Death Vetoes The Chairman (Lizzie Crenshaw Mysteries Book 7) Read online

  “Go for it,” Jake said.

  “Thank you, sir. Just call out if you need anything.” He made his way forward.

  “What are we going to do first when we get there?”

  “By the time we get there, it will be a bit late in the day to do anything. So we’ll go to my parents’ house, and just take it easy tonight. Tomorrow, we’ll start talking to people.”

  I yawned. “How does your mother feel about having unexpected company?”

  “She’s used to it. Dad’s always bringing some business associates to the house. She makes sure that there’s always a guest room available.”

  “Will I get to meet your parents tonight?”

  Jake shook his head. “They have a banquet to attend. Just you, me and the servants tonight.”

  “Servants? You have servants?”

  “I don’t. My parents do. The chef will be there, of course, and probably one of the maids to make sure we have everything we need.”

  “I can’t imagine what it must have been like, growing up with servants.”

  “I guess I never really thought much about it,” Jake admitted. “It was just part of our everyday life. It’s not something I ever stopped and thought about.” I yawned again. He reached over and took my drink. “Why don’t you stretch out on the couch and take a nap?”

  “What about you?”

  “I’ll probably sleep a bit, too,” he replied as he stood up. He went back to the galley area, opened a cabinet, and took out a pillow and blanket. Tossing the pillow at me, he gestured toward the couch.

  I did as he suggested, and he put the blanket on top of me. “I’ll wake you up before we land.”

  “I doubt I’ll get any sleep,” I said before I closed my eyes.

  Next thing I knew, Jake was shaking me awake. “We’ll be at the airport in a few minutes,” he said. “You need to get a seatbelt on.”

  I moved back to my original seat, and buckled up. “Your dad is right. That couch is quite comfortable.”

  The landing was uneventful, and we disembarked to partly cloudy skies and a cool breeze. A black SUV sat nearby. Garth took our bags, put them in the back end, then opened the back passenger door for me. Thanking him, I got in and he closed the door. Jake got in on the other side, while Garth sat behind the wheel.

  Fifteen minutes later, we turned into a tree lined driveway, which ended in front of an enormous house. The only thing that came to mind when I saw it was Scarlett O’Hara’s plantation in Gone with the Wind. White house with black shutters, huge columns in front…it was breathtaking. At that moment, I understood why Scarlett loved Tara so much. “This is…you grew up here?” Jake nodded. “Wow, I had no idea. I mean, I knew your family was rich, but this is more than I ever imagined.”

  Garth stopped in front of the house and we got out. “Wait until you see the inside, Ms. Crenshaw,” he said, taking our bags out of the SUV.

  I was given the grand tour. Sitting rooms, parlors, a library…there was so much to see. I just shook my head. “I don’t think I could ever live in a place this big.”

  “Now you know why I like Dale’s house so much,” Jake said as we went to the kitchen. “Nice and small.”

  “Homey, you mean.”

  “Exactly,” he said. “This feels more like a museum. I don’t want to be on display when I’m at home.”

  That made me wonder what else about his childhood he didn’t like.

  The chef growled at us, and ordered us out of his kitchen. Garth escorted us to a small dining room, where the table was set with fine china, crystal glasses, and gold dinnerware. “Good grief,” I said quietly. “Are you expecting the Queen or something?”

  “No, ma’am,” Garth replied. “Just you and Mr. Mathias.”

  At that moment, I wished I was at Maddie’s café. It was nice and homey.

  After dinner, we went back to Jake’s wing of the house. “I still can’t believe you had this whole section to yourself.

  “When I was in high school, I enjoyed the privacy,” he said, leading me into the den. “I thought I’d start a fire for us, unless you’d rather go to bed.”

  I shook my head. “I’m not tired yet.”

  While he worked on getting the fire going, I walked over and looked outside. The big glass door led out to a patio that was covered with dead leaves. It reminded me of the patio at the fundraiser and of Ethan. I must have made a noise or something, because Jake was beside me in an instant. “What’s wrong?”

  “Nothing, not a thing,” I said, turning away from the view.

