by Charley Lynn
“Thank you, sir. I’m anxious to see her, too.”
“Let’s get some business done first, then I’ll get her.” Mike nodded.
The detectives gave an overview about Smith’s history, starting with their suspicions that he had, at least three times, terrorized and abused young girls who worked for JB Modeling. They outlined his long-standing stalking and terrorizing of Rosemary and their belief that there were pictures stored in the cloud that would provide evidence of his activities. They said it was possible that he would be arrested on a murder charge in the death of Peter Noah in Des Moines, but they intended to go forward and pursue their own charges. Lastly, they informed Judge Taylor that it appeared Smith was planning to run, and if allowed to leave Chicago, could soon be out of the country.
“We can’t have that. I’ll sign a warrant based on his cyber activities, the assault today, and his comments to Rosemary via text this week.” The judge picked up his phone and made the arrangements for a court order to be faxed immediately to his home for his signature. When he got off the phone, he looked at the detectives again. “I suspect you know that Rosemary has been getting texts for the past two hours. Smith is demanding to know where she is and he’s told her to pack her bags because he plans to pick her up. None of us in this house have any intention of letting that happen.”
“He’s decompensating, Your Honor. We’d like to pick him up before he gets this far.”
“That would be my preference. I don’t want him anywhere near my home, my family or Rosemary. I’ll get my daughter-in-law.” The judge looked over at Mike. “And Rosemary.”
When Rosemary walked in the door, she walked straight into his arms. “I’m sorry,” she whispered.
He put his cheek against hers. “It’s okay. It’s all okay,” he whispered. Rosemary nodded, her eyes tightly closed. Mike introduced her to Trey and the detectives.
When Rosemary Taylor came in, she smiled at Mike. “We’ll talk later,” she promised. She sat down while the detectives briefed her. Afterwards, she nodded. “We felt it was safer here for Rosemary. Arch had a friend decontaminate her laptop and we left her truck at the apartment with the GPS attached. We left her phone in the apartment with one of the security staff monitoring it. When Smith texted her, he would relay the information to Rosemary and she would send her responses back. Archie’s people have been watching Smith.” She smiled at Mike. “They saw you the day you pretended to be homeless; they also followed you while you were following Tashina.”
“I don’t think I have any potential for a career in undercover work,” Mike said ruefully. The detectives chuckled.
“You’re pretty hard to miss at your size. But Tashina didn’t notice you, so that’s something.”
“Did she even look up from her phone?” Tashina’s dad asked; when Mike shook his head, Detective Brown muttered something about fifteen-year old girls with phones being menaces to themselves and their fathers.
The judge left the room. When he returned, he had the court order in hand. “I just checked with our people. They know where Smith is right now.”
Chapter 46
The detectives prepared to leave and so did Trey. “Mike, do you want to go back with me? Or do you want to stay here?”
Mike and Rosemary spoke at the same time: “Stay here.” Trey grinned.
“We have uniforms on the way to pick him up. We’ll let you know when he’s in custody.” Trayvon Smith stepped out.
“Call me later. We’ll do a debriefing tomorrow.” Trey said.
After the men had left, Rosemary took Mike by the hand. “We’re going out to the sunroom. Do you want me to take Quince out, too?” she asked Rosemary Taylor.
“No, honey. Go snuggle with your hunky boyfriend. Quince is fine where he is.”
“Who is Quince?” Mike asked while they walked.
“Archibald Quincy Taylor, V. Nicknamed Quince. He’s eleven months old, and playing with him has kept me from losing my mind over the past several days.”
“Can I meet him later? After some serious snuggling with my beautiful girlfriend?”
Rosemary laughed. “Sure. After some serious snuggling for us.”
Mike left a message for his mom that he was with Rosemary before they called Margie and John. Mike also texted Jason to let him know that he was with Rosemary.
Rosemary Taylor invited Mike to stay overnight. “There’s plenty of room and my mother-in-law asked me to invite you.”
“Thanks. I’ll stay.” Mike held Rosemary’s hand tightly.
