My last minute plans with Sha'Kayla were ruined due to Jacob declaring he was finally going to act like the perfect grandfather. He announced that he was coming over to have dinner with us and claimed that Ian had already flown back to New York. I didn't believe that, but who was I to know that? It's too bad Lexi couldn't be here too. I can safely say it's both a miracle and a curse.
"Luca, why don't you sit down," Diane said. "I'm sure your leg can't take your pacing like that. Jacob's been wanting to speak to you."
"I don't know what's going on with me." I stared at her. "I've let the one thing that could save my life get away."
"We can't worry about that now, can we?"
"I can't stop thinking about it..."
I left the dining room, shifting my weight every time I took a step. Upstairs Jasmine and Sebastian were coming down. Sebastian took one look at me and kept going. Jasmine stopped to hug me. She'd always be my baby girl. I knew Sabastian couldn't stand me, but his hate couldn't run that deep.
"Luca, why are you so distracted?" Diane asked. "I know Lexi isn't well right now, but you need to focus on your children."
"...It's not even that." I sighed.
"Oh? Then what is it?"
"Nothing. I can definitely handle it myself when the time comes," I said vaguely and left the dining room. The kids continued to eat the dinner Diane decided she was going to make herself. Of course with Tiffany at her beck and call.
Jacob followed me out into the living room. We sat in silence for a few seconds before any of us said anything.
"You shouldn't even be here with us," He said. "The hospital is the best place for you right now. What if your constant worrying messes up your healing?"
"How can I possibly find the drive if I'm stuck in a bed?" I snapped.
"The drive isn't our problem anymore. If Cameron hasn't said anything about it then it's no concern of ours."
"What if the wrong person gets it?"
"Then be prepared to get blackmailed."
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Asher looked around the kitchen nervously. I swear he knew something. Or was just hiding something. He couldn't seem to stand still long enough to look me in the eye. After I asked if he could watch the kids for a bit, he looked ready to die. It's not like I asked him to kill them.
"...Fine. I'll keep them, but I'm pretty busy at the moment," He said. "Now get out before I change my mind."
I left immediately, excited to finally have some alone time. I'd check up on the company first then go out with Aaron. It's been a minute since I last saw him.
My phone rang startling me from my stupor. It was Sha'Kayla. She did say she would call me though.
"What?" I answered.
"I have a surprise for you!" She squealed. "You are going to love it."
"...I really can't at the moment. I'm pretty busy," I lied.
"What..."
"Well...when you're as famous as me, you have premade plans and promises you tend to forget about. I have photoshoots to get to and scripts to read. Lexi's in the hospital, so the company is mine for the time being."
"B-but, you're letting me down again," She protested. I sighed and listened silently to her ranting. This is why I pursued Samantha at the gala. "I want your attention right now."
"I told you I can't," I reminded her. "Let me focus on work right now. When I'm sure I have nothing else to do, I'll come find you."
"Promise?"
"...Don't you have to go back to New York?"
"Is Dylan in yet?" I asked upon my sudden appearance.
"No, sir. He hasn't been here since Mrs. Thompson's gala," Taylor informed me.
I took note of this and took the stairs to my office on the third floor. Almost directly across from Lexi's old office. As I was walking to my door, Shelly suddenly appeared. I jumped back in both surprise and confusion. What the heck? Where did she come from?
"What--Where did you come from?" I exclaimed. "You nearly gave me a heart attack."
"Your office, sir. I was dropping off the paperwork you requested," She said calmly.
"Oh. Have you seen Dylan? Taylor said he hasn't been here lately."
"He hasn't and it's almost weird. It would have been scary if he didn't call on Thursday." Shelly smiled. "Not that I really care, but you catch my drift."
"Suuure." I glanced at my door then her. "Could you call my sister-in-law and ask her about the dates? She'll know what I'm talking about."
"Yes, sir."
As Shelly rushed away, she dropped some papers. I was going to tell her she forgot them, but when I turned to call out to her she had already vanished. I picked them up and gasped. How had she gotten ahold of these? The top paper said it had been emailed from a woman named Dawn. I'd heard that name before. But from where?
I called for security and allowed them to take a look at them. While waiting I checked my computer for any viruses. Not telling what she'd do if she knew she'd get caught.
"Keep an eye on Shelly," I ordered. "She's tampering in places she shouldn't even know about."
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I walked to my desk and slumped in my seat. I couldn't wait to go back to my office. It was much quieter and darker. No one could enter without my permission. I pulled out my painkillers and shoved at least six of them in my mouth. There was a knock on my door. I was tempted to pretend I wasn't in here, but anyone important could be coming today.
"Come in." I shoved the bottle into a random draw.
Brad walked in with a guy who looked awfully familiar. I watched them take a seat. Brad began twisting a heavy gold ring on his finger. Why wasn't he at home? Being shot twice into places you've never been shot before must be hard on him. Especially with his age.
"Shelby was in your office," He pointed out. "Looked like she was pretty busy."
"Her name's Shelly," I muttered.
"Really? I always thought it was Shelby."
I shook my head and looked at the guy beside him. His features were nice on the eyes. Nice round face. Perfect length of hair. I must say it was shining like he actually took care of it. His eyes were the calmest brown I've ever seen, but I knew he had a temper. For him to be working with Brad he had to have lots of patience.