  “I don’t believe you,” he replied.

  “The patio…”

  “What about it? Do you want to go outside? It’s a bit cold, but we can stand out the…”

  “The fundraiser.”

  He looked outside and then at me. “Tell me about it.”

  “When we were on the patio, he grabbed me and kissed me. When I told him not to, and that you would notice I was missing, he laughed, saying Barbara would keep you so busy you wouldn’t even miss me at all. He kept coming after me, promising me he would take care of me. So I pretended to be interested, and that drew him in. Then I kneed him right in the nuts and ran inside.”

  He laughed. “You’ve always had bony knees.”

  I couldn’t bring myself to laugh with him. “I’ve never been so scared before that night, not even when Debra held a gun to my head. And then when he showed up at the office, I really thought he was…that he would…” I moved away and walked over to the fire.

  Jake followed me. “You thought he would what?”

  “I don’t want to talk about it,” I replied, holding my suddenly cold hands in front of the fire.

  “How many years have I known you, Lizzie? I may not have been the most attentive boyfriend in college, but I always knew when something was wrong. I just didn’t always say something.”

  Garth came into the room, carrying a silver tray. “I thought you and the young lady might like some hot cider, sir. It’s a bit cold in this wing. If we had known you were coming a day or two ago, we would have warmed the place up.”

  “That’s very considerate of you. Thank you, Garth. Just set it down on the coffee table.”

  He put the tray down. “Is there anything else I can do for you, sir?”

  “We’re fine, Garth. I can show Ms. Crenshaw to her room when she’s ready for bed.”

  “I have a fire going in her room. It should be nice and warm for her tonight.”

  “Thank you, Garth,” I smiled. “That was very kind of you.”

  “Not at all, ma’am. That’s my job. Good night, Mr. Mathias, Ms. Crenshaw.” He bowed slightly and left.

  “Okay, he’s gone now. Talk to me.”

  “You want some cider?” I said, moving over to the coffee table.

  “Sure,” he sighed. I poured some into two mugs, and handed one to him.

  We stood there in silence for a few minutes. “The newspaper, Ethan, the…attacks,” I whispered the last word. “Everything has been happening so fast the last three weeks. It’s a bit overwhelming.”

  “I don’t know how many times I can apologize for what happened, Lizzie. If I had known he was still like that, I would have never asked you to go with me.”

  “Who would you have taken, Trixie?” I shook my head. “This isn’t something I would wish on my worst enemy.”

  “Not even Gladys?” he grinned.

  “Not even her.”

  “Did he…did he try to…” he couldn’t bring himself to say what he was thinking.

  “If T.J. hadn’t burst through the door when he did, I’m sure he would have.”

  “Good God.”

  I turned and looked at the fire. “He was so strong, Jake,” I said. The words wouldn’t come out.

  “It’s okay, Lizzie,” Jake said. I heard him put his mug down. He walked over to me and tried to hold me, but I moved away from him. He let his arms fall to his sides.

  “It’s not okay, Jake. It’s neve
r going to be okay again,” I replied. “He took something from me that I can’t get back.” I choked back a sob.

  “Cry, Lizzie, just let yourself cry,” Jake said, walking around to stand in front of me. “You keep putting on this brave front, but I can see through that.”

  “I’m…fine,” I said.

  “Do you trust me, Lizzie?”

  “What kind of question is that?”

  “One that requires an answer.”

  “You’re one of my oldest friends, Jake, and a man I used to love. You might be a bit self-centered at times, but you’ve changed enough that I know you wouldn’t do anything to hurt me. It’s just this thing with Ethan, I...”

  “You’re scared and afraid to let someone get close to you.” I nodded. “Yet, you didn’t hesitate when I said let’s come here to talk to Ethan’s father. Why?”

  “Because you’re my friend, and I don’t want to see you go to prison for something you didn’t do.”

  He took my left hand in his. “Then trust me to help you through this. I swear to you, nothing is going to happen to you as long as I am with you, and I have breath left in my body. Your friendship means more to me than anything else, Lizzie. I’ll do anything to make sure you get through this. Whatever it takes, I’m there.”

