“Just some extra filing Dr. Yates has me doing,” I respond, trying to keep my voice casual. He frowns, a shadow passing across his face. A pang shoots through my chest. It feels wrong to withhold the truth from Elliot. I want to tell him what I’m doing, but I don’t know what he and Dr. Yates have between them. I can’t bring it up now, at work, with people coming and going all around us. It’s too risky.
I’ll tell him tonight, after Gracie goes to bed. I’ll tell him everything, from the strange fees to Dr. Yates’ change of heart about me looking through the files. I’m ready now, ready to be completely open with him.
I can explain everything that’s happened, and we can attack this together. I look at Elliot and smile.
“I’ll tell you about it tonight,” I say. “It’s a long story.”
He frowns but nods. “Ok. I can tell you a long story of my own.”
My eyebrows shoot up but I don’t ask him anything further. Maybe he’s ready to open up to me as well. I reach out and stroke his arm, feeling his bicep through his shirt. He sighs and closes his eyes gently. It’s these moments that I love. The intimacy of every touch, and the joy that I get from just being near him.
I know telling him everything will be the right thing to do. I owe it to him. Especially if this is going to be a problem at work, and especially if my debts and problems with Victor have the chance of impacting him. I can’t just think of myself anymore. He has to know.
I wish I could tell him right now, but I can’t. Not with Dr. Yates just down the hall. Elliot sighs again and smiles at me.
“Gracie wants to make you some brownies again. She said you seemed to like them last time and she wanted to thank you for helping her with her lines.”
I smile. “That’s so sweet of her. I can’t wait.”
And just like that I know I’ve made the right decision. I need to be completely honest with him. It’s not just for me or for him, or our relationship. It’s for that little girl that’s special to us both.
Chapter 46 - Elliot
Extra filing? I walk towards my office with a storm of thoughts clouding my mind. What would Stuart have her looking at? The panic is rising in my throat. He knows we got close in San Diego. Does he know how close we’ve gotten over the past few weeks? A few people have made comments to me about my changed mood, and I had that visit from Melodie. I need to be careful. He’s set me up for a fall with the ‘loans’ he gave me years ago. He’s vindictive and I may have just made him angry.
This isn’t good.
I need to figure out what he’s doing before she does. Otherwise who knows what he has planned. He’s bitter enough to want to drive a wedge between us for the simple reason that we’ve found a bit of happiness together.
Just as soon as I’ve realised I have feelings for Emma I’m staring down the barrel of a gun. I can’t lose her, not now, not yet.
I need to come clean to her.
I’ll tell her everything - the money I owed to pay for Chloe’s medical bills, the gambling and how that backfired, and finally Stuart helping me out. Or what I thought was helping me out. I’ll tell her about the conversation I just had with him, and how he’s setting me up to take the fall. I don’t know how deep this goes. If Melodie is pulling the strings, it could be tied back to some very bad people.
From the sounds of it, he’s been using me for much more than a debt that should have been repaid years ago. She has to hear it from me first, before Stuart can poison her mind with ideas about me. He could be telling her anything.
She doesn’t seem to know anything, not yet. But he’s planning something, I know he is. I have to tell her the truth, it’s the only way.
I have to trust her.
The thought of trusting this woman I’ve only just met a month ago makes my stomach feel like a rock. It’s hard to swallow, I feel almost lightheaded. This is my biggest secret, my biggest shame. And now I have to open up to her completely.
She’s met Gracie, and Gracie loved her. I have to let her into my life. I want to let her into my life. In so many ways I already have and it’s been the easiest and most natural thing to do. She’s slipped into our lives and made everything a little bit happier. Gracie’s always been bubbly, but I’ve seen a new side of her. She’s curious and talkative with Emma in a way that she’s never been with me.
I’m realising how much I’ve deprived Gracie by keeping women away. She loves having Emma around, and I can see it’s doing her good. Hearing the two of them talking or practicing Gracie’s lines or laughing together makes me feel happier than I’ve felt in years.
