by Gina Drayer
Martinis After Dark
Gina Drayer
Contents
Inner Circle
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
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Copyright
Inner Circle
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Chapter One
Over the course of her twenty-five years, Lee O’Brien had made millions of bad choices. And each one came with a consequence. She tried to learn from her mistakes, but it wasn’t always easy. Like now. She couldn’t pinpoint exactly which poor decision had led to her current predicament.
Had it been moving to New York against her parents’ wishes with little more than her master's degree and a dream? Accepting the job at Evans and Kline that was too good to be true? Or maybe it was when she’d quit and turned over evidence to the DA’s office?
None of those decisions had ended as she expected, but they weren’t the cause of her current trouble. No, it was definitely the day she’d fallen into bed with her boss.
Because it was that bad choice that was going to get her killed.
“And you’re sure you locked the door when you left?” Officer Cage asked for the third time. “Maybe you were in a hurry, and it just slipped your mind.”
“Yes. The door was locked, and the lights were turned off when I left,” Lee said as the other officer headed back to the bedroom. “Someone was in my apartment while I was gone. I’m sure of it.”
“But nothing was taken?” he asked, doubt written all over his face.
“As far as I know, nothing was taken. I’m subletting, and most of this stuff isn’t mine,” she said, rubbing her temple. “But things have been moved around. There was a glass left on the counter with the Wall Street Journal from this morning. It’s almost like someone was waiting for me to get home.”
“The bedroom is all clear,” Officer Jones said, joining them in the living room. The portly man smiled reassuringly. Unlike his asshole partner, he was taking this seriously. “I checked all your windows. They’re all locked tight.”
“But no signs of a break-in?” Cage asked.
“Nothing looked out of place,” Jones said, almost apologetically.
Lee shook her head in frustration and took a deep breath to calm her nerves. “I don’t know what to tell you. I wouldn't have called you unless I thought I was in danger. I think it’s my ex-boyfriend.”
“You didn’t mention an ex. Has he made threats against you?” Jones asked. “Has he hurt you before?”
“No,” she said, exhaling. “He’s never threatened me, but he has good reason to want to scare me. I’m testifying against him in a criminal case. Call ADA Granger. I was with her this afternoon.”
Lee handed over the business card the attorney had given her on the day they met. The day her life changed forever. She’d walked into Janet Granger’s office with a sense of purpose, and within a matter of days, her entire life had changed. Lee had gone from a loving girlfriend and hardworking employee to a corporate spy. And now, she was convinced that her ex-boyfriend—ex-boss—was trying to silence her.
“He’s being pretty subtle if he wants to scare you. There’s no proof that someone was even here. You said were out tonight with a friend,” Mr. Hardass said without even looking at the card. “How many drinks would you say you had?”
“One, maybe two. Why does that matter? I wouldn't lie about something like this. Is it so hard to believe that someone broke into my apartment?”
“I don't think that you're lying, Miss O'Brien. I'm just looking for some other explanation. It's very unusual for someone to break in and not take anything.”
“It seems like a pretty good way to scare someone; make them realize they aren’t safe.” She tried to hand over the card one last time. “Just call the DA's office. I’m sure they’d want to know that one of their witnesses is being intimidated.”
“I'll give her a call when we're done here.” Officer Jones took the card and slipped it into his notepad, but somehow she doubted that call would ever be made. “Earlier, you mentioned that you were subletting this apartment for a few months. Do you think the person you’re renting from could have come back early?”
“I doubt it. My friend, Summer, is in Italy with her fiancé for another three months.”
“How well do you know this girl? Is it possible she gave someone a key? Maybe an old boyfriend or a neighbor? Someone who would check in on the apartment while she’s gone?”
It was possible. Summer was one of the few friends she had in New York, but Lee didn’t know her that well. They’d met at the temp agency and would have drinks after work from time to time. Half of New York could have a key to this apartment for all she knew.
And there was always the other alternative. Summer could be working for Christian. She’d worked at Evans and Kline before. And it was convenient that she had planned a trip right before Lee moved out of Christian’s loft.
Was she being paranoid?
Lee looked around the sunny apartment. The walls were covered with photos of Summer and her fiancé. His family was from Italy. It made sense that they’d go visit before the wedding.
Maybe the cops were right, and no one had broken in. She was safe here. Summer had worked at Evans and Kline for only a short time before moving on. It was all her overactive imagination and the martinis she’d had over dinner. The last few months had been stressful. After Christian had been arrested, everything Lee had done for the DA’s office became real. He’d committed real crimes and was involved with real bad guys. And now that he was out on bond, Lee had let her paranoia get the better of her.
“You're probably right,” she said. “It could have been a neighbor. I'll have the super change the locks in the morning.”
