Love Squared

by A. E. Neal

  Quinn propped her elbows on the table and leaned forward.

  "I know they're watching and listening," she said as she tilted her head towards the mirrored window next to them. "I think I'd like to call a lawyer now, please."

  "One other question before you do that," Cole said as he leaned in closer to Quinn. "Why would you cover for a man who almost got you killed? Do you know how hard it was for me to watch this whole thing go down and there wasn't a goddamn thing I could do to protect you?"

  "If you were really my friend, Nick, Cole or whoever you are, you would have warned me," Quinn spat.

  "I tried to warn you, but you were too caught up in the glamour that surrounded Jaysen that you didn't even notice what was going on behind closed doors."

  "What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

  "It doesn't really matter now, does it?"

  "It does matter. Tell me what happened behind closed doors!" Quinn demanded.

  Frustrated, Cole ran a hand through his hair and sighed. "I would've taken care of you and found you a new apartment, but I didn't even have a chance to. Beckett offered me a hefty amount of money to stay away from you and the only thing I could do was stand there and watch him manipulate you."

  "So, what you're really telling me is, you accepted his offer and the apartments you found were actually Jaysen's doing?" Quinn was furious at the notion that her one and only friend would accept a bribe from the man she thought she was in love with just so he could get more evidence for his case.

  "I've spent half my life trying to get to where I am today and my job doesn't exactly allow for a complicated relationship. I'm still the same person you met in the hallway of our apartment building and everything I've ever told you was the truth. You have to believe that I never intended on lying to you...or hurting you, for that matter."

  "I don't even know who you really are anymore. You've lied to me about everything and you accepted some bullshit bribe. How can I trust that anything you're saying now holds any truth?" she snapped.

  "Because I want to make this right. Yes, I accepted his bribe, but I only did it because I wanted to make sure you were well taken care of."

  "Well taken care of? With blood money?" Quinn laughed. "You never cared about my well being and for our 'relationship', as you so eloquently put it, wasn't complicated. You're the complicated one. I've never opened up to anyone the way I did with you. I thought I could trust you, but you've proven that our friendship meant nothing because you lied and betrayed me!"

  Cole had nothing left to say, it was the second time Quinn tore his heart apart with her words and it hurt to see her so angry with him.

  "Before you go, I'd like to show you something." Cole rose from his seat and urged Quinn to follow him.

  Cole knew he could lose his job over what he was about to show Quinn, but she needed to know the truth about everything he'd been working on over the past seven years.

  He led her down the long, overly lit hallway and into another room.

  "This is our temporary briefing room."

  The back wall was covered with candid pictures of over a dozen men, a few women and at the center of it all was a picture of Jaysen Beckett. Quinn moved closer to get a better look, since she was sure her eyes were playing tricks on her.

  "Why the hell...?" she muttered.

  Will, Tate and a few other men she'd never met, surrounded Jaysen's picture. As she scanned the wall, pictures of Shane, Trenton and a woman she'd never seen before, were connected in another circle adjacent to Jaysen's picture.

  "I've been working on this case for seven years, Quinn. I've lived and breathed it everyday. Jaysen Beckett isn't the charming business man you think he is. He's a murderer, an extortionist and a fraud. He's wanted for the murders of over a dozen men, including Trenton Valentine. His right hand man, Will, is also wanted for murder and while we sort out the bodies the police found in an abandoned warehouse outside of the city, you, Quinn Langley, are wanted for questioning. So, you can call yourself a lawyer or you can just tell me where I can find Beckett. I'll give you fifteen minutes to decide."

  Then the questions began to play in her head like a broken record: How could her entire adult life be one giant lie? How did Jaysen know Trent? Why were they all grouped together on some goddamn wall of murder, destruction, lies and betrayal?

  She wasn't sure if she was just shocked or confused, but without another word, she turned and ran out of the office. She pulled Jaysen's note from her back pocket, wadded it up and tossed it into a trash can as she passed.

