23
Kelly
The ride towards New York was stressful from the moment I sat down in the car with James. I think we drove an hour or two in complete silence, with James working his way up towards the bridge in record time. There were times I felt myself holding on to the strap hanging above the door or the door itself because I wasn’t sure if we were going to make it between cars. I gave him a few glances occasionally when things were particularly hairy, and he just smiled at me before we eventually reached the bridge.
“You know,” James said, breaking the silence, “if you thought that was scary, wait until we get further up the Turnpike towards the city.”
“Great, “I said as I turned back towards the window so I wouldn’t have to see what James was doing.
“Kelly, can I just say one thing about Damian?” James asked me.
I turned towards him and just looked at him, giving silent assent.
“Damian is a good man,” James began. “He’s not the type of person who is going try to manipulate someone or a situation just for financial gain. I’ve met wealthy people like him since I started working for him, and he stands out among them. Most of these guys just like to flaunt their money so that people notice them and how rich they are. Even when they think they are doing something nice like donating to charity, they do it so they get their name in the paper and good press. Damian isn’t like that. He genuinely wants to do what is right and help. He may not be close to many people, but to those that get close to him, he cares for them. He’s not just the best boss I have ever had. He’s the best person that I have known. When I say I know he didn’t have anything to do with this, I am confident about it.”
“I hope you’re right James, for both our sakes,” I said as I leaned my head against the cool glass of the window.
A few smatterings of rain fell against the windows, and there was a low rumble of thunder as rain was starting to come upon us.
“If the rain gets heavy it might slow us down some,” James added. “Do you want me to call the office and see if he is there? Maybe we can let him know we’re coming.”
“No, it’s fine,” I said softly. “I don’t want Damian to know we are on the way there. Besides, I’m still trying to figure out just what I am going to say to him, and how I’ll react to what he has to say to me. It’s all very confusing.”
We went back to our silence in the car and got closer and closer to New York City. I hadn’t set foot in New York City since I went back to Bethany Beach after the heartache I felt years ago. Just being in the city caused tension for me and I sat up straight in my seat the minute we headed to the tunnel. We even drove past the location of the restaurant I had worked in after culinary school, though I could see now that it had closed and turned into one of those casual dining places you see all over the place.
James made a series of lefts and rights so quickly it was hard for me to keep up with just where we were, and suddenly we were pulling into an underground parking garage. James pulled up to the security gate and flashed his work badge.
“Hey Jimmy,” the guard said to him. “Sweet ride. Is this yours or does it belong to the boss?”
“It’s Mr. Woods’ car,” James told him. “Have you seen him come in at all?”
“Sorry, I just came on a few minutes ago. I haven’t seen him since I’ve been here.”
The guard peered into the car and saw me sitting there.
“Jimmy, I need to see her ID before I can let you in,” the guard told him.
“Eddie,” James said to the guard, “we really need to get in and see if Mr. Woods is here. She’s a friend of his; it’s fine.”
“Jimmy, you know the security rules,” Eddie replied. “I could lose my job if something happens.”
“James, it’s not a problem…” I started as I began rummaging through my bag for my wallet.
“Stop,” James told me. “Eddie, I’m vouching for her. That should be good enough for you. If anyone has a problem, they can come to see me. Now open the damn gate.”
I am sure Eddie saw the same look on James’ face that I did, and James didn’t look like the kind of guy that you wanted to be around if he lost his cool. Eddie just nodded to him and pressed the button to raise the gate so that we could enter.
I heard the tires of our car squeal on the pavement as we moved off and into the parking garage. A few more quick turns, and we were at what looked like a private entrance. James pulled the car into one of the two parking spots that were here.
“Well, his car isn’t here,” James said as he parked. “But that doesn’t mean he isn’t here. His apartment is only a few blocks from here. He could’ve parked there and walked over to the office.”
“Okay,” I said, taking off my seatbelt. “Let’s go see if he’s there.”
We got out of the car and went to the elevator entrance. The elevator only had one button in it to go up or down, which meant it only went to the floor where Damian wanted it to go. The doors closed silently, and I never felt the elevator move as we shot up towards the office floor. The doors slid open, and we were outside a couple of closed oak doors. There was a desk area to the left of the doors, and huge windows that looked out over the ocean.
James went over and knocked on the office doors, but there was no reply. He tried the handle, which was locked, and then used his badge to open the door. I peered in around James, but all we saw was an empty office, dimly lit by a single light that was on near one of the couches.
“Let me go check and see if anyone is here that may have seen him,” James said to me as we walked out of Damian’s office. “Just wait right here. I’ll only be gone a minute.”
I nodded, and James was off, looking to find someone that might still be at work. I moved to look out the large windows, and I could see the rain and storm over the water. Between the time of night it was turning and the storm, it was getting dark on the water, and the bright lights of the skyline were illuminating what was beneath. That nervous feeling was overcoming me once again as I worried about talking to Damian and getting the truth, whether I wanted to hear it or not.
