Chapter 27
LILA
Two years or so later
The dark expression on her face was worth all the money, time, and effort I put into contesting my father’s will and challenging its validity.
Henrietta’s eyes would kill me if they could.
My lawyers feel like congratulations are in order. I couldn’t agree more.
I wear my best skirt suit today and heels. I wanted to be dressed sharply when I faced her, especially if she had anything to say to me outside the courtroom.
It took a persistent effort to prove undue influence by establishing that she had the motive and opportunity and actually exercised her influence by actively participating in drafting a new version of my father’s will.
I was a little skeptical after the probate hearings, but my attorneys insisted we had a good case.
My father had changed his will several times, and he only added the conditions that had tied me to this woman at a later date. He must’ve been afraid that things might go south, and poor soul, he was so right.
Henrietta also pressured him to change his medication for his back pain, which made him experience side effects that rendered him drowsy and blurred his judgment.
We were able to document all that.
So we were handed a big win today, and she better be careful about how she behaves.
A team of detectives has started to investigate whether she contributed to my father’s death.
I exit the courtroom, my cheeks burning.
Henrietta didn’t get her money.
Well, Damon didn’t get his money, so I think it’s only fair that Henrietta shouldn’t see a penny from my father’s estate.
Keira is waiting for me by the window in the hallway.
She can tell from my big grin that things have been finally straightened out.
Justice has been served.
Keira wears a pantsuit and a coat. She also holds a briefcase. She’s on her lunch break.
Her arms loop around me.
“Good job,” she says before my team of attorneys approaches us.
We spend a few minutes talking, and then we say our goodbye, and I turn to Keira.
“Can we still have lunch?’ I ask.
“Yes. Of course. I called the office and told them I’d be late.”
She works a few blocks from here.
Her job pays well. She moved in with Nicky, who left Washington and works in New York.
Go figure.
They’re planning for a summer wedding next year.
Things have worked out for them. She’s still thanking me for opening her eyes and not snatching up Nicki from under her nose.
Nicki was never in the cards for me as much as Frankie never was, or my first boyfriend.
I move my eyes to her.
“I need to use the bathroom first.”
“Sure. I’ll wait outside.”
She heads out while I look for a restroom.
I locate it, and I’m about to push the door open and enter it when something catches my eye. Henrietta’s dark purple tailored jacket.
She wears her hair pulled up into a bun, while small earrings grace her earlobes.
She looks like she’s reading something on her phone, her shoulder pressed into the wall not far from the window, and then I notice a man behind her.
My heart stops for a moment, and my legs turn to rubber. I feel like fainting as the broadness of his shoulders takes me back, way back. He looks so much like Damon West that I can’t breathe.
The resemblance is uncanny. The fact that these two people are so close to each other is beyond weird.
He looks out the window, his hands tucked into his pockets. He wears a sharp suit, and I try to remember if any of her lawyers looked like him. Maybe he’s one of them.
But no, no.
I didn’t see this man in the courtroom.
If he was inside, he must’ve been in the last row. How come I didn’t notice him?
I’m so curious of how he looks that I stay frozen by the door until a woman exits the restroom, and I step out of her way, apologizing.
Henrietta lifts her gaze from her phone, and our eyes meet.
On cue, the man walks away and vanishes around the corner.
He reminded me of Damon so much because he was built like him and wore a fine suit. And also because I’m still unable to forget him. But his gait was different, and he was also slightly shorter.
And then, a weird feeling sweeps over me, punching me in the stomach and making my breath catch.
This must be him.
Her accomplice.
He was here to offer her support.
He is the other man.
But who is he?
I wish I could find out who he is. I wish I could take a picture of him.
Frantically, I try to think as Henrietta looks at me as if she knows what happens in my head.
She straightens and slides her phone into her purse, and seems to be heading my way.
She’ll try to stall me.
She must know that I know.
I flick my eyes to the woman who just walked out of the restroom and dash toward her as Henrietta sets herself in motion.
I catch up with her and touch her arm.
“Do you mind if I ask you to start up a conversation with that woman so I can pull away from her? She lost in court today and seems set on ruining my day. I just want to get out of the building without an incident.”
“Sure. No problem. There’s also security on the floor.”
