The Fall of the Prodigal (7 page)

“Blah, blah, blah. They're all the same.” Verona read the headlines as she plopped one paper after another on the on the kitchen table in Michael's penthouse. “The press is marching in a grand parade with this.” She pointed to a picture of Michael and Keith embracing. Outraged, she exclaimed, “They're making a mockery of a tender moment.”

“As they should.”

Verona had not been prepared for Michael's response. “Don't you care what they are saying?”

“Not if it's the truth,” he said. “Look at me. I look like a wuss having to clutch my brother for help. My old business partners must be enjoying a laugh at my expense.” Michael snatched the paper to examine the picture before slinging it to the floor in disgust. “I wish they hadn't captured me at that exact moment. I look—”

“Vulnerable?” Verona filled in.
And cute, and hot, and human.

Michael shoulders slumped. “Yes, vulnerable.” He grabbed his head. “I hate it! For years I've prided myself on not needing anyone. I climbed to the highest rung on the proverbial ladder of success and now look at me. I'm practically on my knees.”

If only he would get on his knees.
“Humility never killed anyone. It's pride that goes before destruction and a haughty spirit before a fall,” Verona said.

With a question in his eyes, Michael asked, “Did you quote the Bible?”

She gulped. “I did.”

He looked at her with suspicion. “I didn't know you were into the Bible and stuff like that. I don't ever recall hearing you say you go to church.”

“That's 'cause I don't.” Verona's voice sounded as edgy as she felt. Michael was treading into dangerous territory.

“But you used to be in church,” he pushed. It was as if Michael sensed something and he could not resist digging. “I mean, no one quotes scriptures like that unless they grew up at the altar.”

Fine. She would admit to the obvious. “Yes, I used to go to church. Used to; as in not anymore.” Folding her arms, she injected steel in her voice. “I don't want to talk about it.”

Michael glided into her space. “You don't want to talk? Or, you won't?”

She blinked. “Either one, pick your choice.”

He held his hands up. “Prickly, aren't we?”

“Very. Now leave it alone.”

Michael touched his chin before tilting his head. “I see there are many more facets to you I still haven't discovered.”

What an understatement.
Verona was wading in the river of denial and she liked it. “What you see is what you get.”

He tapped her chin. “Somehow I doubt that.”

She was shaken from his touch, but Verona refused to take the bait. If it killed her, she wouldn't show how moved she was by his proximity. She lifted an eyebrow at Michael and said, “Can we get to work please? Your brother will be here in an hour and we have things to discuss.”

Taking purposeful steps, Verona walked into Michael's study. Once he had entered and was seated, she took a deep breath. “Even though you've resigned, the company is still in trouble. The stocks plunged. Investors and contractors are dropping our business faster than I can count. After Bill's stunt last night, we're on our face.”

Michael clenched his fists at her words. Concerned, her body propelled toward him of its own will. She touched his arm. “Say something,” she whispered.

Michael remained mute.

Helpless, she, a master manipulator of words, was speechless. Then Verona saw it. A single tear rolling from one eye. She gulped, moved in a way she had never been before.

“Michael,” Verona said.

Nothing. Not a single, solitary word flowed from his lips—lips, which looked luscious and inviting.

In slow motion, Verona closed her eyes and bent her body toward him. Her hair swooped into her face but she was not concerned with her wayward curls. She opened her mouth and released her tongue as the tear reached Michael's cheek, capturing the crystal drop before it could slide into oblivion.

When she opened her eyes, her hazel ones encountered a pair of befuddled brown orbs with the question, “What just happened?”

“For your reading pleasure!” Gina swung her arms with dramatic flair.

Keith felt the whoosh as papers landed by his breakfast. His head popped up. “What's this?” he asked though his eyes scanned the headlines.

“I don't know how much more of this I can take,” Gina admitted. “What does the network have to say about your standing next to a rapist?”

“He's not a rapist,” Keith defended. “And the network has my back. The show is about giving people a second chance.”

She released a plume of air. “I've got to take E.J. and Trey to school since I promised I'd let them sleep late, but we must talk.”

Keith stood and snatched her hand. “Take it easy, worker bee. Give your husband a kiss.”

Gina turned her body away from him. “I don't have time.” She yelled, “E.J.! Trey! Get a move on!”