Officer Jones dug in his pocket and handed her his card. “You can never be too careful. Call us if you have any more problems.” His eyes were warm and understanding, and Lee thought he was sincere.
She smiled and nodded respectfully as she walked the police to the door, but as soon as they were gone, she tossed his card into the trash. She felt stupid for calling him in the first place. Christian had never been violent. Money was his weapon of choice. If he wanted to hurt her, he wouldn’t break into to her apartment.
And what would have been the point? Sure, she was scared, but even if she decided not to testify, there was enough evidence that Christian was laundering money to put him away for years.
Lee walked around the apartment checking inside the closets, under the bed, and around the windows once again. Satisfied that she was truly alone, she went into the bathroom and turned on the shower.
Janet had assured her that most cases like these ended in a plea. Christian would likely take a deal instead of going to trial. But
if it did go to trial, there was a possibility that she’d be living with this constant anxiety for six months or more. She grabbed a towel from the hall closet and thought about that. Six months of looking over her shoulder. Six months of waiting to see if Christian was going to exact some kind of revenge on her. She didn’t know if she could do it.
Did that make her a bad person?
Christian deserved to be punished for breaking the law, but Lee didn’t know if she could be that woman in the movies that sacrificed everything for justice. She’d already lost so much. She’d lost her home, her friends, and her dream job. And not just that job, but any chance of working in finance again, if the meeting she had gone to tonight was any indication. Not even the manager at the temp company wanted her back. She wasn’t sure how much more she could lose.
Her stomach churned with the realization that Christian didn’t need to get revenge; she’d screwed up her life just fine all on her own.
But there wasn’t much she could do about it now. She’d taken the evidence to the District Attorney of her own free will, and now she had to live with the consequences.
At least she had Summer’s apartment. And it wasn’t a bad place to hide out. The price was right, and it had fantastic water pressure.
Tomorrow, she’d get the locks changed and then she’d feel safer. For now, Lee just needed to relax. A nice hot shower and a good book in bed, and everything would be a little less stressful.
At least, that was the plan. But panic crashed into her with the force of a moving car when she walked back into the steamy bathroom and caught sight of the mirror. Written plain as day in big letters was a message—a threat.
Sorry I missed you, but I’ll be seeing you soon.
She raced back to the trash can and pulled out the card, but hesitated. The police might not believe her. They might think she’d written that message or that it was meant for Summer. But Lee wasn’t a stupid woman. She wasn’t going to wait to see if it was meant for her. Still trembling, she went straight to the bedroom, packed her suitcase, and left.
The moment she walked into the hotel, she was sure she’d done the right thing. The sounds of the lobby surrounded her, almost like a busy street, with people going about their business—meeting colleagues, making deals, having affairs, or just finding a refuge for the night. It provided a degree of anonymity. It felt safer in that lobby than in a locked apartment.
Also, the nicer hotels offered a level of security for their guests. They prided themselves on not giving out the names of guests to anyone, and monitored hallways and alleys with closed circuit television, watching for lurkers and loiterers or those who otherwise didn’t belong.
It was well after midnight before Lee was calm enough to crawl into bed. The safety of the hotel was nice, but it was a temporary solution. She needed to figure out what to do next. Summer’s apartment was out of the question. And staying at a hotel while waiting for a trial wasn’t an option either. She had some savings, but depending on how long the trial dragged on she wasn’t sure they would last.
What she needed was a plan. She’d call Janet in the morning. Maybe she would have some advice or at the very least be able to give her a time frame for the trial. For now, she could spend the weekend at her favorite hotel, and try to pretend everything was normal.
When Lee had gotten the assignment from the temp agency to work at Evans and Kline, she thought it was destiny. It didn’t take long for her work to be noticed. She’d always excelled in school and knew that extra effort was often rewarded. After just three months, they offered her a full-time job reporting directly to Christian Evans. It seemed like everything was falling into place—she had parlayed a temp job into this amazing high-profile position. Overnight, the world lay at her feet.
The position had been her dream job. Fast-paced, challenging. Christian was demanding and didn’t tolerate mistakes. He delegated several small projects to her and let her sink or swim on her own merits. Lee was never one to be afraid of a challenge. So when he threw her in the deep end of the pool, she swam like a fish.
It wasn’t only the job that stimulated her. Lee took to Christian immediately, deciding he was everything she’d dreamed of in a man; good-looking, rich, and smart. She watched with awe at the way he used all of those assets to his advantage in dealing with clients. He could charm, he could reassure, he could cajole. He spoke with an astounding sincerity and conviction. It was no wonder he was building his hedge fund into an empire.
