Vantage Point (The Point Series Book 2)

by Georgia Hamilton

  “Enough about that, finish filling me in” Trent interrupts my thoughts, probably not a bad thing

  “The problem is, that contract I signed, means for the sake of my company all rights to the videos reman the property of Martin. His house. His cameras. His footage. He has other angles, now I am a public figure he can sell them to the highest bidder which will no doubt have them on some free access site, he wants £3m in cash by Wednesday otherwise he releases the footage”

  I cry so hard. There is no slowing it down. I can’t imagine my parents faces when they see this, when they know what I have done. What my brothers will do. They will probably disown me, I would. The shame you have brought on your family, all for what? A company that you’re going to lose anyway because they will use this as leverage to take everything from me.

  I can’t hear Trent over the ringing in my ears. I want to go to sleep. I want to sleep and never wake up again. I send up a silent prayer, asking God to take the me to him, take me away from this. I haven’t got the strength to do it myself.

  Ma Rose is trying to calm me down, I think I must be hysterical, I have 2 days until the deadline but we all know that I am going to lose everything anyway. There is no point in going on. Ma takes me upstairs to Raynes old bedroom. She holds me for a while until I can only assume the tears put me to sleep.

  Guy

  The visit was cancelled on Monday. Nothing more than an email saying There was not enough to substantiate the claims and therefore they would not be attending. Thankfully I was able to consume my day with clients and meetings. I avoided my personal phone and social media as the storm surrounding Millicent was still brewing.

  I am in early on Tuesday, I want to get a head start on my day. I called Leilani when I woke up, decided to be the bigger person. Truth is I miss her. I want her smart wit making me laugh, her gorgeous face making me melt. I miss her, I miss us. I realised last night that since Trent’s Party this is the longest we haven’t spoken – she is my most successful relationship. Was. She didn’t answer.

  I called her office this morning, she is another early riser. She wasn’t at her desk and her phone is still sending me to voicemail. I checked on her WhatsApp and I can still message her, so she hasn’t blocked me. I make a mental note to call her later.

  My direct dial starts to ring, for a nano second, I think it’s her “Guy speaking”

  “Morning Guy, It’s Trent. Listen I need to see you.”

  “Of course, Meet here or somewhere else?”

  “Meet me at my house, are you free around 3pm”

  I flick through the diary. I am full all day but I know it must be important. “That’s fine, I will be there”

  I click him off and dial Jill’s extension

  “Jill, clear my diary after lunch please I have a client meeting off site”

  “Yes Mr. Pearce Morgan”

  “Jill, please call me Guy, I am a mouthful otherwise”

  She gives me a flirty laugh. Note to self, do not flirt with the agency girl, do not flirt with the agency girl.

  I get through the morning without looking up, Malachi and Connors charity is shaping up amazingly well. Raynes mum will get the go ahead for an event sooner rather than later.

  I start to pack away some papers when Jill buzzes straight through – “Your lunchtime appointment Rayne Sinclair is …”

  There isn’t a chance to finish the sentence as a bright and vivacious bundle of curly crazy burst through my door.

  “Rayne come in why don’t you!”

  “Shut it Guy, now we have news big news, news that won’t wait.”

  I watch her stride towards my desk

  “Does Connor see you before you leave the house in the morning?”

  Rayne looks like she’s about to kill a photoshoot or walk in some kind of sexy catwalk.

  She’s wearing a bright pink dress that hugs her at her knees and every curve from her neck down. She’s wearing the world most ridiculous heels, there are butterflies coming out the back, her hair is wilder than normal, she’s got to use her glasses to keep it off her face.

