Page 20 of Not This Place

"Cheryl kept things close," Jasper said, evading direct eye contact. "But her mother..." He paused, swallowing hard. "Let's just say, the apple didn't fall far from the tree. Dangerous, both of them. If she found out… she might’ve stepped in.”

"Her mother knew about the bribe?" Rachel's question was blunt, pointed.

"Could have," Jasper conceded, his gaze finally meeting hers again. "Danvers Corp CEO. Not someone you want as an enemy."

Rachel's mind raced, piecing together the implications. The room felt smaller, the air tighter. She noted every detail: the way Jasper's Adam's apple bobbed as he spoke, the faint sheen of sweat on his forehead, the rigid set of his jaw.

Rachel turned again, her movements deliberate, each step measured as she paced towards the window. She stared out into the Texas dusk, the sky painted in stark shades of orange and crimson bleeding into purple. No beauty registered in her gaze—only facts, the changing light marking the time slipping away.

"Rae," Ethan began, his voice cautious. He watched her from across the room, his presence a calm in the storm that was brewing within her.

She held up a hand, silencing him without a glance. "I need to think," she said, her words clipped.

The room fell silent, save for the distant hum of sparse late-night traffic outside. Rachel's mind worked like clockwork, clicking pieces into place, making connections. Cheryl's secrets. The half-million dollars. The Hargreaves. And now, Danvers Corp.

“What was the acquisition plan?” she said at last. She turned. “Your father… you wanted out from under him, right?”

She spoke firmly, clearly. She didn’t blink.

Jasper just frowned back at her. “What do you mean?”

"I mean, you wanted to go into business with Cheryl. It's the only thing that makes sense of your story. She brings her family's deal—you undermine it with daddy's money, and you go independent. Is that the plan?"

Now, for the first time, he looked genuinely surprised.

"Who have you been talking to?"

“No one. But it’s obvious, isn’t it?” she snapped.

He opened his mouth, paused, then closed it again. A flicker of uncertainty crossed his face. "That wasn't the plan," he said at last, but his voice lacked conviction.

Rachel's gaze never wavered. "You said the signatures on the documents were set for tomorrow," she pressed on, "but with Cheryl's death... it seems unlikely any plans will go through now."

Jasper’s features tightened, setting into hard lines. He looked away, breaking the intensity of their stare-off. His gaze fixed back onto the deposit slip that lay between them.

“Cheryl was my investment,” he admitted, speaking to the table rather than to her. “We had a deal.” His voice was hollow, drained of emotion.

"And now she's dead."

"That's not on me," Jasper snapped, slamming his hands hard against the table, causing the deposit slip to flutter onto the floor. He vainly reached for it, but Rachel was faster.

Ethan picked up the thread, his voice a soothing balm against Rachel's sharp accusations. "We're just trying to understand, Jasper." He paused. "If Cheryl was indeed helping you go independent…"

Jasper's eyes snapped towards Ethan, a hint of desperation creeping in. "I... we... It wasn't as simple as that," he muttered, his gaze drifting back to Rachel.

Rachel crossed her arms over her chest, her expression hardened. "Make it simple for us, Jasper."

He sighed heavily, running a hand through his slicked-back hair. His eyes darted around the room before meeting Rachel's again. "Cheryl..." he began hesitantly, "...she wanted out too. We were both... trapped. She was the only one with inside information about the Danvers deal that could help us."

Every word weighed heavily on Rachel's ears. Each slip, each confession drew a clearer picture of the relationship between Cheryl and Jasper. The room seemed even colder now, the harsh overhead light casting long shadows.

Rachel found she believed the man sitting across from them. He looked… pained. It was likely why he’d paid her. Why there had been no other outgoing transactions. Why he’d been on a security camera all night. He really had been practicing his golf swing.

So where was Jake, the missing boyfriend?

"And her mother? Where does she fit in this?" Rachel asked.

Jasper stayed silent for a moment before heaving another sigh. "Alice Danvers is a formidable woman," he said quietly but brimming with palpable fear. "She would have done everything to prevent Cheryl from leaving."

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