There was a bit of commotion behind me as I could hear a man yelling some profanities, so I turned to see what was going on. There was a man in a rumpled suit, carrying a few boxes with a security guard walking next to him. The man was mumbling something to the guard as I watched. His gaze locked onto mine and he stopped what he was doing.
“It’s you,” he said as if he recognized me. “The bakery owner.”
“Do I know you?” I asked with some hesitation in my voice.
“Sure you do,” he spat at me. “I’m the one whose life you ruined. Because of you, I lost my job, my career, probably everything I had.”
“I have no idea what you are talking about,” I said to him, trying to sound strong. I was too afraid to move and was hoping the security guard would just hustle this guy out of here.
“Right, play all innocent,” he said as he walked closer to me. “What, did Damian bring you up here with him so he could show you his fancy office, maybe take you back to his apartment? Trust me, sister, you may be able to get what you want by crying a few tears to him or showing him a good time with that body of yours, but you won’t last. I’ll make sure of that now.”
I was very frightened, and this man had a crazed look in his eyes. I looked to the security guard, giving him a pleading look, and he finally stepped in.
“Let’s go, Mr. Austin,” the guard told him. “I wasn't supposed to let you back up here for more stuff. We need to get out of here.”
“Just keep quiet, rent-a-cop,” he said pushing the guard to the ground and the lunging towards me. I yelled as he pressed his body tightly against mine and against the window, so I had nowhere left to go.
“I can see why he likes you so much,” the man whispered.
I could smell the heavy scent of alcohol on his breath as I tried to wriggle away from him. His hands, which had started on my hips, were now moving their way up my sides towards my breasts.
“Please, leave me alone,” I said trying to get free from him. The security guard still lay on the ground, his head having bounced off the floor.
I saw the man’s face coming in towards mine to try to kiss me, I turned my head and closed my eyes, and as I did this, I felt his head getting jerked back away from me, and he yelled. My eyes opened, and I saw James grabbing him by the hair and tossing him into a cubicle wall. His body slid down the wall in a heap.
“Are you alright?” James said to me.
I just nodded to him as he turned back around. There was Mr. Austin, on his knees, getting ready to stand up. Two more security guards came racing down the hall and grabbed him by the arms, holding him as he flailed his body. James took me by the arm as we walked over towards the guards.
“Get him out of here,” James yelled to them.
Mr. Austin had some blood trickling down his forehead from where he had hit the cubicle wall. He looked at me with a dazed look before giving me a crooked smile. I looked him right in the eyes, smiled back at him, and gave him a swift kick to the groin. He yelped and fell to the floor again.
“Nicely done,” James said as he ushered me back to the private elevator.
“Thank you for your help,” I said to James, holding his arm. “Who was that?”
“Paul Austin, the corporate attorney, or former corporate attorney anyway,” James said as he pressed the down button. “He’s the guy who brokered the deal to buy part of the boardwalk. Damian came in, talked to him, found what he did, along with some other illegal stuff he’s been doing I guess, and fired him.”
I felt a bit of relief from learning that information. It did seem like Damian was on my side after all.
“So, where’s Damian?” I asked as the elevator doors opened.
“No one knows for sure,” James told me. “I talked to Miranda, Paul Austin’s assistant. She said Damian was talking to HR and then the Board of Directors, but he left here just before we arrived. We can check his apartment.”
We got back into the car and drove the few blocks over to a large skyscraper with more underground parking. Again, we went through security and another private elevator that brought us up to a penthouse apartment. The elevator opened right into the apartment, and it looked like one of those places you see in interior design magazines. The place was easily bigger than my tiny house, and that was only what I could see.
James dashed around, looking in different rooms, but there was no sign of Damian or that he had even been here. I saw James take his phone out of his pocket and make a call, but he hung up shortly after.
“He’s not picking up,” James muttered. “Let me see if Shannon has heard from him.”
James dialed his phone again, and this time spent a few minutes talking. I fidgeted in place while he talked, seeing more of the room around me and feeling more out of my element with each passing second. Was I just deluding myself into thinking that Damian would be interested in someone like me, someone so obviously different from the lifestyle he leads?
“Shannon hasn’t heard from him either, but she said she’ll keep trying him,” James told me.” I followed him back to the elevator and down to where the car was parked.
“We can try a few of the places he normally goes for dinner or a drink,” James offered. “He probably was hungry and wanted something.”
“It’s okay, James,” I said resignedly to him. “If it’s all the same to you, I would just like to go home.”
“Are you sure? I can put you up in the guest room up here, or in one of the hotels around here so you can spend the night and then talk to him when he gets in. It’s no trouble. I’m sure I can find…”
I interrupted James, looking at him tearfully.
“Please James. Please just take me back to Delaware.”
“Sure,” he told me.
We climbed back into the car and were off once again. The rain came down a little harder now, falling against the window and streaking the outside while my tears streaked my cheeks.