by Claire Adams
I watched the clock closely and when it hit nine, I hurried off to one of the empty conference rooms and called Carlos. My hand was shaking as I held the card he had given me in my hand and tried to remember everything I was supposed to tell him. This was it: it was my time to shine. I felt ready to give it my all and I knew just what I was going to say.
Once I finished telling Carlos my part of things, he was going to go to Rose and try to convince her he found a new legal paper. Or something like that; I wasn’t positive on the rest of the plan, only on what I was supposed to do.
“Hello, this is Delilah Hunter. You asked me about Brandon Baker the other day,” I said as I tried to control the fear in my voice.
My hands continued to shake, and I felt like I couldn’t get a full breath in as the nerves took a hold of me. I was really glad I could talk to Carlos on the phone and didn’t have to be right in front of him. It would have been impossible to convince him what I was saying was the truth if he could see just how nervous I was.
“Oh, yes. How can I help you?”
“Um, I remembered something about the stocks he was buying. I was watching the news and saw that TM Entertainment just went public. Brandon was buying a lot of shares of that; I think he might even own the company.”
“Oh, really? Well, that is totally illegal if he was doing that before the company went public. I’m going to come down to your office, so we can talk about it.”
“No, it’s okay. That’s all I know.”
I didn’t want Carlos coming to my office. The whole reason I’d agreed to help out was because I could do it over the phone instead of having to see him in person. He sounded very dangerous, and I certainly didn’t want to be in a room alone with him. I couldn’t let him come to my office.
“I’ll be there shortly and you can tell me what you know. I prefer to do my investigations and questioning in person. It’s easier to tell if someone is telling me the truth.”
Carlos hung up, and I started to freak out. We hadn’t planned on him coming to my office. I was simply supposed to make him think there was more money out there and that Brandon might have actually been committing fraud.
I felt my chest compress as I tried to catch my breath and couldn’t get my lungs to fill up. Carlos was going to come to my work, and he would see that I was lying to him. He’d hurt me for sure, or he’d have his brother hurt me. My head felt light and I thought I might pass out from the lack of oxygen.
My hands shook as I dialed Brandon’s number. It felt like I couldn’t break as the panic rushed through me and I sat down to try and focus myself. My fingers continued to tremble and the room felt smaller and smaller as I waited for him to answer the phone.
“He… um… he says he’s coming here,” I said as tears took over and the adrenaline made my whole body shake.
I didn’t want to cry. I really was trying to be brave, but the emotion of the whole situation had taken over and I couldn’t control myself. This wasn’t how things were supposed to have happened. I had controlled my fear to make the phone call, but there was no way I could keep my fear in check with Carlos standing right in front of me. I was doomed and I knew it.
“I’ve got you on speaker here,” Brandon said and I could hear everyone in the background. “What do you guys think?”
“He probably just wants to see what else she knows, but we should have someone there to keep an eye on her,” Billy said. “Guys like him think they know what they are doing, but he doesn’t. She should be able to tell him the same story, and he’ll take it and run with it.”
“What happened with getting the police evolved?” Dick asked.
“I’ve got a buddy who’s on the force; he’s working on it,” Billy added. “I think he’ll get someone on the case, it is just going to take him some time.
“Okay, Delilah, listen to me. You keep him out in the main area. You tell him exactly what we talked about and that it’s all you know. I’m going to send a security guard over to keep observe. When is Carlos coming?”
“He said he’s coming right over.”
“Okay, just a second. I’m going to make a call,” Brandon said and I heard him dial someone else on a cell phone. “Joseph? Hey, this is Brandon. Yeah, I need that private security we talked about. Can you send someone over to the Dating the Rich office right away? Great, I’ll tell her to expect you. Thanks again, brother.”
My heart raced as I looked out the conference room in fear that Carlos would already be there. If he knew we were trying to set him up, there was nothing I could do to stay safe. This whole thing was so dangerous and I had already agreed to put myself right in the middle of it all.
“What’s going on?” I said as I tried to calm myself.
“Remember the head of the security company that was at my house the night we came home from the theater?”
“Yes. Well, I think so.”
I did remember the security guard. I remembered him and Brandon going into the house while I stayed outside waiting for them. It had only been a few days before, but it seemed like it had been weeks, or even months since that night.
“His name is Joseph Rigs and he’s coming to you right now. Put him in a cubicle and let him pretend to work there so he is right by you when Carlos arrives. Okay?”
“Um, yes.”
“Call me when Carlos leaves.”
“Okay, but what if something happens?”
“Delilah, listen to me,” Brandon said calmly. “Nothing is going to happen. Just tell him the same thing you said over the phone. He just wants to see your eyes when you say it. Use your acting skills.”
“Okay, I’m going to go now. I’ll call you when it’s over.”
I had barely been able to hide my nervousness as I talked to Carlos over the phone. How on earth was I going to hide it when he was there in person? I closed my eyes and took a couple deep breaths as I tried to calm down.
