by Sims, R.
Squeeze, squeeze, squeeze.
“Did you brag about the sex?”
A very hard squeeze.
He shook his head and said, “Janet…Men have weak egos when it comes to other men and their women.” Then, he used his thumb to wipe the corners of her eyes. He saw a single tear escape, so he leaned forward and tried to catch it with his lips. Dexter licked the side of her face as though trying to push the tear back to her eye. “Are you still my woman?”
She squeezed his hand and held the grip.
“You know I can’t let anyone put their hands on my woman and get away with it, don’t you?”
She didn’t respond.
“Would you like to be there when I have a sit-down with Louis?”
She closed her eyes briefly.
Dexter softly positioned his upper body on top of her, his head resting on her chest. “I want you to write down everything that took place when Louis showed up at your place, and don’t tell anybody else what happened. Okay?” She squeezed his hand again.
CHAPTER 66
At the Fantasy Inn hotel on Front Street, Dexter stood outside the door of Room 209 with a Wal-Mart Shopping bag in his hand.
The door was opened and Agent Laura Frey stepped aside wearing nothing but a beach towel, just as she’d been instructed.
Dexter stepped inside, waited for her to close the door, and then motioned for her to turn around. He was silent and would remain that way for the time being.
When Laura turned around, Dexter unfastened her towel and let it fall to the floor.
Laura felt vulnerable standing there naked for a man she’d never met, never even talked to before. This whole thing had been set up through Orin Baker.
Dexter still said nothing. The woman was attractive to him, even if on the petite side. He put a hand between her legs, still holding the shopping bag with the other, and pushed her inner thigh, signaling for her to spread her legs. Laura spread her legs and closed her eyes.
Dexter grabbed her arm and turned her around to face him. He looked at her breasts then stepped closer to run a hand through her shoulder-length, auburn hair. He pushed her hair back and examined both ears. Finally, he gave her the shopping bag and waited by the door.
“What’s this?” she asked while removing a long housecoat. Also inside the bag, she saw some bedroom slippers. She suddenly got the picture, part of it.
Dexter waited for her to put the new items on, and then he opened the door and looked up and down the hall. He motioned for her to follow him.
They walked down the hall together then stopped at Room 201. He inserted his key card, opened the door, and ushered her inside.
Laura entered the room and headed for the sofa.
Dexter closed the door and said, “The sofa is for me. Sit in that armchair.”
Laura saw a laptop computer on the coffee table. When she sat down, she could only see the back of the 22-inch monitor. She wanted to know what was on the screen.
Dexter sat across from her, on the sofa, and said, “I don’t trust you, Agent Frey, and I’m sure I never will. Where do your supervisor and your super cop partner think you are right now?”
“In Philadelphia, following up on the last of the McDonald’s workers.”
“And why are you here with me?”
“Because Orin Baker said I had to come to Room 209 to meet you today. He said when you arrive I should be fully undressed and wearing only the towel found on the bed.”
Dexter said, “I understand all of that, but why did you feel the need to come here?”
Laura rubbed the arm of her chair. “I was told that you have video of me in a compromising…act.”
“Yes, but it’s just sex. You’re an adult and entitled to a personal and private life.”
“Obviously, I’m the only fool who thought my actions were personal and private. But it’s clear that Reginald was part of a larger conspiracy, not just with Orin but also with you. Sleeping with Reginald would certainly cost me my job. I’m sure you knew that. In fact, I have a feeling you know more about the FBI than I do.”
He shook his head. “Don’t give me so much credit.” He sat up and tapped at a few keys on the laptop. “All right, so you could lose your job because you made a few mistakes. So what? Are you here because you want me to show mercy and allow you to keep your job? Your job is trying to bring me down. You do want me in prison for life, don’t you?”
CHAPTER 67
Laura didn’t know how to answer Dexter’s question. “I don’t know about a life sentence, but you deserve to go to prison again.”
“Tell me why, and don’t give me any cheesy, philosophical adages or clichés.”
Laura leaned back in her chair and crossed her legs. She was trying to get comfortable but that was nearly impossible. One of her slippers came off but she paid that no mind. “I believe you should suffer the consequences when you break the law.”
“That’s fair. Now, what happens when you yourself are propositioned with a half million dollars in cash to help me break the law?”
“I would only do it because you have a video that could ruin my career and my name.” She looked at the back of the computer again. “My life would be over if such a video hit the Internet.”
He smiled. “So, you’d rather save your girl-next-door reputation. Shouldn’t you suffer the consequences for helping me break the law?”
“Yes, but I’m out of options. It’s a no-win situation for me.”
“Hmm. If I were to get undressed right now, would you do for me the things you did for Reggie in that video?”
She stared at him. “Do I have much of a choice?” She opened her housecoat, exposing herself for him again.
“Relax. Keep your robe on. I’m not going to ask that of you. I’m just testing your stance.”
She closed her housecoat. “What crime am I supposed to help you with?”
“Obstruction of justice. We’ll talk specifics later.”
“What about the video?”