My nervousness and fear of telling her about my past is morphing into something else - something deeper. I want to trust her, I want to tell her. To have someone else to share this burden with would be indescribable.
I’ve made up my mind. Tonight, once Gracie has gone to bed, no matter how hard it is, I’ll tell Emma everything. I have to trust her if she’s going to continue to be part of my life. I lean back in my chair and let out a big sigh. I feel relieved, almost giddy. I’m letting her in. I want her here with me.
Chapter 47 - Emma
It’s 4pm and I’m staring at my spreadsheet in dismay. Dr. Yates was right, there’s a pattern. It’s not the pattern I wanted to see. Every single patient who has had the Aesthetics Management Fee applied to their account was a patient of the same doctor.
Doctor Elliot Davis.
My heart is beating out of my chest as I stare at the screen. It can’t be true. I shuffle through the files one more time. I check and re-check them. Every single one. I sit back in my chair and put my hands to my temples. There’s something going on here.
I don’t know what to think. Is Elliot a crooked, money laundering, tax evading quack?!
The file room that Dr. Yates told me about this morning is full of boxes. I’ve gone through maybe a quarter of them but the pattern is crystal clear. I drop a box off and go to pick up another one when the weight of my discovery hits me. I close the door to the storage room and sit on one of the boxes.
The tears erupt out of my eyes and I struggle to keep my sobs quiet. What does this mean?! How can I trust Elliot now?
The fight that Elliot and Dr. Yates were having had to have been about this. I’m sure Dr. Yates has discovered what Elliot is up to and confronted him about it, and how he’s just looking for more evidence. That is the most logical explanation. He couldn’t outright tell me, he wanted me to discover it on my own.
But somehow I just can’t believe it. I think of the last week, of the last month! I think of how happy I’ve been, how caring and loving Elliot has been towards me and how he is with Gracie. It just doesn’t add up.
One thing keeps niggling at the back of my mind. One missing file that should have been where I filed it originally last week, in the box labeled ‘S.’ Melodie Sanders. Her file is nowhere to be found. Fair enough, I have dozens of boxes to go through still, but why wouldn’t her file be where I put it? Someone has moved it, or hidden it, or gotten rid of it.
Did Elliot move it? I wonder if he’s had access to these files since last week.
I doubt it. The files were gone when we got back. Dr. Yates gave me the key to the file room and told me to give it back to him every time I grab a new box. If he’s this worried about his key, surely he wouldn’t let anyone else in the room?
The doubt I feel towards Elliot is killing me. I just can’t reconcile him being dishonest, a fraud, a thief, with him being a doting father and a generous, caring lover. It just isn’t making sense. Something is not what it seems here, but I can’t put my finger on it.
I sit on the box of files and let my tears dry up.
Think, Emma, think!
What is going on?!
I’ve stumbled into something bigger than me. It goes deeper than just me sorting through files, and now Dr. Yates is using me for something. He wants me to uncover something. He knows about this.
He knows about this.
Did Dr. Yates plan
t these files? Is this a set up?
He’s setting me up to find it. He’s setting Elliot up.
The thought hits me like a lightening bolt. I sit up straighter, panic shooting through my heart like a dagger. I need to warn Elliot! I need to tell him about this!
I jump up and rip open the door to the file room, intending to rush down the hall to Elliot’s office. I need to see him now and tell him everything!
But as the door swings open I almost run into a body, standing in the doorway blocking my way. Startled, I take a step back and look up.
“Dr. Yates! Hi! Sorry I wasn’t expecting you there.”
His eyes narrow and I can’t help but shiver under his gaze.
“Have you found anything?”
“No! I mean, no. Not yet.”
“No? That’s too bad.” He pauses, staring at my face curiously. “I haven’t gotten around to that letter yet for you either. Where were you going so fast anyways?”
“I just… have to pee.”
