Chapter 43
Weather Girl and the Truth
Ryder
Abruptly, she turned and started walking. I didn't know where home was, but we'd turned away from Main Street and were heading inland, leaving the hotels and shops behind as the area turned residential.
Keeping pace, I said, "You do know that if you reach home without telling me, I am coming inside."
With something like a laugh, she said, "Just like I did." She gave a quick shake of her head. "Do you know, I basically showed up on Maisie's doorstep and barged my way in?"
This wasn't the story I'd asked for, but that didn't mean I wasn't interested. "Oh, yeah? How'd that happen?"
"Maisie – that's my roommate."
"I know." I forced myself not to push.
"Right." Her fingers fidgeted with the zipper of the hoodie. "Of course you do. I mean, your friend is working for her. How'd that happen, by the way?"
I scoffed. "Nice try."
"What do you mean?"
"You're the one who's supposed to be talking, not me."
She made a sound of protest. "But I am talking."
"True. But when you get to the traffic and weather, we're gonna have a problem."
"Oh, yeah? Well, somebody said it's supposed to rain tomorrow."
I smiled. "Try again, weather girl."
She went quiet for a beat, and then said, "Look…that whole flameout? It wasn't the beginning of anything. That was the end. The trouble started earlier."
She was walking slower now, and I adjusted my pace accordingly. "So when did it start?"
"First, I should tell you...Carver Health…you know…Evan Carver's company…"
I snorted. "You mean Daddy's company."
"Not the way Evan tells it."
"Yeah, because he's full of it. But you were saying…?"
Suddenly, she announced, "Carver Health isn't what it seems."
I had to laugh. "Oh, yeah? Well it seems shady as hell. You're telling me it's not?"
Instantly, her shoulders relaxed. "Thank God. I was worried you'd think I was being dramatic."
Before that impromptu research I'd done in Chicago, I could've gone either way. Not anymore. "There's nothing dramatic about the truth. So go on, tell me the rest."
"Well, it's a little dramatic," she said. "I moved to an island for God's sake."
"Yeah, but why? For your safety? Or because you were embarrassed?"
"Well, I was embarrassed. How could I not be? But actually, I came here for two reasons."
"Which are…?"
"The first was because the island is kind of remote, you know? So I figured it would be a decent place to regroup."
I knew a spin-job when I heard it. "Regroup? Or hide?"
"Fine, call it both. But that's still only one reason."
"And the second reason?"
"Well…if you want the truth…" She hesitated. "It involves someone else."
I cut to the chase. "Your sister."
Again, she stopped walking. Turning to face me, she said, "I really do suck at this, don't I?"
"At what?"
She made a little fluttering motion with her hands. "This whole corporate espionage thing."
"So that's what you were doing? Corporate espionage?"
"Not hardly," she said. "You know who I worked for, right?"
I nodded. "Thatcher-Hale."
"Right. Well, you know what we specialize in."
"PR, right?"
"Yes and no. Some of our clients…" But then she gave a bitter laugh. "I mean their clients. It's not like I still work there."
"So you quit?"
A rueful smile crossed her face. "Remember that kiss?"
Softly, I replied, "I remember."
"And remember that debate about who kissed who?"
I nodded.
"Well, that's how it was with my job. I would probably say I quit. But they'd probably say I was fired, so I guess it depends on who you ask."
"Screw them," I said. "I'm asking you."
Her chin lifted. "Well, in that case, I quit."
I couldn't help but chuckle. "Damn straight you did."
"But anyway, a few weeks before then, I learned a bunch of stuff about Carver Health that I shouldn't have."
"Such as…?"
"You name it," she said. "Overbilling, shady bonuses, patients billed for tests nobody ordered. And every time I pushed for clarity, someone shoved a new NDA under my nose."
I braced for what came next. "So, they tried to shut you up."
"They did shut me up," she said. "At least on the legal side."
"Meaning?"
