6. Lethal Justice

by Fern Michaels

  “Go ahead. Do you want me to leave the room?”

  “No, no. The District probably turned the water off again. They do that early in the morning for some reason. Maddie always gets upset when it happens. By the way, Isabelle, you’re lookin’ good these days.”

  Isabelle smiled. “My world’s right side up thanks to all of you. Go ahead, make your call. I’ll be quiet.”

  “Maddie, it’s Nikki. What’s wrong? What?” She listened, the color draining from her face. “Oh my God! Did you call the police? Thank God you didn’t. Okay, I’ll be there in an hour.”

  “What’s wrong?”

  “Someone broke into our offices last night. Maddie was the last to leave the building and she set the alarm. It was off this morning. Sometimes we have power surges so she didn’t think too much about it till she checked the surveillance tape and saw that someone broke in. Guess who?” Nikki didn’t bother waiting for the architect to guess. “Ted Robinson and Maggie Spritzer, that’s who. They took the files from my office. Before you can ask, they were locked up but not in the safe.”

  Isabelle dropped the slice of toast in her hand. “What…what’s going to happen? What exactly does that mean, Nikki?”

  Nikki seethed with fury. “Plenty. You know when we had the surveillance cameras installed, I didn’t want to pay the extra money to run the wiring to have them built into the wall. Maddie finally wore me down and I caved in. I’m going to have to give that woman a raise. Those reporters had no clue they were on film. We got them red-handed.”

  “But Nikki…was it just the Sisterhood files?”

  There was no point in lying. “Yes, just the five files. If they read them and there’s no reason to think they didn’t, then they know Alexis’s real name. They’ll figure out we’re after Gillespie and Sullivan.”

  Nikki gathered up her car keys and purse. She snatched a slice of toast from Isabelle’s hands and accepted a coffee to go.

  “Call me,” Isabelle shouted as Nikki raced through the open doorway, coffee sloshing all over her khakis.

  All the way into the District, Nikki cursed herself over and over again. How could she have been so stupid not to have put the files in the safe? The break-in was so over the top she had difficulty comprehending it.

  Forty minutes later, Nikki swerved into the parking lot. She moved like greased lightning once she turned off the engine. By the time she hit her office, she was breathless with her gallop up the back stairs. She bellowed at the top of her lungs. “Show me! Make copies.”

  “I made six copies,” Maddie said as she slipped the tape into the tape player.

  Horrified at what she was seeing, Nikki watched the two reporters in action. First they picked the lock on the outside door, Ted disarmed the alarm system. The camera caught the sweat on his forehead and Maggie’s panic. She felt sick when she saw Maggie Spritzer pick the lock on her office file cabinet. She continued to watch as Maggie perused the files. Ted appeared and the surveillance camera followed him to the storage room where he cut the power and then turned it back on. They were still on camera as they raced down the stairs and out the door.

  “Give me that!” Nikki shrieked. She knew she was losing control but she couldn’t seem to help herself.

  “Take a copy. I’ll put the original in the safe. Don’t worry, I marked it. Now you can go. Kick some ass, Nikki.”

  “Count on it!” Nikki shot back.

  Anger, unlike anything she’d ever experienced, flooded through her. Common sense told her she had to calm down, to get her wits about her before she did something that would backfire on her and on the Sisterhood. That was when she realized she was going eighty miles an hour. She eased up on the gas pedal and took a deep breath. Right now she didn’t need a cop stopping her for speeding.

  Nikki drove around the Post’s parking lot three times before she found a parking spot. Now that she was here she realized she needed a plan. She couldn’t storm the newsroom like some demented woman. She needed to be rational. Rational meant she should call Jack.

  “Emery here.”

  “Jack, it’s me. Listen to what I have to tell you. Tell me what to do before I do something I’ll regret.” Nikki rattled off the morning’s events.

  “Jesus. Where are you?”

  “I’m in the Post’s parking lot. Time is of the essence, Jack. Help me out here.”

