by Marie Astor
“Ally, calm down, take a seat.” Ron reached for her hand, pulling her down to the couch next to him. “There’s so much we need to discuss.”
“Yes, you’re right. Your parents will be coming down next week.”
“My parents are coming tomorrow morning.”
“Tomorrow morning?” Ally’s eyebrows shot up in surprise. She wasn’t sure she was up to facing Mrs. Graystone’s icy demeanor that soon.
“Yes, Mom and Dad wanted to be here in light of the recent events . . .”
At the sound of Ron’s faltering voice, Ally felt an ominous hollowness in her chest. What was it they called that type of sensation? A foreboding? But then she didn’t believe in such things, and even if she did, there was nothing for her to worry about. Ron was right there by her side, and Mrs. Graystone would just have to take the proverbial stick out of her behind and deal with it.
“They want to be here to support you, Ally,” Ron continued. “We have to be careful about how the news about your father is going to impact our families.”
Ally didn’t care for Ron’s choice of words. “You know my dad is innocent, right?”
“I believe it, Ally, because I’ve had the honor of knowing your dad personally. But most of the world didn’t and most of the world is going to believe what they read in the papers. And the papers aren’t being too kind to your father or Roberts Enterprises just now. So we have to put our heads together.”
“You needn’t worry. My dad’s lawyer is taking care of everything.” Ally knew that Ron had a point, but she couldn’t help feeling defensive. She wanted him to take her side unconditionally, but then blind acquiescence never did anyone any good, did it? She’d better get herself together. Ron was only trying to help.
“Let’s talk about it when Mom and Dad get here tomorrow. Their plane is arriving tomorrow morning. I think that my dad could offer useful insight. He does own one of the leading law firms in the country.”
“All right,” Ally relented.
“That a girl,” Ron murmured. “That’s my Ally,” he added, his soft lips kissing her gently.
“Not now, Ron.” Ally’s first impulse was to push him away; the idea of making love, even if she were making love to her fiancé, under the present circumstances seemed downright wrong. She should be thinking of ways to help her father instead of canoodling with Ron.
“Ally, baby, I missed you so much.” Ron’s hands were making their way down her body, lingering on the sensual spots he knew so well, setting off sparks of desire.
Despite her good intentions, she was suddenly feeling incredibly horny. The last thoughts of resistance vanished as her body overtook her mind. She clung to Ron for dear life, hungry for far more than sexual satisfaction. His nearness was the only stable point in her life as she now knew it. With everything else falling apart, Ron was the only constant in her life. He was her only anchor and she held onto him with all her might for fear of being engulfed by the unknown circumstances she now found herself in.
“Oh, Ally, baby, you were on fire!” Ron panted as he rolled off Ally, sprawling out next to her on the couch. They had never made it to the bedroom. “I love it when you’re horny like that.”
“I guess it’s all the stress.” Ally blushed in spite of herself. She knew it was silly, but she always felt uncomfortable talking about sex. Once the heat of the moment was gone, it made her feel vulnerable and exposed to recount the actions taken during those moments of utter passion and abandon. It was as though she was a different person in those moments, her body taking over her entire being, heedless of modesty and conventions. She had been a late bloomer. Ron was her first man and he taught her everything she knew about sex. In her teen years there were the porn tapes smuggled by her girlfriends, but even then she wouldn’t stay in the room for more than a few minutes and would leave just as the juicy bits appeared on the screen. And once her girlfriends started implementing what they learned from the tapes with their real-life boyfriends, Ally felt like a complete outsider. She wasn’t a prude; she simply felt that making love was too personal a subject to talk about. And even when she finally discovered it for herself with Ron, she still didn’t feel that it was something to be discussed, but rather learned in ways that didn’t require words.
“It will be all right, Ally. I promise. We’ll get through this together.”
