by Tyora Moody
Her mother frowned. “This is the place you’re thinking of donating your paintings?”
“Yes. Also the place where the assault took place last week.”
“What?”
“Yes. You haven’t heard all of it either. I ran into Paul while he was coming to visit Olivia on Tuesday. It was a surprise seeing him after almost two years. He wasn’t pleased to see me and he let me know that later.”
“He contacted you. He’s not supposed to do that.”
“You’re right. He’s not. But, I unintentionally set myself up to be in a place where he could show up too.”
“My, my, young lady, what have you gotten yourself into? Now I’m not so sure about you being involved with this foundation. Does anyone else know what you’ve been up to?”
“Just Cam and believe me he’s given me plenty of warnings. Alibi or no alibi, I’m not convinced that Olivia isn’t protecting Paul somehow. On the other hand, the victim is a strange woman.”
Her mama frowned. “You sound like you don’t believe her. Wasn’t she assaulted?”
“Yes, there’s no doubt she was assaulted because she had injuries. It’s just something about her.” Toni stood up. “I feel bad about that because I’ve been in her place. I’ve been a victim.”
Vanessa shook her head. “Well, no matter what her story is she still needs the person found who assaulted her. Whether it turns out to be Paul or not, that’s Cam’s job. You don’t need anymore run-ins with Paul Lambert. By the way, did you renew the protective order yet?”
“You know about that?”
“You know you didn’t call while we were on the cruise, but your sisters did keep in touch. That’s one of the reasons why you were on my mind. I expected you to call. I know when I don’t hear from you that you have a tendency to lean towards…well, trouble.”
Toni frowned. “Really?”
Vanessa crossed her arms. “You know what alarmed everyone the most when you were with Paul?”
Toni shook her head.
“You shut us out. You went from being the one who was always concerned about everyone to being very withdrawn.”
“I didn’t think I was doing that. I could tell y’all didn’t approve of him.”
Vanessa sucked in a sharp breath. “I’m glad God brought you out of that relationship safely. It could have been a lot worse.” Her mama pointed her finger. “You need to keep your distance from Paul. I know you have good intentions, but I think you need to pray more on whether or not you should even be involved with that woman and her foundation. She’s way too close to Paul.”
Toni closed her eyes. “I will.”
Vanessa walked over and hugged her. She stood back. “I mean it when I say pray. It’s obvious you’ve reached a point of healing. This is a crucial time because the adversary will steal your progress and tempt you to fall backwards. God will send other opportunities to you.”
Toni knew her mother was right. She still was puzzled by Paul’s comment.
Stay away from ‘Liv. Leave me alone!
It was more than just his comment. It was the desperate tone of frustration in his voice. She hadn’t seen him in two years. The man barely received any punishment for assaulting her, his business was still going strong and he was engaged to a beautiful woman.
Why did Paul react so intensely towards seeing me in person?
Chapter 13
Friday, June 16 at 11:36 am
How Carol Landers kept up with anything with her two young children boggled Toni’s mind. She watched the frazzled woman try to quiet her squirming one-year-old daughter who was anything but happy to be sitting on her mother’s lap. The toddler had tried to take off running several times. After the toddler was consoled with a juice bottle, Toni watched in amazement as the woman used her other free hand to stop her three-year-old son from pulling napkins from the dispenser.
Carol appeared embarrassed. “I’m so sorry. My cousin usually helps me with the kids, but she went missing-in-action this morning. To be honest, I don’t think she made it home last night so I’m extra worried. I promise you my life does not look like this and I can manage your social media.”
Toni shook her head. “Not a problem. Good help can be hard to find. I babysat for my sister so I know this age can be a handful.”
Carol wiped her son’s hands now covered in ketchup. “I really don’t want you to think I’m not competent. I am. Once we work out a plan on the types of posts, I can get a system in place and it will run like a well-oiled machine.”
