by Robin Mahle
She tousled her springy short locks, pumping them with a little hair spray along the way. Claire rarely played up her looks, although it took little effort to do so. Her mother always stressed the importance of education and professionalism, not sexuality. But that didn’t mean Claire didn’t enjoy the occasional appreciative glances that often fell on her from men. What woman didn’t? But she loathed the eager cravings that sometimes pooled beneath those glances. It was a fine line.
One final spritz of perfume and she tossed her things back into her purse and replaced the pants suit into the garment bag before zipping it back up. This’ll have to do.
She pulled the washroom door open to find herself alone in the office. Her watch now showed 6:45 and Claire wondered where Evan had gone. No sooner had she finished glancing around the room did he appear in the doorway.
“Wow! Look at you!” He scanned her sleek figure tucked inside the slimming black dress. “We’d better get going.”
***
After a successful and quite enjoyable evening, Claire was ready to get home. She’d gotten just the slightest bit tipsy and wanted nothing more than to slip into bed and fall asleep.
The plane was running and the rolling staircase waited in front of the door. The driver opened the passenger door of the Town Car and helped her out. Evan soon followed as they continued to the steps.
“Here you are, ma’am. It was a pleasure meeting you.” The driver handed the garment bag over, but Evan took hold of it before she got the chance.
“I’ll take that for the lady,” he insisted. “Thank you.” His nod suggested it was time for the driver to take his leave.
Evan placed his hand on the small of Claire’s back and helped her up the stairs. “How are you feeling there? All right?” He could tell her ability to hold her liquor wasn’t quite up to par with his.
“I’m fine.” She wasn’t intoxicated by any means, but her steps were slow and deliberate. That could also be explained by the impossibly high shoes with their spiked heel as much as the one glass of wine too many she’d consumed.
“Okay. Just checking.”
The plane was about to taxi down the runway and Claire was settling into her seat. The air outside had already begun to clear her mind a little and now that they were about to take off, she’d felt more like herself.
“Thank you, Evan.” Her measured tone was sincere.
“For what?”
“For giving me this opportunity. You can’t know how much this means to me and my family.”
“You’ve earned it, Claire, and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. You’re an incredibly intelligent and, might I say, very beautiful, woman.” He turned away slyly. “Your husband is a very lucky man.”
Charlie’s words returned to her in a rush. “Watch your back, Claire.”
***
“Come on; what is taking so long?” Lucas checked the time on his phone. “It’s 9:00. I need to get the hell out here.” He knew Jim made his first rounds at ten, making sure everyone was out of the building; janitors and staffers burning the midnight oil and such.
Within minutes, Claire’s office went dark and the figures, obscured in shadow, proceeded towards Lucas at the other end of the hall. A leather-faced man, with a balding head and crooked nose, approached first. “It’s done.”
The men continued past Lucas without further exchanges.
Where the hell did he find these guys? Their bedside manner left little room for Lucas to follow up with any questions. Instead, he trailed behind, joining them in the elevator to the lobby floor.
“Finally finished up there, eh, Lucas?” Jim said from behind his desk as the men emerged. He considered the boy not yet worthy of the respect of addressing him by his last name. That was reserved for those who’d proven their loyalty to the firm.
“Yep. Have a good night, Jim.”
“You too.”
Lucas led the way out and felt a prickly sensation that forced the hairs on the back of his neck to stand on end. Jim’s eyes seemed glued to him, poking their way into Lucas’ thoughts, wondering why he would have been conducting a “client meeting” with the likes of these gentlemen so late and on his own. The uncomfortable feeling forced him to turn back, but all he saw was Jim’s smile; wide and bright. There was something else too.
CHAPTER 8
A COMBINATION OF factors seemed to unite against Claire and her ability to function this morning. Now she was paying the price, forced to take short cuts in her routine in order to get not only herself, but the kids out the door on time. “Come on, honey; it’s almost time to leave. Put your shoes on.”
“I am.” Anna rolled her eyes as she sat on the bottom step, tying her shoes.
“Turn off that TV too, young lady,” Claire said. “Oh my God, I sound like my mother.” It was a revelation she’d have to consider in more depth another time.
“What was that about your mother?” Colin appeared from the foyer, straightening his cuffs and smoothing his hair.
“Oh, nothing. Just talking to myself again. You leaving for work now?”
“I’m going to grab a coffee first.” Colin moved in for a kiss. “You must be exhausted. How was the trip?”
It was past midnight when she finally arrived home last night and hadn’t yet had an opportunity to talk about how successful the trip had been.
“Can you believe Evan rented a private jet for the flight? I can’t begin to tell you how amazing it was.”
Colin reached for a travel mug from the cabinet above Claire, turning his back to her. “Private jet? Wow. You really have made it to the big leagues.”
She glossed over his remarks, imagining a cynical expression on his face. “And the client? Well, he and I hit it off right away. All I had to do was start talking about my dad’s work and he was all ears.” With renewed excitement, her animated gestures almost knocked the travel mug from beneath the carafe as Colin was pouring the coffee.