  As Quinn's vision began to blur, she stopped running and crumpled to the ground. A full fledged panic attack struck her like lightning and at that moment, it didn't even matter if she died right there in the middle of the Los Angeles Police Department, because her life as she knew it had just come crashing down around her.

  Her breathing constricted and her eyes rolled into the back of her head as she collapsed against the tile floor.

  Chapter 38

  16 Hours Later

  Quinn's eyes fluttered open and as her vision cleared, she realized she was in a hospital bed.

  "Oh, good. You're awake," a nurse said as she approached Quinn. "You gave us all quite the scare. How are you feeling, Miss Langley?"

  Quinn tried to clear her throat to speak, but it was dry and her head was throbbing.

  "Water?" she asked in a hoarse voice.

  The nurse poured her a cup of water and handed it to her. Instead of thanking her, Quinn just nodded and took a sip.

  "Are you hungry? I think I can rustle up some Jell-O."

  Quinn nodded again as the nurse left her room, leaving the door cracked and she heard the voices of two men arguing in the hallway.

  "Cut the bullshit, Davenport. You've had enough time already. That damn girl in there has got you all twisted. You've got your priorities all fucked up. I'm taking over this case. Something I should have done a long time ago!" the man shouted.

  "She is my priority! Give me twenty-four hours. I know I can get her to talk," Cole pleaded.

  "Goddamn it! I've got the director up my ass because of this case and I know how much it means to you, but if you can't get the girl to talk, then you've got nothing."

  "Give me twelve hours. I'll find him, sir. I know I will."

  The man grumbled, then spoke, "Fine. You have twelve hours. Report back to me when you have Beckett in custody."

  "Thank you, sir. I won't let you down."

  Quinn heard the man's footsteps disappear down the hallway and once they were gone, her door opened.

  Cole looked exhausted and frustrated as he rounded Quinn's bed and sat beside her. "How are you feeling?" he asked.

  She cleared her throat and spoke softly, "I'm okay, I think."

  Instinctively, he reached over the railing to take her hand, but she pulled away from him.

  "I collected your things from the hotel," Cole said as he set her briefcase and bag next to her bed.

  "Thank you."

  "I'm so sorry you had to get mixed up in all of this. I wish I could go back to the day I met you and tell you the truth about everything."

  Although she was still furious with him for lying to her, her heart broke for him as she looked into his red-rimmed eyes.

  "I honestly don't know where he is."

  "We've tried tracing his phone, but he hasn't turned it on since yesterday. Do you have any idea where he'd go?"

  Quinn shook her head.

  "What about Will? Does he accompany Beckett everywhere he goes?"

  "Most of the time, but he was with me the past three days." Quinn's eyes filled with tears as she recalled the events that took place over the past few days. "Those men in the warehouse were going to kill me, you know? I know you have evidence that says Jaysen and Will are murderers and bad people, but I know they aren't. Especially not Will. He only did what he had to do to protect me."

  "He's on Beckett's payroll, Quinn. He'd do anything to protect whatever Beckett wa
nted him to, including you. I have to find them, I don't have a choice. I can't just put a stop to an investigation I've been working on for so long."

  "I know. I want to help you find them, but I want answers first."

  "Okay."

  "Where does Trenton fit into this whole thing? Why would Jaysen want him dead?"

  "Are you sure you want to hear this?"

  "Yes. Tell me, please."

  "Your old friend, Shane Dougherty, works for a firm that deals in overseas money laundering. His boss, Tate Grant, was a previous employee of Beckett's and also an old colleague of Croft's. Grant hired Dougherty out of college to take care of his financial transactions and became his junior business partner last year. We know Grant and Beckett had some unfinished business. Grant wanted money from Beckett; money that Jaysen's father promised him before he died, but Beckett put a stop on all the payments and Grant sent his men after him."