This had to go off without a hitch. The whole rest of the plan only worked if I was able to convince Carlos that Brandon was actually doing illegal trading. If Carlos thought he could use the illegal trading as leverage, he would go after even more money. The guys would be able to tape him as he blackmailed Brandon, and hopefully, we’d be able to get that information to the police to use against Carlos.
Everything in the plan worked together, so I had to do my part.
“You’ve got this, Del. You’re a kick-ass actress. You survived losing your husband. You can deal with this,” I told myself as I felt my body calming.
“Del, someone is out here for you,” Mattie said as she peeked into the conference room. “He says his name is Joseph Rigs.”
“Oh, yeah! Yes. Okay, I’m coming. Can he sit in your desk for a minute?”
“What? Why?”
“Just trust me. Okay? I need him to sit there.”
“Fine by me,” she said. “Have him do some of my work while he’s there, too.”
I quickly met with Joseph and got him sitting in Mattie’s spot. He had on some collared shirt and slacks and looked a little more dressed up than the others around us, but it would have to do for the time being.
“Thanks for coming. You can sit here. That’s my desk there. Last time when Carlos came, they just brought him straight up. I think that will happen again.”
“Sounds good. I’m ready,” he said. “I won’t let anything happen to you.”
“Thank you.”
I closed my eyes and tried to keep myself calm as I waited for Carlos to arrive. My thoughts went to Connor and how I had pretended to be calm after my husband’s death. I had used my acting skills back then and I’d use them again now.
When Spencer passed away, it felt like I wouldn’t be able to move, let alone actually take care of my child. Yet I found the strength. I fought to be there for my son and to give him a stable life that wasn’t filled with fear. It hadn’t been easy, and this wasn’t going to be easy, either.
I was terrified. My stomach churned with the unknown
of what was going to happen when Carlos arrived, but I was going to be strong. I was going to do my part to make sure this man was caught.
It was only ten minutes before Carlos was there standing right behind me. Somehow he had managed to get into the building and onto my floor without the supervision of Robert or anyone else.
“Miss Hunter,” he said, and I turned around calmly.
“Oh, hello. Like I said on the phone, that’s all I know. You really didn’t need to come down.”
“Could we go somewhere private and talk?”
I glanced at Joseph, who shook his head no. Although, I already knew I couldn’t go anywhere alone with Carlos. That would be way too dangerous.
“We can talk here. What else do you need?” I asked as I smiled at him.
I let my fingers play with my hair and tried my best to flirt through my eyes. Men were fairly predictable creatures and soon, Carlos was sitting on my desk with his leg touching mine.
“Honey, you said that Mr. Baker purchased stock for a company that just went public. How do you know this?”
“Oh, yeah. Okay, so I was naked. You know, after we had been together,” I said with a huge cheesy smile. “And, he was at his computer. I saw the name of the company on the screen and he was buying a lot of stock. I’m sorry I forgot to tell you earlier, but when I saw the news story, I totally remembered.”
“Okay, I appreciate your help.”
“Oh, you’re so sweet. You know, I can’t believe I fell for such a liar. I should have found a nice, strong man like yourself,” I said as I placed my hand on his bicep. “Wow, you really work out.”
“Yeah, I do. I’m going to take care of something. Maybe I could call you when this is all over?”
“Yes, I’d like that.”
Carlos leaned in, and I felt his hand squeeze my thigh. His lips were only inches away from my ear and his breath made my whole body sick.
“I’d like to have a hot night in bed with you.”
It took every last bit of my energy not to vomit as I tried to stay still. I managed a sweet smile as he walked away. I waited until he had entered the elevator before I started to shake.
“You did good,” Joseph said. “He bought it.”
“I think I’m going to throw up.”
Chapter Twenty-Two
Brandon
“Rose, are you ready?” I said as I got her on the phone. “Delilah told him the story. He’s going to come to you soon, I think.”
“I’m at home. I’m ready. I’ll call you when I see him.”
“Be careful.”
“I can handle it.”
It was nearly three hours before we heard back from Rose and we were all freaking out. Delilah had come to Dick’s office to wait with the rest of us as we sat hoping for Rose to call us back.
“He said he found information that you’ve lied and have a lot more money than you said. He told me to come to you and threaten you so you’d sign the papers. What do you want me to do?”
We were ready for this. This was what we hoped would happen, but Carlos wasn’t going to be ready for what we had coming. He was about to go down.
“Call me with him in the room.”
“Okay,” Rose replied without questioning the plan. “I’ll call you back.”
It was about fifteen minutes before Rose called back and I answered. The plan was going exactly as we had hoped. Well, except for Carlos going to Del’s office – but other than that, we were on track and I felt like Carlos was putty in our hands.
“Hey, Brandon, I really need you to sign this form,” Rose said firmly. “We were together for a long time and you know that you can’t lie and trick me like this,” she started to cry.
“Okay, I’ll come over and sign it, you know I hate it when you cry. I didn’t mean to trick you, I must have forgotten,” I said as if Carlos could hear our conversation.
