Chapter 32 The Lion’s Den
CHAPTER 32: The Lion’s Den
Silas
Leaning back on my chair, a quick glance and I saw that it had shifted to 2:00 AM. The soft light from the laptop screen was the only illumination cutting through the oppressive darkness and gloom of my study.
Nearly an hour ago, I had finished the final revisions on the new proposal for the LutherCorp merger, yet I found myself rooted to my chair, unable to retire to the bedroom where Vera lay.
My phone buzzed.
I didn’t need to look to know who was calling.
It was Natalie.
My phone had been buzzing incessantly on the mahogany surface since last night. Natalie’s name was flashing across the screen for the fourth time now.
Yet, I didn't reach for it.
My mind was a chaotic loop of that single unexpected moment on that rooftop. That moment when Vera had roused the already agitated beast by stoking the embers of an already simmering fire.
I sucked in a harsh breath.
I remembered the way she had tasted, the way she had clung to my lapels as if I were the only solid thing anchoring her in a world that had turned to mush.
The smell of her…the feel of her warm soft body, pressed up against me…
There was no denying the hunger anymore.
I craved her with a ferocity that defied logic.
Yet, the heat of that kiss was constantly doused by the cold, hard fact of her deception.
There was no doubt that Vera was lying to me, and the itch of that possible betrayal was becoming unbearable.
My phone rang again, and this time, it was Chauncey.
I picked the call.
“Don't tell me you're on a night binge again,” I said in a tired, bored tone.
He laughed. “What can I say? I've been very…inspired, lately,” he replied, amusedly. “Why are you still up?”
I threaded my fingers through my hair. “I had some work to finish up.”
A brief pause.
“How's your wife? I saw the pictures on the internet.”
“Vera’s asleep. She's okay,” I replied, quickly. “If that's all, I'm hanging up.”
“Has there been a new development as regards the LutherCorp deal?” He asked, in a more serious tone.
I sighed. “I think we might be getting back on track soon.”
A beat.
“Congratulations, brother. I guess your plan is working.” A brief pause. “Alright, I have to get back to work now.”
“How's the exhibition coming along?”
“Everything's almost ready. The pieces will be set up soon. I have to run. My regards to Vera. I'll visit soon.”
I hummed. “Hmm. Take care.”
I dropped the phone and reclined on the chair, dragging my palms down my face.
The brief silence was shattered by my phone’s ringtone, again.
This time, when I looked at the screen, my senses sharpened. It was a call I had been anticipating all night.
I swiped the screen before the first vibration could end.
“Mr. Rutherford? Sir, I am incredibly sorry for the hour, I know it's late, but—”
“Go straight to the point," I cut him off, my voice a low, dangerous rasp.
“Of course, sir. I’ve acquired and compiled the surveillance tapes from both the hospital and the gala, along with the preliminary investigation report you requested. I’m sending the files to your private server as we speak now.”
I sat forward, and drew the laptop closer, about to check for the files he sent.
“How about the Laurent situation?”
I had yet to hear the news of their misfortune.
“It's still underway, sir. Rest assured you’d hear the news on the morning report.”
“Don't disappoint,” I said, ending the call before he could respond, my eyes glued to the screen.
The files popped up on the screen, and I clicked the first video file: the hospital corridor.
I watched with narrowed eyes as a tall, shadowed figure “accidentally” bumped into Vera.
The man I had seen her talking to, just as I arrived…the one asking for directions according to her.
Even through the grainy footage, I could see the way her entire body locked up, the way she looked at him not with unfamiliarity, but with a visceral, bone-deep terror.
As the video played, Vera stood there, literally paralyzed, especially when she straightened and saw him holding one of the papers, until the moment I appeared on screen and called her name.
That was not the reaction to a stranger, but a reflexive reaction to danger…familiar danger.
The second footage was from the gala.
As I expected, there were no cameras on the secluded rooftop, but the cameras on the service corridor told the story.
A man in a dark suit emerged from the stairwell. It was the same man I had seen on my way up to the roof. I hadn't seen his face because of the dim lighting.
But as he moved past the camera in a blur, a little bit of his face was seen. And, I looked at it closely, I couldn't be wrong. The silhouette was unmistakable. It was the same man from the hospital.
My hands clenched, curling tightly into fists.
Fury, cold and precise, began to coil in my chest.
Vera had looked me in the eye and lied about anybody else being on the rooftop. She had lied to me, and then kissed me. Likely to distract me from probing any further.
Was my new bride as innocent as she seemed? Or was she calculating, and good at portraying a front?
One question burned in my mind: who was he to her?
I was about to find that out in a few seconds.
With simmering fury, I clicked on the attached dossier.
Finally, a face came in sharp.
There was doubt that it was the same man at the hospital, and the gala.
Strangely, something about him seemed familiar. Like I had seen him before. There was a malicious and predatory aura about him.
I was no saint. But this Damien Vane was the class of scum I never associated with.
My eyes scanned the text, and I felt a jolt of something I had never felt before. Dark, hot, heavy, and suffocating.
Damien Vane. Ex-boyfriend.
He wasn't just a threat; he was a piece of her past. They had been together before.
Before I met her.
He was a part of Vera's past. A past that she was still protecting with her silence.
That feeling roared so heavily, that I heard its sound in my ears.
I stared at his face, wondering what business they had together now that he was showing up where she was, and she was lying to me.
Were they having an affair?
Despite knowing the reality of this marriage, it left a bitter taste on my tongue, imagining that she could be seeing someone else.
The silence of the room was broken by a sharp ping from my phone.
I glanced down at the screen, and what I saw made my fingers halt from scrolling.
It was a high-priority notification from the bank regarding the personal account I had opened for Vera only lately.
She had withdrawn every single cent from the account.
TRANSACTION ALERT: TOTAL BALANCE WITHDRAWAL. $5,000,000.00.