  Minus the fact that somehow Shane was part of everything that was happening around her, Quinn already knew where this conversation was going.

  "Tate Grant is dead," she interrupted.

  Cole's eyes widened as he leaned forward in his chair. "How do you know that?"

  "Because I was there the night he was killed. I didn't see how, but I know he's dead."

  Cole scribbled a few notes in the margin of the folder before looking up at Quinn quizzically. "Where did this happen and when?"

  "I told you that I'd give you whatever information you wanted, but first, I need to know how Trenton was involved in all of this."

  Cole ran a hand through his hair and rubbed his temples. "Alright. But we're coming back to this later," he said as he set his pen on the side table and closed the file.

  "That's fair."

  "As you already know, Shane and Trent were friends."

  "Yes. They've known each other since middle school."

  "Well, Trent went solo about a year ago and asked Shane to fund his new album. Of course Shane agreed and loaned him enough to get his album finished. You could say they became business partners and when Trent found out what the company Shane worked for really did, he wanted in. Grant wasn't happy about acquiring a former drug addict, but trusted Shane and cut Trent in for fifteen percent."

  "I still don't understand why Jaysen would want him dead."

  "I'm getting to that, but I just want you to know that I only received the information I'm about to tell you two weeks ago."

  "Okay," she agreed, looking worried.

  "When Beckett met you, he already knew everything about you, including your relationship with Trenton Valentine, so when he was contacted by Dougherty for an investment opportunity, he sent you to meet with him instead of going himself, for fear Dougherty would back out and Grant would show up in his place. Trent just got mixed up with the wrong people, Quinn, and I'm afraid that's why he ended up dead."

  Quinn's mouth hung open as she listened, but didn't want to believe that Jaysen had kept everything her knew about her a secret. She swallowed hard as she tried to wrap her head around it all.

  Cole watched her carefully, knowing she was practically beating herself up inside. "I've been investigating Beckett for years. I know exactly what he's capable of. He wouldn't think twice about killing someone, especially if they hurt you. I know you've been blinded by everything he's done for you, but he's dangerous and manipulative."

  In her heart, Quinn wanted to deny everything Cole had told her, but in the back of her mind, she remembered when she first met Jaysen, he was charming, mysterious and above all, manipulative. Why hadn't she seen the signs before?

  "I want to believe you. It's just hard for me to think Jaysen would..."

  "Kill for you?" Cole asked as he reached for her hand again. Only this time, she didn't pull away from him. Tears welled in her eyes as she thought back over everything Jaysen had done in the short time she knew him.

  She sucked in a breath, wiped her eyes and squared her shoulders. "What's your plan? How do we find him?"

  Chapter 39

  "I can't do this here. He probably has my phone on a GPS tracker. He'll know something is up."

  "I'm not letting you out of my sight. Not after what happened at the police station."

  "Fine. I'll call him from here, but can I have a few minutes alone without you or your team breathing down my neck?"

  Cole begrudgingly stood up and left Quinn in the empty hospital room to make the call.

  Quinn's hands were shaking as she held the phone, staring blankly at the screen. Sure she agreed to help Cole find Jaysen, but deep in the pit of her stomach, she knew she was only setting a trap for him and guilt tore at her.

  After a few quiet moments and an internal pep talk, she dialed Jaysen's number and lifted the phone to her ear. She was almost an actress once, so she knew she could sound convincing, but the question was: how convincing could she actually be once she heard Jaysen's voice on the other end of the line?

  She couldn't believe she agreed to let Cole tap her phone, but she'd seen plenty of movies where all it took was thirty seconds to confirm the location of the cell phone she was calling.

  After several rings, Quinn panicked, wanting to give up altogether, but suddenly a familiar voice answered, "Are you alone?" he asked. Quinn sensed the irritation in his voice.

  "Yes," she replied.

  "Where are you?"

  "Cedar Sinai."