“I get the impression that you don’t care about the half million. You just want me to promise you that I’ll destroy every version of the video upon your complete cooperation.”
“Can I see proof of your video? I mean, maybe Reginald simply described a concocted sex scenario for Orin to recite to me.”
Dexter nodded. He tapped at a few keys then turned the laptop around so that she could see the computer monitor.
Laura looked at the video just long enough for Reginald to attempt to fit his entire right hand inside her. She turned away and said, “Turn it off.”
Dexter laughed. “The best part is how Reggie gets that hand cleaned. I’m impressed.”
“Can we get to the real point of this meeting?” she asked, desperately wanting to change the subject now.
“We’ve already done that. I wanted to know for sure that you were truly worried about the video, and I wanted to know that you would help me break the law.”
“How can I be sure every copy gets destroyed? It looks like Reginald and Orin have copies as well.”
“They don’t. I described a few things to Orin. As for Reggie…well, he was there as a co-star in the movie. You see, I had a videographer set up some hidden equipment in Reggie’s place. Six digital cameras were recording to a computer, encrypted and password protected. Nobody saw the video except me.”
“Why should I believe you’ll destroy your precious recording of me?”
“Don’t flatter yourself. Noting about that video is precious to me.” He kicked off his shoes and lay on the sofa, his feet crossed at the ankles. “Do you really believe your pornographic irrelevancies can help me with my next multibillion-dollar scheme?”
She was silent.
“Tell me what your partner is working on. I’m going to make you look smarter than him.”
CHAPTER 68
Patricia Teague had been off the radar for two weeks now. She was wanted by the FBI on charges of impersonating a federal agent and o
bstruction of justice. It was almost three in the afternoon when she was escorted to the billiard room in Peter Boone’s mansion.
Peter was sitting in a leather chair watching SHN’s SunHot Lead on a flat-panel television that took up lots of space on the huge wall. He drank from his wine glass and said, “Have a seat. Can I get you anything?”
“No. Thanks.” She sat in an identical leather chair that was facing the television. There was more than enough to admire about the room. The massive pool table, the wall paintings, the size of the room, the—
“What’s on your mind, Pat?” he said.
“Dexter Parker is your man, no doubt about it. Everyone else was just a pawn. I’ve bought sensitive documents from the Harrisburg police and from a federal agent who was working surveillance.”
Peter simply nodded.
“You already know about the big fight he had with his brother,” Patricia said. “Well, now his brother’s place is no longer under surveillance because he’s cooperating. So I went there as a federal agent and interviewed his brother.”
“This should be interesting. What did you learn?”
She said, “Dexter recently purchased a yacht for $29 million, but his brother has no proof of that and has never seen the yacht. I recorded the interview, so you can hear the whole thing for yourself.”
“Excellent,” Peter said.
“Dexter has retained the legal services of Dana Searing in California. I’d like to be able to listen in on her home phone, cell phone, and office phone. That means I expect to pay off several people at perhaps three different carriers.”
“I don’t think Dexter will be saying much over the phone, not even with his lawyer.”
“I’m listening for a fix on his position. I can bring him to you if there are no cops watching him whenever he’s located.”
Peter approved of her plan. “Smart.”
“Chances are, however, that he’ll be thousands of miles away whenever I get his location, and when I arrive he’ll be gone.”
“You’ll get him. I have no doubt about that,” he said. Then, something on SHN caught his attention.
“…and he’ll be here live in the SunHot Seat tomorrow with William Oxcart,” a young woman behind a desk said while a current photo of Dexter Parker remained in the upper-right corner of the screen. “That’s right here on SHN at five pm Eastern Time.”
Peter said, “Can you believe this Dexter guy?”
“He doesn’t surprise me,” Patricia said. “The lawyer he hired here — he’s sleeping with her. His brother couldn’t tell me everything I wanted to know, because Dexter never told his brother much.”
“Is it possible to pick him up once his SHN interview is over tomorrow?”
“No. It’s too public to even try. I’ll get him either in Harrisburg or at his lawyer’s office in Camarillo.” California, that is. Patricia was very familiar with the Ventura and Los Angeles counties. Hell, she lived in Santa Paula, only minutes away from Camarillo and Fillmore.
Peter said, “It’s your call. Let’s just hope he doesn’t get stuck in jail until trial and then carted off to prison for the next twenty, thirty years.”
CHAPTER 69
“Somehow I don’t think he’ll face a trial; a plea deal may be in his best interest. And there’s no reason he wouldn’t be able to make bail after stealing more than $3 billion.”
Peter shook his head. “Just because he has it doesn’t mean he could use it to make bail, which of course would be in the millions. Nobody could spend that kind of money unless it was clearly from a legitimate source. The federal government would simply take his money, release him, then throw him back in jail before he could leave the parking lot.”
Patricia agreed.
“A man like Dexter, former investment banker and 10-year convict, would know that.”
“I guess that kind of forces me to look for the right moment after he leaves the SHN studio. It’s risky but I don’t have much of a choice.”
