“I’m so sorry,” James said. “I had no idea you didn’t see me. You were looking right at me. That must have been one heck of a daydream.”
“Hand me your water bottle, and hold what’s left of my coffee while I try to salvage my shirt.” Taking a piece of crumpled-up paper towel from the glove compartment, she soaked it with water and began swiping. “Great. Now it’s evenly spread across the front of my shirt rather than in one spot.” Giving up, Gretchen turned to James with a sigh. “Okay, what’s so important you dragged me out when we’re about to get our first major winter storm?”
“What are you talking about?” James responded, looking at the sky. “There are only a few clouds, and it’s way above freezing.”
“Trust me. It’s a gift. Now, what’s up?”
James grinned. “I have some good news. I think I’ve identified some of the people in the room with you, and I think I know how they did it.”
“What do you mean how they did it? You mean how they made me do those things? I’m assuming I was drugged,” Gretchen answered, no longer embarrassed to discuss the video with James. At this point, he knew almost all there was to know about her. Literally and figuratively.
“I don’t think you did those things. I think they were created.”
Gretchen stared at James, not fully understanding but feeling a spark of hope in her chest. “Explain.”
“There’s new technology that can recreate someone’s face and expressions and use them so it appears the person is doing whatever the creator wants them to do.”
“That’s not new. People have been taking head shots and putting them on different bodies for years.”
James shook his head. “No, it’s not that. This technology essentially clones the person. It analyzes and memorizes every part of a person’s face, expressions, mannerisms, and body. It then takes that information and runs with it. Meaning it essentially becomes that person. It can predict the way that person would react in any situation, even creating expressions the subject has never made.” James pulled a document out of his folder. “Here. Read this. It will explain it better than I can.”
Gretchen’s eyes flew over the article, and she handed it back.
“Hey, it’s important you read it,” James objected. “It’s critical you understand so we can piece together who might have had the desire and talent to do this to you.”
“How can you be certain that’s what happened? Maybe someone just drugged my drink or food? And I did read it and memorized it too.”
James smirked. “What are you, some kind of speed-reader?”
“Yup. And I have an eidetic memory.”
“Wait, you have a photographic memory?”
“I do. Now, let’s focus. How does this work?”
“It appears it examines hundreds of photos or videos of the subject, then takes all that information and recreates the subject. It’s quite amazing,” James finished, obviously in awe of the technology.
“How do you know that’s what happened with me?”
“Because I finally figured out how to reverse engineer it. As I began to pull your video apart, so to speak, things started to fall apart. Some of the frames become almost like… well…a stutter.”
“You’re absolutely certain it’s not me in that video?”
Gretchen looked at James, grinning from ear to ear.
James burst out laughing, happy for her happiness. “I am absolutely certain that whatever that is in the video is not you.”
Gretchen grabbed James by the shoulders, hugged him, and began to cry. “Do you know what this means? I don’t have to be one of The Moms,” she sobbed on his shoulder.
Uncomfortable, James patted her on the back with an awkward tapping motion. “Okay, let’s talk about next steps,” he said as he pushed her gently back to her side of the car.
“Sorry,” Gretchen hiccup-sobbed as she tried to control herself. “All this time I thought I had cheated on my husband and was a horrible person.” Straightening her coffee-covered shirt and dabbing at her tear-stained face, she began to laugh.
James gave her a look like a dog side-eyeing his human. “Maybe it’d be best if we discussed next steps next time we meet. I don’t want to overwhelm you.”
“James, relax,” Gretchen ordered, pulling herself together and putting on her tough exterior once again. “I just needed to let out a bit of emotion. Now, what’s next?”
“The list. I want you to add anyone who might have wanted to hurt you and why. Also, who might have had the expertise to use this technology. It’s still new today. Whoever did this was way ahead of the curve. Use that memory of yours. Pull up situations you were in before this happened. The slightest odd comment or expression might lead to something. Don’t discount anything, and write it down, even if some of it seems unimportant to you,” James said as he got out of the car.
“Will do,” Gretchen said, giddy she wasn’t the person she had believed herself to be for the past two years.
Resting his forearms on the open passenger-side window, James fixed a smiled on his face so his next thought wouldn’t scare his client and force her back into that weird self-exile place she’d been in when he first met her. “Listen, I don’t want to upset you, but it may be time to involve the police.”
“No. This is my fight.” Looking directly at James, she reached across to grasp his hands. “Promise me you will not tell anyone. Remember, you signed an agreement. That still stands.”
“I would never do that to you. You must at least know that about me by now. Trust me, Gretchen,” he reassured her, squeezing her hands.
“I do trust you. But understand, I didn’t involve them two years ago, and I’m not about to now. The last thing I want is this film in more hands.”
James nodded. “I understand. Just keep that option in the back of your mind. There may come a time when we’ll need help. Anyway,”—James stood to head back into his house—“I’m happy that you’re happy.” He rapped on the hood of her car. “We’ll meet in a week. By that time, you’ll have notes, and I’ll have finished my work. We’ll work through what comes next then.”
As she headed home, Gretchen glanced in her rearview mirror and saw James standing on the curb, waving and smiling. For the first time in a very long time, she felt comforted.