I cringe. I have to pee?! That’s the best I can come up with? His eyebrow raises slowly but he doesn’t make a move.
He knows I know. He’s dangling my loan letter in front of my face. He wants me to say the words and to point the finger at Elliot. I can’t betray Elliot like this! Not without knowing exactly what’s going on. I just need to talk to him. One conversation and then I’ll decide what to do.
Without taking his eyes off my face he takes a step to the side, letting me pass. I put my head down and take a step to pass him when he clears his throat.
“Emma,” he says, extending his hand. I look at him, confused, and then realise he wants the keys back. I drop them in his hand, making sure that my fingers don’t touch his flesh. I hurry down the hallway towards the bathroom and the hair on the back of my neck stands up as I feel Dr. Yates’ gaze following me.
When I pass Elliot’s office I will myself not to look inside. I know Dr. Yates is watching so I just let my feet carry me past the doorway towards the bathroom. I need to talk to Elliot. I need to warn him.
Chapter 48 - Emma
I can’t go to Elliot’s office now, it’s too risky. Dr. Yates has been keeping his office door open and I see him look up every time I pass. He’ll see me go and talk to him and then who knows how he’ll react. He could turn Elliot in himself. My heart is pounding and my palms are sweaty. I’m counting down the minutes until 5 o’clock, when I’ll rush out the door.
I pull out my phone and look for Elliot’s name. My fingers are trembling as I punch out a text message.
I need to talk to you tonight - it’s important.
It buzzes a few seconds later.
You mentioned that this morning. Is everything OK? I’ll come to your desk.
No! Not at the office. Tonight xx
I wait for a reply but don’t get one. I know he’ll be leaving soon anyways, so I wait to see him appear down the hallway. He steps out of his office and at the same time Dr. Yates steps out of his, as if he was waiting for Elliot to walk out. The two of them walk towards me and I snap my head back towards the front, keeping my eyes glued on my screen.
My heart is pounding. My breath is shallow and ragged and I feel like I’ve just run a marathon. If I could only get him alone, I would warn him right now.
The two men appear near my desk at the same time. Elliot glances at me quizzically but I look away from him towards Dr. Yates. He speaks first, and Elliot keeps walking towards the door. I glance at his back as he walks out. I feel like my heart is breaking and I don’t understand why.
“So, Emma, what have you found out?”
My eyes snap back to Dr. Yates. I’m not showing him my spreadsheet, not yet, but I know he won’t let me leave until he gets something off me. I need to tell him something, give him some sort of hope that I’m getting closer to the information he wants me to find.
“Well, it looks like it was sporadically applied. I haven’t found a pattern yet but it looks like it was in cases where the total cost of procedures was well over thirty thousand dollars.”
He nods. I take a deep breath and keep going. My heart is in my throat. I know I shouldn’t ask this but the words spill out of my mouth before I can reel them back.
“I noticed one file was missing, a patient that came in three times in the past two weeks. Melodie Sanders. Her file wasn’t there.”
Dr. Yates’ face remains impassable. He’s stone still.
“The names doesn’t ring a bell,” he says. Liar, how could anyone forget that woman! I nod at him and shrug.
“Maybe I’ve just missed it,” I answer. He grunts and turns around, walking away. I let out a breath and slump in my chair. I need to get out of here.
I grab my purse and leave the office. I’ll just head home to freshen up and then go to Elliot’s house. I won’t be able to talk to him while Gracie is awake anyways, so I’ll have to wait until later. Might as well go home and get changed out of my work clothes before going over. It’ll give me some time to formulate what I want to say to him. My thoughts are still jumbled and I need to figure out the best way of approaching this.
As I make my way home I think about what I know. I know that at first, Dr. Yates wanted me far away from those files. He didn’t want me to find anything out about this fee, and then he changed his mind and asked me directly to look for it. That means he obviously knows about the fes. All evidence points to Elliot, but I just can’t bring myself to believe that he’s done this. They had an argument last week - it was either Dr. Yates confronting Elliot about the fees or Elliot confronting Dr. Yates about being set up. Which one is it?
