Chapter Ten
Eddie’s POV
I was trying to tell myself that orange was not my color and I was too pretty for prison, when I heard a ping coming from deep inside of the bag I’d packed for Fia. I pulled it out, using her code to unlock it, seeing a text from an unknown number.
Unknown: I sent the video you requested in an email attachment.
I would also, again, like to offer my lawyer’s services.
She’s already sent an email. She will also be handling the termination suit for those two and it could make it easier to have all the evidence with one person instead of passing it through many hands.
I had no idea who this person was, but if they were offering help, and offering a way for her to divorce the motherfucker who did this to her?
I was going to accept on her behalf. I knew she was trying to find her own attorney, and the one she’d work with up til now was great for helping with property laws and knowledgeable on inheritance laws.
He said he preferred to stay out of court and away from the family drama.
The female lawyer who emailed earlier, the I was chatting with, that must be who he’s talking about.
I wanted to get her as far away from Caleb as I could. Even if I had to take things into my own hands.
Sunday, 12:04am
Devin: This is Devin’s brother, Eddie. We’d like to take you up on that offer for legal help, thank you very much.
I’m assuming the lawyer you’re talking about is Amber?
Devin doesn’t know I’m accepting on her behalf, but she said she wanted a lawyer.
She’s currently in the hospital after whatever happened at the party this evening.
I knew I was making an assumption here, and I also knew what happened when assumptions were wrong.
But I figured since he offered up the services of his lawyer who would be firing Caleb, this was most likely the CEO she had told me about every year.
The nice man who was always respectful, treating her with a fondness, but never pushing any boundaries.
Thinking further, staring at the message the possible CEO had sent, I figured that, most likely, the other part of the ‘them’ from that message was the girl that Fia was worried about a few weeks ago flirting with Caleb.
I hit send, shaking my head, praying I was wrong.
I was already so angry on behalf of Fia, and I knew it would only get worse if it were all true.
If Caleb and the girl cheated together, at the party, and then Devin Fia saw or heard it…
that would explain the state of shock she was in.
The thought sent an ice cold anger through my veins.
Sunday, 12:05am
Unknown: Hello, Eddie. I’m Clint. Clint Westwood, Caleb’s boss.
I’ll be teaming up with your sister to help take down the people who violated my company’s no fraternization policy and her legally binding marriage vows.
Does she need anything? My lawyer informed me she has a meeting with you and her client in the morning?
I would like to accompany her, if that’s agreeable.
I had just finished reading the message when Emilia half walked, half burst through the door of Fia’s room, armed with two takeaway containers, an update on how things had gone at the flat, and two cold brews.
She set a container and one of the coffees on the over-the-bed table in between the two of us, resting over a sleeping Devin.
“Em. Look,” I showed her the texts, sliding my phone across the table, grabbing my takeaway container.
Mongolian beef. My favorite.
I bit into the still warm, juicy beef in my container. It was some of the best in the city. I was letting myself melt into the savory flavors when Emilia’s voice pulled me from my brief beef reverie.
“Then let’s wait til we hear from him on her phone.
I want to know when this fuckwad finally realizes he’s fucked up.
I want to know how long it takes for him to realize something isn’t right and to call one of us.
Because I tried too,” she slid the phone back over to me, pulling out some noodles with her chopsticks.
The woman was a master at them, while I stuck to my plastic fork.
“She’s got a ring camera? Or at least is gonna be getting one, right?
” Her eyebrow hitched, and I knew our other best friend.
She was seconds away from killing Caleb, decimating and emasculating him in the deep recesses of her mind so she could laugh in his face the next time she saw him. She loved destroying insignificant men.
“Yeah,” I said around a mouthful of beef, peppers, and rice.
“Good,” a wicked flare came to her eyes, and was there and gone before I could fully process it, “We can keep track of who comes to see her.”
Emilia truly did scare me. Not many women did, but she was calculating, dangerous if you crossed her. Or hurt someone she loved.
Sunday, 12:10am
Fia: Thank you very much, Mr. Clint. We do appreciate it. We have everything she needs for now, and the locksmith has already been there. Devin is currently being admitted here at City Hospital. She’s in shock and unconscious. I’m assuming it’s because she must have seen something unpleasant?
Sunday, 12:12am
Unknown: Yes. It was very unpleasant. Let me know when she wakes up.
Unknown: Please.