  “I’m thinking. I’m thinking. Give me a minute. Okay, here’s what you do right now. Go into the building, give the tape to one of the guards and ask him to deliver it to either Maggie or Ted. Write off a little note. Tell them it’s a copy, the original is in a safe deposit box at the bank. That means the next move is up to them. Then meet me back in Georgetown at the Brickyard. I’ll buy you lunch.”

  “Jack, what if they made…make copies?”

  “We’ll deal with that when the time comes. I’ll leave now.”

  “Don’t you have to be in court?”

  “Just got out. The verdict came in at 9:30 this morning after three days of deliberation. We won.”

  “Are you absolutely sure this is the way to go? I’m beside myself. Isabelle is the only one who knows. Charles left this morning for Spain. The others are in Manassas. I’m stalling. I’m going, Jack. See you in thirty minutes.”

  Nikki climbed out of the car, popped the trunk. She rummaged until she found a manila envelope. She slipped the tape into the envelope and closed the clasp. On the front she wrote, “Ted Robinson or Maggie Spritzer. This is a copy, original in safe deposit box.” She signed her name.

  Clutching the envelope to her chest, Nikki walked boldly to the entrance and then over to the security guard. She showed her legal I.D., handed him the envelope and said, “Can you have someone deliver this immediately? It has to do with a court case I’m trying and I need an immediate response. Thank you.”

  Nikki left the building and ran to her car. She was shaking badly when she started the engine. Charles would be livid when he found out what happened. The others would be beyond livid. Right then she wished a hole would open up and swallow her. She felt sick to her stomach. Sick with fear at her stupidity.

  “Spritzer! Robinson! Delivery!” a voice shouted from the door to the newsroom.

  Ted Robinson loped over to the messenger. “I’ll take it!”

  Maggie appeared at his elbow. “What is it, Ted?”

  “I think it’s something neither one of us is going to like. Read the message.”

  Maggie blinked. “Why would she be sending us a tape?”

  “If this is what I think it is, she had a very good reason for sending it.”

  Maggie followed Ted into the conference room and over to the VCR. He slid the tape into the slot and then stepped back to watch it. At one point, he threw his hands in the air and said, “Goodbye career.” He looked over at Maggie who couldn’t get her tongue to work.

  “I didn’t see any cameras. I even looked.”

  Maggie hugged her arms to her chest and rocked back and forth. Instead of a Pulitzer, she was going to get a six by nine cell. She finally found her voice. “Maybe we can cut a deal. We give her the files after we make copies. We let her hear the tape.”

  “Are you crazy? She’s got us, make no mistake about that. I bet they have you on tape during that mugging, too. The one you didn’t want her to report. That chick just fried our asses and we didn’t even see her light the match. We are not making any copies so get that thought out of your head. If she goes to the cops, guess who will try the case?”

  Maggie started to cry. “Oh, God! This was all your idea, Ted.”

  “Hey, you went along with it. You were right there, baby. You’re the one who lifted those files. Your fingerprints are all over them.”

  Maggie cried harder.

  “She’s going to tell that Martin guy and he’s going to tell those goons of his. We’re as good as dead. Maybe I should call Jack.”

  “I love this job. I love my life. I’m sorry I ever got tangled up with you. I can’t
believe I was stupid enough to go along with you on that stunt.” Maggie sniffed and blew her nose before she started to cry all over again. “I had a chance, we both did, of getting a Pulitzer. Now we’re never going to get it.”

  “Stop acting like a female who got dumped on. Let’s put our heads together and try to figure a way out of this. We have the tape from the cemetery to barter with. Talking to Jack is not out of the question. We might have to do some sucking up.”

  “He’s not going to help us. He’s one of them!”

  “Fine, then you come up with a better idea.”

  Maggie stalked her way out of the conference room. It was up to Ted to remove the security tape and carry it back to his desk where he looked at it like it was a snake about to strike. Past tense; he’d already been bitten. He sat quietly for a long time, his head in his hands.

  Ted looked up when he heard a loud thump. Maggie dumping the files on his desk. How could five folders make that kind of noise? “I had the boss open the safe. Since you’re the brains of this outfit, you figure out where we go from here.”

