Penalty Clause

by Lori Ryan

  “Five?” He countered.

  “Two,” Jill said.

  “Four and a half?” Andrew asked.

  “Half?”

  “Well, that’s how you negotiate. I gotta have something left to throw away after you make your next bid,” Andrew explained.

  “Three. That’s it, mister. Three.” Jill laid her head back down on Andrew’s chest.

  Andrew waited a few beats, letting the swing soothe Jill back to her lazy, relaxed state.

  “Okay. Four,” Andrew said quietly.

  He heard Jill’s soft laugh against his chest. Andrew pulled her tighter and kicked his legs to keep the slow rhythm of the swing going.

  Chapter Thirty-nine

  Chad walked past Jennie’s desk at noon the first day back at work after Christmas. He paused and leaned down so that only Jennie would hear his words.

  “Stay late tonight? We got the go ahead from Jack and Human Resources.”

  Jennie nodded at him and he kept walking.

  ***

  Jennie met Chad in his office at the end of the day. She knocked once and opened the door to his answering grunt.

  “Hey,” Jennie said, tugging the door shut behind her. “Theresa just left. There are a few people left on the other side of the building but everyone over here has left for the day. If you keep watch while I go through her desk, we should be okay.”

  Chad didn’t say anything. He just shut down his computer and stood up, waiting for Jennie to go back through the door to the outer offices.

  Jennie walked over to Theresa’s desk while Chad placed himself in a spot that let him see down the hallway to the rest of the offices but also allowed him to watch Jennie. She quickly began opening desk drawers.

  “Did you get her computer password in case we need it?” Jennie asked quietly. Everyone had their computers password protected, but the tech department kept the passwords on file and all employees knew their computers could be accessed by the company without notice.

  Chad grimaced. “TWESTON.”

  It took Jennie a minute to process that. Ugh. Not good.

  The third drawer Jennie opened got them what they needed. A folder sat underneath the intra-company phone directory. Jennie opened it to scan the contents and gave Chad a nod.

  Jennie shut the drawer, file in hand, and both she and Chad slipped back into his office. Jennie spread out the contents of the folder on Chad’s desk.

  There were several printouts of email messages that supposedly showed communications from Jill to Kelly. The emails showed Jill bragging about getting Andrew to sign a prenuptial agreement, then detailed information about Andrew’s accounts and property he owned.

  “This isn’t Kelly’s email address and I’m willing to bet this isn’t Jill’s either,” Jennie said.

  Chad flipped through the pages of emails. There was an invoice from a private investigator. The invoice was written to Jill Walsh and charged $550 for investigative work regarding Andrew Weston’s personal financial records.

  There were several newspaper clippings that mentioned or featured Andrew. They dated back as far as a year.

  The last item in the folder was a prenuptial agreement between Jill and Andrew. Chad flipped through to the final page of the contract and read the signatures.

  “This looks real. It’s Andrew’s signature, at least. He also told me about the prenup,” Chad said.

  “Then she probably had just come out of Andrew’s office when I saw her that day. This other stuff all looks fake. She’s setting Jill up, I’d guess. Trying to make it look like Jill is after Andrew’s money?” Jennie voiced what they were both thinking.

  “I’ll see if Andrew and Jill can meet us over at Jack’s,” Chad said.

  ***

  Jack and Kelly’s housekeeper, Mrs. Poole showed Jennie and Chad into the living room, where Jack, Kelly, Andrew and Jill waited.

  “I’ll have dinner ready in about thirty minutes,” Mrs. Poole said before leaving the room. She obviously loved to mother everyone whenever she had the chance.

  Chad handed Andrew the folder Jennie had found and Andrew and Jill sat side by side flipping through the contents. Jill gasped when she saw the emails in the folder, but before she could speak, Andrew did.

  “The emails are fakes. I’m guessing the invoice from the private investigator is fake, too. Jill didn’t hire him, but it’s possible Theresa posed as Jill and hired him. The newspaper articles and the prenuptial agreement are real. The prenup was filed in my office,” Andrew said.

