Page 102 of Free to Run
I’m still standing there, gutted, when Caleb comes down the stairs. His face shows he didn’t fare much better.
“Is Cassidy okay?” I ask.
“Okay, being subjective. Phil came in at the end. He’ll watch out for her and bring her home later. I overheard some of that.” His thumb points down the hallway toward Corinna’s kitchen. “Are you okay?”
I shake my head. I’m bleeding, broken, but I don’t have anyone to blame but myself. “Charlie tried to soften the blow.”
“Did it help?” Caleb asks.
“Not with Corinna, but he also talked with Jared. We might want to talk to him again. Maybe this time in person?” I suggest.
“Good idea.” With a last concerned look upstairs toward his wife’s office, he says, “Let’s go.”
We leave Amaryllis Events and walk toward his Porsche to head back to New York City.
* * *
Jared’s faceis impassive as Caleb explains the stalking I had been enduring the last few months. Caleb lays out everything, every interaction, every altercation we’ve documented. He shows Jared the restraining order we have in place and explains the fact the video was on yesterday in my office to show how completely Melody had gone off her rocker.
Pulling the files closer to him, he reviews them, flipping through pages of transcribed notes by our analysts. I refuse to give in to the embarrassment warring with my anger. I want to unleash the anger instead. Anger that Jared didn’t know the kind of man I was after years of friendship, and that I would never break Alison’s heart. That he didn’t find a way to stop her from leaving. That he wouldn’t tell us where she was yesterday so we could have told her all of this.
Finally, he sighs and pushes the files away. “I wish you had taken me into your confidence even yesterday morning. Then, perhaps, we’d have had a different outcome.” He rubs his hand over his eyes. “She’s my client, guys. I can’t break that trust. I’m sorry.” To me, he says, “I truly am sorry.”
I feel the hope I’d been holding on to start to wane. “It’s not your fault, Jared. It’s mine.”
He hesitates. “If you want to leave a message, I can be sure to get it to her. Whether it’s verbal or written.”
It’s a huge concession, one I wasn’t prepared for. When I stand, Jared and Caleb stand as well. “I need to think about what to say to her. I have to think…”
Jared nods, and Caleb says, “Come on, buddy. Let’s get you home.”
I look at him blankly. “It’s not a home anymore. Alison’s not there.”
“I know, Keene. Trust me, I know.”
I nod and start to follow him out of the partners’ boardroom at Watson, Rubenstein, and Dalton. “Wait.” Both men pause. “Jared, did she…” I swallow. “Was she sitting in here yesterday?”
He takes his time responding. “There.” He points toward the chair nearest to my hand.
I take the single step toward it, brushing my hand over the leather. I imagine the warmth of her strong body cocooned in it as she held her emotions in tight, refusing to give in as she drafted her resignation notice. I imagine the pain she was in while she was writing her goodbye letter. As she called her sister, making her plans to run.
From me.
I can’t help but break.
My hand on the back of the chair, I drop my head to it as the tears fall, the gut-wrenching sound pulled from the depths of my soul. I release the pain I felt from the minute I saw her standing in my office, and the pain I felt when I couldn’t get past Caleb to get to her. The frustration of not being able to find her. The heartbreak of knowing she’s gone. The knowledge that she blames me.
I broke her. I broke us. I can’t fix it.
My grip on the chair tightens as the storm passes. This is the last tangible thing I can touch that Alison did. I don’t want to let it go, but I have to.
I have to.
I drag my hand under my eyes and see Caleb next to me. Always there for me. Jared’s standing behind him, his face racked with torment.
“Okay. Let’s go. We have an evil she-bitch to prosecute.” I plan on finding every piece of information I can on Melody Dempsey in order to have enough charges to make her plead for mercy. And when I have none, then, maybe then, I’ll feel some measure of redemption for my Alison.
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