Ally shivered, suddenly cold and aware of her naked body. She slid closer to Ron, cradling herself in the nook of his body. If only the two of them could stay like this forever, with the rest of the world shut out forever. But there were so many obligations both of them had to face, so many demands to answer to. “Ron, you don’t think that what happened with my dad will change things between us, do you?”
Ron raised himself up on his elbow. “Ally, listen to me. Nothing will ever change things between us, you hear me? I love you and I will stand behind you no matter what. You do believe me, don’t you?”
“I love you too, Ron.”
“Say that you believe me, Ally.”
“I believe you, Ron.” And she did; she just hoped that Ron would never be forced to renege on his promise to her.
***
When Ally woke up the next morning Ron wasn’t in bed next to her. She remembered him saying that his parents would be flying in today, so she guessed that he had gone to the airport to meet them. Secretly she was glad that he had gone without her. She wasn’t exactly comfortable around her future in-laws under normal circumstances, and she was pretty sure that her father’s name being splattered all over the papers wasn’t going to make things any easier, which brought her thoughts to what really mattered: her father was in trouble and she was lounging around in bed thinking about Ron and his parents. What kind of daughter was she?
Ally sprung out of bed and lunged for her phone, hoping to find news from Uncle Otto. There were tons of emails and text messages from her friends offering condolences and support, but there was no message from Uncle Otto. She checked the clock and frowned; it was almost noon. How could she have slept that late? It had to be all the stress from yesterday, or maybe it was the passionate lovemaking she and Ron had indulged in last night. The latter thought made her face grow hot with guilt: how could she be thinking about sex at a time like this? But then her brain was hardly functioning and her thoughts were all scrambled.
Ally dialed Uncle Otto’s number, hoping to get some clarity. Any news was better than being kept in the dark. Her hopes were dashed as the call went straight to voicemail. Uncle Otto is probably in court, Ally thought. He’ll call me as soon as he has news, and I need to be ready in case there’ll be things for me to do to help in any way. Ally dashed for the shower and took her phone with her in case there might be a call. Her precaution turned out to be unnecessary as the phone remained silent. She got out of the shower and towel-dried her hair. She dressed in a pair of jeans and a knit top and thought about what she should do next. A part of her wanted to head for the airport and board the next flight to New York to be with her father; even standing outside of the jail building (jail! the thought of her father being in jail was surreal) would be better than being so far away and useless. Yet she had promised Uncle Otto to do no such thing, and she knew that was what her father wanted and needed her to do—follow his instructions—and she was going to do just that. All her life Ally had been a good girl, trying so hard to make her father proud. She knew that he loved her very much, but the demands of his work made him a very busy man, unable to spend as much time with her as he would have liked. There was always tomorrow, always the next time. But now the future, which had always seemed so bright and promising, was hanging in the balance.
After forcing herself to eat a breakfast of half a bagel and coffee, Ally decided to try Otto’s phone again. No sooner had she reached for the phone than it began to ring; Otto Bauer’s name was on the caller ID.
“Uncle Otto?” Ally’s voice came out trembling despite her attempts to sound calm.
“Ally,” Uncle Otto
’s voice was unusually grave. “I’m sorry to tell you that your father was denied bail.”
“Denied bail? But how could this have happened? My father is not a criminal. He’s not going to run away! He’s a responsible citizen with an upstanding record.”
“Ally, we have tried all of these arguments, but the judge wouldn’t listen.” There was a pause on the other end of the line. “Ally, there’s something else that you should know. There were additional charges brought against Roberts Enterprises today. Because of the massive failures, Pollux had to shut down five of its plants. Roberts Enterprises is now being sued for all the revenue losses Pollux incurred due to the production shutdown. Because of the interruption there was a hike in the electricity prices and the numbers are very high.”
“How high?” Ally murmured.
“In billions of dollars.” There was a brief pause on the other side of the receiver.
“Is it enough to ruin the company?” Ally’s lips trembled as the chilling words rolled from her lips.
“I truly believe that Roberts Enterprises wasn’t the culprit in all of this, but I felt that it was my duty to tell you, Ally. I think it’s best that you be informed.”