CHAPTER
47
WILLOW GRABBED TWO pillows and pulled them over her head. Jesus, she thought, nothing blocks the soul-sucking screams from the new girl. It had been going on for almost a month. Willow couldn’t remember another time when such disruption had been allowed in the house.
She heard the sharp rap on her door as it flew open and slammed against the wall. “You’re looking a bit worse for wear,” Madame said, pushing the pillows off Willow with the point of her shoe as if poking at a bug one is not sure is dead. “I received a complaint about you this morning,” she continued as she walked around the room, opening the armoire to search it. Sometimes clients became involved with her talent and gave them gifts, like jewels or money. Of course, all gifts belonged to her and she encouraged her girls to voluntarily turn them over, but, more often than not, they tried to hide them. She always found them.
“Is there a reason you’re here?” Willow heard herself say, surprised at her tone.
“Be careful, Willow. You may be one of my favorites, but that’s because you’re a hard worker and know your place.
Don’t mistake my appreciation of your work ethic for any sort of emotional attachment.” Madame handed Willow one of her handkerchiefs. “Here, wipe the spittle from the corner of your mouth. Unfortunately, I heard that you haven’t been your energetic self. A few of your clients have been disappointed and if they’re disappointed, then I’m disappointed. I suggest you improve your performance before I decide to let you spend a week in one of my ping pong bars. That class of clientele is decidedly lower than what you’re used to here at the house. Quite frankly, I doubt even the quantit
y of drugs you pour into your system will be able to block that experience.”
Usually, Willow had no reaction to Madame’s comments. She’d heard these same types of critiques from time to time over the course of—what was it—two or three years now. But over the past month, since all the screaming had started, she’d begun to feel. While she’d always been indifferent to the suffering in the house, she was feeling what she thought might be anger. Or was it sorrow? She could no longer tell the difference. But Willow was lucid enough for the moment to know her place. “It’s hard to concentrate with all the screaming. Why haven’t you gotten rid of her?”
Madame’s eyebrows raised. “Willow, I had no idea you were still so lucid. I thought by now all that would be left of that once-brilliant mind would be putty. To answer your question, she has the ability to be one of my higher-priced assets, just like you.” After a pause, Madame continued, “I have a job for you. I want you to train her.”
“What? Why would I do that? I have no idea how to train her.”
“You do, actually. You’re both cut from the same cloth, smart and beautiful, but each of you took a wrong turn in life and ended up here. I want you to make sure she understands there are no more choices in her life, except, of course, to please me. Explain to her that the consequences of failing to fulfill her single duty are very disturbing.”
Willow simply stared in response. Maybe she was too drugged up and she was hallucinating. It wouldn’t have been the first time.
“Willow, I’m not asking you. I’m telling you. You’ll begin tomorrow,” Madame said as she turned and walked out of the room.
CHAPTER
48
VICTORIA WOKE TO a beautifully sunny, yet crisply cold Saturday morning. While she had slept, decidedly cooler weather had set in, and it had that permanent winter feel.
Sitting up, Victoria forced her feet out of bed and to the ground. She felt like she’d been beaten over the head with a bat. “Coffee,” she called out, as if it would come at her command. Shuffling into her kitchen, she was annoyed she’d neglected to make it before she’d gone to sleep. “Well, shit,” she added. “Hmm, I see my vocabulary needs a bit of work,” she said while she bumbled through the routine of making coffee. When she had just finished clicking the on button of her cheap, from-law-school coffee maker, her buzzer sounded. “Who the hell can that be?” Victoria checked the time and was surprised to see it was past nine. She never slept past six, and even sleeping until then was rare.
“Victoria, I’m coming in,” Sophia’s cherry voice rang out as she unlocked the door with her key. “Hi, my love,” she greeted, wrapping Victoria in a warm hug. Holding her at arm’s length, she looked her daughter up and down. “You look wonderful! Are you just getting up? You never sleep this late. Is something wrong?”
“Mom, you look amazing, too, and no, nothing’s wrong. Apparently today is the day I’m feeling the full impact of jet lag. I felt fine until, well, this morning. It also could be the effect of the disgustingly large steak I consumed yesterday.”
“I’m sure it’s jet lag, and of course you ate like that. I’m sure you were hungry after your long flight back.”
“It wasn’t the flight. I spent almost every meal trying to steer clear of eating odd creature parts.”
“Really? That sounds fascinating. I would love to go there someday.”
Victoria crossed her legs on her sofa and sipped her coffee. “How is it that you’re the adventurous one and I got all the paranoia?” she asked affectionately.
Sophia smiled. “No idea. You’ve always been a bit of a pain when it comes to food, and I say that with love. What did Armond have to say about your finickiness?”
“Plenty. I don’t need to hear more from my own mother.”
“Fair enough. Now, tell me all about it.”
“I have a better idea. I need to get off my ass and go for a run and then catch up a bit on work. Why don’t you come back for dinner, and I’ll treat you to our favorite Italian restaurant. We can chat while we eat some great food, which apparently is my new favorite pastime and all I think about.”