“My husband Arch is working out in the guest house; he’ll be on a conference call until after two o’clock, but he’ll come in to meet you after the call. I don’t have any meetings scheduled for the rest of the day, so when Arch has time, the four of us need to sit down and talk.”
Arch Taylor stopped in the sunroom and introduced himself. “I’m going to find something to eat. Why don’t we meet in the kitchen in twenty minutes?” Rosemary nodded.
When they found Rosemary and Arch in the kitchen, Arch was eating a sandwich. Mike wasn’t sure what the discussion was going to be about, but his Rosemary seemed a little nervous. Rosemary Taylor opened a file folder in front of her.
“Rosemary, I had SF Bay Modeling fax me a copy of the contract that Howard Smith negotiated with them.” Rosemary Taylor held up her hand when Rosemary started to say something. “We could argue that you were under duress, but it would no doubt mean an expensive, protracted legal battle. The chances are good that you wouldn’t win and then you’d be liable for damages and all the legal fees. On top of that, you would have trouble getting hired by anybody else.”
Arch spoke up. “Rosemary called the agency this morning after she reviewed the contract. They adamantly refuse to voluntarily let you out of the contract; they’ll sue you for…millions. They probably wouldn’t get millions, but you could lose all of your nest egg, plus owe money that it would take years to pay off. Also, Smith negotiated three times your normal fees, plus first-class travel and accommodations. He was planning to take fifty percent off the top. Rosemary has successfully amended the contract, ensuring that he gets nothing.”
Rosemary Taylor continued. “There are four jobs already contracted between now and the end of February. Hong Kong, Australia, Greece and the Maldives. Negotiations are ongoing for at least six more jobs next spring and summer. Rosemary, if you do those ten jobs between now and August, you’ll gross two million dollars.”
Rosemary gasped. “Two million dollars? Are you serious?”
“There’s more.” Archie interjected. “After Rosemary talked to the legal department, she talked to the CEO of the agency. They agreed to pay so much because Smith was close to landing huge, exclusive deals for you with four companies.”
“I don’t know all the details yet, but one is for dance wear for tall and large sizes for a small company that plans to expand worldwide early next year. Another is for sports accessories with a well-known vendor who is launching a new product line targeting women in athletics for the first time. Another contract is for a new line of dance shoes for a company that is one of the largest in the world. The last one is for a skin care line that is an off-shoot of a hugely successful skin-care company. They have formulated a skin care line for female athletes and they want a young unknown athletic woman as the face of their line. For those contracts I’ve just listed, there is a potential for you to make twenty million dollars over the next three years.” Rosemary was speechless.
“I wanted to make sure you knew what you would be giving up.” Rosemary Taylor smiled. “You would have enough money after graduation to open a chain of dance studios if that’s what you want. I could negotiate terms that won’t interfere greatly with classes. But for right now, let’s focus on the four jobs over the next ten weeks. I think you should follow through with those. You can always decide not to agree to anything else if you wish; none of those other contracts are signed yet.”
Mike shifted his weight in the cha
ir, struggling to keep his face neutral. He didn’t want to be discouraging, but he didn’t want Rosemary to go to Hong Kong alone. Arch was watching Mike. “Mike, I didn’t know Rosemary when we were eighteen, but if I had, I wouldn’t have wanted her to go to Hong Kong alone.”
“I don’t ever want to stand in her way, but the thought of Rosemary going to Hong Kong alone scares me.”
Arch leaned forward. “I know Rosemary is going to graduate from high school early. Do you have enough credits to graduate this month?”
“Yeah, I do. Other than physical education, all my classes are college-level. I’m registered for classes through DMACC and an individualized honors-level math class at Central. I purposely planned it that way so I’d have the option of taking the minimum number of credits during football season.”
“Could you take those classes online?” Arch asked.
“Yeah—the college courses, anyway. The math class was just for fun.”
Mike grinned when Rosemary groaned. “Only you would take a math class just for fun.”
