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"Any of it. All of it. Fake her death. Fake a kid's illness. Fake mystalker."
"Like I said, don't be naive, Khloe. This is how publicity and fame work. You've been around long enough to know I'm right. You don't get to benefit from all we've done for you and your career and then complain about how we did it. I'd rather you just say thankyou."
"Thank you? Are you fucking nuts? You scared the shit out of me. I thought I was going to be kidnapped.Raped."
"Well, if you weren't such a goodie-two-shoes, we would have let you in on the plan. You could have taken a nice two week vacation down to some out-of-the-way island and then come back and made the rounds with all of the media outlets to tell your story of your harrowingescape."
"You'recertifiable."
"No. We're professionals. The best at what we do. I can see our talent was wasted on you, though. Effectively immediately, you are no longer ourclient."
Khloe's manic laughter filled the small space. "Are you kidding me? As if I'd allow you to represent me knowing what I knownow."
Ryder's voice filled the interior of the luxury car again. "I'm afraid they won't be taking on any new clients. Not if I have anything to say aboutit."
Natalie had finally recognized her husband was in distress and had turned in her seat to help him loosen his tie, ignoring Ryder's comment. "Hang on, Bernie. We're almost to the Marriott. You can take a blood pressure pill and lay down for a bit until you feelbetter."
Ryder continued on, "I'm afraid that nap is gonna have to wait. I don't think where you're going has the same accommodations as theMarriott."
As he finished his sentence, the limo pulled into the parking lot of a stately brick building with a steep set of stairs leading up to a pair of extra-tall doors. As they approached the building, Khloe could make out the words above the entrance, carved into the granite;Police Department - 10thDistrict. At the bottom of the stairs, a half dozen news crews with cameras and microphones at the ready waited alongside three uniformed policeofficers.
"What is the meaning of this? I demand you return us to theMarriott."
Trevor chuckled. "I'm afraid your demanding days are over, Natalie. But some good news. You're about to become the biggest story on the evening news. I know how much you love to manipulate the newscycle."
"You little shit. You think you're so funny. There's no way they'll dig up anything on us. We made sure our trail isclean."
Ryder reached through the glass to hold out a small electronic device just as Trevor removed the tie clip from histie.
"I hate to be the bearer of more bad news, but we've already handed over all of the evidence we've uncovered. It was substantial. But to be on the safe side, we've been transmitting every word since you got into the limo to the detectives working the case. They got to hear the details of all three cases from your own mouth." Ryder grinned. "They had just planned to ask you how your fingerprints were found on the package you sent to Khloe's parents in the Bronx, but thanks to your little tirade, I'm guessing they'll have a few more questions to asknow."
Natalie pulled away from her husband to lunge at Ryder's face poking through the glass window. It was easy enough for him to pull away, leaving her to crash against the glass just before she started pounding with her fists in an angry attack. "You asshole! I knew you were trouble the minute I met you. I should have dropped Khloe then andthere."
The door next to Trevor opened and one of the policemen leaned in, addressing her bodyguard, "We'll take it from here. We may have some questions for you and Ms. Monroe, but I won't make you get out into this media circus. Please don't leave town. If we need anything else, we'll stop by the Marriott." The officer reached out to hand Trevor a business card before turning to theKaplans.
"I need you to step out of the car now, Mr. & Mrs.Kaplan."
"I will not! There are too many cameras and reporters out there. If you have questions for us, you can come back to the Marriott for us aswell."
"I'm afraid that won't bepossible."
"And whynot?"
"Because you're under arrest. You have the right to remain silent. Anything yousay..."
The moment was surreal for Khloe as she listened to her agent and her publicist being read their rights as Trevor and the officer helped Bernie from the car before turning towards a defiantNatalie.
"I won't go. You can't make me." The elderly woman shrunk back to the far side of the car, trying to avoid the clutches of the police officer when his partner opened the door right next to her. She literally fell into the officer's arms. She flailed in an attempt to break free, but she was no match for the muscular lawman as she screamed, "You can't do this to me! Not here. Not in front of thecameras!"
When Natalie was almost out of the car, Ryder called out to her. "Don't worry! Like you said, there's no such thing as negative publicity. I'm sure you'll enjoy having your life ripped apart by the media as much as Khloedid."
They would never know if Natalie answered him because the roar of the reporters shouting the Kaplans' names, crushing forward in hopes of getting a statement and a close-up picture, drowned out any conversation. Only when Trevor got back in and he and Ricky closed the car doors did the shouting getmuffled.
She should be happy that the stalker nightmare was over. It was sinking in that she'd never really been in any real danger in the first place, but that knowledge filled her with anger, not relief. A fury like she'd never felt before was burning in her empty gut. Rage at the Kaplans for duping her and so many others. Annoyance with herself for not seeing through their underhanded tactics. Irritation with Trevor and Ryder for collaborating behind her back to interrogate the Kaplans without filling her in ahead oftime.
But overriding all of those feelings was the strongest emotion of them all. Dread. Now that her stalker case looked like it would be closed, Ryder would no longer feel he needed to be there to protect her. In light of the scrutiny that was sure to come their way as the world found out about the Kaplans' lack of scruples, she knew that Ryder would be disappearing into the darker crevasses of theglobe.
Just as her tears started to fall, the limo came to a stop on a residential street not far from police station. The door next to Trevor opened and Ryder motioned for her bodyguard and friend to move to the seat recently vacated by the Kaplans. Ricky followed suit, leaving the back seat for Ryder to slide in and close the door before scooping a crying Khloe into hislap.