  “I…don’t know what to say,” I said.

  He took my mug from me and put it on the fireplace mantle. “Give me your hand,” he said, holding his out to me. I hesitated for a moment before placing my hand in his. “Come here.” He led me over to the brown leather couch and we sat down. “Tell me what happened in the office.”

  I stared straight ahead at the fire, biting my lip. “I’ve never thought of myself as a weakling, but when he had me pinned against the wall, holding my arms, I didn’t think there was anything I could do to fight him off. I tried. I thought if I could brace myself against the wall, I could give him one good shove and knock him off balance, but he wouldn’t let me do it. It was like he anticipated that, and used his weight to hold me in place. And his grip was so tight...” I jerked my hand away from him and put it over my mouth to keep from crying out.

  I heard him swallow hard and take a deep breath. “Why won’t you go back to the office, Lizzie?”

  “At first, I thought I could handle it,” I said, wiping the tears from my cheeks. “But that day when you mentioned the TRO to Dale, I felt like all the air had been sucked out of the room. Then you started telling him what happened, and it played out in front of me in slow motion. When he grabbed my wrist, me slapping him, then being slammed into the wall…it was like he was right there in the room with me. I can’t go back in there. I don’t want to relive it every time I walk through the door. I just can’t do it.”

  “T.J. told me as much, but I wanted to hear it from you.”

  I leaned forward, resting my elbows on my legs. “It doesn’t just happen in the office,” I told him. “I haven’t been sleeping well. The dreams are the worst, because T.J. doesn’t come through the door in time, and Ethan…” I folded my arms, put my head down and started to cry.

  “Lizzie,” Jake said, his voice cracking. He tried to pull me backwards, but I wouldn’t budge. Sliding to the edge of the couch, he put his head against the side of mine. “He can’t hurt you anymore. I promise.” I raised my head and looked at him. He wiped tears from my cheeks, but more quickly replaced them. “I’ll be right back.”

  He got up and left the room. I stared into the fire, wondering if my life was ever going to be the same again. He came back in with a couple of pillows and two blankets. Putting them on the end of the couch, he shoved the coffee table out of the way. He put a blanket over the arm of the couch and sat down. When he gently pulled me toward him, I let him, leaning against his chest. He gasped, and I sat up. “Sore ribs, it’s okay. Come back.”

  “I don’t want to hurt you,” I sniffled, sitting up again. Grabbing one of the pillows, I placed it against his leg and stretched out on the couch.

  Jake gently stroked my hair. “You’re safe here, Lizzie, I promise.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  “For what?”

  “Dumping this on you.”

  “I’d rather you talk about it than hold it in, Lizzie. It’s been eating you up inside; all of us could tell that. We knew you wouldn’t talk about it until you were ready.”

  I felt myself starting to relax for the first time in weeks as he ran his fingers through my hair. “It wasn’t something I wanted to burden anyone else with,” I said, yawning.

  “You have no idea how sorry I am about this.”

  “You’ve mentioned that.” The fire started to get blurry, and I blinked my eyes a few times until it became clear again. “I’m so tired…”

  “Go to sleep.”

  “The nightmares…”

  “Close your eyes.” I yawned again. “I’m right here. I won’t let anything happen to you.”

  I closed my eyes as he continued to stroke my hair. “Jake?”

  “What, Lizzie?”

  “Promise me you won’t leave me tonight.”

  “I promise.”

  I felt him move slightly, and my eyes popped open. “What’s wrong?”

  “Nothing,” he assured me. “I’m just going to spread this blanket over you. Go back to sleep.” He threw the blanket over me, gasping in pain as he moved. As he started stroking my hair again, I closed my eyes and relaxed.

  The last thing I remember was hearing him say, “I wish I had killed him.”

  Chapter 18

  When I woke up in the middle of the night, I wasn’t on the couch anymore. Looking around, I realized I was in the bedroom they had prepared for me. Jake was asleep in the chaise lounge next to the bed, and was holding my hand. When he felt me move, he woke up with a start. “What’s wrong?”