“Olivia gave you a really high recommendation. I imagine working from home helps with caring for the little ones.”
“Oh it’s been a blessing to be able to stay at home with the kids and have this to do on the side. The work keeps me sane.” Carol laughed from her belly.
Toni smiled. She liked Carol. But from what she saw, Toni couldn’t help but wonder. “Do you keep up with all of your clients’ accounts by yourself or do you get help sometimes?”
Carol blew her bangs off her face as she moved the younger child to her other arm. “I do have help sometimes, especially this last year with giving birth to Jenny here. I didn’t want to lose my clients so I got some help. I can assure you Landers Publicity never misses a beat with keeping your social media active.”
“That sounds great. So, I understand you manage the Instagram account for Olivia. I like what you do with the quotes over the photos. Is that something you can do for me?”
“Sure, that’s not a problem at all.” Carol suddenly looked like a deer with headlights in her eyes as loud ringing exploded from the phone on the table. She looked at the phone. “I’m sorry. I need to get this. This may be my rescue.”
Toni nodded and drank her coffee as Carol took the call. From Carol’s desperate pleas, Toni gathered she had touched base with her cousin.
A few moments later, Carol took a deep breath, “Help is on the way. My cousin finally showed up. She should be here in a few minutes. She said she wasn’t that far away.”
Toni offered, “Why don’t we go walking? I remember my sister used to try that to taper her son’s energy a notch.”
“Good idea.”
Toni helped Carol get both toddlers settled into the double stroller.
As they walked, Toni asked, “Tell me how you got started at the Niles Foundation.”
“Well, Olivia and I have been friends since college. When her mother passed away from breast cancer, she was really depressed. She and her mother were more like sisters. It was just the two of them for so many years. Her dad was… Well, not a good guy. So her parents divorced while she was young. Anyway, she came to me one day with this idea and a few months later she’d had her first fundraiser. The foundation has done wonders for her spirit and she’s really been able to make a difference. At least most of the time she seems okay.”
Toni sensed there was more to that statement. “What do you mean?”
“Oh, I shouldn’t run my mouth.”
“Well, when I left the other day, a really handsome man showed up. That has to make a woman’s day.”
Carol narrowed her eyes. “Was he tall, blond?”
Toni felt bad for pretending ignorance, but she nodded. “Yeah, I think so.”
“That’s probably her fiancé. I love Olivia, but she has always had bad taste in men. Something about that guy isn’t right. For one, he popped the question to her after they’d only been together barely four months.”
Toni’s eyebrow shot up. While she never got to that point with Paul, she did remember that he moved fast. He claimed to be head over heels in love with her two years ago.
His type of love landed her in the hospital.
“Have you talked to Olivia about your feelings?”
Carol shook her head. “It wouldn’t do any good. She loves him. And he can do no wrong in her eyes. Oh look, there comes my help. Thank God!”
Toni looked up to see who Carol was referring to. She wasn’t sure if she dropped her mouth open, but she was
definitely in shock.
Jade Lewis walked up to them and went straight towards the stroller. “Hey, babies.” There was still some slight bruising to Jade’s face, but she appeared to be in good working order.
Toni asked, “Is this your cousin?”
“Yes. Hey, Jade, meet my new client.” Carol looked back at Toni with pleading eyes. “Well, at least I hope you’ll be a new client after today.”
Jade turned her attention in their direction. For a minute she didn’t seem to recognize Toni, then her eyes changed as though she was afraid.
Carol chatted along not noticing her cousin’s discomfort. “I’m so glad you are up and about, but I didn’t expect you to disappear.” Carol turned to Toni. “Jade was in the bed most of last week. Somebody attacked her.”
Jade moved around like she needed to go to the bathroom. “I’m all good now.”
“Jade, I’m glad to see you’re healing from your injuries,” Toni said.
Carol looked between both women. “Do you two know each other?”
“We met last week,” Toni explained, “any news from the police, Jade?”