I want to trust Elliot but can I? I need Dr. Yates to write me that letter of reference, and he’s refusing to do it until I say Elliot’s name and implicate him in all this. If he has nothing to do with it, why wouldn’t he just turn Elliot in himself? Why use me?
I hop up the steps to my building’s front door and then I pause, looking through my purse for my keys.
Then it all happens too fast.
Someone is grabbing me from behind, my world goes dark. There’s something over my head, a bag or some cloth. I try to scream but a hand clamps down over my mouth. I’m kicking, clawing, fighting for my life but it’s no use. My arms are flailing and I try to kick but strong arms wrap themselves around my body and lift me up off the ground. Pure panic is coursing through my veins and I try to struggle against them. I can’t move, I can hardly breathe, I can’t see.
They’re too strong. I can’t even tell how many men grab me, but I feel their rough hands and smell the stench of their bodies as they lock my hands and legs together and carry me back down my steps. I’m tossed forward into a vehicle and I hear a van door close with finality. I try to scream the one name that’s on my lips, the man I’ve been thinking of all day. Elliot’s name catches in my throat before I can say it and my world goes completely black as I lose consciousness.
Chapter 49 - Elliot
She should be here by now. I check the time again: 6:52pm. She’s not the type to be late. I pick up my phone and dial her number.
It rings and rings until finally going to voicemail. I hang up without leaving a message, putting my phone down with a sigh. Why won’t she answer? I thread of worry wraps around my chest and I wonder if everything is OK. She should have contacted me by now.
Gracie walks into the kitchen and looks at me, putting her hands on her little hips and sticking her chin out.
“Where’s Emma?”
“She’s on her way, kiddo. She should be here soon.”
“I hope she likes the brownies I made her! I put walnuts in them this time. Do you think she’ll like them?”
“I”m sure she will, Gracie. They looks delicious.” I lean down and glance in the oven at the brownies baking. “They’re probably almost ready!”
The two of us open the oven and check the brownies. Gracie looks at them expertly, poking the centre of them with a toothpick. She inspects it as it comes out and then looks
at me, nodding her head once.
“They’re ready,” she pronounces. I grin and grab the oven mitts, taking the hot pan out of the oven.
“They look delicious Gracie! She’s going to love them… If I don’t eat them first!”
Gracie giggles and waves her finger at me. She’s been so much happier with Emma coming over, I can’t help but feel the worry creep up inside me at Emma’s lateness.
I glance at my phone again to see if she’s called or texted. Nothing. My heart sinks a little and I try not to let it show on my face.
“Let’s go watch some TV together while we wait,” I say to Gracie, forcing a smile. I hate being nervous! I hate being open and vulnerable like this. It’s not just me Emma is late for, it’s Gracie. I can’t bear the thought of her becoming attached and then for someone to just walk out on us.
Gracie and I sit together for a while but I can’t settle. I keep checking my phone, and my heart sinks a bit more every time I see it blank.
What is her problem?! Is it so hard to text me to say she’ll be late, or just tell me if she’s not coming?
My worry turns to anger. This isn’t right. I hate being jerked around, being led to believe that she would be here. Doesn’t she understand that Gracie is here too!? It’s not just me, it’s both of us.
She should know that when there’s a kid involved the responsibility multiplies. She can’t just come and go as she pleases without telling us what’s going on. I should never have let her into my life. It’s just a recipe for hurt and disappointment.
Still, I think of the way she looked at me when I left the office. She had something to tell me, it was important. The questions gnawing at my mind are driving me nuts. What was she going to tell me? Was she going to tell me about this filing project? I think of the way Dr. Yates was standing over her when I walked out and my heart turns cold. It must have been something to do with him. He’s been on the war path ever since we got back from San Diego, I know he has it out for me.
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