Soul Mate (The Mating Series) (26 page)

“No,” I squeaked.

Jimmy wiped at his tears. “Damn it!” He stormed off. I flinched as the office door banged shut.

“
Well,
that could’ve gone better,” Cho said.
Smart ass!
I jumped up follow Jimmy, but Cho caught my wrist. “Give him some time.”

“
I have to apologize.” I pulled at his grip.

“Let him cool off.” Cho
pulled me to him. “He’s alright. I piss him off all the time. This is how he deals with it.  He blows up, storms off, and then he’s fine.” 

“Park Min really disowned him?” I asked.

“Yeah, she said his demon have finally taken over.” Cho inhaled. “She thinks his abilities opened a door to demons and they’ve possessed him or some crap like that. She was hell bent on coming back to the condo to cleanse it, and Jimmy, of evil spirits. When denied access, she disowned Jimmy” He laughed. “We won’t call that superstitious old bat as a character witness”

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

“When did I have a chance? You bunnies have been inseparable.”

“Bunnies?” I asked.

“Only bunnies do it as much as you did yesterday.” Cho made a disgusted face. “Sex relieved his stress for a while, but it was only a matter of time before he’d blow up like that.”

Cho didn’t seem fazed, but the
magnitude of Jimmy’s outburst stunned me. He held in so much. “What did he mean I’m in danger?”

“Come on, Cassie, we all know
you’re connected to these murders. Even that cop knows, but won’t say it.”

“What should I do?” I asked.

Cho wrapped his arms around me. “Stay safe Kiddo.”

“How do I do that?”

“Be on house arrest too.”

“I can’t
,” I said. “I have to go to Mary’s funeral tomorrow and then go before the board.”

“You know they’
re going to fire you, so why go?” Cho asked.

“I can’t put off the inevitable
.”

“I’d put if off if I were you
. I wouldn’t leave this building.”
We may not have a choice.

“How long
do you think Jimmy can afford his lifestyle?” I asked.

“When Jimmy was in
Chicago, we went over his finances. Worst case scenario, a couple of months. We counted on our parents help, but I played that card too soon.”

“How’
s he going to survive?”

“
I’ll help as much as I can, but I really don’t know. I didn’t count on our mother disowning him, or an additional three hundred a month. Even if he’s exonerated quickly, and doesn’t go to trial, I don’t foresee his business picking up,” Cho said. “No matter what, Jimmy will have to downsize his life. I’m working on liquidating assets, and selling his office space now.”

Cho left to deposit Mr. and Mrs. Kim at the airport.
Their departure relieved my mind. The thought of Park Min showing up with holy water and a priest worried me. I went to the office and listened at the door. I heard keys clicking on a computer and music in the back ground. I decided to leave Jimmy alone.

I flopped on the guest room bed
. My head pounded. The rush of information burdened me. If I spoke to Jimmy, I’d say things I’d be sorry for. He angered me. I had a right to know everything. I didn’t want to fight, but I felt exploited. Jimmy used me as a pleasant distraction from his problems. I questioned our relationship. I needed the solitude to weigh my thoughts before I approached him.

I pondered my dilemma until
my mind went numb. I opened my laptop. Surfing the net sidetracked my mind. When I clicked my e-mail, I saw one new message. I had few friends; Jimmy was the only person who e-mailed me. It annoyed him that I refused to text. I couldn’t afford the service. Jimmy offered to pay for it, but I refused.

The new message was spam. Another message caught my attention. It
came from Mary Lazarus, dated Saturday at nine in the morning. I never read it, but it was marked as read.  I opened it. It read:

From: Mary Lazarus

To: Cassandra Williams

Subject: Come by Mary House
.

Cassie,

I’m back in town. I need to see you. I have something to talk to you about, but I can’t discuss it over the phone. With all that’s going on, I don’t trust the phone. Can you come by Mary House this afternoon? I’ll be stopping in around 2:00 p.m. I’ll send you some documents to review prior to our meeting. See you soon.

Mary

The message surprised me. Depressed over Jimmy, I didn’t check my e-mails
. I had no reason to check. Someone read the message and it disturbed me. Mary mentioned sending documents, but I found none. I ran a search of my computer. It came back with nothing. I checked the recycle bin, nothing there either. Mary either didn’t send the documents, or the person who rummaged through my computer found them and erased them.

I
left my apartment at six that night. The message was read, and possibly deleted, after I left my house. The message had to be connected to Mary’s murder. Mary wanted to tell me something confidential and too important to give over the phone. Mary was a leftover hippy. She ranted about “the man” and government conspiracy theories. She knew something and it got her killed.

Jimmy’s visi
on made sense. He thought I’d be at Mary House when Mary died. Jimmy, unknowingly, may have saved my life. If he hadn’t gone to Chicago, I wouldn’t have been too depressed to check my e-mails. I would have been with Mary when the killer struck.

I needed to tell someone about the discovery. I debated whether to tell Cho and Jimmy or Ben.
I mistrusted Ben and the police. Someone leaked information about Jimmy and if it not Ben or his partner Skinner, someone else. I decided to tell Jimmy and Cho first. 

