Uncorked (35 page)

“Yes, I did. Tiffany from
reception brought it in. She left it on my desk with a post-it note. Chella and
I were in a meeting.”

“I’ll need to talk to you later,
but if you could all clear out of the room now, I’d appreciate it.”

A small scene had started to
develop. Staff looked on curiously. A photographer arrived and Detective Carter
closed the door and blinds of her office.

Chella knocked on Craig’s door.

“Come in,” he said.

She entered his office, unable to
stop her hands from trembling. Her glassy, red eyes and smudged eyeliner was a
sure indicator all wasn’t well.

“Chella, what’s wrong?”

“I received a package a while
ago. I thought it was from Mitch. There was a bloody, dead rat inside.”

“What?”

“It scared me to death. I also
received two phone calls from the prison on my direct line. He didn’t say
anything. It was silence at the other end of the line.”

“Do the police know about this?”

“The lead detective in the case
is in my office collecting the evidence. He hasn’t questioned me yet, but I’m
pretty certain he will have to talk to some of the staff and review the
surveillance cameras. I’m really sorry that I brought my personal issues into
your workplace. I hate that my problems are surfacing here.”

“Stop,” Craig responded in an
unusually firm tone. “You have absolutely no control over this idiot does. We
will help you with whatever you need. Your job is safe. Right now all I care
about is your safety.”

There was a knock on the door.
Jade entered with a tray of coffee, tea and water. They both looked at her and
smiled. Chella could tell she was worried, and she was making every effort to
make her as comfortable as possible.

“Thanks, Jade. I’ll be okay.
We’ll have a talk later.”

“Can I get either of you anything
else?”

“No, thanks. Just cooperate with
Detective Carter. Give him whatever he asks for.”

Jade left the room.

“I never wanted her to know about
this,” Chella said when Jade had closed the door, “but I suppose I’ll have to
give her some sort of explanation.”

“You might. Does Mitch know about
this?”

“No, I didn’t call him, and I
don’t want to worry him with this. His father is gravely ill, and he’s meeting
with the doctors now. That needs to be his focus.”

“You’ll need to tell him about this.”

“Soon.”

“Chella, be careful. You’ve been
taking lots of chances, coming into the office too often.”

“I’m implementing the second
phase of my promotion.”

“Nothing you can’t do remotely.
Delegate. Your safety is more important than anything. I don’t want to see you
here unless it is absolutely necessary. I’m going to give my drivers
instructions to take you anywhere you need to go, anytime of the day or night.”

“Craig, that’s not necessary.”

“With Mitch preoccupied with
family issues, someone has to look out for you.”

“Thank you.”

“I’ll meet with the Chief of
Security now to make sure they’re extra vigilant and enforce all procedures in
this building. The staff should be reminded, as well. There won’t be any lapses
if they forget their security pass at home. Tell the detective to come see me
in the Chief of Security’s office if he needs anything.”

“Thanks for your support, Craig.
It means the world to me.”

He softened his tone and pulled
her into a warm embrace. “Chella, I want you around until the day I die. Be
careful.”

A short while after Craig left,
Detective Carter knocked on the door and entered the room.

“We’re done with your office,
Miss Noon. I’ve confirmed with the prison that Mr. Stewart is accounted for. I
will be paying him and his lawyer a visit this afternoon. Do you mind if I
record this conversation?” he asked, showing her his mini tape recorder.

“Not at all. Go ahead.”

“Has he ever contacted you at
work before?”

“No, never.”

“So he didn’t know you worked
here before?”

“If he did, I didn’t know. I
started working with this company ten years ago. Back then, our offices were in
a high-rise with tons of other businesses. We’ve moved since then, and even
though he found out where I work, these calls have been coming in on my direct
line. Every time he’s ever managed to call me before it was on my landline at
home. Since I moved when he was arrested, I have my cell phone.”

“Tell me what happened today.”

Chella relayed the events that
had taken place a short hour before.

“I have some phone calls to make.
We should tap your phone lines, as well, in the event he calls again. The
security in this building is pretty tight. He could be trying to intimidate you
from the prison, as well as using his accomplice to scare you. Please, be
vigilant. If you notice anything that’s even a little off or strange, call me
to let me know.”

“Thanks, Detective.”

“I’ve interviewed your secretary
and the receptionist. I’m going to have a word with security in the building to
make sure they’re extra cautious. Try not to worry. We’ll make every effort to
identify who delivered that package to you. Hopefully, they’ve made a mistake.
This might be a blessing in disguise—the break we need. We’ll start monitoring
your calls within a few hours.”

“Detective, Mitch doesn’t know about
this. His father is dying, and I’d prefer not to bother him. I might start
working some days from home again.”

“I’m sorry to hear that. I’ll
check in with security at your complex and Mr. Mariani’s building to be on the
safe side. The more you can limit your movements, the safer you’ll be. Try not
to fall into any predictable routines, either.”

“Thanks,” she replied as the
detective exited the room.

Later that afternoon
a driver from the office dropped
Chella home. She immediately called her trainer and had a longer-than-usual
workout session. When she returned to her condo, she was surprised to see Mitch
waiting for her.

“Hi,” she said, smiling at him.
She kissed him on the lips.

“That was a long workout.”

“Almost two hours. How did the
appointment go?”