“Perfect,” Sophia said as she kissed her daughter on the cheek. “I have a ton of things to get done today. We didn’t all just fly in from Hong Kong on a private jet,” she teased. “I’m so happy to have you home. I’ll see you in a few hours. Oh, one more thing, and it’s rather serious.”
Victoria looked worriedly at her mother. “What is it?”
“You smell funny. And it’s not a good funny. Take a shower and for heaven’s sake, wash your hair,” Sophia ordered, slamming the door behind her just in time to avoid the pillow hurtling into it.
CHAPTER
49
THE WEEK HAD been exhilarating. Jenny finally felt like she was getting her legal legs back. She’d taken two depositions for Mona in one of her divorce cases and she’d nailed them. She’d forgotten how much she loved preparing for trial. She liked everything about it, including the discovery phase, but her favorite part was interacting with witnesses.
Jenny stepped out onto her deck and looked at the intense blues and greens of the ocean. There was no morning gloom today. The large seafaring boats miles away were clearly visible. Inhaling the salt air appreciatively, she called her two dogs, who came running, yapping and jumping around excitedly at her feet. They knew the routine. Jenny reached down, leashed them, and walked down to the beach. It was too early for the general public, so with the exception of a few of her neighbors already in the water, she had the beach to herself.
Finding a spot on the sand, she wrapped the leashes around a small bush and laid out her towels. One for the boys and the other for her. “Be good boys,” she commanded but then laughed, as they were already busy digging holes in the sand and terrorizing whatever crab scurried by. She’d only have time for half her morning swim because Victoria had scheduled a call to catch up on the cases Jenny had handled.
Jenny walked to the water’s edge and gingerly allowed a few toes to touch the waves. As always, it was freezing. Steeling herself, she walked into the swirling water until she was up to her buttocks, stood for a minute to acclimate, then dove under an incoming wave. The first few seconds were frigid, but as she took her beginning strokes, her body either got used to it or got so cold her nerves simply stopped transmitting the warning of cold water to her brain. Either way, it works, she thought happily, while her arms pulled against the incoming waves.
A little more than half an hour after she began, Jenny came out of the water and heard her phone ringing. “Victoria, hi! How are you, and how was your trip?”
“Jenny, it’s good to hear your voice. You sound great. Is this a good time?”
“It’s perfect. I just finished my swim and I’m sitting on the beach with my dog children enjoying the sun.”
Victoria couldn’t help but snort. “Well, I just finished a run along the lake. But unlike you, I’m inside with a blanket wrapped around me because we’re starting to shift into winter, and the wind was brutally cold. I’ll be taking a hot shower as soon as we’re finished.”
Jenny shrugged her shoulders as someone who had given up on convincing a friend to stop a bad habit. “I keep telling you and Kat that you’re more than welcome anytime at my home. It has amazing views of the ocean and, after about a few hundred steps, puts you right at the beach. It’s magical.”
“Yes, well, the freezing-ass wind coming down from Canada is magical as well,” Victoria responded.
“Why don’t you come out around Christmas? We can make it a reunion of sorts. A celebration of the time we all met in Houston. Well, you were there in spirit. Armond doesn’t live too far away, and he and Robert can join us. What do you think?”
Without even thinking about it, Victoria said, “I can’t, Jenny, but it’s a great offer.”
Jenny refused to let it go that easily. “Why can’t you? We can make it into a long weekend so everyone doesn’t have to clear their sch
edules. You have your own firm. You don’t have to report to anyone. Why not enjoy that?”
“Because—” Victoria stopped herself. In the past, she never would have considered such a frivolous trip. Work first had been her motto. If she had any time and energy left, she could play. She liked it like that, and it had worked for her. “Here’s the thing—" Maybe there is no thing, she thought and stopped again mid-sentence. After all, my way of doing things got me fired from my first job. Perhaps it was time to rejigger a bit.
“Listen, you really don’t have a good reason not to—”
“Screw it,” Victoria interrupted, without even realizing Jenny was talking. “I tried all work and no play and look what happened. You know what? I’m in. You work on Mona and Kat, and I’ll work on Armond and Robert.”
“Really?” Jenny said surprised, never having expected Victoria to agree to come.
“Really.”
“Wow. Okay, then. Let’s pick two weekends to give everyone an option and then whichever one works will be the one.”
“Done. I’m looking forward to it. Now, let’s chat about the cases you handled while I was gone. I prefer problems first.”
“You’ll be happy to hear there really weren’t any problems that couldn’t be handled. The only thing I’ve been dreading telling you is one of your clients asked if I can be her main contact lawyer rather than you,” Jenny finished, scrunching her face tightly as if to prevent the words from leaving her mouth.
There was silence. “Victoria, I want you to know I am one of the most loyal people you’ll ever meet. I would never try to steal one of your clients. I have no idea what happened. One day we were chatting about her case, and she just blurted it out. Say something. Please.”
Victoria stood and speed-paced around her tiny apartment. “Hell yes!” she yelled.
Jenny was not sure whether she had heard her correctly, so she tried again. “It was not my intent to have any client leave you and—”
Private Agendas: A Victoria Rodessa Legal Thriller Page 20