Neil hadn't even been buried yet, but Caroline had already moved on. Alex had heard Joe say that his parents had a bad relationship, but he hadn't expected to be confronted with photographic evidence of her cheating on Neil.
Alex didn't have time to worry about gossip, but he wasn't happy to see it. It was clear from the picture that the two knew each other very well.
It doesn't look like this was the first time they cuddled up with each other, he thought.
He showed Debbie the photograph. "When did you take this picture?" he asked.
"Yesterday afternoon, when I went to get your soup," she said, confused. "It was nice out, and I knew you would still be resting, so I wasn't in a hurry."
She frowned and asked, "What's the matter?"
"It's nothing," Alex replied with a smile. "This is a great picture of you. Was that the door? I think the food's here. Can you get it? I'm still not dressed."
When she went to accept the delivery, he sent the photo to his own phone. Then he got out of bed and joined her at the little table in his kitchen to eat.
"We should talk about the Murdochs," she said between bites. "Do you think Michael's someone we should worry about?"
"Do you think I can't handle him?" he asked.
"That's not the point," she said, pushing her plate away. "I just want a moment to breathe. I want to get far away from all the fighting and killing. I just want to feel safe for a minute."
"I'll keep you safe," Alex said and slapped his chest with a smile.
Debbie smiled, but she wouldn't be distracted. "My grandfather told me that Steven came to him looking for help." She looked away.
"He wanted help taking you out of the picture. Jessop and I came up with crazy conditions—three hundred million in cash, ownership of the Hill Hotel, real estate." She shook her head. "I don't think Steven will agree to our terms, but my grandfather hasn't gotten back to me yet. What do you think?"
"I think Steven is an idiot," he replied, grinning. "I can't imagine what he would do if he found out about us. I wonder how he got out of jail so soon. Chelsea looked like she wanted to throw away the key."
Alex's smile faded. "This isn't over," he said. "The Murdochs have taken two shots at me in the last twenty-four hours. I have to end it before they try a third time."
He was sure he could beat Michael to death without breaking a sweat, and he knew it was only a matter of time before he got the chance.
"Anyway, Jessop seems to have set himself up with a sweet deal," he said. "Even if Steven doesn't go for it, Jessop's got leverage. Why didn't he tell me in that Murdoch was looking for muscle?"
"He may not have wanted to show his hand too soon," she said. "We can't underestimate the Murdochs, but Jessop said he would keep an eye on them for us."
"I see," he said. "I trust your judgment."
"I need to run some errands today," she said, heading toward the bedroom mirror to fix her hair. As she left, she gave him a kiss and said, "You should rest. Healing inner force or not, you look like you could sleep for a week."
Alex didn't argue. He settled into his meditation and found the core of his essence. He imagined it as a small flame in his chest. With each breath, he could feel it grow brighter and stronger. He lost track of time, and was pulled from his practice when his cell phone started to ring. It was Debbie.
"The weirdest thing just happened," she said. "I bumped into a lady with a shopping bag. She dropped it on the ground and started freaking out about it. When she opened it, there were shards of a broken jade unicorn figurine inside. She says I owe her fifty thousand dollars for it."
Alex frowned. It was a common enough scam, but the stakes weren't usually that high.
"Obviously, that's nuts," she continued, "but she even had a receipt for it, so we came to the shop she got it from. The saleslady confirmed that she bought it this morning, and it was in one piece when she left."
Alex was annoyed. He wanted to smash every trinket in the place. "Text me the address," he said, putting his clothes on. "I'm on my way.
Half an hour later, his arrival at the shop was announced by a little bell above the door. He hated the place even more than he had expected to. The shop was two stories of trinkets made of jade, porcelain, and crystal. Everything looked ridiculously expensive. It didn't seem like the sort of place that would play along with a street scam.
He found Debbie near a sales counter surrounded by several people. The ringleader was a middle-aged woman wearing gold and silver jewelry and a fierce expression. She didn't look easy to get along with.
Alex took Debbie's arm and said, "What's up?"
"You didn't need to come," she said, "We're figuring it out. I didn't think I bumped her that hard, but I do feel bad."
"Let me help if I can," he said, smiling. "You look stressed."
"Who are you? Are you her husband?" the irate woman snorted. "Your wife broke my unicorn. Someone needs to pay for it, or I'll be calling the police." She waved the receipt in Alex's face.
"Don't worry," he said. "We broke it, so we'll pay for it. But can I see that bag first?"
Without waiting for an answer, he took the bag and opened it. There was indeed a pile of jade fragments in it. He noticed that the shards, although clearly fine jade, couldn't possibly be worth fifty thousand.
"There's no way this cost that much," he said.
The woman scowled at him. "What are you talking about?" she said. "Are you blind? I just showed you the receipt. I bought it here less than an hour ago. Do you think I broke it myself?"
"I'm just saying, this doesn't look like it would cost that much," he said.
"Every person in this room will attest that I bought this jade unicorn from here," she replied.
"If you want to play games, just say so," he said, letting his nice guy façade drop. "You're clearly running some kind of scam."
The woman looked affronted. "You'll pay for the damages, or I'm calling the police right now," she said, brandishing her cell phone.
Alex sighed. "Call them," he said, "I'm sure they'll be interested in whatever surveillance cameras are around."
"I'll cover it if it means an end to all this shouting," said a haughty voice.
Alex looked up and saw Caroline walk up to the counter with a small entourage trailing behind. The man Alex had seen her kissing in the photo walked in beside her.
At the sight of the man, the store's employees scattered after greeting him with hushed voices. They seemed terrified. The man didn't say anything, but nodded coldly. Alex had seen that look before. It was the face of a man who didn't see ordinary people as people at all. Alex was unimpressed.