Fifty-one

“Hello. This is Jeffery.” Jeffery said answering the unknown number calling him.

“Hello! This is Tim from Hugo Financial Auditors office.”

Jeffery stopped what he was doing. He recognized that name anywhere. He paid them to help him balance the accounts of his firm when it was still under him. And he visited them when Zach woke up to tell them that if anybody comes looking at clues that he should be informed. And although he paid heavily for that message to stick. He was glad that he spent the amount now.

“Go on.” Jeffery said relaxing back into his seat.

“We had a visit from a lawyer with your firm today.”

“Okay," Jeffery said with a sigh of relief. They thought that he was still in charge of the firm. It was a good thing that Zach changed his ways of spraying his face all over the media when he woke up. He was going to have to distract Zach from that file. He was sticking to investigating that particular file with the tenacity of a dog.

“She asked a lot of uncomfortable questions that really made my bosses nervous and they almost told her everything... They are discussing within themselves right now if they should throw you into the line of fire to keep themselves safe. I called you....”

“Yes, yes, yes.” Jeffery cuts him short. He knew that the only reason why Tim called was that he wanted the money he promised to give to the person who told him any information concerning the account whenever it was brought up. “Send me your account details... Wait you said she.”

“Yes. She said her name was Maisie Williams soon to be Maisie Stephens. Still, nobody told her anything even though she claimed that she was going to be your family soon.”

“Thank you for this information, I will send you a little incentive for it,” Jeffery said as he hung up. Of course, Maisie was the one edging Zach on. He knew that she should have dealt with her even though he had dropped the case at that time.

And she already suspects that he was the one who was responsible for the mismanagement of funds and now she was trying to prove her suspicions. It was high time that Maisie died and this time he would make sure she remains dead, unlike her boyfriend.

****

Getting a cryptic text message was not the kind of lead Maisie was looking for, but she has no choice but to follow it. She would do anything to protect Zach even though it was chasing suspicious leads that may put her in danger.

She knew that if this outing didn't kill her that Zach certainly would for trusting such a cryptic message, but she was getting desperate. She was sure that her questions and movements were going to make it back to Jeffery soon and she was trying to find evidence before Jeffery destroys whatever tiny trail he had left behind.

Maisie rubbed her arms, she should have known better than to come to a beach without proper clothing, but it wasn't like she had a choice, she had already left her apartment, going to Zach's when she got the text and she knew that the time they have her to arrive was not enough and now, she was here, waiting for whoever that sent that text to show himself or herself.

Maisie sighed as she glances at the water but returned her gaze to her phone. She was getting weird chills from this place and the longer she stayed, the more she felt vulnerable.

Maisie turned back to leave the beach, she will look for another way to prove Jeffery guilty, a less creepy way. She turned only to bump into a solid mass that made her fall back on her butt.

She rubbed her head as she looked at what was in her way only to feel dread because she was looking into the eyes of Jeffery which was unnaturally cold and hard before she could stand and run, Jeffery attacked her with the speed of light as he put a handkerchief which has been soaked in chloroform over her nose.

Maisie felt panic but she did her best not to breathe in, she knew that the moment she lost consciousness, that she would die quicker. God, she should have listened to Zach. Maisie tried her best to remove Jeffery's weight from her as she struggled with all she was worth, but Jeffery was physically stronger than her and all her attempts were in vain.

Maisie lost her struggle against her burning lungs and she had to take a breath. As Maisie felt weaker, more tears poured out of her eyes. She was going to die, and she had stupidly made it easier for Jeffery to take care of her body. Nobody knew where she was so nobody will think to look in the water when her body goes missing. She was sure that Jeffery could easily take care of her car.

Jeffery stood up from Maisie's body breathing hard, the girl is very hard to pin down and she struggled with everything she was worth.

Jeffery tied her hands together and as quickly as possible before tying her legs together and then he threw her into the water from the pier and hurried away before anybody will see him around. He drove her car to the junkyard where he paid the owner of the junkyard to destroy the car in his presence.

Cassidy traced Maisie to the seaport just in time to see Jeffery toss Maisie off the pier into the water. Waiting for Jeffery to leave was like an eternity and when Jeffery finally drove out of sight, Cassidy dove into the water and dragged Maisie out then resuscitated her with CPR, and then put her to the car and drove to Zach without creating a scene. He couldn't create one. If he did, everybody close to him will be in danger and from an enemy bigger than Jeffery.