Carol interrupted before Jade could speak, “No news at all. And it could have been any of us who were attacked.”
“Sounds like someone was there to commit a robbery. I heard about it when I was meeting with Olivia,” Toni added.
Carol nodded, “I don’t know who had that kind of gumption, but they managed to steal an expensive painting. Poor Jade here forgot her phone in the office. I guess she just walked into the middle of the robbery.”
Jade looked around as if she was ready to run. “People do crazy things.” She stared at Toni as though she had something on her mind. “It’s good to see you again. I appreciate your help. I forgot your name.”
“Toni. Toni Reed.”
“Right, you said nothing happened to the guy who attacked you.”
Toni’s face grew warm. She couldn’t remember how much she’d shared with Jade. “Well, I was able to press charges and had a trial.”
“No jail time?” Jade asked.
Toni shook her head, “No, but my circumstances were different. It sounds like this person committed a few crimes. I imagine when they’re caught, there will be several charges filed.”
Carol looked back and forth. “Wow, you two really got to know each other last week.”
Jade grabbed the stroller. “Look, why don’t I take your kids home so you two can talk?”
“Okay, Jade. I appreciate it.”
She watched Jade push the stroller away. She sure wanted to get away fast. Toni felt bad for judging her. She remembered her own desire to want to hide from the public for awhile. Dealing with the assault and trying to get back to a normal life was a process.
She turned towards Carol, “You said Jade is your cousin?”
Carol nodded. “Yea, she’s more like a younger sister. We grew up together. Her mom wasn’t around much so my parents raised her. She’s had some troubles over the years. I think she’s finally coming around though. My husband agreed to let her move in with us last year while I was pregnant with Jenny. She’s been a huge help to my family and business.”
What kind of troubles?
Toni didn’t feel like now was the time to pry. “So, she does help you manage the social media?”
“Well, yes. Without her, I wouldn’t be able to take on multiple clients.”
She wasn’t sure why, but something occurred to Toni. “So if I was to work with you, how do we work out passwords? Security is kind of important to me.”
“Oh, we would sign a contract and I keep a password manager that encrypts the passwords. So your information is safe with me.”
Toni nodded. “That’s good to know.” Her phone rang. She peered at her phone. Oh no! Why is he calling? She decided it was best to let the call go voicemail.
She asked Carol, “So, when can we get started?”
“I will email you some paperwork and an invoice for this month.”
Toni’s phone rang again. She sighed. “Carol, it was good to meet you. I need to take this call.”
“Sure, no problem. I’ll be in touch soon.”
Toni nodded as Carol walked away. She grabbed the phone to answer the call. “Cam?”
“Finally. We really need to talk, Toni.”
Her stomach sank, “You sound like I’m in some kind of trouble.”
“I hate to tell you this, but yeah, you might be.”
What in the world did I do?
Chapter 14
Friday, June 16 at 2:20 pm
Cam wouldn’t share a single word with her on the phone. She sped to the police station wondering why there was urgency in his voice. Her first thought was her surprise run-in with Jade. In one week, the sketch she did with Jade had disrupted Toni’s life. While she was looking for her last week, Toni had no clue she was going to run in to Jade today.
She huffed as she sprinted towards Cam’s office. When she rounded the corner, she saw Cam talking to Captain Lester Gilliam. She paused, not sure if she should approach. The captain was a good friend of her father’s. She could’ve been paranoid, but she wondered if they were talking about her.
Cam saw her and gave her a head nod in the direction of his desk.
She walked over to his desk and sat. What is going on? It occurred to her she could have jeopardized her role at the department. All she did was sketch a composite.
Finally, Cam walked over. He grabbed a pen and a legal pad from his desk. “Let’s talk in here.”
She jumped up and followed him into an interrogation room. Now, she was totally freaked out. After she entered the room, she turned. “What’s going on? I didn’t do anything to be treated like some suspect. What exactly do you think I did?”