  “I will take that as a compliment! Thanks to you the bloody cameras are everywhere, took me an age to get ready this morning. Anyway this is not about my fashion sense, or your lack of. We have got the injunction on Millicent’s social media. All accounts that have tagged your fake profile in a picture or comment have been removed. Although it is not illegal to set up accounts in other names you are not allowed to pose as someone else which we strongly believe she has. The O’Sullivans have been great. Her father had asked that we not ridicule her in public by calling her a liar, however I have just found out that she called the paparazzi on Saturday. Our statement, which to date had been “Family friends, no relationship, misconstrued” will be amended and I am doing a joint statement for you both. Millicent is has officially signed up as my client, her mother’s insistence so I can clear her name and put her in a good light. Shame Big Brother is finishing! She’d be TV Gold!”

  I take in everything Rayne says

  “You know she rocked up on Friday to the Bridge opening don’t you? Did she know I was going to be there? Is that why she faked being my girlfriend” I am about to explode all over again “Did she fucking follow me to the gym?”

  “She admitted she was dressed driving around town, the paps on standby , hoping to bump into you. I guess finding you at the gym was potluck”

  I cannot believe what she’s saying.

  “Hold on! That makes her a fucking stalker doesn’t it? Can’t I get an injunction out on her? I don’t want her within 100 feet of me”

  Rayne rolls her eyes. “No because she hasn’t threatened your life”

  “She fucking has, she snivels anywhere near me and I will get sucked up in a vortex”

  Rayne slaps my shoulder.

  “Be nice Guy. She’s got quite a male fan base now. Wait until she’s had a Rayne make over, you’ll be begging her for a date”

  “Yeah, I think I’ll pass.” I want to vomit

  Rayne’s phone rings and Connors face flashed across my desk. “Hey Love” she answers. “Just with Guy. Yes. Tomorrow. At my office, less paps” she winks at me as she says it. “Me, you, Guy, Malachi, Leilani. No I still haven’t heard from her. I guess she was sleeping when I went by. Ethan said she was ill on Sunday too. Yes if you can. I will swing by after I finish here. Love you too”

  That’s all I hear. Alarm bells ring. Leilani is not the kind of person to go missing in action. Ethan hasn’t heard from her and neither have I. I can’t say anything to Rayne because it’s complicated enough as it is, I don’t even know if she’s talking to me. I just want to know she’s ok

  “Everything ok?”

  I ask whilst absentmindedly tapping my pen on my notepad.

  She wrinkles her face

  “Not sure. Haven’t seen Leilani since Saturday. She seemed ok, but I had to wake her up because she’d slept in, then Ethan said she was ill on Sunday and didn’t make it to family dinner, she left work early yesterday and told the office she was sick again today. Ethan says his mum thinks she’s pregnant” Rayne shoots me a look. “I’d like to think she’d tell me if she was. I think I would combust if she was. She is going to make beautiful babies”

  My heart skips as she says it. A baby? That would make me a dad. It doesn’t scare me, it excites me, A family of our own.

  Rayne clicks her fingers in my face. And I jump out of my thoughts.

  “Still with me then? Thought I’d lost you”

  “No just sidetracked by my meeting later. I need to head out, do you need a lift anywhere?”

  “Nope. Connor is insisting I drive the beast everywhere, not allowed to do public transport anymore”

  We’re interrupted by Jill knocking on my office door

  “Yes”

  “Sorry to interrupt Guy, I have someone from the SAR here to see you, I have put him in the meeting room ”

  Panic, dread and anxiety all create a c
ocktail inside me. Damn it.

  “I will be right there”

  Rayne looks nervously at me, I shrug my shoulders, whatever he wants, I wont know until I get in there

  “Go on, go see what’s happened and let me know if I can do anything”

  It’s a quick kiss on the cheek and she’s off.

  I make my way to our boardroom, I know they cancelled the meeting yesterday but having member of SAR just rock up to my office scares me. I open the door and am met by an unassuming man in a charcoal suit, a badly fitted charcoal suit.

