Fifth Avenue Devil

Chapter 12

Twelve

Annalise

I sit, gazing at a Matisse still life, in the upstairs hallway of my parents' mansion. The painting is mostly dull red and shadowy gray, with the exception of an apple and a bunch of red-purple grapes.

I lean my head to the side as I consider the fruit.

Namely, I wonder if the fruit in the studio was fresh.

Oil paintings take quite some time to paint. So, were there several apples before this one? Or are they rotting and Matisse just left that detail out?

You can never tell how things really are just by glimpsing an image. This is the only 20 th century artist in my parents’ otherwise stodgy collection of dour portraits. I love the modern, fresh take, the way he forces us to see things as he wants us to see them, not as they might appear to our own eyes. It didn’t matter that the fruit might really be rotting.

My phone buzzes in my hand. A text from Nate.

I'll be there in 15.

Of course he picked today to get stuck in traffic. He's only supposed to be meeting my mother after I tell her the news of the merger.

I let out an exaggerated sigh just as the door to my father's bedroom swings open. My mom looks me up and down.

"Annalise Rebecca Gellar, what on earth are you wearing?"

The high-pitched sound of her voice grates on me as I stand up. "Hi, Mother."

She puts her hands on her hips, looking with horror at the gold velveteen dress that hugs my body. "Did you get robbed on the way over here? Or are you making some kind of horrid joke?"

My mouth pinches. "It's a Givenchy dress, Mother. I know it's not what you would pick out for yourself, but it's very much en vogue."

"It looks terrible. And your makeup! God, it's like a clown slapped it on."

The urge to touch my face is strong. But I ball my hands into fists and force a smile on to my face. "You made a huge deal about me flying out all the way out here to Newport this morning. How about we just go in to see Dad?"

Mom sniffs. "I'm glad that your father won't be awake to see you dressed like that."

I throw my hands up. "Maybe I should come back when you're feeling up to hosting people."

My mom shoots me a glare and then starts to walk back into the bedroom. "Come on. Look alive, then."

Rolling my eyes at her retreating figure, I hurry to follow her.

When I enter the room, the drapes are drawn tight. The only light comes from a small lamp on the bedside table. My father lies in the bed, hooked up to several monitors. I approach and see his salt and pepper hair and papery, pasty skin. He appears asleep, his blue-and-white striped pajamas sticking out of a dark blue comforter.

"Hi Dad," I say. I sit down beside him and take his hand. It's clammy to the touch. "It's Annalise. Just coming to check on you. See how you're doing. It seems like your color is a little better than the last time I saw you."

That might be a lie. I can barely make out his features because it's so dark in here.

"Can we open the drapes and let the light in for a little while?" I ask no one in particular. "It's a bit stale-smelling in here."

I smooth the back of my dad's wrinkly hand with my fingers. Someone opens one set of drapes, casting enough light on Dad's face to make him seem alive, at least.

Our relationship was contentious, at best, before he fell into this coma. But he's still my dad. I might want the company, but I don't want him to die.

A man clears his throat, which makes me jump. I turn to find Don Young standing near the opened drapes. He waves a hand at me uncertainly.

"Hi, Annalise."

My mouth thins. "Don. I didn't realize that you were here." I pause, thinking. "What are you doing here, exactly?"

"Just checking on your father," he says. He looks at my mother, who smiles enigmatically.

Something is rotten in the state of Denmark. I can feel it in my bones.

"That's nice of you. Would you give me a minute alone with Dad?" I ask, keeping my tone light.

"Actually, Annalise," my mom cuts in. "I thought that you and I could sit down and talk about Gellar Industries. Your dad will still be here when we're through."

I shrug. "We can talk about it right here."

I stroke Dad's hand, looking between Mom and Don. What are they up to now? Hard to say, but it's not exactly unexpected that my mother might be up to something.

She has a history of betraying me whenever she can.

"Anna, darling," Mom coos. She comes to stand close to me. "Look at you. You're a basketcase. Stressed about Dad. Lonely because you go home to an empty house?—"

"I'm not a basket case," I reply, tartly. Looking over at Don, I jerk my head toward my mother. "Have you decided to team up with her?"

Don spreads his hands. "We're just thinking of the company, Annalise."