  “Nothing. How did I get in here?”

  “I had Garth carry you in here when he came back to get the tray. He moved the chair for me so I could sit next to you.”

  “You can’t sleep in that all night. Go to bed in your own room.”

  “I’m fine. Besides, I gave you my word I wouldn’t leave you tonight.”

  “I don’t want you to be uncomfortable, though. Why don’t you get on the bed?”

  “T.J. would kill me for sure.”

  “Just stay on top of the sheets and throw a blanket over yourself. I think he would understand, under the circumstances.”

  “I’d rather not chance it, thank you very much. Close your eyes and go back to sleep.”

  The next time I woke up, Jake wasn’t in the chaise lounge, but his mother was. “Good morning, Elizabeth,” she said, smiling at me. “Did you sleep well?”

  “Yes ma’am, thank you,” I said, sitting up and leaning against the headboard. “Where’s Jake?”

  “Making a phone call. I believe he is verifying your dinner with Ethan’s father tonight.” I shuddered when she said his name. “I take it you met Ethan before his death?”

  I glanced at my arms and realized that my bruises were visible. Pulling down the sleeves, I said, “We met at a fundraiser about three weeks ago.”

  “I know.” I looked at her, shocked. “Jake told me. Don’t be mad at him. When he came downstairs this morning, I could tell something was bothering him. He told me everything.”

  “Oh.”

  “He’s worried about you, you know,” she said. “He said it took three weeks just to get you to tell him what happened.”

  “Some things just shouldn’t be talked about, ma’am.”

  “Please, call me Patricia. He cares very deeply for you.”

  “I know.”

  “I sense a but…”

  “He loves work more.”

  She nodded knowingly. “Just like his father. My husband loves me dearly, but I come second to his businesses. Well, third really. Jake comes before me. That boy means the world to him. I am curious about something, though.”

  “What?”

  “How did he get the broken nos
e and ribs?”

  “He made the wrong comment to someone, and they beat the tar out of each other.”

  “Another young man who is vying for your affections, I take it?” I nodded. “I see. And does my boy stand a chance?”

  “Well…”

  “You can be honest with me, Elizabeth.”

  “Lizzie, please. Not too many people call me Elizabeth, unless it’s my mother, and only when she’s mad at me.”

  “I’m sure that’s not too often.”

  “More than you know, Patricia,” I laughed.

  “So, does Jake stand a chance with you?”

  I took a deep breath and shook my head. “When we were in college, the answer was yes, until I realized that all the plans he was making for us didn’t include my hopes and dreams, just his. It was hard to get him to listen to me.”

  “When he sets his mind on something, it’s hard to distract him from it. So this other young man, is he a good man?”

  “He is. He’s like me: simple things are the best. He doesn’t mind staying at home and putting his feet up. As long as I’m happy, so is T.J.”

  “And my son loves a more active lifestyle.”

  I shrugged. “It’s what he’s used to. Someone who has always been on the go has a hard time slowing down for anyone, no matter how much he loves them.”

  “You are a very wise young woman, Lizzie.”

  “I don’t know about that. I care for Jake very much. There’s always going to be a special place in my heart for him. But my future isn’t with him in any other way but best of friends. Jake needs someone who loves being on the go as much as he does. I’m too much of a homebody.”

  Patricia swung her legs over the edge of the chair and stood up. “I think my son is very blessed to have someone like you in his life, Lizzie. Now, as for this other matter you’re struggling with.” She took my hand in hers. “Don’t try to do this by yourself. I’ve been there, so trust what I say. I tried to do it alone, and it almost killed me. If it weren’t for a chance encounter with my husband, I don’t think I would have made it. You’re obviously a strong woman, but Jake says this is eating you up inside. Fight it. Fight it with every fiber of your being. Lean on your friends; talk to them. It may have only taken one person to get you to this point, but it will take many to pull you out.” She patted my hand and let it go. “Now, I’m sure you’ll want to jump in the shower. There are plenty of towels in there for you, and breakfast will be waiting for you in the kitchen when you’re done.” She turned and walked toward the door.