  He introduces himself and launches into his speech

  “This is completely unprofessional, and I am risking a fair amount by having this conversation with you, but you ought to know. The call we had in regard to the complaint although anonymous, I believe the motive was to lessen your stock value. I wouldn’t be surprised if you received an offer to sell or merge. You’re spearheading a fantastic operation here Mr. Pearce Morgan, people will want your scalp. Trent Fitzgerald is a good friend of mine, we have had words and I have cancelled any intended investigation into you.”

  I stand up to shake his hand.

  “I am grateful for your honesty, thank you for your comments, we are proud of what we have achieved. I don’t know that we are that desirable a firm for someone I go to such lengths, but I am sure time will tell.”

  “Indeed it will. The sharks are circling, remember I told you that. You on your own are worth more than this entire company. If someone can’t tempt you to leave they will do what they can to control you. Be careful. Make wise decision and trust your instinct. Be warned that sometimes family are more dangerous than strangers. I have said enough. Good day.”

  With that he leaves. The sharks are circling. Interesting point. I haven’t received any formal offers from any company. Except Willie of course. Family. Shit.

  “Of course!”

  I call my father’s office and he is out for the day. Convenient. This just his style. Loyalty means shit. He wants the deal, but to have the deal he needs me. During our negotiations I know they approached his firm too. Well well well. Father dearest.

  3pm is here faster than I anticipate, I crunch my way up Trent’s drive. Considering he lives in London his driveway must be half a mile long. I pull up to side, there’s another entrance to the house by his office,

  I knock on the side door, and hear him tell me to come in.

  He’s on the phone,

  “Yes, it’s time, I think she will need your support more than anything else. I didn’t think it was my place to say anything. It was very difficult, but you really must speak to her. She’s tenacious and her spirit is fairly broken. Of course. I know you would afford me the same. Although Rayne may not be biologically mine, but I will fight for her as though she was. Please update me when you can”

  He hangs up the phone.

  Is Rayne in trouble? I want to pry, I hope her father isn’t back causing trouble, she’s handled everything so well, I am not sure she can take another knock.

  “Everything ok?”

  I have to ask, because it’s in my nature.

  “It will be. Sometimes Guy, people put you in situations that can conflict you. You know what’s right but that’s not always the best way, you know?”

  I don’t, but he’s being cryptic. I nod.

  He moves some pieces of paper off his desk and his computer screen comes to life. It’s a paused video. A pornographic video.

  He realises that I have seen the screen.

  “I am working on something for someone, a friend. They inadvertently made a video a few years ago and it’s come back to haunt them”

  “How can you inadvertently make a porno? Did they not know they were being filmed?”

  “Not initially no, it’s rather complex, they signed over the rights to the videos and I need to find a way out of it. Anyway that’s not what I wanted to see you about”

  “Fair enough. Although if they signed over the rights there is nothing you can do, that video will be around forever and it’s something she will have to deal with. How can you be so stupid though? Signing over something so personal? “

  Trent silenced me with a glance.

  “Sorry”

  I hear Rose in the kitchen next to the study. Then the front door closes. She must be in a hurry as she always stops to say hello.

  “I had a call from a friend of mine. I believe he spoke to you this morning”

  “Yes. Glad it is all over. What do you know about his theory?”

  “I know of no theory. We deal with facts Guy and the facts are that you are a scalp. I cannot be sure as, obviously I am privy to the same information as you, however If you have checked the files that I gave you, you are smart enough to draw your own conclusions . There is no more that I can do now it is up to you”

  I get the feeling I am being dismissed

  “Are you not going to say anymore?”

  “No son. It’s up to you now.”

  “Ok. Well Thank you?”

  “Anytime. See you soon Guy”

  I go back to my car. I grab the file from my case and cast my eye over it again. There are details of a merger, dated just before Trent retired. There are some stipulations that look fairly straight forward. So there has been further interest to merge.

  I flick through some of the other pages, things I missed when I got caught up with the Leilani company details, there is a fitness and proper test attached. It looks like Trent had some private work done on the company interested.

  How did I miss this before?

