CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
“This is nice,” Tabby said when they stepped out of the limousine. “It’s all so rich. Do you have any poor friends at all?”
“None,” said Stuart as he placed his hand around her waist.
“Other than me,” Tabby added with a smile.
“You aren’t a friend,” Stuart said as he pinched her waist.
“Ouch,” she said with another smile as they made their way up the brick steps that led to the huge glass front door.
They were on Long Island, at the home of Jennifer Brooks, and there were already a slew of other limousines parked around the circular driveway.
They were flanked by Lou and one of Stuart’s big, beefy bodyguards as a precautionary measure.
But before they made it across the wraparound front porch, Stuart stopped all movement and looked at Tabby.
“Whatever you do you stay in eyeshot of me. You understand me?”
Tabby nodded.
“And Lou, I’m holding you personally responsible for Tabby. If you see anything that you even suspect is suspicious around her, you go and secure her. She won’t resist or question you. She’ll do what you tell her to do. Correct, Tabitha?”
“Absolutely,” Tabby said. These people were professionals. No way was she going to try to dictate to them.
When she spoke firmly, Stuart relaxed. Ultimately, she was his responsibility, but he had to delegate tonight. He had to survey the landscape tonight.
The big, double doors of the mansion were opened by Jennifer’s butler, and they all walked inside. Lou and the bodyguard remained on either side of the front door, as if they were security for the entire event. Which Tabby thought was odd.
There were various small groups of people laughing and talking and standing around when Stuart and Tabby entered the massive living space. With soft music playing, it seemed like a very nice, very quaint dinner party.
But Tabby took issue with one thing. She leaned against Stuart. “What in the world are they playing?”
“Sounds like Perry Como to me.”
“Who’s Perry Como?”
Stuart laughed. “Some old white guy.”
“You mean like you?”
It was Tabby’s time to laugh. Until he pinched her butt.
“Ouch!” she said as her smile left. It hurt. For real. Which made Stuart laugh again.
“He’s back! Welcome back, Stuart!” It was Logan Stoudemire and his wife Gheri. “I thought you gave up on us.” He and Stuart shook hands.
“Good to see you again, Logan. How are you, Gheri?”
“Better now that you’re here,” Gheri said with a smile. “I know Jennie will be pleased. Who’s the pretty young lady?”
“Logan, Gheri, this is Tabitha. This is my lady.”
Logan was about to shake Tabby’s hand. But he stopped midway and looked at Stuart. “Excuse me, your what?”
Stuart smiled. “My lady. My girlfriend.”
Logan looked at Gheri, but she was as shocked as he was. “Does Jennie know?” Gheri asked Stuart.
“And how is it Jennifer’s business that I have a girlfriend?”
Before Gheri, who was Jennifer’s best friend, could answer that question, the announcement came. “Everybody partner up. It’s that time again!”
Tabby was confused. “What time again?”
“Time to dance. They announce it every half hour or so,” Stuart said. “You partner up with somebody different every time.”
“Give her a spin, Logan, will you?” Stuart said. “I’ll take care of your wife.”
“Don’t take care of her too good,” Logan said with a grin. “Come on, Tabitha. Let’s show them how it’s done.”
Tabby looked at Stuart, but he was already going on the dance floor with Gheri.
At first, Tabby thought it was kind of lame.
Why force people to dance when everybody looked like they were already having fun?
But although the music wasn’t to her liking, as it was apparently yet another old white man crooning, she enjoyed the energy in the room.
Everybody seemed to be having a blast. Including Stuart. So she did too.
But it wasn’t until after the dance and Tabby went over to Stuart and Logan did they realize Alan and Nora were at the party too.
“She invited Nora too?” Tabby asked, surprised.
But Stuart was shaking his head. “I doubt it. She can’t stand her either. More likely Nora found out I was coming and decided to invite herself, and make Alan bring her.”
“He’s that close to his mother?”
“Yes he is.”
“I thought he was close to you.”
“Never all that close. It’s more like he didn’t turn against me,” Stuart said. Which sounded so sad to Tabby.
But while they were talking about Alan and Nora, Gheri was rushing to the kitchen where Jennifer was having a confab with her chef.
“Jennie, get out there and get out there right now!” Gheri said.
Jennifer was confused. “Why? What is the problem?”
“Stuart’s here.”
Jennifer’s eyes stretched in excitement. “He came?”
“Yes. But not alone.”