"I think you know Ashton. The one you met while I was in the hospital. The only person who actually came to see if I wasn't dying." Brad crossed his arms. "My right hand man. Works with computers, so seeing where your money went is his thing."
"...Ah, nice to meet you again." I nodded at him. He nodded back.
"Anyway, about your little secretary." Brad sat up straighter. "There's something about her. She seems smart, but...so dumb. Where did you get her?"
"You're the one who hired her. Said Lexi didn't need any more hardworking males around."
"Well it's obviously true. If she were to get a male secretary she wouldn't get any work done."
"I sincerely hate you for that comment."
Ashton shifted in his seat like he was uncomfortable. I stood up and motioned for him to come around my desk. It was about time I made myself useful. Just to prove to Lexi when she finally woke up that I wasn't the bum husband she claimed I was so many times. Plus, Brad would see that I actually cared for something Lexi seemed to be in charge of but wasn't.
"I just want to know how to get everything back. If they haven't spent it all yet," I ordered.
"You got it. I'll have something for you in a couple of minutes," He said. "I promise you if anything has been spent we'll immediately take action."
"I expect nothing less," Brad half-praised.
"I'll take a quick trip to my office. Just to see if I can find something myself." I moved to the door as Brad moved behind Ashton. Come to think of it, his name was too closely related to Asher's.
I left Brad and Ashton to their numbers while I took a trip back to the office. Maybe Shelly noticed she was missing papers and went back to get them. If I've already seen them then they're no use to her. I was ready to confront her if she thought she could just waltz into my office and look at things she had no business knowing.
I walked into my office and sighed. It sure was darker in here. I was already loving the feeling. It was rudely taken from me in a matter of seconds.
"How did you get in here?" I exclaimed. "You're supposed to be in jail!"
"I have my ways," Wayne said. "You have a very beautiful secretary. It saddens me to see you trust her too much to actually know she's stabbing you in the back."
"Leave her out of this conversation," I growled.
"She's thinking she's brave, Luca. And where were you while she was snooping through confidential files?"
I pushed the door open some more to see if the light would penetrate the darkness and reveal Wayne. It didn't. I was standing in the way and had no plans to move either.
"I bet you're wondering how the money went missing in the first place. You're closer than you think if you just look to the person you trust the most right now." Wayne stepped forward. I stepped back. "I can't see why Lexi agreed to marry you. You're not half the man you claim to be."
"Shut up," I growled.
"The truth always hurts. You're afraid of me, Luca," He taunted.
"I am not..."
"Oh really?" I leaned back a little. Wayne stepped forward again. "Boo." I bolted from the door, his laugh following me down the hall.
"I ran into Wayne who wasn't Wayne!" I gasped out as I burst into the room. "Ashton, did you find anything?"
"Sort of. I was--" He squinted at me.
"...Uh...What...Did you get attacked or something?" Brad asked.
"I told you I ran into Wayne who wasn't Wayne."
"How?"
"He sounded like Wayne."
"How?"
"Slow." I smirked. "But in all seriousness and anything in between, up close he didn't look like himself. More thin and his voice was--"
The entire building shook. It took me a moment to realize what was happening. When I did I sounded the alarm to warn everyone. It had been awhile since we had one of these. Depending on how bad it would get I needed to get everyone out. Especially since this building wasn't as safe as the one they were building in New York.
"Warning. This is not a drill. Please stop what you are doing and exit the building immediately in a calm and orderly fashion. The elevators will shut down in sixty seconds. Use the stairs with caution."
I was praying everyone would follow directions and not rush. The shaking wasn't helping the situation. I knew many people here were scared out of their mind when things like this happened. What of the people on the upper floors. If things got worse I wouldn't be able to help them.
"The elevators have shut down. If you are trapped, please press the emergency exit button. Warn--"
The light suddenly cut off. In a matter of seconds the backup generators were running. The stairs seemed to have cleared out faster than I'd imagined. Not too many people were coming from the upper floors now. Brad and Ashton helped them not trample each other while I busied myself with unlocking all the emergency exits.
"Warning. This is not a drill. All elevators have been shut down. Please exit the building in a calm and orderly fashion."
The tremors seemed to be getting worse. I turned to find some people lagging behind. I rushed them downstairs and out the building. Brad and his companion were nowhere to be found as I looked around. Reporters were already setting up as the tremors settled into a gentle hum.
I pushed through the crowd searching for any unfamiliar faces. With an unexpected distraction like this one, anyone could be trying to get to me. It was hard since nearly everyone outside was missing with pedestrians from restaurants across the street and businesses next to us.
"Dawn!" A familiar voice caught my attention among the ruckus. "Dawn, where are you?"
I turned around to see Dylan turning in circles just a few feet away from me. There was that name again. Who was Dawn? My question was answered as I was shoved aside.
"Dylan!"
I was going to drag the woman back by her hair when I saw who it was. Her glasses were missing and her usually pinned up hair was flowing down her back. If I didn't know any better I would have assumed she was a doppelgänger.
"Shelly?"
"I'm so sorry, Dylan. Are you alright? Did anyone see you?"
"No, I don't think so. Are you hurt?"
Shelly, or Dawn, threw herself at Dylan. He happened to look over her shoulder and see me. I only stared back. Just wait until all this is over. Wait until I get my hands on you, boy. Pretending I didn't see him, I began walking over to them. His eyes widened, but I walked past them. Brad just so happened to be standing nearly two feet away from them yelling profanities into his phone.