Peter wagged an index finger at her. “Maybe you have another option. Your expense budget is $5 million, but bringing him in gets you $20 million. I can have someone bail Dexter out, if necessary, and you can reimburse me with your expense budget.”
Patricia had nothing to lose in the deal. “That would be best.” She had bailed Sherri Peters out thanks to a legitimate business owned by Patricia’s girlfriend, but that business wasn’t making the kind of money Dexter’s bail would obviously require. “That would make it a lot easier to bring him in. Besides, the cops are looking for me and I can’t afford to let them catch me just yet.”
***
Que was driving the Rolls Royce, taking Dexter to the airport in Harrisburg. Dexter was returning to New York to join Dana at the hotel and prepare for tomorrow’s interview. Dexter used his phone to contact Danielle at her college dorm in Los Angeles. He said to her, “How did it go?”
Danielle said, “I leased a house for you in Santa Clarita and another one in Palmdale. I’ll email the addresses to you in a minute. I’ll have them fully furnished and ready to live in before Sunday.” She didn’t want to ask him why he needed two homes in California.
“I appreciate everything you’ve done, Danielle.”
“And I appreciate what you’ve done for me even more. I’m glad you make my mom happy, and I’m glad I don’t have to move out yet. And I’m sure you had something to do with Harold finally leaving. Thank you for that, too.”
He laughed. “I had nothing to do with that.”
“Yeah, right. Good luck with your interview tomorrow. All of my friends here at the college will be watching. They talk about you all the time. They say you’re handsome, but I won’t mention that you’re dating my mom. They would go crazy. But they know my mom is your attorney.”
He said, “Tell them to support me with signs outside the courthouse whenever my trial starts. I’ll pay them a thousand dollars each day they show up.”
CHAPTER 70
“All right, Vernon, thanks very much for that,” William Oxcart said. He was a well-respected journalist with longevity in the business. He was personable and serious at all times. The white hair that nearly covered his head made the white man with the clean-shaven face look wise. At sixty-two, he was known by most Americans as the go-to newsman.
William said, “Coming up in the SunHot Seat is Mr. Dexter Parker, the man who the FBI says masterminded the $3.3 billion Herbyte Scandal. My exclusive interview with him starts after the break.”
“Also, Senator Dick Regal’s arrest resulting from a drug sting last Thursday may be the least of his problems. The Now & Then Journal is reporting that the embattled senator from North Carolina has been accused of but not charged with — and this is a quote — ‘having an inappropriate relationship with a 16-year-old girl.’”
“We’ll discuss the particulars after my interview with Mr. Dexter Parker. I’m Will Oxcart and I welcome you to the SunHot Lead Story.”
***
Janet Ingram was in the front passenger’s seat of the Rolls Royce. She was wearing sneakers, jeans, a sweater, and a long, leather coat. She also wore a scarf to cover the lower half of her face.
Que drove the Phantom out of the hospital’s parking lot and headed for Janet’s home. He had no idea that she’d had teeth knocked out, but he knew that she had been hospitalized because of a violent ex-boyfriend. Dexter had told him that much.
The vehicle’s 12-speaker system played jazz music at a very low listening level.
Que said, “Your cat, Keshi, is at my house. My fiancée wants to keep her.” He smiled at Janet.
She was still in no mood for conversation, though she had spoken to him when he had first arrived at hospital.
Dexter had asked Que not to say much to her unless she asked him something, but the silence felt so awkward to Que.
“I probably should tell you, before we arrive at your home, that most of your clothes and personal items are gone.”
Janet looked at him and said
, “Somebody broke into my place?” She thought about Louis again.
Que shook his head. “Shipped to California. When you get to your new place in Santa Clarita, they’ll already be there.”
Moving back to Cali was not something she had considered. She had a lot of questions, but they would be properly directed at Dexter.
***
“Thank you for joining us, Mr. Parker,” William Oxcart said.
“You can call me Dexter. Thank you for having me, Will.” During the commercial break, Oxcart had asked Dexter to call him Will. Dexter was sitting in a huge leather armchair known as the SunHot Seat. The studio was set up like a cozy living room, if you discount the fact that Will’s desk and swivel seat seemed to add an office feel to the giant room.
CHAPTER 71
“All right. The Herbyte Scandal so far has led to only three arrests but, according to our sources, investigators believe you’re the brains behind the theft of $3.374 billion from more than 106 investors worldwide. Are-Are you planning to defend against such an accusation?”
“I’m doing as much as I can with what little I have, but I have at least discovered why I am the chosen one. It has to do with my background.”
“Explain what you mean by that. What do you mean when you say you were chosen?”
“Will, I was graduated from Penn State with degrees in Business, Finance and English. I became an investment banker at Bean & Bean Investments. After working only two years as an investment banker, I was involved in a dispute with an angry client. The client was choking my boss, so I used a chokehold to help my boss.”
Will was watching him intently.
“This client had a history of heart problems, which I knew nothing about, and he eventually died by my hands. I was offered a prison sentence of eight years for manslaughter but agreed to nearly ten so that I could be released without a probation or parole officer to whom I would answer. I was released January the eleventh, not quite two months ago.”