Neville’s jaw dropped, then he shrugged and nodded gravely. “As you say, Lieutenant.”
He turned to Diane. “And you, Pembrook. I am going to discuss this at length with the First Lieutenant first thing tomorrow. For the moment, you are on provisional probation, pending disciplinary action, up to and including imprisonment.” Diane squeezed her eyes shut as spittle struck her face. He scrunched up his face and pointed off to his right. “Get out of my sight, all of you.”
Sapphire shook off the blanket and stood. “But we’re good, right?”
Griggs clenched his teeth. “Go!”
The women walked into the night, looking around warily. When the crime scene was out of sight, Diane held Lyssa’s hand and swatted Sapphire’s arm. “Way to stick up for us back there. And the car was stolen? What the hell, Sorrellis?”
She rubbed her arm and shrugged. “I’ll take care of it.”
Lyssa began to cry. “I-I don’t know how I’m going to pay back that tuition. Ever since Arbor, nobody’s hiring. I mean, maybe I could join the army, but last time I tried they said I was too short... and too fat. Being a police officer was my best chance at a decent living.”
Diane squeezed her hand. Sapphire gave Lyssa a dismissive wave. “I’ll take care of it.”
Diane clutched Sapphire’s shoulder with her free hand. “What does that mean, exactly?”
They stopped in the middle of the empty street under a lamp post. Sapphire looked at the two of them and held up her hands defensively. “You’ll find out later. Just… I’ll take care of it.”
“That’s reassuring.”
Sapphire patted her arm. “I think I’ve earned a shred of your trust, Diana. It wasn’t too long ago that you would have said something utterly ridiculous when you tried to sound intelligent. Nice to see I got results.”
Diane looked down and nodded. “True.” She gave Sapphire a hard stare. “But from now on, I’m to be addressed as Diane.”
Lyssa did a double-take. “Since when?”
“The academy must have known something I didn’t. I prefer that name. I’m going to use it.”
“B-but, I fell in love with Diana.”
Diane put her hands on her hips and leaned forward. “Oh, buck up. I didn’t love you any less when I found out your real name was Dorcas.”
Lyssa was taken aback, then she wrapped her arms around Diane. “You’re right. I’m sorry. I… I was surprised you didn’t tell me sooner.”
“I was getting grilled by Neville. It didn’t come up.”
“Okay, fight over. Let’s get back to base in one piece, huh? We’ve seen enough action for one day.” Sapphire turned on her heel and walked away. Diane and Lyssa looked at each other, and Diane wiped a tear from Lyssa’s cheek.
“Right behind you.” She smiled and kissed Lyssa beneath the glow of the street lamp.
EPILOGUE
Alexa Charlevoix strode into an oversized conference room and took her seat at the head of the table, dressed in a long black skirt, white blouse, and dark blue blazer. She wore an enamel pin on her lapel commemorating Arbor Day. Her hair was pulled back into a tight ponytail. She placed a padded envelope on the table to her left, and she looked around the room at men dressed in suits and ties. Brent Moorcroft rose from his seat at the opposite end of the long table and nodded to Alexa. “Excellent, you’re here. Let’s get started, shall we?”
Alexa nodded back. “Yes, Mr. Moorcroft. I understand that you have a buyout offer to present to us.”
He smirked and gestured to his assistants as he paced back and forth at his end of the room. Two men passed out folders to the board of trustees, and one to Alexa herself. She and the board flipped open the folders and looked over the first page of the packet.
“As you can see, gentlemen… and Alexa,” he gave her a smug grin, “Ten Suns Partnership has leveraged the necessary capital to take a controlling interest in PDX. Everything checks out, and as your new CEO, nothing would make me happier than for security to escort Ms. Charlevoix from the building. I want her access codes revoked, and her name removed from every surface by sundown.”
The men ruffled through the pages and nodded to him gravely. “Everything seems to be in order, as you say.” A gray-haired gentleman turned to Alexa and gave her a sad smile. “It pains me to say this, Alexa. Your father and I worked very closely, for forty years. I’m glad he’s not alive today to see this.”
Brent waved goodbye to Alexa. She looked around the room and raised her hand. She raised a page from inside the packet and tipped her head. “Excuse me, Mr. Moorcroft, I happen to notice an entry in your ledger that 90% of your backing comes from ‘Tuscan Villa Entertainment’. I’m afraid I’m not aware of how such an obscure entity could be such a significant benefactor in this arrangement.”
Brent chuckled and straightened his tie. “They’re a private firm, Alexa. And as such, they are not required to divulge their ownership structure. They’ve been very forthcoming with their financial figures, which convinced my allies on the board to sign on as interested parties. That’s right Alexa, checkmate. I’ve used your entire board against you.”
Alexa cocked her head and turned to the gray-haired man. “Even you, Theodore?”
“I’m sorry, Alexa. Your father… he would have had a stronger defense against a direct takeover attempt. It saddens me to say this, but you’re not your father.”
She gave him a wry smile. “No, I’m not.” She stood up and pressed her knuckles to the tabletop. “I’m stronger. Richer. Smarter. Much smarter.”
Brent blanched. “Yes, I think that’s enough braggadocio from you, Alexa. Security, remove her at once.”