There was no way of knowing if he could hear it or not and I didn’t want to do anything that would jeopardize Rose’s safety.
“Great, I’ll be waiting,” Rose said.
We hung up the phone and turned to the next step in our plan. I needed to get wired up so I could record what was about to happen. Billy had everything we needed and together with Josh, they taped the wire to my chest.
“This is going to hurt like a bitch when you pull it off,” Josh joked.
“Yeah, if I don’t sweat it off first.”
“I’m coming with you,” Delilah said as I got buttoned up and was about to head out the door.
“Um, the hell you are. I’m not putting you in that kind of situation.”
“Hear me out,” she said. “I think you could drag me with you and get angry with Carlos. Tell him you knew he was asking questions about him and you weren’t going to stand for it. He’s not going to back down. He’ll come out with his blackmail right then and there. It’s the perfect opportunity for him to say he will unfreeze your accounts if you just sign the paperwork.”
“Or he’ll shoot all three of us.”
“He’s not going to shoot you. Carlos is a money guy. If he thinks he’s winning, he’s going to take the money and run.”
“She has a good point. Otherwise, if you just show up there, he’s got no reason to come out with his plan. If he sees Delilah by your side, he’s going to freak out. He’ll have to admit to the blackmail.”
“Josh, you’re supposed to be on my side.”
“I am on your side, and I think Delilah’s right. We could be stuck in the back and forth with him for weeks if you just go over there and sign the form. No, I like her plan better.”
I had to admit the part of my plan that I had been most worried about was getting Carlos to confess on the tape. If I had Delilah with me, it would freak him out enough that he would put up his biggest offense. He wouldn’t have the time to get his brother there, and left alone with me and the ladies, he was going to try his hardest to keep his secret and still get the money out of me.
“Fine, but I don’t like it,” I grumped as Del and I headed to my vehicle.
“You know I’m a big girl, and I know what I’m doing.”
“Delilah, you’re a mother, and I would hate myself forever if I was a part of anything bad happening to you. Please promise me that you will leave if things get dangerous. No matter what. No matter what sort of threat is against my life or Rose; you get out of there if you can.”
She looked reluctant to agree to any such promise, but I had to hear her say she would protect herself. I didn’t think Carlos was going to get violent, but I just had no idea what he would do when things started to get out of control.
“Fine, I agree. But I want the record to note it was a very disgruntled agreement,” she laughed.
“Your record is dually noted.”
“I’m nervous. The second he sees me he’s going to know something is up.”
“Yes, he will. Stay behind me and play it off the best you can for the time being. We want him to be the one to crack first. Just pretend like I’ve brought you there against your will.”
“Okay.”
We walked up to Rose’s door and I knocked firmly. I had to pretend like I was angry, which wasn’t going to be very hard to do because I actually was pretty damn pissed at all the trouble Carlos had caused and the heartache he brought Rose.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” I screamed at Carlos as I pushed past Rose. “You went to my girlfriend’s work and pretended to work for the government?”
I pushed Carlos into the corner and pulled my hand back as if I was going to hit him.
“Brandon, stop it! Carlos didn’t do any such thing. He’s just trying to protect me, and you were trying to trick me out of my share of the money.”
“Rose, you don’t even know what you’re dealing with here. Why don’t you stay out of it?”
“Don’t talk to my woman like that,” Carlos said as he pushed back at me. “You’re the criminal here. You’re the one illegally trading, and
I will turn you in.”
“You don’t know what you’re talking about,” I said as I did my best to pretend to be a little afraid of him. “I’m not doing anything illegal.”
“Oh, so it’s legal for you to buy up stock in a company before it goes public when you actually own the company?”
“What? How do you know?” I asked in what had to of been the worst acting known to man.
“I think you should sign that document that Rose has. Do it and I won’t turn you into the police,” Carlos said as he seemed to gain some confidence in his situation.
“It won’t matter what I sign. My bank accounts are frozen. The government is already investigating me and they will take my money before I could even gift it to Rose.”
We had him exactly where we wanted him. He actually wasn’t as smart as I thought he was since he appeared to believe everything we were saying.
“I might be able to help you with the frozen accounts. You know I work with the federal government. For Rose, I will make this go away if you sign over the ten percent to the company.”
“See, he’s a stand-up guy, unlike you!” Rose said very convincingly.
“So, you know who froze my accounts?” I asked.
“I can’t discuss my job, but I have some information. I could get the accounts unfrozen if you signed over those assets.”
We had him. We had him on tape saying what we needed, but I just wanted a little more evidence to ensure he would go to jail. Solid proof was what I liked to have.
“There was a guy who showed up at my house and threatened me. Do you know who he is? He said he worked for the SEC.”
Carlos seemed to be contemplating what he should answer. All the lies had probably gotten confused in his head, and he didn’t know what would help him get the money or not.
“I know him, yeah. I work with him.”
“He’s not going to hurt me or anything, is he? Because he threatened me.”