“I already told you the truth,” Nina said, her voice rising. “I don’t want to talk about this anymore. Why are you being so stubborn, anyway?”
“Because I’m not sure I believe you. Something’s going on that you don’t want me to know about. I’m not a fool, Nina. Don’t treat me like one.”
* * *
NINA TOOK THE LADDER UP to the attic, a place she rarely visited, and for good reason. The space was filled with reminders of her past she should have disposed of, but hadn’t. She cleared a series of boxes and dragged an old exercise bike to a different corner. She reached behind a super-large box that had once contained their flat screen TV but was now home to used clothing she never got around to donating. She pulled out an old hat box labeled “Letters from Mom.” She cleared a small space and sat down on the attic floor. She opened the box and removed all the letters on top. At the bottom was the only diary Nina had kept. The brown leather was slightly tarnished. She gingerly opened the cover and thumbed through the yellowing pages. What they contained had the power to destroy many lives, including hers and Phillip’s. All it would take were the right pages falling into the wrong hands and boom—it would be all over. Phillip didn’t know the diary existed, but what if finding out about it could get him to back off? Should she play his game? Did she have a choice?
Nina found Mr. Tibbs sitting precariously on an old rocking chair against the wall of the attic. He’d been her constant companion for most of her childhood and beyond. He was a dark brown, plush bear weighing about four pounds and measuring twelve inches tall. When she went off to college, he came with her too, and occupied a spot on her bed. Her roommate had teased her, saying she was too old to have a teddy bear, but Jess didn’t understand that Mr. Tibbs was no ordinary bear. Nina couldn’t part with him; they’d been through too much. She hadn’t spoken to him in months, but her confrontation with Cassie in her office spooked Nina a bit.
“Cassie came by my office today, which was a nice surprise until she started talking about Dad. I wish she hadn’t. I know he’s getting older, but I’m not the one who needs to make peace with him… am I?
“I know it’s my decision, Mr. Tibbs, but am I supposed to forget everything just because he’s thinking about his mortality? How is that my problem? Cassie was going on and on about how I’m so mean to him and why can’t I just take that step towards mending our relationship.
“You sound like Cassie, Mr. Tibbs. She said the same thing to me; will I be able to live with myself if something happened to him and I never got a chance to make things right. It’s a gamble I’m willing to take, I guess. He has to be the one to fix this. For now, I’ll leave Cassie to live in her fantasy world, but you and I know the truth, don’t we?”
Traffic was backed up for miles on the Tobin Bridge heading toward Somerville, further ruffling Nina’s already fraught nerves. Phillip’s latest move sent the signal loud and clear that his intentions were serious. He would not take no for an answer. He knew her home address, where she worked, her comings and goings, and who her husband was. It was time she did some digging of her own.
Sean Merriman Investigative Services was housed on the second floor of a four-story brick building at thirty-two Highland Avenue. After being greeted by the receptionist and declining coffee, Nina was led into a private office by Sean Merriman himself. He wasn’t what she expected for a PI. With his blond good looks and pale blue eyes, he resembled a young Paul Newman. Merriman explained he had put in twenty years with the Boston PD before he struck out on his own. His office was decorated simply: a few file drawers, a desk, two chairs, a desktop computer, a phone and maps of the city on the wall.
“How can I help you? You said over the phone you were being blackmailed?”
“More like bullied, harassed.”
“I see.”
“I don’t think you do, Mr. Merriman. If I don’t find a way to stop him, he’ll blow my life apart. There are things I haven’t told my husband about this guy, important things, and he’s threatening to expose me.”
“So you want to put the brakes on, stop him in his tracks with something you can hold over his head?”
Nina removed a small envelope from her purse and produced the pictures and note Marc had received. “He sent these to my husband.”
“You’re sure these came from him?”
“Positive.”
“Sounds like he has unfinished business with you and wants your attention. I have to tell you though, in my experience, secrets have a way of coming back to bite people in painful places. Sometimes, it’s better to tell the truth and save the heartache. But then I would probably be out of business.”
Merriman cocked a boyish grin. Nina knew he was right but that’s not why she was hiring him. His job was to make sure her secret never came out and that meant neutralizing Phillip.
“Some secrets should stay buried. It’s just better that way.”
“Okay, if that’s the way you want to play it. So, tell me about your blackmailer.”
Nina wasn’t sure where to begin. Her relationship with Phillip was complicated and there was a lot she didn’t know about him in the years they were separated, or more accurately, there was a lot she didn’t want to know, so she shut her eyes and closed her ears as much as she could. “He’s well-respected in the Boston community, he did very well for himself as a corporate executive with Wellington Investments, and now he’s in academia, a Professor at MIT Sloan School of Management.”
“That’s not what I was expecting to hear. I thought you were going to tell me about some sleazebag you had a relationship with, who was trying to shake you down.”
“Who says he isn’t? He’s a rich sleazebag who wants something from me other than money. But he’s a sleazebag, nevertheless.”
“I see,” Merriman said, stroking his non-existent beard. “Where would he hang out?”