  Jill smiled up at him, warmth spreading through her at the realization that he hadn’t questioned the veracity of the materials for even a second. There wasn’t a shred of doubt about her loyalty to him anywhere in his voice. There wasn’t a hint of question in his eyes when he leaned in and kissed her gently.

  “I called Jarrod and asked him to meet us here. He should be here soon,” Chad said as Andrew passed the folder over so Jack could look through. Jarrod Harmon was a friend of Chad’s on the police force. “When we found this, I had to wonder if Theresa might have had something to do with Debbie’s mysterious mugging and Patty’s hit and run.”

  “Oh, My God, do you really think she’d do that?” Jill asked.

  “I’ve seen the way she watches Andrew,” Jennie said. “And I saw the way she looked at you at the holiday party. If given the chance, I think she would have torn you apart, Jill. It was scary.”

  Before Jill could answer, Mrs. Poole showed Jarrod into the living room. The tall, lean man’s face looked grim.

  “I ran a little check on Theresa Sawyer and her car matches the description of the car that hit your employee last month. I was also able to look a little further back in her record than your typical employee background check goes. It was a long time ago, but she does have some charges against her. There were a couple of trespassing charges and a breaking and entering charge. Those are often charges we see on the records of stalkers,” Jarrod said.

  Andrew handed Jarrod the folder. Jarrod flipped through the materials, scanning quickly. His eyebrows went up and he looked at Andrew. “You signed this?” Jarrod asked, indicating the prenup.

  Andrew laughed and Jill’s cheeks flushed. Jarrod was looking at the page with the penalty clause. “It was a tactical decision,” Andrew said with a squeeze of Jill’s hand.

  “Remind me never to hire you to negotiate for me,” Jarrod said while the others laughed.

  The group sobered as Jarrod shut the folder and brought them back around to the business at hand.

  “Based on this, the make and model of Theresa’s car, and the connection of the victims to Andrew and Theresa, I’m going to see if I can get a warrant to search Theresa’s home. I’m not sure it will be enough, but I’ll see what I can do. I’ll call you guys as soon as I know anything,” Jarrod said.

  Dinner was a little quieter than it normally was with so many friends at the table. Kelly and Jennie worked to keep up chatter about wedding dresses, cakes and caterers but there was a layer of tension beneath the surface that everyone seemed to feel. As they helped Mrs. Poole clear away the plates and cleanup, Chad’s phone rang. He left the room to talk for a few minutes, before returning to report to the group.

  “Jarrod convinced a judge to give him a search warrant. Theresa wasn’t around when they executed it. They found a knife that may match the knife used on Debbie and it has some trace blood on it. It’ll take a long time to process through the lab, though. They’re hoping to find her car so they can test for blood on the bumper but so far, Theresa hasn’t turned up,” Chad reported.

  “Anything else?” Andrew asked as he wrapped his arms around Jill in a protective shell.

  “Uh. Yeah.” Chad looked uncomfortable as he glanced at Jill before continuing. “They found a lot of stuff about Andrew. Newspaper clippings. Pictures. Some from around the office and some taken around your condo. A few pictures of you at Nora’s house. There are pictures of Jill, too. A journal with a whole bunch of bizarre ram
blings. Uh, stuff about you and Theresa being made for each other, signs you send to her to let her know you love her even though you have to be with Jill. Weird shit.”

  Andrew was quiet for a minute.

  “I think we should get out of here for the weekend. We can all go up to the cabin. If the police haven’t found Theresa by Monday, we can figure something else out, but let’s just get out of harm’s way for the weekend?” Andrew said.

  “Works for me. Work for you guys?” Chad asked as he looked around the room to nods and murmurs of agreement.

  After making plans to leave the following morning, Jill and Andrew returned to her house for a tense night that provided very little sleep.

  Chapter Forty

  Theresa seethed as she let her car roll to a stop outside her office building. Luckily for her, she’d spotted the police in her apartment last night when she got home. She’d been able to sneak back to her car and leave before they saw her. She wasn’t sure yet if it would be safe for her to go to work, but her doubts were confirmed when she saw the police car in front of the building.

  That fucking slut. What did Andrew’s little whore do now? This had to be linked to her. Andrew would never betray me. Our love is too strong for that. This could only be his fucking whore at work.

