Fifth Avenue Devil

Chapter 33

Thirty-Three

Annalise

T he sky is a darkened steel color. The clouds gather, churning. Buckets of water are pouring from the sky by the time that I get to Nantucket.

Not that it matters anyway. My whole life is ruined .

As I run up the steps of Lori Parker's remote coastal estate, tears blur my vision. The salty ocean breeze stings my puffy eyes. I sniffle and ring the doorbell. The door swings open.

Lori always looks so poised. Even on vacation, her demeanor is a striking contrast to my disheveled state. She looks me up and down before hustling me inside. "Annalise? What's wrong?"

I choke back a sob and lean into her open arms. "Lori... I've lost Gellar Industries."

“What do you mean?” She pauses. “Wait. Let’s go into the living room to talk.”

Lori leads me to a luxurious couch facing a window that overlooks the stormy sea. She whisks a blanket off the back the couch, urges me to sit, then heads to the kitchen to make us both a cup of mint tea.

As I sink into the plush cushions, my heart feels as heavy as the dark clouds looming outside. The time it takes the tea to steep gives me a minute to regain my composure. Lori is right. She knows just how to calm me down.

Hell, she’s known me for my whole life.

Lori returns and presses a fine teacup into my hands. She draws very long, practiced breaths, urging me to do the same.

Breathing along with her feels silly, but it is calming. I manage to stop crying long enough to speak. “Nate found out about the missing money. He… he just fired me as the CEO of Gellar Industries.”

Lori looks shocked. “What? He can’t do that. Only the board can vote to remove you.”

“He’ll call a meeting tonight or tomorrow. And they’ll be happy to vote against me. They always expected me to fail.” I sniffle and sip my tea.

"God, what a mess," Lori mutters, shaking her head as she sits down beside me. "I turn my phone off for one day, and this happens. Tell me everything, from the beginning."

With a shaky sigh, I gather my thoughts. How to recount the tangled web that has become my life?

My cheeks heat as I confess, "I've been... sleeping with Nate Fordham." Saying it aloud makes it feel all too real.

"Nate? Really?" Lori asks. Her eyebrows shoot up in surprise. "I thought you two hated each other."

“You know what they say. It’s a fine line between love and hate.”

Lori frowns. “You love him?”

I look down at my hands wrapped around my teacup. “I thought I did.” I glance up at her, hoping for reassurance.

Instead, I see worry etched across her usually calm face. My stomach churns with anxiety. I set the teacup down and clench my fists, digging my nails into my palms.

“Nate Fordham has quite the reputation,” Lori begins, haltingly. “He’s supposedly a love ‘em and leave ‘em type of guy. I would hate to see you get caught up in that. Plus, he's possessive and jealous... I can't imagine how you’d begin to deal with it."

"Trust me, I know," I reply. Bitterness rings through my words. Nate's dark gray eyes and chiseled features flash through my mind. Damn him. A blend of desire and anger runs through me and leaves me feeling even more confused than before.

“Tell me more about you getting fired. That happened today?”

Nodding, I say, "It got worse when Nate found out about the missing money. I kept it a secret from him. Now he thinks I'm part of some cover-up. He also accused me of stealing the money."

Lori's expression darkens, concern etched across her features. "That's not good, Annalise. I won't sugarcoat it. This situation looks bad for everyone involved."

“When Nate asked me who else knew, I told him the truth.” I bite my lip. “I’m so sorry, Lori.”

She waves away my concern. “It’s okay, Annie. If you get fired, I’m probably not far behind. I’m a thousand percent loyal to you. Everybody knows that.”

As if on cue, Lori's phone buzzes with an incoming text. She glances down at the screen. I can see a flicker of alarm pass across her face before she turns back to face me. "One of the VPs just informed me that you've been suspended from the company pending investigation. You're considered persona non grata ."

A wave of nausea washes over me. My heart starts pounding in my ears.

Suspended? Persona non grata? How could this happen so quickly? The life I've fought so hard to build is crumbling around me. I feel utterly unequipped to shore up the walls.

"What am I going to do?" I whisper. My voice is barely audible above the hard rain on the windowpane. "I would normally turn to Nate for advice. Now he's the one accusing me."