“That’s a good question I don’t have an answer for, but I might know someone who can help me. He wouldn’t be on campus much since it’s summertime. Oh, he also runs the Dare to Dream Foundation, so I bet he has an office there. And just for fun, he sits on the board of several companies, including the one I work for. So if you can’t find him in any of the places I mentioned, he’s most likely in my office, harassing me.”
“He comes to your office and you tolerate it?”
“He’s a board member. As much as I want to call security on him, I can’t. Plus, he’s a friend of my boss’s, the company CEO. It’s better than showing up at my house, don’t you think?”
“I suppose so.”
“He’s planning something big and I want to know what it is. People like him don’t become concerned about their image and hire consultants for nothing. I want to know who he sees, where he goes—that might give me a clue as to what he’s planning.”
“What else?” There was an authority in Merriman’s voice that told Nina he was a man who knew for certain there was more to this story.
She stared at him blankly. “What do you mean?”
“I’ve been doing this a long time, Nina. Something bad went down between the two of you, didn’t it?”
She didn’t bother denying it.
“You never told me his name. I kinda need that.”
“Phillip Copeland.”
Merriman’s draw dropped. “You mean—”
“Yes.”
“I don’t know what to say. He’s a big deal in this town, especially in the black community.”
“Don’t be impressed. It will only lead to disappointment.”
“It looks like we’re in business then. I’ll take the case.”
“Good. You should know that I need results fast.”
“Understood.”
“My cell phone is with me at all times. Use my private email account if it’s something we can’t discuss over the phone.”
Merriman cracked a nervous smile. “About my fee…”
She dug out a check from her purse and handed it to him. “This sho
uld cover all fees and expenses.”
His eyes widened.
“Don’t worry about it,” she said, rising to leave. “You’ll earn every penny.”
“One last thing,” Merriman said as Nina reached the door. “What’s the real deal between you and Phillip Copeland? Who is he to you?”
“You ask too many questions,” she said, a smile playing around the corners of her mouth. She left without another word.
CHAPTER EIGHT
By the time July rolled around, Phillip was beginning to sweat and it had nothing to do with the summer heat. He walked into the lobby of Athena Biosciences located in what was commonly referred to as the “Innovation Cluster” near Kendall Square in Cambridge because of the number of biotech, pharmaceutical and high-tech startups that occupied the area. As he took the elevator to the executive floor, he reflected on his current circumstances. When he showed up at Nina’s office a month ago, he thought his consulting offer and dinner invitation would have been enough to win her over, but he miscalculated her resolve, or maybe her hatred of him was more intense than he realized. Not even sending compromising photos of her with another man made a difference.
His backers were putting pressure on him to take care of any potential scandal lurking in the shadows that could derail the project. He had taken care of Tracey and he was confident she would keep quiet. He was shelling out enough cash every month to make sure she did. Theresa was a senior executive at a major cosmetics company in New York and was quite happy having as little contact with him as possible. Only Nina was left; his beautiful, infuriating, fiercely independent Nina. He thought getting sentimental was for fools but he had to admit it was great seeing her again. The strange thing was, he found he liked spending time with her. He was behaving like some lovesick teenager who kept finding reasons to see her. But make no mistake about it, he would break her if it became apparent she posed an imminent threat to his goals. He did it once and he could do it again. Only this time, it might get messier. He had to consider her husband. From what his investigator told him, Marc Kasai adored Nina and would battle to the death anyone who tried to hurt her. Plus, he had to tread carefully because Nina’s father-in-law could become a valuable ally.
Ben Obasanjo had been a friend of Phillip’s for almost thirty years. He was CEO of Athena, the first African-American to helm the company. He was responsible for turning the company around financially, and Athena now earned over $1 billion in profits annually, a record achievement for a firm its size.
“So you’re really going to do this?” Ben asked, as he sat across from Phillip in his richly decorated office.
“I don’t see why not. I have people crunching the data as we speak. I expect good news to come out of that.”
“You know you can count on me.”
“Yes. I need you to mobilize your contacts, potential high net worth donors who might see things our way and actually have the influence to get us where we want to go.”
“Consider it done. What about that problem we discussed last week? Any closer to a resolution?”
“Nina is a little bit more stubborn than I anticipated, but nothing I can’t fix. She won’t be a problem.”
“You better be sure, brethren, otherwise you could be finished even before we get this project off the ground.”
Phillip knew Ben was right, he wasn’t telling him anything he hadn’t mulled around in his own mind a million times. He had confided in Ben about his recent challenges in getting Nina to see things through his lens.
“I introduced her to Geraldine.”
Ben looked at Phillip curiously. “How did that go?”
“They like each other.”
Ben slammed his palm against the desk with enthusiasm and a big grin. “There you go. It looks like things are working out, so what are you so worried about?”
“She has to be handled carefully and deliberately.”
Ben nodded in agreement. “Makes sense. There’s a lot of history there.”
“Not just that. Her father-in-law might be very useful to us.”
“Oh, yes. Doctor Paul Kasai. Good man. I’ve met him on a couple of occasions.”