  Theresa drove around to the back of the building and entered the parking garage. She drove past Andrew’s reserved parking spot.

  Empty.

  So were the spots reserved for Chad Thompson and Jack Sutton. The cabin. They must have all gone up to the ski cabin together.

  Well, I’ll just go to the ski house, too.

  It was time to take care of the fiancé, Theresa’s way. No more waiting for Andrew to see the bitch for what she was. For all his wonderful qualities, Theresa had to admit, Andrew was a bit weak when it came to whatever hold his little whore had on him. He was weak and blind and, apparently, unable to act on his own. But that was all right. That’s what Andrew had Theresa for. It was why they were so good together. They complemented one another so well. What Andrew couldn’t bring himself to do, Theresa could. For Andrew, she could do it. She would take care of the damn whore.

  ***

  Missy listened to Jake’s voice through the phone but had a hard time believing what he said.

  How could he do this to me after what we’ve shared? I just don’t understand this.

  “You can’t mean that, Jake,” Missy said, pleading with him again.

  “I do mean it, Missy. It’s over. I’m working on getting my marriage back on track. I’m getting back together with Jill,” came Jake’s answer.

  “But, you divorced her, Jake. It’s not like it was just a separation. The divorce is final. You divorced her for me. For us. So we could be together.”

  “I’m sorry, Missy. I made a mistake. You need to understand that. I can’t be with you anymore,” Jake said.

  Missy heard the line go dead and knew Jake had hung up. She just stared at the phone. This conversation hadn’t gone any differently than the last ten times she had called him over the past few weeks. She tried to go on without him and she would do well for a few days, but then she lose her resolve and call again. She knew she needed to keep trying. She had to think about her baby. Their baby.

  Jake had broken things off with her as soon as he found out she was pregnant. She’d been stunned. Numb for weeks.

  Was it really possible he could be so cruel? So brutally cold as to leave her and try to work things out with his ex-wife just when Missy found out she was pregnant with his child? How had she miscalculated so severely? How could she have been so wrong about the kind of person he was? About his love for her?

  Missy slipped her phone in her pocket. She would need to go talk to Jill. If she told Jill about the baby and asked Jill to step aside, to let Missy and Jake be together for the sake of their baby, maybe she could convince Jake to come back to her. To his family.

  Missy drove almost blindly to the address she had for Jill. She had seen the directions written on a notepad in Jake’s office one day. When she asked why he needed Jill’s address, he’d told her he had to take over some paperwork related to the divorce to Jill. Now Missy wondered if he’d been visiting Jill all along.

  Missy parked a block away and walked over. She needed to gather her courage to do this. She knew Jill would see her as a homewrecker. As the mistress. But that wasn’t what Missy was. Not really. She had never intended to fall for Jake. He was just so convincing. Before she knew it, she had fallen in love and there wasn’t any turning back.

  But turn back was what Missy wanted to do now. She stood across from Jill’s house, hands in her pockets watching, thinking, trying to muster up the courage to walk up the driveway and ask Jill to let go of the man Missy loved.

  Chapter Forty-one

  Andrew and Jill arrived minutes behind Chad, Jennie, Jack and Kelly. They piled out of their cars and began to unload luggage and dogs. Jill let Rev and Zoe out of their crates in the back of Jill’s SUV and Jennie sprang Zeke from the back of Jack’s vehicle. They all laughed as the dogs raced in circles, burning off energy after the long road trip.

  As he always did, Chad took Jennie’s bag along with his and carried it into the house. After everyone settled into their rooms, Chad, Jennie, Jack, and Kelly decided to get in a half-day of skiing.

  Andrew pulled Jill onto his arms. “We’ll stay here and snuggle. I’m beat.”

  Jack and Chad gave him equally lecherous smiles. “Sure, you stay here and rest,” Jack said and the others walked out the door.

  In all honesty, Andrew was exhausted. He had spent half the night awake. Worrying. Watching Jill sleep. Wondering how he would survive if anything happened to her. Jarrod texted this morning to let him know that Theresa hadn’t shown up for work today. She was now officially in the wind.