“ Ach . Kiddo.” Lori pulls me into a warm embrace. "No matter what happens, you're going to be okay. You’ll have me on your side every step of the way."

As her words wash over me, a feeling of gratitude and affection swells within my chest. I tighten my grip on her and whisper, "I love you, Lori."

She gently smoothes my tousled curls. Her eyes glisten with unshed tears. "You're the daughter I never had, Annalise.”

I settle my head against her chest, needing reassurance at this moment. Lori strokes my hair and rubs my back until my tears dry up.

Before I can pull myself together, the doorbell rings. The fragile peace of the moment is shattered. Lori reluctantly releases me from her embrace and goes to answer the door.

Not thirty seconds later, my mother strides into the room, her face twisted with fury. She glares at Lori and snaps, "Leave us."

I'm taken aback by my mom’s hostility. Why is she being shitty to Lori all the sudden? I refuse to let her drive away the one person who has truly been there for me.

“It’s my living room, Monique,” Lori says. “If anyone should leave, it’s you .”

I clutch Lori's hand. "Lori has been here for me. Unlike you.”

“Such a spoiled little girl.” Mom clucks her tongue. “Annalise. You brought this mess upon yourself."

Puzzled, I look to Lori. Lori is glaring at my mother like she’d run her through with a sword given the chance.

“What are you here for, Monique?” Lori asks.

Mom tosses her hair and fluffs her designer jacket. “I’m here to talk about some money that went missing. All little Miss-Gets-Whatever-She- Wants here had to do was keep her fucking mouth shut. But you had to tell everybody, didn’t you? Well, you got what was coming to you. Nate Fordham called and warned us that he was going to fire you.”

My mother’s words ignite fury inside of me that I struggle to control. “You took the money, didn’t you Mom?"

Lori squeezes my hand in silent support, and I’m grateful for it. I feel brave, but I might be doing something stupid.

My mom’s face darkens with rage. A vicious sneer curls her pink-painted lips. Her eyes are cold as ice. "It's your fault that people found out about the missing money, Annalise! Why can’t you just do what you’re told for once in your life?”

“For once in my life? I did everything I could to make you and Dad happy. Look where it brought me!!” My heart skips a beat. I pause, tilting my head. “Wait. How did you find out about the missing money?”

"Perhaps if you'd bothered to turn on the television or check the news, you would know that Gellar Industries is being publicly investigated," Mom snarls, her words dripping with disdain. "It’s dominating the news cycle. You're being flayed alive in the national press, darling. And now the company's stock isn't worth the money it's printed on."

The truth slams into me like a freight train, but I refuse to let her see how it affects me. "If you're so worried about the missing money, Mom, maybe you should be the one trying to find it. After all, it was under your watchful eye that this mess began."

"Excuse me?" Mom’s eyes narrow dangerously.

Little does she know that I'm not done yet. Before I can speak, Lori cuts in.

"I brought in three forensic detectives to investigate this months ago. We knew that the embezzlement started twenty years ago. The forensic detectives traced the transactions back to Archer’s computer. But when we checked the dates of the transactions with his old work calendar, we found that the incidents only happened when Archer was away.” She presses her lips together. “It was someone who had his password. Someone comfortable with his office. Someone who knew when he wouldn’t be in the office…”

My mom pales. “Just what are you accusing me of, Ms. Parker?”

“Just admit it!” I blurt out. “You stole the money. You logged in and wired the funds to dummy corporations under the guise of paying for office supplies.”

Mom lifts her chin, going on the defensive. “Watch yourself, Annalise. I’m your mother .”

I stare her down. For too long, I've let her control me. She and Dad molded me into the puppet they wanted me to be. But no more.

Now, I am a woman who refuses to be manipulated by anyone ever again.

"You are always looking to guilt and manipulate me," I tell her. It feels good standing up to her for the first time in my life. “It’s not going to work this time, Mom. I don’t know if you stole the money on your own or Dad was in on it. But I’m going to call the FEC and tell them the truth.”

“Annalise Rebecca! You will respect me!” Monique’s eyes flash. She’s so worked up that flecks of spittle fly out of her mouth when she yells. "You need to accept the punishment. Surely they'll be easier on a young girl like you than a business giant like Archer."

