for an old friend. Of course, I’ll pay you well.” Again she stopped. “Oh, Mel. I don’t think I can—”

“Please, Elaine.” My voice was sharp now. “Just read the damn email.”

She took a deep breath and continued. “I’m afraid my wife is having an affair, and I need someone I can trust to verify this for me. Attached is her photograph and information. She is somewhere this week. She wouldn’t tell me where. I think it might be with him.”

A knot tightened in my throat, and again Elaine paused. But instead of speaking, she took another deep breath and continued. “As you can imagine, this is very sensitive and quite humiliating. I hope we can keep this off the record.”

My head dropped at the phrase. It was the same thing he’d said to me after Patrick had revealed the location of their offices.
Off the record.

“Your friend, Sloan Reynolds,” she finished. Then she lowered the pages to her lap.

His friend.
I couldn’t speak. I had gone numb and nothing felt like it made sense anymore.

“He was spying on you?” Her voice cracked high with disbelief. “Was Patrick in on it, too?”

I shrugged, blinking slowly. Then I forced the words. “He responded. I printed out the whole exchange.”

She lifted the pages again and folded the first one back. “Dear Sloan,” then she glanced at me, but I was still sitting frozen, unable to feel. “I’m sorry to hear of your marital difficulties. I did observe your wife this week. She was with another female at the Cactus Flower Spa in Scottsdale, Arizona. But I have to confess, I did not observe her with any male guests. As far as I could tell, she was alone the entire week. Sorry not to be more help. No payment needed. Cordially, Derek.”