"Well, obviously, I couldn't say anything outside the firm because of those non-disclosures. But inside? Yeah, I was making waves."
"How so?"
"First by asking too many questions, and then by pointing out they didn't have an image problem, but an ethics problem."
"How'd that go over?"
"Not great. But I had to tell them. Do you blame me?"
"Hell no. I blame them. But I know how things go." I also knew Evan Carver.
Tessa knew him, too – and maybe more than professionally.
Still, I kept my voice level as I said, "So tell me the rest."
She blew out a long, trembling breath before saying in a halting sort of way, "One night, I was leaving the office when a man stepped out from behind a pillar in the parking garage."
I braced myself. "And?"
She cleared her throat, barely meeting my eyes. "He said, 'Pretty girls should keep their pretty mouths shut.'"
I stiffened. What the fuck? "And what did you say?"
"Nothing. I was too stunned to speak. And the next thing I know, he's gone. But then, the next week, I had that presentation."
"And?" I repeated.
"It was a total disaster – even before it started. Straight off the elevator, Evan Carver pulls me aside and says, all casual like, that it would be a shame if I ended up needing medical care."
I felt my jaw clench. "What?"
"Yeah. And when I ask him what he means, he says all smarmy-like, 'Shit happens.'"
"Shit happens?" I repeated.
"Yeah, and he goes on to say—" Her voice deepened to mimic Evan. "'And hey, if you happen to get damaged, I guess we'll be seeing you at one of our centers.'"
Asshole. "So, what'd you say?"
"Nothing." Her voice dropped. "Just like in the garage, I was too shocked to even process it." She sighed. "And don't get me started on him showing up at my apartment."
I stiffened. "When?"
"The night before the presentation. He said he just wanted to talk, but I refused to let him in. And he just loved that."
"I bet."
"But I figured once I got through the presentation, it would all settle down, you know?"
"No. I don't," I admitted. "Why would you think that?"
"Because I was heading to Miami right after – and for a whole month – so I figured it would be fine."
I cut in. "Fine?"
"Okay, not fine-fine, but nothing I can't handle." She paused. "I think, 'I'll just get through this presentation and figure it out after.' Because by now, it's pretty obvious that Carver Health is gonna implode no matter what I do."
No kidding. But I wanted to hear her version. "Because…?"
"Because they're getting sued by everybody and their brother. After discovery, they'll surely go under. And Evan? He's gonna end up in prison." Her voice grew quiet. "Or at least I sure hope so."
I considered why she was here on the island. "So you're doing what? Waiting him out?"
"Not just that," she said. "There was that second reason, remember?"
"Your sister."
"Right." A shadow passed over her face. "Just before I'm about to speak – you know, at that presentation – Evan comes up and shakes my hand, all friendly like, but then, he leans in and whispers straight into my ear." Tessa gave a little shiver. "Do you wanna guess what he said?"
I was lost past guessing. "Tell me."
"He says… " Again, she mimicked his voice. "What I said about you – that goes double for your sister."
My jaw clenched. "He didn't."
"He did. And of course, I'm totally shocked – not just because of the threat, but because I didn't even realize he knew I had a sister. I mean, sure, it wouldn't be hard to find out, but it was all so premeditated that I didn't know what to do."
"I have some ideas."
"Yeah, me too," she said. "But they're mostly illegal, and besides, it's not like I own a machete."
At this, I almost smiled. "A machete?"
"Or a machine gun." She shrugged. "I'm just saying, I've had some thoughts. But his timing – it was no accident. Obviously, he wanted me to flip out – or look totally crazy. Like, let's say I stopped right there and called him on what he'd just said, who would've believed me?"
"I would've."
She gave a hollow laugh. "Yeah, but you weren't there, were you?"
My fingers flexed. "I wish I were."
"You wanna know what I wish?"
"What?"
She grimaced. "I wish I'd never met him in the first place."
Suddenly, I just had to know. "And how about socially?"
This made her pause. "What do you mean?"
"The way I hear it, the two of you were dating."