As soon as she opened her eyes five hours later, I sent a text to that unknown number, letting Clint know she was awake.
She was groggy, looking like she was having a harder time coming around than I would expect, all while she was poked and prodded again.
Rechecks, wanting to cover all bases, etc.
The usual variety of excuses. I was busy checking on her while they took their samples.
The vacant look in her eyes had me worried, but when it was just us again, she perked up a tiny bit.
Her eyes at least held emotion instead of being empty.
When she asked what happened, I filled her in on the insanity that was the night while she was unconscious, laying there like fucking sleeping beauty.
By the time I was done, she looked at me like she had questions she wanted to ask, but seemed nervous.
“Ask me. I’ll tell you whatever you want to know,” I held her hand as tears filled her eyes and she asked a flood of questions. I had to take a deep breath, trying to figure out where to start.
“So, this morning a security company came and added cameras to your place, including a doorbell and outside camera. Emilia was there for that, and for the locksmith. All locks have been changed, including the mailbox lock. The super in the building did that this morning. The night and day doormen have been informed of the situation with Caleb.” Her breath caught, emotions warring for space on her face, her lip trembling. I pressed on.
“Em took the lead in packing. Not your things, though I did pack a bag for your stay here,” I motioned to her duffle in the corner, “She’s been here twice, but going through each room with a fine toothed comb, packing his shit into boxes and leaving them with the doorman.
He gave her the trolley from storage to use.
The one they got when one of the old hotels shut down. ”
“Double-D? The one deep in storage that’s only brought out for deaths and divorces?” She asked, her face a mix of awe and disgust.
“Yeah. She’s been using that, and Frank, the night man, promised that if Caleb shows up on his shift, he doesn’t know where Double-D is.
Fred, the day doorman, said he’s going to take a wheel off it and offer it to Caleb,” I tried to finish before bursting out laughing.
Those two thought Devin was the nicest tenant, not only because she thanked them every day and asked about their families, but because she cared, and offered an ear or smile when they seemed down.
“So almost all his stuff is out. Em has a pile of things he’s given you that could be considered sentimental. We haven’t boxed those yet, but we can either trash ‘em, give ‘em to him, or put it all in a box in your closet. You’ll have a Caleb box.” She just nodded.
“Caleb box. It hurts too much right now,” her voice came out barely a whisper above the medical equipment.
We kept talking, and I hated that she looked even more closed off after giving her information from the lawyer, and her telling me what she saw last night.
Her face crumpled with sadness, confusion, and then anger. Lots of anger.
I hated that I was the one who had to tell her.
I hated that I wasn’t done with the pain this was going to cause her.
I hated that she was going to have to endure more hurt from this asshole and I was the one who had to deliver each blow thus far.
It was like I was unwillingly destroying my sister and I knew the next bit was just going to fucking kill her.
“He…ugh, fuck.” I bent my head forward, staring at the floor for half a second before schooling my face and looking back into her eyes, before crushing her with the news.
“I’m so sorry, Devin. Emilia and I both tried to contact him repeatedly. H-he,” Emilia came back from the restroom, grabbing Fia’s other hand, already knowing what I was about to tell her.
“Caleb never tried to contact you. He hasn’t been home since, about, thirty minutes ago.
Fred stopped him, indicating his belongings at the front desk in the lobby.
Em went there to drop off a few more things we got from the store, but didn’t let him in when he tried to get into the flat.
” Devin shook her head next to me, not wanting to believe what I was telling her, but with the doorbell camera footage playing on her own phone, it wasn’t like I was lying. All she had to do was hit play.
Devin watched the encounter, looking numb the whole time, almost hollow as Caleb ambling back to the flat at nine in to morning, hair and clothes disheveled.
A hickey visible on his neck, just above the collar of his shirt.
It was obvious what had happened, and it was even more painfully obvious that he thought he’d be able to get away with it.
“You know,” I looked at her, trying to steer the conversation toward a better topic, “A delicious-sounding voice named Clint said he would be coming to see you with his lawyer today as soon as you woke up. Said he wanted to help you get divorced. He called about ten minutes before you woke up to ask how you were faring.” I raised an eyebrow at her, hoping there was something on the horizon to distract her.
I didn’t want this to destroy her. I wanted her to rise from the ashes that she felt her world had been reduced to. She simply nodded, looking out the window, a million miles away, not truly seeing anything.