Colin snatched it just in time to avert a mishap. “It sounds like you impressed the hell out of them.” He quickly secured the lid. “Did you have dinner afterwards? I noticed your black dress draped over the lounge chair in the bedroom.”
“Paul took us to this amazing restaurant inside the Hotel Vitale. Absolutely stunning and breathtaking views of the bay. The food was phenomenal and I had a glass or two of wine, but I was careful not to go overboard.”
“So, you got to travel on a private jet, eat at a great restaurant, and enjoy some wine. Sounds like the trip was a success. Congratulations, Claire.”
Here we go again.
He must have sensed her frustration and dropped his shoulders. “I’m proud of you. I’m sorry, Claire. I guess I’m just a little tired and it was late when I heard you come in. I…” He hesitated, pressing his lips together until they turned white. “I just need to get used to your new life, that’s all. Everything’s happened so quickly. I just need some time to absorb the impact this will have on you and me.”
“Impact? What do you mean?” She really wanted to understand why he was having such difficulty with all of this.
“I know this means you’ll be spending a lot more time at work, traveling on private jets, working late. I just don’t want it to change us, you know?”
It was the familiar look in his eyes—defenseless puppy, she liked to call it—that softened her approach. “This will not change who we are, I promise you that. It’s just going to give us the ability to do things we didn’t think would be possible. I understand this will take some adjustment on your part and mine, but I swear to you, it will all be worth it in the end. You’ll see.”
Anna walked into the kitchen, backpack ready and snatching up her lunch box. “Let’s go, Mom.”
Claire grabbed her purse and keys. “We’ll talk more tonight,” she said, glancing back at Colin.
He shook his head. “Oh wait; did you hear from Beth yet? That Agent Sanchez called here last night. Said he needed to talk to you. I assumed it was about Be
th.”
“No, actually, I haven’t. I tried her a couple of times yesterday, but it kept going to voicemail. I’ll call him back later, after I’ve had a chance to drop by Beth’s house after work…if that’s all right?”
“Yeah, yeah, of course. Go on.” He waved her off. “Bye, Anna! Love you!”
“Love you too, Dad,” she said, already in the garage.
Claire smiled and disappeared behind the door.
***
“So it’s all set up? Have you tested it yet?”
Lucas pulled the phone from his ear, wondering if the guy thought he was an idiot. Of course it was all set up. He hadn’t stayed late last night for his health.
He held it to his ear again and replied, “I can’t test it until she comes in, which should be soon.” But a question remained in the back of his mind. “Listen, what’s going to happen if she suspects something?” It was one thing to hack into someone’s emails, Lucas thought, it was a whole other thing to bug someone’s office. He was pretty sure there was a prison sentence attached to that. Of course, there were others he could hang out to dry if he had to in order to save himself. He had no qualms about that. “I don’t understand why he doesn’t just get rid of her, like with Beth Graves. That seemed to solve our little problem. I feel like now we’re just asking for more trouble.”
“If you have a problem with the way he’s running things, then you need to talk to him about it. But from what I gather, you’re doing pretty well with your cut of the deal. So, unless you wanna end up like Graves, I suggest you do as you’re asked and keep your mouth shut.”
Lucas already had trouble with authority and didn’t like where this conversation was going. He wasn’t one to sit back while some corporate suit barked orders at him. “I’ll let you know when I have something.” Lucas ended the call and walked back inside the building. He was starting to get real uncomfortable with this new development. It was fine to skim from the clients here and there, no one ever taking any notice, until Beth Graves piped up. But that was because they got greedy—and sloppy. They were now taking on a whole new set of risks with absolutely no rewards attached to them.
Determining what, if anything, Claire actually knew and who she was sharing her information with added a layer of danger that Lucas hadn’t expected. He only hoped that Charlie’s gamble would pay off. It was no secret the old guy had a soft spot for her, but if she didn’t bite when it came time to dangle the carrot, there would be bigger problems to solve.
Just as Lucas was about to step into the elevator, Claire jogged over to catch it before it shut. He thought just for a moment to press the close door button, then decided it probably wouldn’t be wise for him to be impolite. So, he held out an arm, propping the doors open.
“Morning, Claire. Welcome back. How was Frisco?” Lucas was sure his hipster slang was outside of Claire’s vernacular. But what he didn’t know was that in no way did anyone who was actually from San Francisco call it Frisco, let alone the hipsters.
Claire fixed a friendly enough smile and stood next to Lucas as they waited for their floor. “It was good—great, actually. Thanks.”
“Cool. Glad to have you back. I think Charlie wants us to meet with him later, go over some of the final handoffs. I hear your last day is Friday, then you’re off to the seventh floor.”
“That’s my understanding. We’ve still got a lot of land to cover before then. So, keep that in mind, if you would.”
The doors opened on their floor, Claire taking immediate action to get out in front.
“I’ll check in with you in about an hour.” She continued to walk a few paces ahead of him, appearing unwilling to listen to the garrulous accounts of the previous day he felt was a necessary part of his job.