She held up a finger to the advancing guards. “Quite the contrary.” She tore open the padded envelope and produced folders of her own. With a nod, Brent signaled to his assistants to pass out the folders to the board, ending with a folder being placed in his hand by Alexa herself. “Gentlemen, if you glance over the executive summary, you’ll find that ‘Tuscan Villa Entertainment’ is owned by an A. Charlevoix, with her partners, P. Plant and T. Blanquet. Now, as a private firm, I don’t need to disclose this, but they would be ‘Potted Plant,’ and ‘Throw Blanket,’ respectively. And we now own a 90% stake in PDX. Up from my measly 55%, you will notice. As the re-minted CEO of PDX, I am hereby dissolving the board. My partners are backing me up all the way.” She nodded to a ficus wrapped in a blanket standing to her left.
Brent Moorcroft stammered, and security led him from the room. Alexa stopped them momentarily. She handed him the padded envelope and leaned into his ear. “I found something of yours in my suitcase. I wanted to make sure you got this back. It was the least I could do, after that… entertaining night in Italy.”
He reached into the envelope and produced a red thong. The camera zoomed in on Alexa’s face as she licked her teeth, then gave a glossy smile as the screen faded.
A voice squealed in Diane’s earbuds. “Yes! That was awesome!”
Diane pumped her fist and nearly dropped her tablet as she sat with her back to the wall in her dorm room. “Wow, that was intense! That’s why she’s my favorite.”
Sapphire looked over from her bed with a touch of annoyance. “Could you take that conversation somewhere else? I’m trying to read.”
Diane waved her off. “Sorry, Lyss, my roommate is getting bitchy. Can I contact you later?”
“Sure. My mom is telling me I have to do laundry, so I’d better go. This sucks that we can’t watch our stories together. Like, in the same room. Touching, like we used to.” Diane was painfully aware of her absence, and she frowned at Sapphire.
“It is what it is. I love you.”
“I love you too. Okay, Mom, I’m coming, jeez, God!” The connection terminated abruptly.
Diane pulled her earbuds out and tossed the tablet aside. “This sucks. No offense.”
Sapphire closed her book and sighed. “Yes, it does, and none taken.”
Diane shook her head. “I’m so
rry, I don’t mean to be down on you. I appreciate what you did for us, but I just wish… we could have stayed together.”
“You are together, that is, unless you just broke up over voice chat. Look, I don’t have Daddy’s money to throw around anymore, which means we’re stuck rooming together until one or both of us saves up enough dough to move out. I’ve been living on ramen for weeks. I’m going to be first out, trust me on this.”
“I know. I’m sorry. This just… sucks.”
A knock sounded at the door. Diane answered the door, and grimaced at the sight of Gabe, dressed in a cadet uniform. “Yes?”
“Lieutenant Griggs would like you to speak to the class tomorrow. These are your talking points.” He handed her a folded document. Diane took it from him and grunted. She started to close the door, but he blocked it with his foot.
“That will be all, cadet. I’ll see you in class tomorrow.”
“Hey, don’t push me away. I’m serious about making things right between us. The lieutenant says I’m his best student.”
“That’s wonderful, Gabriel. Tomorrow.” She pressed against the door, and Gabe shifted his foot to allow it to close. She flicked the privacy latch and returned to her bed in a huff.
Sapphire didn’t look up from her book. “I don’t get why you string him along like that. Tell him you’re not on his team and send him on his way.”
Diane clasped her hands across her chest and looked at the dingy ceiling. “He’s… useful. No need to do anything rash.”
Sapphire snorted from behind her book. Diane reached over and put her earbuds back in. She propped the tablet on her stomach and tapped an icon on her home screen. The Fortune and Destiny loading screen appeared, and the end credits scrolled up shortly afterward. Diane backed up the video and found her favorite part. She noted where it started and ended and set up a loop. She closed her eyes and smiled as Alexa Charlevoix stared down Brent Moorcroft, and the conniving board of trustees.
“You’re not your father,” said the aged man.
“No, I’m not. I’m stronger. Richer. Smarter. Much smarter.”
A pop sounded in her earbuds, and the scene repeated. Again. And again. And again.
Diane mouthed the words as she relished each one. Stronger. Richer. Smarter.
She opened her eyes and stared intently at the drab ceiling. This I vow, she thought to herself and crossed her heart.
Griggs thought she was weak, as were all women, he argued, but Kenner refused to kick her off the force. Sapphire was disinherited by her wealthy parents for putting herself in harm’s way, which freed her up to be a much-needed patrol officer but removed her financial security in an instant. She put up a brave front, but Diane noted that at root, Sapphire’s perceived strength was a weakness. She was reliant on other people for everything she had. Diane wasn’t going to make that mistake.
As for Lyssa, Kenner wouldn’t let the women run the table on Griggs. Someone had to serve as an example to the other cadets, if not the other officers. Because she was out of uniform when Diane confronted the man who attacked them—the women kept his connection to Diane secret lest she suffer any guilt by association—Lyssa was expelled from the academy. Diane didn’t speak to Sapphire for a week afterwards as she fumed that Lyssa was out of uniform on her instructions.
Although she hated to think it about the woman she loved, Lyssa was weak too. She could have—should have—argued more forcefully against her dismissal, but she lowered her head and accepted her fate. Diane didn’t care for weaklings. She wondered if Lyssa could become the strong, confident woman she needed her to be, or if she’d be reduced to a useful idiot… like Gabe. She sneered at the thought of him.
Stronger. Richer. Smarter. She repeated her mantra to herself under her breath.
She closed her eyes once more and dreamed of the future. Her future.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Ethan Johnson resides in Lake Mary, Florida with his wife and two dogs. If you see him at Disney World, that’s completely normal.
Also by the author:
CROSSED OUT: An Ana Lode Thriller
ARBOR
For more information and to receive a free eBook for signing up for my newsletter, please visit:
http://officialethanjohnson.com/books
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