Within a few short months, they developed a close working relationship. Often times, they worked alone on the weekends and well into the night. So, it was little surprise that Christian charmed her off her feet and into his bed.
And it was no secret office fling, either. He didn’t want to hide their relationship. If anything, Christian preferred to flaunt it. He enjoyed having her by his side at both business and social affairs. He introduced her as a coworker and his girlfriend. Girlfriend. The word had made her feel special, as if she had a future with him.
And that was her biggest mistake. She found out much too late the kind of man he really was. Ruthless. Immoral. And perhaps even dangerous.
He hadn’t been looking for a girlfriend, so much as a partner in crime. Literally. Fortunately for Lee, Christian underestimated her. When he brought her in on some of his bigger clients, he’d assumed that sleeping with him meant she wouldn’t ask questions.
But she was too good at her job. It didn’t take long to figure out that a lot of his success was due to illegal activity. He’d been laundering money. For whom, she didn’t want to know. Thinking back, she had to wonder if she hadn’t been having dinner and drinks with mobsters all this time. The parties were always filled with clients that traveled with bodyguards.
Once she figured out what he was doing, she handed over the evidence. The DA knew right away there was a case and asked her to get more proof. It had been a tense couple of months before she’d collected everything they’d asked for. The DA’s office had issued a warrant for Christian’s arrest and subpoenaed his computers. The raid made the evening news. By that time, she’d left his Upper East Side apartment like a person fleeing a disaster zone—with only the items she could carry.
Lee had watched the news, transfixed by the scenes of cops carrying out computers and boxes from the same office where she’d spent the last year working. She’d watched as Christian was led away in handcuffs. The whole scene might have been reassuring if he hadn’t been smiling.
Unable to sleep, Lee went to the window and looked out over the city. Not too long ago, she had been the master of her own destiny, and this, her kingdom. Now, she just felt lost and alone. Hopefully, Janet was right and this case would be settled out of court, because Lee didn’t know how long she could live like this.
Tomorrow she’d make a plan. She’d find some way to move forward.
The next morning she met with Janet at the hotel restaurant. ADA Janet Granger was a plain woman in her forties with a brusque but not unpleasant manner. She didn’t mince words, and that’s what Lee liked about her.
“I think I should leave town,” Lee began. “My parents own a cabin and some property in North Carolina. No one will look for me there.”
“You can’t leave town. You need to testify,” Janet said.
“I thought you said he’d settle out of court?”
“I said that’s how most cases like this end, but there are other factors in play.” Janet placed her cup of coffee back on the table and folded her hands. The hard set of her jaw told Lee she wasn’t going to like what Janet had to say. “I’m hoping to keep this out of open court, but your testimony is the key to our entire case.”
“I don’t know if I can do this anymore,” Lee admitted. “Can’t you get an expert witness to explain the documents?”
“Mr. Evans has a right to confront his accusers. The defense is going to want to verify how the documents were obtained,” Janet said. She took a long drink of her coffee before continuing
, as though the hot liquid would fortify her. “Besides, this has nothing to do with the documents. You’re an eyewitness. The jury is going to need to hear from you.”
“I’m not an eyewitness. I never saw him take money or make any of those transactions.”
“But you were his girlfriend. You attended those parties with his clients. You were in the office when they came in. You are the only one willing to testify who can place Christian Evans in the company of Rafael Del Rossi.”
Lee recognized the name right away. He was one of Christian’s biggest accounts, but as far as she knew, Del Rossi was a legitimate businessman.
“Why does it matter if Rafael Del Rossi came to the office? He runs a security firm. Since when is that illegal?”
“Since they started providing private security and transportation for smugglers,” Janet said without blinking. “The state department has been watching them for years. They could never find any proof that Del Rossi’s company was directly involved. This case might just be their way in.”
“Smuggling? As in drugs?” Lee asked. A cold knot settled in her stomach and she thought she might just lose her breakfast. “I didn’t sign up for this.”
“You came to us,” Janet reminded her.
“With a money laundering case,” she said. Lee closed her eyes, hoping that this was all just a bad dream. “Am I safe? Are they going to come after me?”
“Your name isn’t on any of our motions. Yet. And Christian has been under house arrest,” she said. “Del Rossi isn’t stupid. Coming after you would just raise red flags. You have no reason to be afraid.”
“No reason to be afraid? Someone was in my apartment last night,” Lee practically shouted. A young man sitting at the table next to them turned to stare, and the paranoia returned. She leaned closer to Janet and lowered her voice. “How can you say I’m safe?”
“Your name has stayed out of it. For now, you’re just an anonymous source. Christian hasn’t left his house since he made bail. And we’ve been monitoring his phone calls and computer activity. He hasn’t mentioned your name once.”