Cam looked at her. “I wanted you to hear this from me and not someone else. Sit please. It’s better if we talk in here.” He pulled the chair out from the table.
She pulled out the other chair and sat across from him. Toni watched as Cam fiddled with his tie as though it was choking him. “I’m going to get right to it. Have you had contact with Paul Lambert?”
Oh no! She swallowed. “Yes.”
He narrowed his eyes. “You purposely reached out to him? Why?”
“No, no! I ran into him while I was at the Niles Foundation.”
“You went back there after we talked?”
“It was for a legitimate reason. I brought a set of paintings to donate. I spoke to Olivia about doing an event around domestic violence. She loved the idea and liked my work. On the way out, Paul stepped off the elevator. I was as surprised to see him as he was to see me.”
“Well, Paul is claiming you’re harassing him. He’s requested a restraining order against you.”
Toni stared at Cam still trying to figure out how this happened. “What? Are you serious? You can’t believe that I’ve been harassing Paul Lambert. Why would I do that? I have a restraining order against him. He assaulted me.”
Cam stared at her for what seemed like a full minute. “He claimed you have been sending him messages over the past few weeks like you were baiting him to contact you.”
“I haven’t emailed, phoned or contacted Paul in two years.”
“But you knew Olivia was his fiancée. You showed up at his fiancée’s office twice.”
Toni grimaced. “Are you trying to accuse me of something, Cam? You’re sounding like you don’t believe me. You know me.”
“Yes, I do. I know you won’t leave well enough alone. Your whole family is that way. You are all born investigators and fixers.”
Toni stood up. “Well it looks like you’ve made your mind up. There’s nothing else I have to say.”
Cam stood. “Calm down, Toni. I’m not accusing you of anything. I wanted to be sure you haven’t gone too far. Sit, please. This is important.”
Toni sat back down.
Cam coaxed. “Let me help you. Tell me everything and don’t leave anything out. Please.”
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“Look, I admit the first time I visited the Niles Foundation was out of curiosity about what happened to Jade. That sketch bothered me, but I had no intentions of meeting Olivia. We met and talked. She invited me back. The second time I had an appointment. Olivia knew my name. I wasn’t hiding who I was and she didn’t seem to know my past history with Paul.”
Toni thought about that for a moment. “Or, at least she pretended like she didn’t know. I guess it was weird how Paul just showed up. His phone call afterwards was even weirder.”
Cam stopped scribbling on his legal pad. “So he reached out to you? He broke the no contact order? When and why didn’t you report him?”
“I…I guess because I brought it on myself.”
“Toni, he still violated the order. You should have reported it. What did he say to you? Did he threaten you?”
Toni nodded, “He assumed I was trying to ruin his life. He told me to leave him and Liv alone. Look you can check my phone records, my emails or whatever you need. I have not been harassing him. What proof does he have? Is he even on his meds? He could just be making this stuff up.”
“It’s possible. Believe me, we’re looking into his claims. In the mean time, you should lay low and avoid all contact. Is there anything else I should know?”
Toni blew out a breath. “I don’t know if it matters, but I saw Jade again today.”
Cam stared, “Why did you see Jade?”
“I didn’t seek her out.”
Cam shook his head. “You just happened to run into her?”
“I met Carol Landers today to discuss managing my social media. I had no idea Jade was her cousin. I didn’t ask for any of this.”
“I know. I’m just concerned about you. You’re like a magnet for trouble lately. At some point, you got to stop.”
“You just accused me of harassing the man who assaulted me.” Toni held up her hands before Cam could protest. “I think I have had enough of all of this myself.”
Cam sighed. “So Jade is Carol’s cousin. Does she have access to accounts?”
Toni nodded. “Olivia mentioned she trusted Carol with her foundation and personal accounts. Just makes me wonder more about Jade. I’m sorry. I know we were talking about me stopping with my unofficial investigation, but the woman was acting strange.”