  Andrew was pretty sure Theresa didn’t know about the ski cabin but he didn’t want to chance leaving Jill there alone while he went skiing. He knew Jill would normally go out on her snowshoes and look for wildlife to photograph, but he hoped he could keep her inside.

  They settled on the couch in front of the fire, her soft, warm body wrapped up in his. She fit in his arms in a way no one else had. Andrew tucked Jill’s head under his chin and held her tight.

  “You okay?” Jill said. She was idly tracing a path up his arm and back down with her fingers, the soft rhythm of it almost putting Andrew in a trance.

  “Hmm. Just tired. I’ll be glad when this is over so I can relax.”

  Jill continued the soothing stroke up and down Andrew’s arms as, despite his best intentions, he fell asleep in front of the fire.

  ***

  Jill heard Andrew’s breathing become soft and steady – the steady breathing of sleep. She carefully lifted Andrew’s arm off of her stomach and slid out from under him. Ouch! Her legs had gone to sleep and Jill gritted her teeth as the pins and needles hit.

  Shaking her legs out, Jill wandered to the kitchen to see what supplies were left from the last trip. They always had plenty of canned goods on hand and there was beer and wine in the fridge. Nothing fresh, though. They should have stopped on the way to stock up on food for the weekend.

  Looking at Andrew asleep on the couch, Jill debated going to get groceries. Even though they didn’t think Theresa knew about the cabin, Jill figured it was better to wait for Andrew to wake up so they could go together.

  She sat down and read a few chapters of a book and then worked for a bit on her laptop, cataloguing pictures for her website. She was interrupted by the quiet buzz of Andrew’s phone vibrating on the kitchen counter. Jill picked it up and looked at the display: Jarrod Harmon.

  “Hi Jarrod,” Jill whispered into the phone. “Andrew’s asleep. It’s Jill.”

  “Hi, Jill. Just wanted to let you know we got Theresa. She was standing outside your house, actually. Just standing there staring at the house. They haven’t found her car yet, and she’s not talking. No ID on her, but she matches the description
: five feet, four inches, brown hair, brown eyes. I’ll confirm ID for sure when I get down to the station but you guys can breathe easier.”

  “Oh, that’s great, Jarrod. Andrew was up all night worrying and he won’t let me out of his sight. I’ll let him know as soon as he wakes up. Do you need us to come back before Monday for anything?” Jill asked, feeling a weight lift from her chest.

  “Nah. You guys are fine. I’ll handle things from this end and get statements from you all on Monday. Tell Andrew to take it easy,” Jarrod said.

  “Thank you, Jarrod,” Jill said and cut the connection.

  She blew out a breath and looked at Andrew. He was still out cold, stretched along the length of the couch. After letting her eyes roam over his body for a few minutes, Jill smiled and turned back to the kitchen.

  “Might as well go get groceries,” she whispered to the dogs. Rev and Zoe began wagging their tails furiously while Jill scribbled a note to Andrew.

  “Uh uh. You guys wait here. I’ll take you out for a hike when I get back.”

  Jill grabbed her purse and slipped out the door, shutting it behind her before the dogs could follow.

  There hadn’t been fresh snow for a few days on the mountain. Although the field around the cabin was still covered in snow, the road was mostly clear. There were a few patchy ice spots, so Jill guided her SUV carefully down the steep road. Jill slowed when she approached the Gunderson’s driveway. It was a long drive that was covered in heavy woods near the end. Because of the trees it was impossible to see if a car was about to turn onto the road.

  After Jill passed the driveway, she saw a small sedan turn onto the road behind her. Although she didn’t recognize the sedan as one of the Gunderson’s cars, Jill didn’t think anything of the other driver’s presence until she saw the car suddenly speed toward her in the rear view mirror.

  Oh, no! They must be hydroplaning.

  It seemed the only explanation for such a sudden burst of speed on an icy road. Then the sedan clipped the rear bumper of Jill’s explorer. Not enough to cause a major accident, but just enough to send Jill sliding a bit. She quickly got control of her vehicle and pulled to a stop. She didn’t want to end up in the shoulder where there was still soft snow. If she did, she’d have trouble getting out of there, so she just nosed her SUV to a halt on the very edge of the road.