“Let’s hope he’s good enough to throw his support to the project.”
Ben got suddenly serious. “We’ve known each other a long time, Phillip, and I believe you’re a good man.”
“Where are you going with this?”
Ben reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a key. He opened the top desk drawer and removed a small manila envelope, the type with the bubble wrap inside.
“When you told me about your plans, I remembered something I had in my possession. I should have gotten rid of it years ago, but I didn’t, and as time went by, I forgot about it.”
“What is it?”
Phillip knew Ben well enough to know he didn’t fool around. Whatever this was, it was major. He could see tiny beads of sweat forming on Ben’s forehead.
Ben handed Phillip the envelope. “I think after you hear this, you’ll know what to do.”
“Hear?”
“It’s not my place to pass judgment and I’ll always be an ally. But you shouldn’t have done it. Let’s leave it at that.”
* * *
THE FORTIETH WEDDING ANNIVERSARY OF Doctor and Mrs. Paul Kasai held two dramatic surprises for Nina. Waiters in black and white uniforms kept the champagne flowing and made sure the hot and cold hors d’oeuvre trays were never empty. The house was alive, filled with the animated chatter and laughter of Boston’s elite. At every corner, the intellectually gifted, the cultured and refined, and masters of political and social ideals dispensed their opinions on everything from the war in Iraq and Afghanistan to Wall Street to the state of public education in Massachusetts and the nation. The eight thousand square foot mansion in Weston, an exclusive suburb favored by CEOs and doctors, was an eclectic mix of western opulence and African pride.
“There you are, madame. Doctor Kasai has been looking all over for you. He wants you to meet someone.”
Nina excused herself from a conversation with a local bank vice president and turned her attention to the regal-looking woman with a salt and pepper bob. Claire Kasai had been a generally supportive mother-in-law, although Nina suspected she secretly would have preferred a daughter-in-law from their culture and background.”
“Do you know who he wants me to meet?”
“He didn’t say. You’ll find him in the family room. I’m off to check on the caterers.”
Doctor Paul Kasai was an imposing figure. In his mid-sixties, he had the agility of a man half his age, and a booming voice that could have you convulsing in laughter at one of his many impressions, or drowning in humiliation if you were privileged enough to work under him and human enough to have a bad day.
He sat across from a guest whose back was to Nina. His face lit up when he saw her.
“My dear, it’s always a pleasure to see you. You have an admirer and I promised him an introduction. I’d like you to meet Doctor Phillip Copeland. He read the article in Executive Insider and hopes to persuade you to be a special guest lecturer for the marketing management course at MIT Sloan.”
Phillip extended his hand in greeting. Nina forced a smile and shook his hand hastily. He did little to hide his amusement—or was it mockery? After mumbling something incomprehensible that she hoped sounded like a pleasantry, Nina took a seat next to her father-in-law.
“Doctor Copeland, how do you know Doctor Kasai?” Nina threw back her head, the challenge evident in her eyes.
“Phillip’s foundation donates generously to the hospital, especially to breast cancer research,” her father-in-law explained. “But I invited him here tonight to meet some potential donors to the campaign.”
“Campaign?” Nina asked, puzzled.
“You may be looking at the next Governor of our state,” her father-in-law announced proudly.
Nina felt like someone hit her in the head with a sledgehammer. She sat silent, willing her b
rain to function, hoping this was just her father-in-law teasing her. He was known to be a kidder and often had them in stitches. Yes, it had to be a joke.
“Are you teasing me again?” she asked him sweetly. “You got me pretty good the last time.”
“Not at all dear. There are plenty of people in the room tonight, including myself, who like the idea. Phillip is well-respected in the community; he understands the issues and has a vision for moving the Commonwealth forward. Once we collect enough signatures to get him on the ballot, he’ll have to give up his post at MIT. The primary could get rough, but we think he can win both the primary and the party nomination.”
“I don’t feel so good,” Nina squeaked out. “I’m going outside to get some fresh air.”
* * *
NINA PARKED HERSELF IN HER father-in-law’s library, comforted by the fact that Phillip was probably looking for her outside and wouldn’t think to look for her indoors. She needed a few minutes to breathe and organize her thoughts. A lot of things were starting to make sense: the pseudo consulting offer and subsequent pressure and blackmail to get her to say yes, the apology dinner, the constant stalking, finding himself in the same place she was. It was all a ruse, designed to get into her good graces for his political gain. If she were firmly in his corner instead of fighting him, then he wouldn’t have to worry about his dirty little secret coming out. In fact, if it did, he would be finished—politically, professionally, in every possible way for a person to be destroyed. He needed Nina to keep her mouth shut and she knew he would use any means necessary to that end.
“Why are you hiding from me, Nina? I don’t bite.”
His voice startled her. She was so engrossed in her own misery she didn’t hear him come in. She stood up from the brown leather couch, folded her arms and leaned up against a large oak desk that contained Dr. Kasai’s medical encyclopedia, a calendar, and an assortment of yellow stickies and writing utensils.
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