“Thank you for being honest with me, Uncle Otto.”
“Your father is facing some very tough charges, one of which is being a threat to national security.”
“Yes, I saw that in the papers. If bringing efficiency and innovation to the market is a threat to national security then I guess my father does pose a very big threat,” Ally said bitterly.
“You have to remember that Pollux is one of the national electricity suppliers. Causing them to shut down their production is seen as a national threat. Plus, with Pollux shutting down half their plants, there was a hike in electricity prices, and now every one of their customers is jumping on the bandwagon, blaming your father. Several state governors got involved as well.”
Suddenly a scary thought crossed Ally’s mind. What if Uncle Otto wasn’t qualified to handle her father’s legal affairs now that the stakes had been raised so high?
“We’ve got defense lawyers from Warrell & Kroden arguing your father’s case, and it still didn’t sway the judge’s mind to grant your father bail.”
“I didn’t know you hired them.” Warrell & Kroden was in the top tier of criminal defense and litigation law firms, so there was no question of incompetence in Ally’s mind.
“You’ll probably see it in the news soon enough. We wanted to keep it under wraps for now—the less information the press has, the better.”
“Are you sure that it’s not a good idea for me to come to New York? Perhaps I could testify on my father’s behalf? I’m no expert in these matters, but I’ve seen lawyers employ these tactics on TV. Sorry if I sound like an amateur. Just trying to help.”
“I appreciate it, Ally, but your father and I both think that right now it’s best for you to stay out of the spotlight.” There was brief pause on the other end of the line. “Ally, with regards to your trust, the company shares continue to decline, and I now think that it may be prudent to sell some of the positions, just to be on the safe side.”
“Please don’t worry about that, Uncle Otto. I’ll be fine. I’ll be starting my new job soon, and I won’t need an allowance then. Just like you said before, the company stock is only dropping because of the bad news; once my father’s name is cleared the price of the shares will go back up. Besides, I wouldn’t want my father to send a wrong message by starting a sell-off in his daughter’s trust.”
“You’ve got a point there, Ally. I was going to reach out to a broker on a confidential basis, but these days you really can’t trust anyone.”
“That’s right, Uncle Otto. We will weather this storm and be the stronger for it,” Ally said bravely, remembering a quote from some movie or play. At least her voice was no longer quivering, and in her book that was making progress.
“I sure hope so, Ally. I will call you as soon as I have any news.”
“I’ll speak to you soon, Uncle Otto.”
Ally hung up the phone and sat on the couch, hugging her knees. The news about her father being denied bail hit her hard. She felt as though she was stuck in a horrible nightmare. How could her father have gone from one of the most lauded entrepreneurs in the country to a suspected criminal in the blink of an eye? She was shell-shocked, disoriented, and devastated, but she also knew that she couldn’t afford any of these emotions to take over her mind. Her conversation with Uncle Otto had made it clear to her that at the moment there was only one thing she could do to help her father: come to grips with her new reality.
She always found that the best way to remain calm in a tough situation was to make a list of things to do and keep busy. Take it one step at a time, no matter how insignificant and small. Keeping her back very straight, Ally got up from the couch and grabbed a notepad and a pen. There were plenty of things to keep her occupied. She would be moving to Boston in a few weeks’ time and starting a new job.
Ally spent the next half hour making a list of things for her move and a shopping list of the items she would need for her new apartment. She called her future landlord and confirmed that her move-in date was on schedule. And there was a shopping list for her new job: she would need to extend her corporate attire wardrobe beyond the sole interview suit that she currently owned. Now was not the most opportune time in her life to be spending money, so Ally carefully assigned a shopping limit for each segment of her list. By the time her list was done, she was looking at a hefty sum. Suddenly she wasn’t feeling so smug about her saved-up allowance; it would just about cover her expenses for the move, and then there would still be a few weeks to go before her first paycheck. Uncle Otto did say that her allowance would be smaller this month, but she was sure that it would be enough to hold her over. At any rate, she wasn’t going to trouble him about money. Right now she wanted all of Uncle Otto’s attention to be focused on her father’s affairs. Of course if worse came to worse, she could always ask Ron to lend her some money, but she refused to even think about the idea. She was going to do this on her own. Besides, she was sure that it wouldn’t be long before her father’s name would be cleared and things would go back to normal again. Not that she intended to live off her father’s allowance; she was going to make her own way in the world, and she was going to make her father proud.