“I might be able to make arrangements for that, too. I’ll email the instructor.” He looked back at Arch. “I may have to do spring football or summer camp, depending on where I end up.”
“But…you could at least do the first four trips—in the next ten weeks?” Rosemary Taylor asked. “Smith negotiated two plane tickets and two rooms for each of those trips.”
“The first trip is the day after tomorrow,” Mike stated the obvious.
“Do you have a passport?” Rosemary Taylor asked Mike.
“Yeah, I do. My grandpa takes me to Canada to fish in the summer. Caleb told me Rosemary had asked her mom to send hers, so I brought mine in case I had to follow her.” He looked at Rosemary again. “What do you want to do? Do you want to do these jobs?”
Rosemary’s phone swooshed. She paled, but picked it up. “It’s him.” She read the texts aloud as they came through and discussed her responses before she typed them.
Smith: I’m picking you up at five. I suspect you’re in Winnetka, at the Taylor compound, is that right?
Rosemary: Armand, I’m not going with you.
Smith: That’s not a good choice. I guess you don’t care about your boyfriend, then? Because I’m going to kill him.
Rosemary: I doubt that.
Smith: You doubt me? Very unwise. I know the pathetic whiner is in Chicago. I saw him the other day. I followed him home so I know where he’s staying.
Rosemary: He’s not staying there now. He’s with me.
Smith: He’s more resourceful than I gave him credit for.
Rosemary: Have you checked in with the San Francisco people recently?
Smith: Yesterday. Everything is in place.
Rosemary: You’re wrong. My lawyer contacted them this morning. I’ve fired you as my agent/manager and amended the contract. Your plane ticket has been rescinded. You aren’t going to Hong Kong.
Smith: You little witch. If I find out you are telling the truth and not bluffing, I won’t kill you. But I will kill your family.
Mike’s phone buzzed. “It’s Trey. He’s waiting outside the restaurant where Smith is eating. He saw the cops go into the place. He’s waiting to see the arrest.”
Rosemary: Hey, Armand? I’m not worried.
Smith: What do you mean? Are you stupid?
Rosemary: Nope.
Mike fist-pumped the air over his head. “They’ve got him.” He pulled Rosemary out of her chair and into a hug. “It’s over. It’s over.” He danced her around the kitchen.
Rosemary Taylor looked at Rosemary. “You’d have to leave Friday night if you do this; there’s no time to go home before the trip.”
“I wanted to go home, but we’d only be gone eight days, and we’d be home in time for Christmas.” Rosemary looked at Mike. “What would your mom say?”
“I don’t know. It’s not like anything like this has ever come up before.”
“It’s kind of surreal,” Arch observed. “But sometimes, God gives us a nudge. I’ve always believed I should pay attention when that happens. For example, three years ago, I inexplicably decided to go to a Bar Association meeting for the first time in my life. I sat down next to the cutest corn-fed Iowa girl I’d ever seen.”
Rosemary Taylor rolled her eyes. “Corn-fed, my eye. I grew up on the south side of Des Moines—I only saw corn growing on TV. At our house, we ate pasta.”
“Whaddevva.” Arch grinned. “You were still the cutest. You introduced yourself and I heard that old song in my head: ‘Love grows where my Rosemary goes.’ I was smitten. My life changed in an instant.”
Rosemary Taylor swatted at her husband’s arm, but she smiled. Facing Rosemary and Mike, she turned serious again. “I don’t want Rosemary to go to Hong Kong alone, either. I would be much more comfortable if you went, Mike. My sweet girl thinks she’s all grown up and independent, but it doesn’t feel like that to me. Her mother won’t stop her from going, but she’ll be frantic all the time Rosemary is gone if she goes alone.” Rosemary Taylor smiled apologetically. “No pressure or anything, Mike.”
Mike chuckled. “I know how you feel. I just got her back and I’m not happy at all about her flying off alone. We’ll discuss it and talk to our parents.”
When Mike and Rosemary were back in the sunroom, Mike pulled her into his lap. “Do you want to go?”
