Page 24 of Jolene's Justice

Then Angelica opened her mouth and made it worse. “Is this her?” she ranted. “Is this the little whore you think you can cheat on me with?”

All the color drained from Jolene’s complexion. It was as if everything stopped, and all that remained was the feeling of dread. She was still in her evening gown and holding an empty ice bucket. The crinkling of the plastic lining crackled through the suddenly quiet vestibule. As the elevators’ machinery clanked and whirred, Angelica’s voice pierced through the noise, filling the space, making him cringe.

“How could you, Atty? How could you do this to me? And with her?”

“Angelica,” Finch chastised, pissed at her feigned offense. Finch’s patience was wearing thin. This was his worst nightmare. He never intended for Jolene to learn about Angelica like this. It had taken him an immense amount of effort and time to break free from her. And he was nearly there. He felt the weight of impending disaster bearing down on him. “Please keep your voice down.” Angelica’s lethal stare should have killed him, but he had grown immune to her wrath.

The sharp clatter of a small plastic disk crashing against the tiled floor abruptly jolted their attention back to Jolene, who stood frozen in place, gawking at them in utter shock. The acrid scent of disinfectant hung heavily in the air, mixing with the cloying aroma of Angelica’s perfume. The fluorescent lights overhead buzzed loudly, casting a cold and sterile glow across the room. The temperature in the hall was noticeably cooler than the rest of the building, causing him to shiver. Yet a single bead of sweat trickled down the length of his spine, reminding him of the anxious tension that had been building. Every sense seemed heightened as he watched all his hopes for a happy future die.

He gazed at the stunning woman in the green gown and saw all that he had imagined with her crumble. Her initial shock quickly turned to a look of distrust and anger. He desperately tried to think of something to say, but his mind was completely empty. And Angelica wasn’t helping the situation.

“You’re nothing but a hussy, aren’t you?” With a look of contempt, Angelica scanned Jolene from head to toe. With a sneer, she spat, “Slut.”

Jolene set the ice bucket down on the brass table across from the elevators and turned back to face them. She gave Angelica a quick once-over of her own. “And who are you?”

“I’m his wife. That’s all you need to know.” Finch closed his eyes.Shit.The truth was out. It wasn’t his intention for Jolene to find out this way. Shame washed over him as he thought about their plans for the evening.

Jolene stumbled over to the wall on unsteady feet. Her ragged breath resonated through the silent room.

Finch made a move to go to her but pulled up short when she raised her hand. Her eyes burned with a deep sense of betrayal that cut straight to his core.

Angelica laughed. The sound pierced through his brain, causing him to flinch. “I see he didn’t tell you. Typical. He never could do anything right.”

When Jolene looked at Finch, he could see a fire in her eyes that he had never witnessed before. Desperately, he gazed at her, imploring her to understand.

Despite the anger he saw in her eyes, her voice remained steady as she asked, “Is it true?”

His gaze dropped to the floor, and he felt the hot flush of shame creeping up his neck. The crushing weight of his guilt was like a vise, twisting his insides into knots. He could feel the sweat on his brow and taste the metallic tang of panic in his mouth. His heart was pounding so hard he thought it might burst out of his chest.

“Oh God,” Jolene gasped, her eyes wide with horror.

“Jolie.” When he whispered her nickname, she flinched hard, hitting him like a punch to the gut. “Let me explain.”

He perceived a swarm of thoughts whirling through her mind. Each one hardening her expression further. When she threw her shoulders back and straightened her spine, he knew he was done.

“No. I don’t want to hear it.” With that, she turned around and fled. He called out to her, but his voice was lost in the sound of her footsteps.

The hall was suddenly suffocatingly hot, and the sound of his own labored breathing rasped in his ears like sandpaper. The acrid smell of sweat mingled with the floor cleaner and Angelica’s overwhelming perfume made him feel sick to his stomach. His heart lay shattered at his feet, and Angelica was there to stomp the remaining pieces into dust.

As he’d stared down at his wife’s smug smile, he’d decided enough was enough. He had been willing to turn a blind eye to the betrayal he had uncovered despite his lawyer’s urgings, but that was no longer possible.

He leaned in to whisper in her ear. “You think you’ve won something, don’t you? Well, I know the truth. And the truth will free me from your deceitful and malicious actions. No more mister nice Atticus.” The wide-eyed look of trepidation was all he needed to know he’d hit his mark. With a half smile, he’d turned away from his past, hitting the bar on the stairwell door with more force than he’d intended. Though he was angry, his determination remained unshaken. He wouldn’t stop until he turned his dream future into a reality.

Jolene still wouldn’t let him explain the situation of his marriage to her. But he could sense her walls weakening. The fact that she’d laughed so heartily at his lunacy a couple of times now was a good sign.

And yet he couldn’t help but feel something was wrong, aside from her anger at him. Something had her on edge. The telltale prickle on the back of his neck was a sure sign that something wasn’t right. The nagging feeling wouldn’t go away, and he was determined to uncover what it was.

After dinner, she’d excused herself and gone to her room, claiming she was tired. Finch tackled a few more chores, and the sound of the broom fluttered through the empty house. As he cleared cobwebs that had accumulated in corners, he felt a sense of satisfaction from making the space cleaner and taking one more task off Jolene’s shoulders. He was unwavering in his resolve to alleviate her stress, even if it meant doing something seemingly insignificant.

He turned off all the lights, double-checked the locks, and sat down on the couch to answer a few texts from the women at home who were asking about Jolene. Despite everything that had happened, he reassured them she was still holding strong. He wouldn’t worry their friends with his concerns. There was nothing they could do from Lake Haven. It was up to him to keep an eye on her.

Unknowingly, he had fallen asleep on the couch until racing footsteps on the stairs startled him awake. Jolene dashed to the front door, struggling in her haste to get the locks open. With a frustrated growl, she finally got the last lock released and wrenched the door open. Finch was on his feet and flying after her as she shot through the door, down the porch stairs, and around the corner of the house. He caught up to her when she’d stopped dead in her tracks, staring into the woods behind the house.

“Jolene?” He approached cautiously, not wanting to startle her.

“Did you see that?”

“See what?” he asked, peering into the darkness, trying to spot what she’d seen.

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