When Gheri said those last three words, Jennifer looked at her as if she was an alien. And then she hurried into the living room to see for herself. Gheri followed behind her.
But when Jennifer saw Stuart and saw that a younger woman was by his side, a woman she didn’t invite to her party, she was pissed. But decided to hide it.
“Stuart darling!” she said happily as she hurried to him. “You made it!” They embraced, but she whispered in his ear: “Who the fuck is that?” Then they separated and Jennifer was still smiling her fake smile. “Introduce us to your friend,” she said.
“We’ve already met her,” said Logan. “Lovely lady.”
Gheri wanted to ring her husband’s neck. He knew how deeply Jennifer cared for Stuart.
“Actually you met her before as well,” Stuart said to Jennifer.
Jennifer was confused. “When? Where?”
“Two years ago. When you and Logan and Gheri and few others went with me to my hometown. She was the waitress you treated so shabbily.”
Jennifer frowned. “The waitress? And you brought her to my home?”
“I did that, yes,” Stuart said.
“But why?”
“Because she’s my lady. She’s my girlfriend.”
When he said those words, the entire room went still. They were all looking at Jennifer.
But Jennifer was still confused. “What do you mean she’s your lady? I’m your lady.”
“No, you aren’t. You told yourself that, but you knew it was never true.”
“Hello Stuart.” It was Nora’s voice. “Hello Jennifer. What’s this all about?”
They all looked as Nora and Alan came over. Now Jennifer was even more perturbed. “What are you doing here, Nora? I would have never invited you.”
“Keep your shirt on, Jen,” said Alan. “She came with me.”
“And who invited you?” Jennifer asked Alan.
“Really?” Alan was offended. “That’s what we’re doing?”
“I don’t know why she continues to pretend,” Nora said. Then she looked at Jennifer. “Everybody knows you’re fucking my son.”
Everybody looked from Nora to Jennifer. Other than Andy Williams singing “Moon River” over the stereo system, it was pin-drop quiet.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Jennifer said.
“You aren’t sleeping with Alan?”
“No!”
“Now that’s a lie,” said Nora.
But Jennifer preferred to get to the bottom of Stuart and his so-called girlfriend. Alan was a plaything, an in-between-time thing. He meant nothing to her. “How did she get to be your girlfriend over me? Tell me that, Stuart.”
“You had nothing to do with it.”
“Give it a rest, Jennie,” Alan said. “He knows about us. Why are you still pretending?”
“He already told me,” Stuart said.
“But she wants to play games,” Alan said.
“Okay okay!” Jennifer yelled out. “I admit it. But you wouldn’t return my phone calls, Stuart. You wouldn’t allow me to visit you at the penthouse. You abandoned me when we got back from Ohio. You wouldn’t come around anymore at all. I admit that I did it, yes I did it.”
“Are you also admitting that you were behind that takeover of Stuart’s company?” Tabby asked.
As soon as she said that, Nora began heading for the front door as if she wanted no parts of that discussion. But Jennifer frowned. “Me? Alan took over his company. I had nothing to do with that.”
“You were sleeping with Alan, which is disgusting by the way. Why wouldn’t you help him out?”
“I’m not behind any takeover of anything. You people are trying to takeover my dinner party, that’s the only takeover I can see.”
“If you aren’t behind it,” Tabby asked, “then who is?”
And that was when they heard Lou, at the front door, tell Nora that she couldn’t leave. But it looked strange to everybody in the room. They talk about a takeover and suddenly Nora headed for the exit?
But Nora was angry. “I can’t leave? Stuart, what’s the meaning of this?” she asked as he angrily hurried toward him. “Tell your bodyguards to let me out of here at once. I didn’t plan to stay here all night. I have an appointment.”
“How convenient,” Tabby said.
Nora frowned. “What are you talking about?”
“I figured it out,” Stuart said, and all eyes shifted to him.
You figured what out?” Nora asked him.
“I figured it out when Alan said I ruined the stayover.”
“You did ruin it,” Jennifer said. “You used to stay over to my house after every one of my Friday night dinner parties. Every one. Then you wouldn’t show up to any of my parties at all.”
“Not that stay over,” Stuart said. “I’m talking about The Stayover Watersports Company.”
Nora frowned. “Isn’t that the company you took over and turned into Dellstone?”
“Yes,” Stuart said. “I purchased it when he lost it.”
“When who lost it?” Jennifer asked him.
“When my father lost it,” Gheri said.