Her powerful voice rang in his ears but Keith would not be swayed. He pulled her close and kissed the top of her head. “I love you.”

Gina lifted her face to his. “I love you too.”

Within seconds, they were embroiled in a passionate foray of major lip locking.

“You guys are disgusting.”

Keith and Gina broke apart at Trey's voice. “Don't knock it 'til you try it, son,” Keith ribbed.

“Never.” Trey put a finger down his mouth for effect.

Keith gave Trey an affectionate pat. “I'll make sure to remind you of those same words in a few years.”

Keith made short work of getting dressed and drove across the bridge to the penthouse suite. He parked in the guest spot and entered the building making his way to the elevators. He had been given an access card and swiped it before heading inside the suite.

He stopped at the sight of Verona's tongue licking Michael's cheek. He would have been happy for them if it weren't for . . . Keith cleared his throat.

Michael and Verona jumped apart. They acknowledged his presence with an awkward greeting. Verona composed herself and held open the files.

For the first time since Keith could remember, his brother gave him a halfway decent welcome. “Have you seen the papers?” Michael asked.

Keith nodded. “Gina did too. She wasn't amused.”

“Has she agreed to be a character witness?”

He stammered. “Ugh, well, Gina needs more time. However, I'm sure she'll do it when the time comes.” He saw disbelief written on both their faces and felt compelled to defend his wife. “She will. Michael, you know Gina. Do you think she'll be able to live with herself if she didn't at least try to help you?”

“The Gina I knew wouldn't. But, I'm a prime example of how a person can change,” Michael said.

Keith nodded. “True. People and feelings can change like the weather. But, when God changes you, it's permanent. Gina is a child of God. He'll speak to her heart.”

Keith saw Michael mull over his words and was grateful he hadn't been given a smart comeback. He knew it was the power of prayer at work.

“I hope for Michael's sake, you're right,” Verona interjected. “Because we don't have a case. To be honest, it seems impossible to win.”

“Thanks for the vote of confidence.” Michael gave her a baleful eye. “How does it look if my own attorney doesn't believe in my innocence?”

“I didn't say you weren't innocent,” Verona snapped. “I said it wasn't winnable. There's a difference.”

Keith felt the heat rising between them and intervened. “God specializes in the impossible. I have no doubt everything will work out in the end. As He wills.”

“Since God helps those who help themselves, can we go talk with Mindy?”

Verona's drawl depicted a significant lack of confidence in Keith's abilities, which irked him. He had been at the top of his game before he entered the ministry. Nevertheless, Keith did not allow her to bait him. When you have talent, you let it speak for itself.

“Good luck getting through the front door. I can't see Bill or his attorney agreeing to meet,” Michael said.

“I can't see us not trying,” Keith countered.

Since Michael couldn't accompany them, Keith and Verona took the short ride over to his nemesis, Bill Laurelton's, suite.

“They gave the rapist the headline!”

Mindy shivered from her father's huge bellow. They had been enjoying muffins for breakfast until he saw the headlines. His skin was beet red. His cheeks puffed with rage. “Calm down, Daddy,” she wailed. “You're scaring me. It's a newspaper. It'll be lining tomorrow's garbage.”

“You're an idiot if you believe that,” Bill roared. He tore the paper into shreds. “Michael Ward rapes my daughter and instead of demanding the death penalty, they're bragging about a family reunion.”

“I'm not even sure if New York supports the death penalty,” Mindy said.

Bill slammed his hand on the table. “That's not the point. It's like you're not listening to me.”

Mindy trembled. Her bottom lip quivered. “Daddy, please get a hold of yourself. I can't take it when you're angry and mad. I—”

She stopped as her voice broke. In a flash, her father enfolded her in his big, bear-like arms. Mindy released her fears in his arms.

“Do you need a sedative?” Bill asked her.

She shook her head, trying to remain in control. “No, I don't like what they do to me.” She pulled out of his arms to look into his face. With tears streaming down her face, she begged, “Daddy, can't we drop the charges? I don't think I can do this.”

His gentle demeanor vanished and Bill gripped her arm. With a slight shake, he said, “You can, and you will. Michael Ward will pay for this.” He glared at her. “Don't tell me you feel sorry for him?”