  Leilani

  “How could she be so stupid?” “Well she will have to deal with the consequences”

  “Who signs over the rights”

  I hear Guys voice over and over in my head. I can’t believe Trent told him. The disgust in Guys voice devastated me.

  I only went back into the house to get my phone. I didn’t know Guy was at the house. I didn’t intend to listen in but I recognised his voice. I mistakenly thought he might have come to see me. For the first time in a few days I had hope. He dashed it with those few words.

  Rose is taking me home, I need to work out how I face my parents tomorrow. The deadline is Thursday. Trent said to leave it with him and I did trust him until he broke my trust speaking to Guy.

  I don’t say a word all the way to my house. I thank Rose and head inside.

  My space. My apartment. My small piece of safe haven feels dark and lifeless. I get changed out of yesterday’s suit and into some leggings, I can’t find a jumper other than Guys. I wish I had never got involved with him. It was supposed to be a fling, but I have been kidding myself for weeks. I feel in love with Guy in Liverpool. Working together we made a great team, playing together we were even better.

  I just need to sleep. My heads spinning with every thought. The voices are getting louder. Guy keeps playing over in my head. My head hurts. I took tablets over 3 hours ago. I take 2 more. I take 2 sleeping pills. I need to sleep. 20 minutes later I am still awake. I don’t know what to do to help me sleep. I pour a whiskey. Why can’t I sleep. I have a bottle of cold medicine in the bathroom. I take a small swig. It burns my throat but it’s working. I am sleepy.

  In reality it was only 20 minutes since I took the Ibuprofen, which was only an hour after Rose gave me two tablets to help my headache. The Whisky I poured was my third or fourth. The sleeping tablets were prescription take one tablet 30 minutes before bed. They don’t know how much of the cold medicine I consumed. Whose they you ask? The doctors. I can hear them talking but my eyes won’t open, and my mouth doesn’t work. My stomach has been pumped and I am tied to a bed with tubes and monitors I guess. I can hear the beep beep

  in the background and I can’t move. My brain isn’t talking to my body.

  “How long before she comes around Malcolm?”

  “Hard to say Chris, just be patient, she will be back with you soon. She is very lucky she got in here when she did. That cocktail could have
done serious damage. From what we can see her organs are all function ok. We can’t asses anything else until she comes around”

  That must be the doctor taking to my brother. Christopher. He’s a surgeon. He doesn’t work in a hospital anymore, but he used to. I wonder which hospital I am in. And whose here?

  It sounds like a door opens or closes. Someone is sitting next to me. They take my hand and start to stroke it.

  “Baby girl, we need you to be really strong and fight through this. We want you to wake up so badly. We miss you Lei.”

  Christopher is talking like I am dead. “Hello? Still here!” I want to say but I can’t get my pesky mouth open.

  “Mum and dad are coming back. They went home to get changed. It’s been a long few days Lei. Mum said she’s brought you some clothes as she reckons you’d have a heart attack if you saw the gown you have been wearing. Your swelling has gone down too. The bump is almost gone”

  Bump? What bump? How many days is a few? I thought I only just got here! And as for the gown, well mother you raised me well.

  The door goes again, I’m getting good at this.

  “How is she?” It’s Alex

  “No change” Christopher sounds so sad. “Malcom is positive, and he is the best. I just want to her to wake up. Two days in a coma is two days too long. She needs to wake up Alex. She has to”

  Christopher’s voice breaks, and I hear him cry for the first time in my life. I want to hold him. Don’t cry over me you big wuss.

  I hear a slapping noise and figure they’re hugging. My brothers. The oldest and the youngest. My rocks.

  “Ahhh. This is not good man. I still don’t know how we got here? How did she end up down here, Leilani doesn’t take any shit and yet she crumbled bro and I wasn’t there to help her. I wasn’t there man. I should have told her before then none of this would have happened”

  Come on Alex! Don’t be like that, you can’t blame yourself. Why are you blaming yourself? Damn us Barros’ really love a pity party, don’t we?