As soon as she said those words, all eyes turned to Gheri. Including her own husband. “What are you saying, Gheri? Are you saying Stuart took over your father’s company?”
“It was called The Stayover because he rented watersports equipment to tourists and vacationers along the Jersey Shore. It was an excellent business.”
“It wasn’t even solvent,” said Stuart. “It was already in foreclosure when I found out about it. It was in unsustainable debt.”
“It was a solid business!” Gheri yelled out.
“You took advantage of my father and stole his company. That’s why I helped Alan steal yours!
Now shut up!” she yelled from the top of her longs and then she pulled out a gun and immediately shot Lou Fenson and Stuart’s bodyguard in the chests. Both men fell.
Everybody began screaming and running for the exits, but Gheri waved her gun around. “Nobody move!” she cried out. And they all stayed where they were. “I won’t hurt anybody but the one man responsible.”
Then she looked at Stuart. “Stuart Jacobs stole my daddy’s company.
Two months ago he died in a nursing home.
He died penniless. My husband’s financial support was the only way he survived.
But Stuart, the man who took his idea and stole it, goes on to become a billionaire.
My daddy couldn’t pay his nursing home bills, and he’s a billionaire. How is that fair?!”
“Did you pay Darius to try and kill Stuart’s son?” Tabby asked.
“Of course I did.”
Logan frowned. “You what?”
“I had to. He was a liability. He wasn’t strong enough to keep what I did from Stuart.
Now it doesn’t matter,” she said as she began walking toward Stuart.
And before anyone could react, she started shooting.
She unloaded round after round after round after round of her Glock.
She shot Stuart three times, then a fourth time, then a fifth time.
Tabby was screaming and crying and dragging him away from her. Alan was trying to drag his father away from her too.
Until everybody in that room noticed something strange. Tabby and Alan noticed it too. Even Gheri noticed it.
Stuart was still upright. He was still on his feet. And there wasn’t a spot of blood on him.
Everybody froze. Tabby and Alan were touching him. They were feeling him for bullet holes. But he had none.
“How?” Tabby asked him.
“While I was dancing with Gheri, I picked her pocket. I knew where she kept her weapon. She was always bragging about that Glock. So I took her gun and replaced it with a replica that I purchased and brought with me as soon as I figured out that she was behind that takeover and why.”
“But what about Lou and your bodyguard?” Alan asked.
“You can get up now, gentlemen,” Stuart said, and both men happily rose to their feet.
Everybody sighed relief. Tabby and Alan both hugged Stuart. Nobody was more relieved than those two.
But Gheri’s husband Logan and her best friend Jennifer were too devastated to move. They were staring at Gheri as Lou and the bodyguard hurried over and began putting handcuffs on her to wait for the police.
Stuart was staring at Gheri too. Because she believed a lie without bothering to seek the truth. “Your father’s company was bankrupt. I took it off of his hands before the bank did. I paid him what it was worth. I did nothing wrong to your father.”
“That’s a lie,” Gheri said. “It’s all lies!” She was crying. But neither her husband nor her best friend were comforting her. Which didn’t surprise Tabby, not in that world. Logan was apparently a fair-weather husband too, she assumed.
Alan was trying to distance himself as well. “I thought she was just helping me out, Dad,” he insisted. “She didn’t tell me anything about her father or his business or anything like that. I never thought she would try to harm me.”
“But you tried to harm me,” said Stuart, “when you took over my company. It backfired on you. Just like it backfired on her.”
“But how did you figure it out?” Alan wanted to know.
“When you got cute and said I ruined the stayover. You thought you were talking about me staying over with Jennifer tonight. In the back of your mind, you knew Gheri’s father’s business was called The Stayover.
It was a phrase she said in the background when Jennifer left me a voice mail.
She said I ruined the stay over when I stopped coming to these parties.
You apparently heard her say that too and figured she meant me sleeping over with Jennifer.
That’s why you said it to me. You may not have known the hidden meaning Gheri was trying to convey, but I knew it.
What you didn’t know was that your cute little remark that was meant to hurt me when you were leaving my house was the piece of that puzzle I missed earlier.
But I caught it full swing when you said it. ”
Alan was shocked. He looked at his mother. And they both looked at Gheri.
But Stuart was drained. He looked at Tabby. “Let’s go get some fresh air,” he said. He knew the cops were coming. He knew they would have to stick around and give statements. But right now he just wanted to be away from his sick, brutal world.
Tabby hurried to him, grabbed his hand, and gladly led him to the outside.