Page 50 of Indiscretion

“I’d known I wanted to do this trip for a long time. But I thought I’d be helping them. I didn’t realize how much they’d help me.”

“What do you mean?”

“After I finished my residency, I got caught up in thinking it was my time.” Simon shook his head. “You go to school for so many years, then make shit money and work like a dog during your residency. When I took the job at the practice where I am now, I finally made a good salary. I bought a fancy Mercedes that I don’t even need living in the City, swapped my thirty-nine-ninety-nine-a-month ratty gym membership for a four-hundred-dollar-a-month Equinox one, and I was even considering buying an apartment and leaving this rent-controlled place because it doesn’t have a view.” Simon shook his head again. “I was putting value on the wrong things in life. India has been a reminder of what’s important. You don’t get happiness from material things; you get it from the people in your life. That’s where my focus should be.” He held out a hand, and when I put mine in his, he squeezed. “I’m glad you decided to move to New York.”

Chapter 14

NAOMI

I was up early the next morning, even though Simon and I had hung out talking until midnight. After an hour of mindless scrolling on my phone, I dragged my ass out of bed and went to the gym for a Pilates class. On the way back to my sister’s, I got an iced coffee and decided to walk rather than take the subway. Dawson’s office wasn’t too far off course on the route I took, so I popped in to see if he was working today like he’d said he might. I found him at his desk, looking pretty much the same as he had yesterday, only his clothes were more rumpled, and he looked a bit haggard. He didn’t even look up as I stood at the door. So I knocked on the doorjamb.

“Dawson?”

His head snapped up, and he pulled an AirPod from an ear and tossed it on the desk. “Shit. I didn’t hear you come in.”

“Have you been here all night?”

He nodded. “My case is about to explode.”

“The one that sent over a revised witness list yesterday? Fanning?”

Dawson blew out two cheeks full of air. “I did some digging. Turns out one of them is the president of a small bank in the Bahamas, and the other is my client’s first wife.”

“I take it that’s not good?”

“It’s an extortion case—at least that’s what the main charge is. There are also a few smaller ones that have less bite. The biggest thing in our favor was that the government couldn’t find the money my client was supposedly collecting, though apparently his ex could. I swear, the DA’s office should put ex-wives on the payroll. They can find shit better than any investigator I’ve ever met.”

I smiled, but it didn’t sound good for Mr. Fanning. “How much did they find?”

“More than seven million. All because his ex wanted him to pay for half of their son’s summer camp. He refused, so she took him to court and let him tell the judge how broke he was. Big mistake. You never piss off a woman who knows where you used to hide the bodies. Now he not only has to pay for a hundred percent of his son’s camp, he’s going to wind up serving twenty years for extortion.”

“Is there anything I can do to help?”

“Can you make Mr. Fanning take a deal? I spoke to him on the phone last night, and he’s still refusing. I told him to come in this morning after he’d had some time to think about it. I’m hoping the new information that’s come to light has sunk in, and he’ll think better of wanting to go to trial.”

“Will they even give him a deal now?”

“They offered eight years when he was first indicted, which he scoffed at. I’m friendly with the DA who’s trying the case, so I called him early this morning. The offer is now twelve. And it’s only open until five PM today.”

“Can I make you some coffee or something?”

“If you don’t mind, that would be great. I need to hit the head and wash up before Mr. Fanning shows. He should be here any minute.”

“No problem. If he’s here before you’re done, I’ll stall him.”

“Thanks. I appreciate it.” He walked to a cabinet and pulled out a dress shirt on a hanger. On his way back to his desk, he stopped and sniffed the air.

“Do you have something coconut on?”

“No.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yep. You asked me that the other day. I think you have coconut on the brain. I’ll go make that coffee.”

I’d barely had time to press start on the coffeemaker before I heard the clank of the front door. I walked out to the lobby and found a short, balding, unassuming man with Coke-bottle glasses.This couldn’t be the extortioner, could it?“Can I help you?”

“Dawson Reed, please.” He nodded. “Name’s Jack Fanning.”

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