“I think I love him,” Mindy whispered. She held a finger over her mouth. But there was no way to retract that confession.

Her father slung her from him with disgust. “How can you love someone who would hurt you in such a vile manner?”

Mindy closed her eyes. She shook her head from side to side. “I can't . . . I can't . . .” Rocking her body, she repeated over and over. “I can't . . . Don't make me . . . Don't make me.”

Grabbing her shoulders, Bill commanded, “Stop this, Mindy. Open your eyes.”

She knew better than to disobey. It took every ounce of courage she possessed, but Mindy opened her eyes. Her father gave her a rewarding smile. She lifted her hand to touch his cheek. “Daddy,” she sighed.

“My sweet little girl,” Bill said. He rushed over to the cabinet and retrieved her prescription medicine. Next, he grabbed a bottle of water from the refrigerator. “You're falling apart. I've got to help you.”

Mindy nodded as he approached her. She opened her mouth open to allow him to place the pill on her tongue. Ever so compliant, she waited as he unscrewed the cap, and then took a sip.

“There's my good girl,” her father acknowledged.

“Finish your muffin, then get dressed.” Bill gave her an obligatory pat before leaving the room.

Mindy stayed where she was until she was sure her father was gone. Then she spat the pill out of her mouth. She ambled over to the garbage disposal, taking great pleasure in hearing it grind to pieces.

She didn't need the tiny tablet. Closing her eyes, she summoned assistance. “I need your help. Now.”

 

 

“Now let me do all the talking,” Keith advised Verona. They were in the elevator headed to Bill Laurelton's suite. He owned a home in Queens as well, not too far from where Keith lived. Bill had refused to meet at Verona's offices, or at Keith's church. The mogul had demanded they meet on his home turf.

She rolled her eyes. “Do you want us to hold hands Kumbaya style and pray?”

Keith was about to say he liked her idea when he saw Verona was joking. “Are you like this all the time?”

“Pretty much.” She shrugged.

“Huh.”

“What does ‘huh' mean?” she asked, with attitude.

There's a boulder on her shoulders.
Keith made a mental note to add Verona to his prayer list. He decided to change the subject. “Gina tells me you plan to attend Bible Study this Wednesday.”

He saw her shift her heels, but she confirmed. “Yes, she warned me not to be late.”

Keith laughed. “My wife is bossy.”

He didn't miss Verona's first genuine smile. “I like her,” she said.

“She's impossible to dislike. There's something about her that draws you in.”

“Is that why both you and Michael, brothers, fell in love and married her?” she taunted.

A discreet tinkle signaled they had reached the desired floor. They exited the vestibule and Keith held her arm.

Verona knew the sordid tale of how he and Gina had cheated on Michael. She knew for years Michael thought he had fathered Gina's son. The enemy was using her to haunt him with his past. He needed to set things straight. “Think what you want, Verona Stachs, but Gina is the love of my life. All of that back-story is in my past and I'm not going to allow you to discredit our love. What we feel was bigger than the both of us. As far as I'm concerned, God brought us together, and only He can pull us apart.” Keith's chest heaved when he was done.

A light blush tinted Verona's cheeks. “I'm sorry. I was way out of line. For what it's worth, I do understand loving someone so much that reason fails.”

Keith discerned she referred to Michael and his anger cool. “I know I came off a little harsh a moment ago, but I don't take love lightly. True love is too rare, too precious, to treat with disrespect.”

Tears spiked her lashes. “I won't discredit your relationship again.”

They started walking down the hall toward Bill's suite number.

“You're in love with him, aren't you?” he asked.

Verona didn't even pretend she didn't understand what he was asking. She looked him square in the eyes. “Yes. I love Michael like I've never loved anyone before.”

They were now by the door, but Keith felt compelled to add, “I should mind my business, but I think you need to forget those feelings you think you have for Michael.”

“Why?” she sputtered.

“Because Michael loves Lauren and she's—” He stopped. Maybe he should leave well enough alone. If he opened his mouth, he would be breaking a confidence and violating a trust.

“What about Lauren?” Verona insisted.

“She's not dead. She's alive.”

“I don't believe you.” Her hazel eyes flashed red. Keith saw the “tiger” emerge.

“I can prove it.”