“I don’t want to get involved in a long legal battle. I was intrigued about the potential jobs. It’s enticing to think about finishing a college degree, being in good shape financially at graduation and working only very sporadically. Most people don’t have that opportunity.”
“Arch made a good point. God does nudge us towards what He wants us to do.” Mike suddenly decided. “I’d like to do it, if you would. I can take online classes—so can you, if you want to. If I play Division I football, we may not have an opportunity to travel out of the country together very often in the next few years—I may be too busy. I think we should look at this as a gift and go for it.”
Rosemary looked at her phone and checked the time. “Your mom should be home. Let’s video call her and then my parents.”
Patty was surprisingly calm about the idea of Mike going to Hong Kong with Rosemary. She was disappointed about Mike graduating early. “What about the prom? Graduation parties? All that fun stuff at the end of the school year? I kind of hate for you to give all that up.”
“Mom, with everything that’s happened during the past month, I feel like…high school is over for me.”
Patty nodded solemnly. “What about baseball this summer?”
“That probably wasn’t going to happen, anyway, if I play D-One football.”
Patty sighed. “I suppose you’re right. You promise me you will take online classes?”
“I’m already registered at DMACC, but if I get a scholarship offer soon enough, I may explore online classes at that school. But I will take classes; I promise.”
“Have you talked to John and Margie about this?”
“We’re going to call them next. They’re used to me being gone on jobs; I don’t think they’ll mind,” Rosemary put in.
“I doubt they will, either. Honey, we’re all so glad to have you back with us. I can’t tell you how relieved I am. I almost forgot. Rosemary, did Mike tell you about Nora Singh?”
“He did. If anyone is going to write about all of this, she would be the one I would choose. I remember her son Owen, too. He was a good friend of Pete’s.”
“Nora really wants to talk to you. I didn’t think you’d mind, so I texted her that you were safe. Would you be willing to talk to her?”
“I’d talk to her if it can be tonight. Tomorrow, Mike and I have errands to run. He wants to meet with the people who helped him while he was looking for me. We need to shop because he needs some new clothes. He also needs a haircut.”
“Ah, geez.” Mike groaned in mock horror. “Mom, she’s bossing me around; can you tell her to stop?”
&n
bsp; “I’m going to stay out of it, Mickey. Besides, you do need a haircut!”
“Way to stay out of it, Mom.” Mike said pointedly. Rosemary and Patty burst out laughing.
Margie and John had already talked to Rosemary Taylor; they were aware of the potential for a lawsuit if Rosemary breached her contract with the modeling agency, so they weren’t surprised that she had decided to go to Hong Kong. They were relieved that Mike was going with her and on board with his plan to graduate early. “Margie and I would be very relieved if you go along with her on these international trips. Rosemary, do you think you might take a couple of college classes online, too?”
“I probably will. I have two small costume-design jobs already lined up, and I still need to call Madame B’s daughter, but I’m sure I can do at least two classes. I’m going to have to look at the dance class schedules—I’ll have to rearrange them a bit—or did you cancel those already?”
“No, I was thinking positively that you would be back.”
“Oh, good—I’m glad. John, there’s something else I want to ask you. I’ve been thinking about it for a long time. I was wondering if you would adopt me? I’d really like it if you would.”
John cleared his throat. “I’d love that, Rosemary. I’d be honored.”
“Thank you. I’ll ask Rosemary what we need to do since I’m over eighteen. I’d like to start the process when we get back from Hong Kong.”
Margie cried. “Your dad would understand. Oma won’t like it, though.”
“I don’t want to hurt their feelings, but Oma doesn’t consider my feelings and Opa lets her get away with it. Wanting John to adopt me has nothing to do with them, but everything to do with you and John, my brothers and sisters…and me. They’ll have to get used to it.”
Mike texted Nora Singh to tell her Rosemary was willing to talk to her via video chat, but was only available for the next few hours, because she would be out of the country for nine days. Nora texted back that she would call right then.