  "What happened? Are you hurt?" the concern in Jaysen's voice caused Quinn's heart to flutter, but she was quickly reminded that he was not to be trusted and she had to stick to Cole's plan.

  "I'm fine. Where are you?"

  The line remained silent for a brief moment and Quinn's heart began to race. Before he could answer her question, she cleared her throat and spoke softly, "Jaysen, you have to get me out of here. I need to come home. Please."

  "I'll make arrangements. We'll talk more when you get back," he said quickly.

  "Thank you."

  "I love you, Quinn. So much so, it hurts not having you by my side right now. It breaks my heart knowing you're in a hospital. I should be there with you, but you understand why I can't."

  She opened her mouth to respond, but by the time she found the right words to the question she had so desperately wanted to ask, the line went dead. She dropped the phone on the cushion beside her as her body began to shake. She was terrified, alone, exhausted and once again, putting herself in harms way.

  The hospital room door swung open again and Cole stood in the doorway with his arms resting against the panels as if he was contemplating his next move.

  "Can I come in?"

  Instead of answering him, she just waved her hand, motioning him to join her. Cole closed the door behind him and sat at the edge of the couch.

  "I know this is hard. If I had any other choice, I wouldn't be asking you to do any of this."

  Quinn's heart broke under the weight of his words.

  "I know. Did you get the trace?" she whispered.

  Cole had heard her entire conversation with Jaysen and it hurt him even more knowing the toll is was taking on Quinn. He had never seen her so shook up, terrified and heart broken during the entire time he'd known her.

  "No. The line was blocked," he lied.

  Cole knew better than to tell her that he knew exactly where Beckett was hiding, since he knew she was torn between making the right decision and following her heart. Would she help him get to Beckett or would he have to watch her walk away once again?

  "I'm sorry," she said.

  Cole slid closer to her, picked up her hand and held it gently in his. The gesture was sweet and Quinn instantly missed the connection they had once shared. She curled up against his side and rested her head in his lap.

  "After everything that's happened, I want to be angry with you...I really want to, but I just can't. I miss you. I miss my best friend."

  Cole could feel the warmth from her tears against his leg and he wrapped his arm around her shoulders, pulling her body clos
er to his.

  "I miss you too, LA," he said as he leaned down to kiss her temple.

  * * *

  "Miss Langley?" the nurse asked. "May I come in?"

  Startled by the woman at the door, Quinn sat up quickly, wiping her cheeks and straightening her t-shirt.

  "Yes, of course."

  "I'm sorry to interrupt, but this just came for you," she said holding a thick white envelope in her hand.

  Quinn rose to her feet and took the envelope. "Thank you."

  "No problem. If there's anything I get for you, please let me know."

  "I appreciate that. Thank you."

  The nurse closed the door behind her, leaving Quinn alone with Cole and the envelope. She held it to the light in an attempt to read the contents before actually opening it.

  "Maybe I should open it," Cole sad rising to his feet with an arm outstretched.

  Quinn shook her head, slid a finger under the flap and pulled out the contents of the envelope. A typed note was clipped to the stack of documents that read:

  Quinn-

  You will find everything you need here to make a safe return home.

  With all my heart,

  Jaysen

  She tucked the note into her back pocket and thumbed through the rest of the documents. A car had been arranged to pick her up at the hospital and take her to the Santa Monica Airport where she would board one of Jaysen's private jets and be on her way back to Denver.

  "You won't be able to come with me. He's sending his private jet to Santa Monica to pick me up."

  "Then I won't let you go," Cole snapped.

  "You have to. If I don't board that plane, all this will have been for nothing."

  Cole knew in the back of his mind she was right, but he also knew Beckett was synonymous for his disappearing acts.

  "If I let you get on that plane, I know I'll never see you again."

  "He wouldn't do that. He promised to get me home. I'll just be out of contact with you for a few hours, but once I land, I'll call you and you'll see...I'll be fine."