Mom smiles sweetly in his direction. Which is strange, on its face. My mom doesn't do saccharine. She only does bitter poison.

Are Mom and Don somehow involved?

"I think you need to focus on your marriage prospects, sweetheart." My mom pats my shoulder. "You should sign the CEO position over to Don temporarily. You would still be on the board, of course. But this would?—"

"Not interested," I cut her off. "And I think Don should leave now."

My phone chimes with an incoming text notification, ringing in the tense silence. I check it, finding a text from Lori. As I’m reading it, my mom tsks.

“Don’t be rude. We are having a conversation,” she rebukes me.

"Annalise, I really think you need to listen to your mom," Don says. "She has your future in mind."

I grit my teeth and glare at them both. "What's the game here? Huh? Mom, what do you gain by pushing Don to take the CEO spot from me?"

Mom flushes. "Nothing!"

My gaze slides between them. They're acting awfully shady for two people who haven't agreed to some underhanded deal.

My phone chimes again. I hurriedly silence it as a knock sounds on the door. Nate's face appears in the doorway. "Ah. There you are."

If my mom were a cat, her ears would flatten. She is instantly on edge.

"Mr. Fordham," she says. "What are you doing in my house?"

"I invited him here," I announce, waving Nate through the door. "I didn't realize that you would try to corner me and make me give up the CEO position to Don. But your intentions are irrelevant, really. Nate is here to discuss the merger."

Don's face gets red. "What?? What merger?"

"I signed the contract yesterday. Dad would have signed the contract himself, but he had a stroke before he could execute anything."

My mom is speechless. "Archer would never agree to a merger with Mr. Fordham."

Nate eases across the bedchamber, looking at my dad as he does. "He lost a poker game. He was running out of funds, so he put the merger on the line. It's as simple as that."

My mom looks at my dad, then begins to usher everyone out of the room. "Let's talk about this somewhere else. Archer needs quiet and rest."

Nate catches my eye as we walk out into the hall. Mom shuts the door firmly behind her and puts her hands on her hips.

She seems like she's about to lay into me, but Don cuts her off before she can get a word out. "I can't believe that you were so foolish to believe anything that this snake in the grass whispered in your ear," Don hisses at me. He stabs his finger in my face. "That was incredibly stupid of you, Annalise. We will be lucky if we're able to take the contract to court and get it invalidated."

Nate smoothly steps between me and Don, his expression hard. "The fuck you will. You're not in charge, Donny boy."

Don's eyes widen. Then he steps forward and pushes his finger into the center of Nate's chest. "Now you listen here?—"

Nate catches Don's hand and twists it hard, spinning him around and pinning his hand at a painful angle behind his back. Don yelps, making me wince.

"Don't touch me," Nate says coldly. "And if you ever think about touching Annalise again, I'll fucking end your life." Don makes a grunting sound. Nate grits his teeth. "Do something about it, you bastard. I'd love a reason to break your fucking arm."

"Mr. Fordham, let him go!" my mother cries.

Nate eases his grip and steps back. Don yanks his arm in front of his body and cradles it. "You fucker!"

My mom rushes to Don's side. "Are you all right?"

Don glares balefully at Nate and then at me. "You know,” he seethes at me, “I would watch my step if I were you. You're just a little kid playing in a grown man's world. It would be a real shame if you got hurt."

"Don!" my mom says, her voice rising. "Don't threaten my daughter."

"It doesn't matter what this little crybaby says," Nate announces. "His days are numbered at Gellar Industries."

"I'm going to kick your ass!" Don flings back.

I grab Nate's arm to keep him from responding to Don's threat with more violence. "Nate, we need to leave."

"I think that would be best," my mom says sourly. "Don't come back here until you're ready to give up the CEO position. I can't imagine why your father willed it to you, but I'm absolutely certain that you don't deserve it.'

I back away, leveling a glare at my mom while digging my nails into Nate's forearm. "Thanks for your support as usual, Mom."

Mom flaps her hand at me dismissively. I drag Nate away, quickly walking toward the mansion's front door.

"I think I changed my mind about letting you fire people," I say out of the corner of my mouth. "Don has to go."

Nate seems unruffled, as if he didn't just do some kind of jujitsu move on my VP. He shrugs. "Think of it as streamlining," he jokes. Then he puts his arm around my back as we step out the front door.