“It won’t be necessary. I’m sure she’ll give up once I’m gone.”
She turns around, ready to dissuade Henrietta from following me outside while I zip around the corner and look at the other end of the corridor.
I’ve learned all the exits in the building all this time, which comes in handy now.
I use the stairs and an elevator to catch up with the stranger.
Panting, I rush outside and spot the man right in front of me. He takes the stairs down and moves swiftly, which makes me think she might’ve alerted him that I’m on his tail.
There’s no car waiting for him in the front.
I spot Keira, who’s on the phone, her back turned to me, luckily, and I quickly scoop out my phone and walk to the side, hoping to get a snapshot of the man’s profile.
He’s booking it, with his face tilted down, when I make a bold move.
“Hey,” I bark, and he instinctively flicks his eyes to me.
I can’t tell whether he realized that I pressed the shutter when he looked at me.
Just as quickly, I retreat behind a column and move away without looking back.
Keira spots me and waves at me.
She’s still on the phone with Nicki when I pull up in front of her and slide my cell phone into her purse.
“Keep this for me. Don’t give it to anyone. I’ll be right back.”
She nods, and I instantly pull away.
I bump into Henrietta on the first floor.
“What do you think you’re doing?” she barks at me, and I signal to her that the security on the floor has already made a note of her berating tone.
“Watch your tone, Henrietta. And count your blessings. The next time we meet here, you could be on trial for murdering my father.”
She presses her lips together, her eyes dark like ink.
I point my finger to her chest.
“I never liked you. You know that. But I’ll give it to you.
You have a rare quality. You’re patient.
Not only sly but also patient. You played him.
And you played my father. You also tried to play me.
This was never about Damon West or your toxic relationship with him.
It was always about the money. The money was never enough for you.
Everyone’s money was yours. But you made a mistake.
A big mistake. You put him in jail. The only man you shouldn’t have touched or messed with.
The only man who mattered to me besides my father.
Had you not done that, he’d be here, living his life.
You’d still be out of your money, but you wouldn’t have a bounty on your head. ”
Her eyes shoot lasers at me.
“You have lost your mind, you crazy little girl,” she says under her breath, grabbing my arm and shaking me hard.
I yank my arm out of her grip.
“You’ve completely lost your mind,” I grind out. “What did you think you’d accomplish by taking him away from me? You thought I’d just go away quietly. You thought you’d outsmart everyone? Well, I’ve got news for you. You're toasted, Henrietta Jones. You’re fucking toasted.”
I revel in the expression of shock sliding over her face before I move away, smiling.
Later, I exit the building and welcome the crisp air and the promise of a quiet Christmas season as the beautiful decorations sparkle under a few flurries of snow.
LILA
Brooklyn
The snow buried the street.
I can barely see the streetlights under huge hats of snow, and as I crack the window open and listen to the howling wind, I can hear the Christmas carols in the distance.
Not far from my apartment, there’s a small market with restaurants and stores, and music flows over the speakers.
I swear I can smell the freshly baked cookies in the Italian bakery around the corner.
I dwelled a lot on whether to sell this apartment and move upstate New York. Or even to New Jersey.
Or to Long Island.
Anything would work for me. I don’t mind commuting. And I didn’t mind living in the same place that quietly witnessed the departure of the only man that had taken up residence in my head.
I’ve done many things these past two years. Graduated. Worked a few jobs. Started a business. Became a consultant. But never moved away from the idea of him.
Never found the time to go out and meet new people.
Never considered dating again.
A small part of me still brims with curiosity about him.
Have any of the things he had predicted become true?
Although we’ve never kept in touch and I haven’t had a sign from him, that part of me has never let go of him.
One of my attorneys informed me a few weeks ago that Damon West might be considered for an early release.
It might happen as soon as this week.
There are only a few days left before Christmas, and I’m becoming more restless with each passing day.
I take a few long breaths, enjoy the smell of winter, and then close the window and return to the kitchen.
I’m usually not that great at baking, but these days I’d do anything to keep myself busy.
A few minutes after eight, I pull out a tray of cupcakes and decorate them with buttercream before I turn on the TV.
The volume is low as I return to the kitchen to finish my work.
Minutes later, I taste one of them and set it down, satisfied with how delicious it is.