I racked my brain tryin
g to figure out what Mary knew, when I heard Cho return. “I’ve got food,” he called. I met him in the living room. “Where’s Jimmy?”

“Still in his office
,” I said.

“Go get him. I have his favorite
, Thai.” Cho said, holding up the food.
My favorite too!

I knocked softly on the office door. Jimmy didn’t answer.
He’s still brooding
. I barged in without invitation. He sat at the computer typing. I came up behind and wrapped my arms around his neck. I planted a kiss on his head. I buried my face in his hair and inhaled. Jimmy smelled like Irish Spring. I couldn’t stay angry. “Are you still mad at me?” I asked

“I was never mad at you
,” he said, focusing on the screen.

“You could have fooled me.”

“I’m not mad at you, really.”

I pulled at him coaxing.
“Cho brought Thai home.”

He held up a hand.
“Give me a minute.”

“What are you doing?”

“Damage control,” he said. “I’m trying to smooth things over with my clients. I had a ton of e-mails.”

“Are they upset?”

“Some are, but most don’t believe the accusations.” Jimmy said, typing.

“That’s good right?”

“I hope so.”

“Let’s eat
,” I said.

Jimmy finished his e-mail and hit “send”. He swiveled in the chair to face me.
He pulled me close to him. “I’m sorry, I yelled at you,” he said.

“You needed to vent.”  I said. “I shouldn’t have forced it.”

“I feel better,” Jimmy said.

“A good girl cry always helps
,” I said.

Jimmy made a face.
“I’m not a girl.”

“Even guys need a girl cry
once in a while.”

“I didn’t mean to dump it on you like that.”

“That’s what happens when you hold it all in.”

“I want to be strong for you
,” Jimmy said.

“You don’t have to
,” I said. “We’re a team. I need to know how you feel. I can’t support you, if I don’t know what’s going on.”

“I love you
,” Jimmy said. “You’re the best person I’ve ever met.”

“Let’s eat and then I need to talk to you and Cho about something
,” I said.

“
I’m not hungry,” Jimmy said.

“You need to eat.” I insisted. “You need to keep up your strength.”

“I’m strong,” he said. He demonstrated his strength by picking me up and carrying me too the living room.

Cho returned the coffee table to its right side. He sat on the couch dishing food from various containers. I laughed as Jimmy dropped me beside Cho. “Hey!” Cho
cried, trying hold on to his plate. “I see you’ve kissed and made up.” He flipped on the TV.

“Really, Cho, do you sit and eat in front of the TV at your house?” Jimmy
asked.

“Yeah, so.” Cho mumbled through a mouthful.

“It’s a bad habit. No wonder you have an ulcer.” Jimmy lectured.

“What else am I supposed to do?” Cho asked. “You have a table with only two seats.”

“I guess you could go home.” Jimmy teased.

“Lay off! I had to drive to the
Kims
to the airport. My nerves are shot,” Cho said. “I didn’t know what a terrible driver I was, until Mom pointed it out… a
hundred
times.”

“What does she expect? She taught you how to drive
,” Jimmy said.

“Some of us didn’t get
drivers ed classes, like little Gangaji.” Cho teased. Jimmy picked a noodle from Cho’s plate and flicked it at him.

“Boys!” I scolded. “Not in the living room.” They began
throwing noodles at me.

CHAPTER 11

“You’re not leaving
,” Jimmy said. He blocked the hallway with his arms and legs pressed against each wall. Clad only in boxer shorts and his ankle strap, he reminded me of Da Vinci’s Vitruvian Man.

“Don’t make me crawl through your legs in a dress
,” I said.

“I can’t let you go alone
,” Jimmy said.

“Nothing’
s going to happen.”

“What if
he’s
there?” he asked. “I should be with you.”

“
You can’t keep me here and you can’t go with me.”

“Damn it!” He pounded the wall in frustration. “I hate this monitor.”

“I’ll be alright.” I placed my hand on his chest to calm him. After the blow up on Tuesday, I didn’t want to fight anymore. “I’ll go to the funeral, then the board meeting, and come right back.” I shrugged. “Four hours max.”

“Let her go
,” Cho said over Jimmy’s shoulder. “She promised to check in.” 

“Why can’t you escort her?” Jimmy asked.

“We discussed this last night,” Cho said. He forced Jimmy’s arms down to his sides. “Cassie is our only hope of getting information.  The cop won’t talk with me around.”

After I showed them the e-mail, Cho and I came up with a plan. I was on a reconnaissance mission
for as much information from Ben as possible, without showing our hand. Ben may attend the funeral, but he wouldn’t talk if Cho accompanied me. Our best bet was for me to go alone.

“T
oo dangerous.” Jimmy balked. He opposed the entire plan. “I won’t let her go alone.”

Cho and I gave up convincing Jimmy.  Jimmy
turned moody and reserved for the remainder of the evening. He spent several hours on his computer, before going to bed without telling us. I ended up sleeping in the guest room angry and alone.

I got up before Jimmy. I hoped to be gone before he
knew, but he caught me leaving. The service started at one o’clock, but I planned to go by my apartment and pick up my mail and check in with my Mom. Jimmy foresaw danger, but I couldn’t ignore my life.