“Bye, Claire.” What a bitch. Lucas stepped into his workspace and switched on his computer. Attached to the bottom of his desk was a wireless receiver that would also send a signal to the software on his hard drive. The device would transmit audio recordings obtained by the listening devices in Claire’s office. They’d placed one inside her mouse, one on the back of a picture that hung on the wall behind her desk, and one inside a small desk lamp that sat on the filing cabinet.
Lucas realized they’d have to relocate them when she switched offices on Friday, if in fact that was still the plan. But they had to know what she knew and it couldn’t wait until next week. Charlie suspected she’d been visiting Beth Graves since her departure and needed to know if they were still conversing and to what degree. The plan was to bring her into the fold, but if she pushed back, they’d have to find a way to convince her to play ball.
***
The late-night flight was catching up to Claire. Yesterday had been exhausting and she was struggling to focus on the countless emails downloading into her inbox. Nothing of any real importance so far, but as she sipped her coffee, she noticed an email from Evan Winters. He’d forwarded something to her.
“This is an email I received from Paul Higgins this morning. I thought you might be interested in seeing it.”
‘We appreciated your visit yesterday and would like you to know that we believe Claire McKenna will be a fine addition to your management team and we’re very excited to be working with her. Thank you for taking the time from your busy schedule to personally introduce her to us.’”
Before Claire could revel too much in the accolades, her cell phone vibrated with an incoming text. An unknown caller had flashed on the screen. “We need to talk. Café Chao in fifteen.”
She knew where Café Chao was, but who the hell was ordering her to go there? Someone who obviously didn’t want to be seen talking to her. Was it Beth? Claire started to feel relieved by the possibility that Beth had finally reached out to her. Of course she would go and see her.
Claire grabbed her handbag and hurried towards the lobby. It seemed Lucas had taken notice of her quick pace and she could feel his eyes following her as far as they could reach. She rushed down to the first floor and practically ran to the exit. The café was about a ten-minute walk. It seemed logical that someone who worked in her building would choose such a location, further proving to her that it had to be Beth who sent the text.
In her haste, Claire had forgotten her coat and it was freezing outside. The fog hadn’t lifted enough to allow any of the sun’s rays to warm the concrete network of streets and buildings below. She was grateful it wasn’t raining and could suffer through well enough. Her only thoughts were of Beth and that she was okay.
The café was just ahead a few more feet when a man lunged out from a crevasse between two buildings and stood only inches from her.
“Jesus!” Claire stopped dead in her tracks, her heart suddenly leaping from her chest. It took a minute to register who this man was and that it wasn’t some attacker attempting to pull her into the dark alleyway from which he came. “Oh my God, you scared the shit out of me. What are you doing here? I’m meeting Beth inside.”
“No, you’re not. You’re meeting me. I don’t know if anyone’s monitoring your phone, which was why I sent the text from an unknown number and why we aren’t going inside the café.”
“Agent Sanchez, what’s going on? Is it Beth? I’ve been trying to get a hold of her since Monday night. She hasn’t replied.”
He took Claire by the arm, scanning the area for anyone that might be watching them, and led her to a waiting nondescript sedan further down the block. “Get inside.”
Claire was getting frightened now. Something was very wrong. “What the hell is going on?”
In the backseat of car sat Agent Huffman. Claire had half expected to see Beth back there too, but no such luck.
“Will someone please tell me what is going on here? Where is Beth? Please, you have to tell me. I’m freaking out here.” Claire was shaking; from fear more so than the cold temperature outside.
“We believe Beth fled. She’s not in her home, her kids haven’t been to school in two days, and they’re not at her mother’s house.
We need to know if you have any idea where she might be. Please, think hard, Claire. She could be in a lot of danger,” Huffman said.
The words couldn’t find a way out of her jumbled mind as her head spun at this latest news. She opened her mouth to speak, but only fragmented sounds emerged.
“Take a deep breath, Claire,” Sanchez said. “Now, think. Do you know where she might have gone?”
Her eyes squeezed shut, forcing a teardrop to trail along her cheek.
“Look. She obviously believed her family was in danger, packed the kids up, and left town. We just need to know where. She’s probably just fine, Claire.” Sanchez glanced at Huffman, suggesting he not imply otherwise. “Think. Does she have any other family or friends living somewhere else, probably far from here?”
Claire wracked her brain. She knew of no one else. And then it came to her. Her eyes lit up at this first sign of hope. “Her ex-husband.”
The FBI agents considered this for a moment.
“I didn’t think she would turn to him, assuming they weren’t on speaking terms.” Sanchez replied.
“They’re not. But she loved him very much and I believe he loved her too. And it wouldn’t be unusual to consider that if she truly believed they were in danger, he might step up to help, especially since his children were involved.”
“Okay. So she might be in Los Angeles?”
It didn’t surprise Claire that Sanchez already knew where the ex-husband lived.
“It’s worth looking into, but what I don’t understand is why Beth would think such a thing. We were all supposedly working together on this investigation and assumed a level of safety would be provided, based on our discussions. What else are you not telling me, Agent Sanchez?”
“If she’s in L.A., we’ll find her. In the meantime, keep your head down. We don’t need anyone suspecting that you’re working with us,” Huffman said.