  Ted thought for a moment, staring at the tape. “The fact that she gave us this security tape means Quinn didn’t go to the police. Yet. We both know she can do that at any time. Once the ball starts rolling, it’s all out of our control. We get fired for starters. We go to trial unless we cop a plea. No competing paper will hire us. The bright spot is we get six months unemployment. She dumped this in our lap so that means she’s waiting for us to make a move because she’s holding all the cards. The security tape we’re holding means squat. A good defense attorney will find a way to keep it out at a trial. I know how those guys work.”

  Maggie perched on the corner of Ted’s desk. “Go ahead, call her and set up an appointment. I don’t want this crap hanging over my head.”

  “Maggie, look at me. Swear to me that you did not make copies of those files.”

  Maggie met his gaze head on. “I did not make copies. You were with me the whole time. When we got here, we read the files and then we had them put in the safe. When would I have had time to do that?”

  “Did you make notes?”

  “No, I did not make notes. I do, however, remember every single thing I read. You read the same files so I know you remember what you read, too. You want to carve out my brain?”

  “Well, they can’t take that away from us, now can they?”

  Maggie sniffed as she dabbed her eyes again. “Who is going to make the call?”

  Ted played with the paperweight on his desk. “I suppose that’s your way of telling me you don’t want to make this a woman to woman thing. You think she might go easy with me because I’m a friend of Jack Emery. All right, I’ll make the call.”

  Ted pulled out his cell phone. “Well, shit, Maggie, what’s the number?”

  “How should I know? Call information. You’re stalling. I’m going to wash my face.” Ted rolled his eyes as he listened to the information operator. He jotted down the number on a pad. Before he made the call, he took five deep breaths. He didn’t feel one bit calmer as he dialed the number.

  “This is Ted Robinson. I’d like to speak with Nicole Quinn.”

  “Miss Quinn is out of the office. Mr. Robinson. Would you care to leave a message?”

  “Ask Miss Quinn to call me.” Ted left his cell phone number and the main number at the Post. He broke the connection and hit his speed dial to Jack Emery’s private cell phone. He listened to a metallic voice telling him to wait for the sound of the tone before leaving a message for the cellular customer he was trying to reach. Ted ended the call without leaving a message.

  Maggie came up behind him. Washing her face hadn’t helped her red eyes.

  “Well?”

  “Miss Quinn is out of the office this morning. I left my cell number and the number at the paper. Jack’s not answering his cell. He might be in court.”

  “Now what?”

  Ted jammed the manila envelope into his backpack. “Now, we wait.”

  Chapter 17

  Alexis paced the length and breadth of the second floor terrace of the Manassas estate. Kathryn and Yoko watched her, helpless expressions on their faces.

  Alexis stopped, leaned over the table and said, “I don’t want to be this uptight. But just the thought of those two coming here is making me sick. I want to snatch that woman baldheaded. Him…I just want to turn him into a eunuch. The worst part of the whole thing is I can’t confront them.” She snapped her fingers in fury. “They’re going to be right here, that close.”

  “We’re going to do it all for you, baby,” Kathryn said. “I can’t positively guarantee this but I think you’ll get your chance at those two. For now, you’ll be able to listen in. Is there anything else, any little tidbits you want to share with us where the two of them are concerned?”

  Alexis shook her head. “I told you everything I could remember. Arden has a black belt in shopping. I know, just know, she has one of those American Express black cards. She got all that by sending me to prison. There’s nothing she won’t do for money. She corrupted Roland. As good looking as he is, his eye never wandered until Arden came on the scene. I’m almost certain Roland’s wife knew. She stopped coming to the office once Arden established herself. No, no, that’s wrong. She did come by one time about three months after Arden signed on. She never came to the summer picnic or the Christmas parties after that. She used to arrange them and everyone always had a lovely time because Mrs. Sullivan cared enough to make it work. It was kind of sad that day she came to the office. She was all dolled up, heavy makeup. She was dressed in something real fancy, kind of slinky, actually. She had her hair done up, jewelry on. That’s not who Mrs. Sullivan is. It was really out of character and sad at the same time. She said she came by to take Roland to lunch. Arden cut her down to size in two minutes. In one breath and with one demeaning look, Arden managed to let Mrs. Sullivan know she looked overdone and she, Arden, had a business lunch with Mrs. Sullivan’s husband and a client so she might as well just run along.