“Unfortunately, in my father’s
current condition, he can’t have the transplant. They have him on medication
and chemo. Hopefully he’ll improve over the next couple of weeks. They’ll see
if the transplant can be done then.”

“Did you tell your sisters and your
father?”

“Not yet. Maybe I’ll do that
tomorrow. I’m avoiding them. In the meantime, I got all the legalities out of
the way today. Once he’s healthy enough, they’ll start the transplant.”

“How complicated is the procedure
for you?”

“It’s not. I’ll be required to
take medication for five days prior to the transplant. Afterwards, stem cells
are collected through a process that’s similar to donating blood.”

“So no surgery is involved?”

“No. No surgery or stitches.”

“Will you have to be in the
hospital for a long time?”

“The withdrawal takes about four
to six hours. In some cases, it can take longer, depending on how I feel. I may
be required to stay in the hospital overnight.”

“Any side effects?”

“I may feel discomfort at the
sites of the needle insertion and some tingling and tiredness for a short time
afterward. I might feel like I have the flu while I’m on the injections. There
was another method, but it required general anesthesia.”

“So why are you avoiding telling
them?”

“It’s not so much telling them. I
guess if I want to do that I can always call Olivia. She’ll spread the news, or
I could ask the doctor to notify the family. I’m just not ready to face him or
Simone yet. She and I didn’t start off on the right foot, and I’d rather not
deal with my father right now.”

“Can I give you a bit of advice?”

“Sure.”

“Either call Olivia or get the
doctor to call them. Let them know. I’m sure they’re in agony right
now—especially the girls. This news could help put their mind at ease.”

“You’re right. I was so concerned
with all the other stuff that didn’t cross my mind. Once I make that call,
there’s no turning back.”

He hesitated for a moment then
called Olivia. Chella couldn’t help but smile as she heard the relief in
Mitch’s voice.

A week later,
Chella was over at Mitch’s place
enjoying an afternoon swim. When they returned to the penthouse, his phone
rang.

He had a brief conversation then
put down the phone.

“That was Olivia. She and Simone
want to meet with me. They invited me to dinner with them tonight to celebrate
their birthday.”

“That’s great. I think you should
go.”

“I guess I can’t avoid this
forever. Will you come with me?”

“If you want me to, but are you
sure you don’t want to be alone with them? This is an opportunity for you to
get to know them.”

“You being there will keep things
civil, especially with Simone.”

“I’ll come, but if at any point
you feel that you’d like to be alone with them, say the word and I’ll
conveniently disappear.”

After making a
stop at a nearby flower shop,
Mitch and Chella picked up two bouquets and headed to the restaurant in a cab.

Chella hadn’t formally met the
twins. Both were tall with black hair that flowed over their shoulders. With a
serious face, they looked identical, but Chella noticed a slight difference
when they smiled.

“Thanks for the flowers. They’re
beautiful,” Olivia said as they were seated.

“Before we go any further, Mitch,
I have something to say to you,” Simone said with a slight smile. “I know the
last time we met, I was very insensitive to your pain. I’m sorry.”

“That was kind of you to say.”

“I get defensive of my dad
sometimes. I know he caused you and your mother pain, but he tried his whole
life to make up for that, and he rarely gets any credit for it.”

“Simone, if we’re going to enjoy
tonight, can we please not talk about your father. I may be willing to help
save his life, but that doesn’t mean that I’ve forgotten what he did or I’m
ready to forgive him. It’s obvious to me that you and I don’t see eye to eye on
the topic of your father, so it might be best if we didn’t discuss him.”

“You know he’s your father, too,”
she replied.

“Stop,” Olivia said. “Simone,
drop it. There are things we can talk about other than dad. Aren’t you at all
interested in getting to know your brother? We have twenty-two years of
catching up to do.”

“I suppose.”

Chella’s phone rang. She excused
herself from the table, stepped aside and answered it.

“Chella speaking.”

“You might want to check your
email,” the woman’s voice said. The call ended. The number came up private, so Chella
had no idea who it was from. Checking her private email, she opened the first
with the subject line: I’m watching you.

To:                   Chella
Noon

From:                Your
Second Worse Nightmare

Date:                Sunday
October 29, 2011

This is
not over. Watch your back.

Nice red
stilettos by the way…

Chella’s hand went damp. A
throbbing pulse in her chest kicked in, and she looked down at her feet.

Red stilettos.

She glanced around to see if
anyone was watching her. Everyone appeared to be minding their own business.
She dipped into the restroom. The other unread email was a graphic, modified
image of a woman, bloody, dead, a knife going straight through her back.
Chella’s face had been photoshopped onto the body.

She forwarded the emails to
Detective Carter and sent him a text message. She’d have to find a way to get
out of this dinner date and return home safely. After cooling her face and neck
with cold towels, she returned to the table, pulling Mitch aside for a second.

“Hey, are you okay?” Mitch asked,
looking at her.

“I’m not feeling so great at the
moment. I think I’m going to head home.”

“What’s wrong?”

“Stomach cramps.”

“I’ll take you home.”

“No, this is important. I want
you to stay here. Get to know your sisters.”

“No, I’ll take you.”

“Mitch, you can’t put this off
forever. You have to do this.”

“I’m coming over to check on you
when I’m done.”