I blink in disbelief, unable to fathom how my own mother can be so cruel and indifferent to my plight. "But I didn't take the money!" I cry out. "I have no idea where it went!"

"The money was spent on our living expenses," Monique explains with a casual wave. "I had no choice, really. It was all your dad’s idea. Keeping up with the Park Ave lifestyle isn’t cheap. Oh, and you had to go to expensive private schools. You had so many clothes. Fancy cars. Vacations with your girlfriends… If the FTC knew the kind of life you have lived, they would lock you up and throw away the key."

The betrayal of my parents cuts deeper than any blade ever could. "So it was you." I whisper, my voice barely audible. “You fucking stole twenty million dollars! And then you set up your own daughter to take the fall!”

Monique shrugs nonchalantly, clearly unaffected by my anguish. “I tried to tell you that you shouldn’t take the CEO role. Didn’t I? But you did it anyway. Always thinking you know best."

I stare at Monique, openmouthed. There are ten things that I could say to tear her flimsy argument into pieces. But I don’t say any of them.

I realize that the world my mom lives in is very different than my own. It’s more cutthroat, and full of reasons why she should do whatever she wants. There’s no point in arguing with her.

"Monique," Lori interjects. "Why would you even tell us all this? You know I could?—"

"Testify against me?" Monique scoffs dismissively, rolling her eyes. "Please, Lori, you're Gellar Industries' lawyer. I understand how lawyer-client privilege works. Besides, do you really think I don't know where your loyalties lie?”

Lori’s face twists up. I know that face. I’ve seen it a thousand times. Mom just told her something factually inaccurate and Lori is doing her best not to call her out on it.

Mom waves her hands. “And as for Annalise… My darling daughter wouldn't dare turn on her own mother."

In that moment, I want nothing more than to prove her wrong. Show her that I am not the weak and submissive pawn she believes me to be.

I would turn on her in a heartbeat.

"Listen to me, Annalise," Mom says. "Stay quiet. M’kay? Accept whatever punishment they decide to give you. This will all blow over. It's for the best, really." She squeezes my shoulder and gives me a stiff smile. And with that, she breezes out of the house as if she hasn't just shattered my entire world.

My heart pounds as I stare at the empty doorway.

What the hell just happened?

"Can you believe her?" I hiss, clenching my fists. "She sets me up as the fall girl and then has the audacity to act like it's my fault!"

Lori watches me carefully, her eyes radiating sympathy and concern. "Annalise," she begins, her voice gentle yet firm. "We'll figure this out, I promise you. We won't let Monique, or anyone else, destroy what you've worked so hard for."

She then strides purposefully across the room and grabs her phone. Before I can say anything, she’s making a phone call. "Yeah. It’s me. I need you to call the police."

"Wait, what?" I ask. "Why? You can’t talk about what Mom just told you."

Lori covers the microphone with a hand. "Yes I can. Your mom doesn't understand the law. She thinks that, because I'm the company's lawyer and you're her daughter, neither of us can testify against her. But she's wrong. Having three people present broke privilege.”

“You can’t prove that she said anything, though.”

“Wanna bet?” Lori points to a clock on the mantel. “I had a problem a few months ago with a maid stealing things. To catch her, I had cameras mounted in all the rooms. So I recorded the entire confession. We can report this, and we will."

I gape at her. She uncovers her phone and continues to order the person listening around?

“Yeah, Ryan? Okay. I’m going to send you the confession that I just got on tape. You’re going to call the local police, the SEC, and… I don’t know, call the FBI too for good measure.” Lori smiles coldly. She cocks her head. “What’s that? You have the name of someone at the IRS? Well, it couldn’t hurt…”

She walks off toward her home office, presumably about to bring down the hammer on my mom.

Suddenly, I am shaking.

Nate, the man who dominated my most intimate moments and took my virginity with passion and desire, has betrayed me. My parents, the people who should have protected me, used me as their pawn. Now, Lori is my only remaining friend. She’s my sole confidante in this twisted world.

I've lost my company, my reputation, my family... and Nate...