  “I followed Mrs. Sullivan out to the elevator and tried to be nice and told her in so many words that I thought Arden was too full of herself. She didn’t cry but there were tears in her eyes. She gave me a big hug. I was so damn mad I let Roland know that his wife had stopped by to take him to lunch and that she was all dressed up. He looked at me like I had sprouted a second head and wanted to know why I hadn’t told him earlier. I told him what Arden said to his wife and he was livid. He did not have a luncheon engagement that day with Arden or anyone else. He was very clear about that.

  “Does any of this help?” Alexis asked.

  Kathryn looked thoughtful. “I don’t know. We’re winging this part of the way until we get a handle on both of them. Today is get acquainted day.” At Alexis’s worried look, she said, “You have to trust us, okay?”

  Alexis’s head bobbed up and down. “Okay. Anybody else call?”

  “No, it is very quiet,” Yoko said.

  “Sometimes that’s a good thing,” Alexis said over her shoulder.

  “Yeah, sometimes,” Kathryn said. She looked over at Yoko. “We still have three hours till show time. Let’s kick this around a little. What’s up with Myra this morning?”

  “She has been on the phone all morning with Charles. I think they have a secret. I think it has something to do with the lady who owns this house. Are you nervous about meeting those awful people?”

  Kathryn hooted with laughter. “On the contrary. I can’t wait to cut those two down to size. I have to practice my haughty look a little more.” Together the two young women made faces at one another, laughing and slapping at each other, either in approval or disapproval.

  From her position in the sun room, Myra watched them, a smile on her face. She tried to remember when she was that young and could laugh the way Kathryn and Yoko were laughing. Barbara and Nikki had laughed together all the time. Girl talk, girl secrets. A veil of sadness slipped over Myra’s face.
<
br />   “Why so sad, Mom?”

  “Darling girl! I was thinking about how you and Nikki used to laugh like Kathryn and Yoko are laughing. I was feeling a little sad. Actually, I was feeling a little lonely. I’m not myself when Charles is gone. He’s going to fetch Annie back with him. I’m looking forward to her return. Nellie is excited, too.”

  “I have to go now, Mom. Nikki needs me. I just wanted to say hello and to tell you how much I love you. I’m so proud of you, Mom.”

  Myra was about to say something when she felt a feather light touch on her cheek. A lone tear built in the corner of her eye and trickled down her cheek. She squeezed her eyes shut to savor the bittersweet feeling.

  The exclusive Brickyard restaurant lived up to its name. The outside eating area in good weather was all brick with little winding paths leading to brick-based tables and benches. Rough hewn beams stretched across the eating area that dripped tendrils of glossy green plants. Fica trees were lush and full and placed strategically to give privacy to the diners. Somewhere beyond the lush greenery a waterfall could be heard. Scarlet and yellow tulips sat on all the tables in matching colored pots. It was the perfect place to conduct a business meeting, a liaison, or just a small group meeting to play catch up and enjoy the exquisite food.

  Nikki ate at the Brickyard often and the hostess immediately showed her to her favorite table near the waterfall. Known as a good tipper, she was always given preferential treatment. When the waiter appeared at her elbow, she decided not to wait for Jack. Even though she was one of the first customers, and it was early for lunch, she decided it was five o’clock somewhere in the world. She threw caution to the winds and ordered a double scotch on the rocks for herself and a Bud Lite for Jack. When the drinks came, Nikki took a healthy gulp and immediately felt lightheaded. She gulped again and wondered if her eyes were crossed.

  Nikki was fiddling with her watch, opening and closing it, just to have something to do with her hands so she wouldn’t pick up the tumbler of scotch. She looked up, relief in her expression when Jack sat down across from her.