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“Oh,” said Patricia. “I am sorry. He didn’t tell you, did he? Because that’s what he’s really like. He doesn’t give a damn about the truth. He just wants what’s easy for him. And now I’m going to show you, Jake,” she said, raising the pistol. “Once and for all.”
“No, you ain’t, lady.”
It was Jim Jennings. He was standing behind her, with a pistol of his own.
“Patricia put the gun down. We’re gonna talk about this. Okay?”
Patricia didn’t look behind her. If she did, she would have seen what we saw. As she raised the gun and fired, two LAPD officers had come through the door. As Patricia yelled and pulled the trigger, I ducked, bringing Alicia with me down to the floor, and I heard two cracks fired off.
I fell over Alicia. I wanted the bullet to go through me. I would have preferred that than have it hurt her or the baby. I didn’t even think about it. I didn’t think about it because I loved her.
When everything was still and quiet, I let her go and rolled onto my back, breathing loudly. I looked to my right and saw the two officers. One was kneeling by Patricia on the ground. The other had taken Jim’s weapon from him and was cuffing him.
I turned to my left and saw Alicia. She was lying on the ground, parallel to me. But I soon turned away, because I couldn’t stand the look she was giving me.
It was a look full of nothing but despair at the truth I’d kept from her.
Patriciasurvivedandwastaken away by ambulance before anyone really knew what was happening. But after the sirens began to sound, a crowd began to assemble outside CAA headquarters as the police arrived in droves and began to clear the way.
“What’s happening?” asked a shareholder.
“Is the meeting still going ahead?” another asked.
Somehow, Alicia and I got separated as we were being treated by the EMTs. The last I saw of her, she was sitting on the staircase by the roof with a blanket around her. Meanwhile, I went downstairs to try and find who was in charge of the stockholders’ meeting.
“Don’t worry, ladies and gentlemen,” I said. “Everything’s under control.” I felt shell-shocked and exhausted. Patricia’s bullet had whistled right over our heads.
“Jake,” said Karen Grappler, standing in the crowd. “What’s happening? Why is Tom being arrested?” She had the paranoid, jerky movements of someone who’s been caught in a scam and is trying to feign ignorance.
“Two things have happened, Karen. Firstly, Tom McLaughlin just tried to have me killed. Secondly, you’ve been fired. You’ll be hearing from my lawyers.”
I left my former Head of Finance standing there, dumbfounded in the crowd. I walked away, but as I did, I felt a hand on my sleeve. I turned around and saw a man in a suit, flashing a badge.
“Agent Field, FBI. I’m going to need to have a word with you, Mr. Ryder.”
“I’d be happy to, Agent Field,” I said.
Tom McLaughlin was brought out in handcuffs as the crowd of our investors stood outside the CAA building. He looked at me as he went past, and I saw the hopelessness in his eyes.
“Ask me whatever you like,” I said, “but I’ll bet you everything you need is in that guy’s office.” I pointed at Tom as he passed in handcuffs.
After a few hours of questioning by the police, I gave them my address and told them I’d be happy to speak tomorrow at my office in Chicago. Jim had enough evidence of what Tom was doing on his person to make sure I didn’t have to spend the night in a jail cell. For now, I had to find out what had happened to Alicia.
“Jim, where is she?” I asked, calling him from my phone after I got back to CAA.
“I sent her home, Jake,” he said sadly. “The young lady just wanted to go back to Chicago. Hope you don’t mind. She said she wanted to be alone.”
“Did you send her home on the HondaJet?”
“I tried to, but she said she didn’t want to. In the end, I put her on a passenger flight. CAA112 departed half an hour ago. She also said she was resigning from the airline. You can beat her to Chicago if you take the jet.”
“That drink’s gonna have to wait, Jim, but I want you to know it’s still there. Thank you for everything you have done up til now; I think more than a drink is in order. We’ll talk again real soon.”
“I’ll take a raincheck. You go do what you have to do.”
Chapter 23
Alicia