Just then there was a telephone ring. Ally lunged for her cell phone, hoping it was Uncle Otto again. Instead she was greeted by Ron’s voice.
“Hi, baby, so sorry I had to sneak out on you. My parents were flying in this morning, so I had to pick them up at the airport.”
“I figured as much,” Ally replied. She was still mad at Ron for not waking her up.
“Sorry, I didn’t want to wake you. You looked so peaceful with your head plopped on the pillow and your hair tossed all around your shoulders. Actually”—Ron’s voice grew husky—“sexy is probably a better adjective.”
“Ron!” Ally couldn’t believe that Ron was talking about sex at a time like this, and he hadn’t even asked about her father.
“I’m sorry, Ally. I know you have so much to deal with right now.” There was an awkward pause on the other side of the receiver.
“Dad was denied bail.” It took all of her self-control to keep her voice even.
“I’m so sorry, Ally. I know that everything will work out. You just need to stay strong, okay?”
“Okay.” She wished Ron was with her right now. She really wasn’t as strong as she was pretending to be. “What time are you coming over?”
“About that . . . my parents asked me to take care of a few things for them, so I won’t be able to come over tonight, but I’l1 be there tomorrow. And we’re all having dinner tomorrow—eight o’clock, sharp.”
“Okay,” Ally made it a point to keep the disappointment out of her voice.
“Ally, you know I’m there for you, don’t you?”
You’re not here though, she wanted to
say, but resisted. “I know, Ron. If I need anything I’ll call you. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“See you tomorrow, Ally.”
Chapter 4
At eight o’clock sharp Ally entered the lobby of the Washington Duke Inn and Golf Club, which was where the Graystones were staying. Ron hadn’t been able to pick her up since he’d had to run some errands for his parents. He must’ve had lots of errands to run since Ally hadn’t seen him all day, but she didn’t let it bother her. She knew how much Mrs. Graystone doted on her son, who was the apple of his mother’s eye. In the end it wasn’t a big deal since the hotel was located on the university campus and only a brief walk from Ally’s apartment. She could’ve driven her car, but she chose to walk instead, welcoming the diversion that physical activity brought.
She had spent the entire day waiting for news—any news—about her father, but there was none. To get her mind off things, she had tried to distract herself with moving preparations: she drove to Staples to buy boxes, tape, and rope, and began to pack some of her belongings. Even though she had been able to complete most of the items on her to-do list, she had been unable to get her mind off her father even for a moment. If only she could at least speak to him. After all, it wasn’t as though her father was some hardened criminal; he had to be allowed to at least use the phone.
Ally took a deep breath and approached one of the clerks at the reception desk. “Allyson Roberts to see Mr. and Mrs. Graystone, please. They are expecting me.” Ron had told her to come up to his parents’ suite and that they would go down to dinner from there.
“Just a moment please,” the clerk replied obligingly as he punched in several keystrokes on the keyboard. “I’ll ring them up.”
Ally smoothed her skirt, catching a quick glance of her reflection in the hotel mirror. She was wearing a pale pink silk blouse, black pencil skirt, and black ballet flats. She had little makeup and was free of jewelry with the exception of small pearl studs that adorned her earlobes. Her hair was pulled back in a bun at the nape of her neck. Simple, elegant, and in control—that was the message that she wanted to project, or at least hoped to do so. She only wished she felt as collected on the inside as she looked on the outside.