Guy

The visit was cancelled on Monday. Nothing more than an email saying There was not enough to substantiate the claims and therefore they would not be attending.  Thankfully I was able to consume my day with clients and meetings. I avoided my personal phone and social media as the storm surrounding Millicent was still brewing.

I am in early on Tuesday, I want to get a head start on my day. I called Leilani when I woke up, decided to be the bigger person. Truth is I miss her. I want her smart wit making me laugh, her gorgeous face making me melt. I miss her, I miss us. I realised last night that since Trent’s Party this is the longest we haven’t spoken – she is my most successful relationship. Was. She didn’t answer.

I called her office this morning, she is another early riser. She wasn’t at her desk and her phone is still sending me to voicemail. I checked on her WhatsApp and I can still message her, so she hasn’t blocked me. I make a mental note to call her later.

My direct dial starts to ring, for a nano second, I think it’s her “Guy speaking”

“Morning Guy, It’s Trent. Listen I need to see you.”

“Of course, Meet here or somewhere else?”

“Meet me at my house, are you free around 3pm”

I flick through the diary. I am full all day but I know it must be important. “That’s fine, I will be there”

I click him off and dial Jill’s extension

“Jill, clear my diary after lunch please I have a client meeting off site”

“Yes Mr. Pearce Morgan”

“Jill, please call me Guy, I am a mouthful otherwise”

She gives me a flirty laugh. Note to self, do not flirt with the agency girl, do not flirt with the agency girl.

I get through the morning without looking up, Malachi and Connors charity is shaping up amazingly well. Raynes mum will get the go ahead for an event sooner rather than later.

I start to pack away some papers when Jill buzzes straight through – “Your lunchtime appointment Rayne Sinclair is …”

There isn’t a chance to finish the sentence as a bright and vivacious bundle of curly crazy burst through my door.

“Rayne come in why don’t you!”

“Shut it Guy, now we have news big news, news that won’t wait.”

I watch her stride towards my desk

“Does Connor see you before you leave the house in the morning?”

Rayne looks like she’s about to kill a photoshoot or walk in some kind of sexy catwalk.

She’s wearing a bright pink dress that hugs her at her knees and every curve from her neck down. She’s wearing the world most ridiculous heels, there are butterflies coming out the back, her hair is wilder than normal, she’s got to use her glasses to keep it off her face.

“I will take that as a compliment! Thanks to you the bloody cameras are everywhere, took me an age to get ready this morning. Anyway this is not about my fashion sense, or your lack of. We have got the injunction on Millicent’s social media. All accounts that have tagged your fake profile in a picture or comment have been removed. Although it is not illegal to set up accounts in other names you are not allowed to pose as someone else which we strongly believe she has. The O’Sullivans have been great. Her father had asked that we not ridicule her in public by calling her a liar, however I have just found out that she called the paparazzi on Saturday. Our statement, which to date had been “Family friends, no relationship, misconstrued” will be amended and I am doing a joint statement for you both. Millicent is has officially signed up as my client, her mother’s insistence so I can clear her name and put her in a good light. Shame Big Brother is finishing! She’d be TV Gold!”

I take in everything Rayne says

“You know she rocked up on Friday to the Bridge opening don’t you? Did she know I was going to be there? Is that why she faked being my girlfriend” I am about to explode all over again “Did she fucking follow me to the gym?”

 “She admitted she was dressed driving around town, the paps on standby , hoping to bump into you. I guess finding you at the gym was potluck”

I cannot believe what she’s saying.

“Hold on! That makes her a fucking stalker doesn’t it? Can’t I get an injunction out on her? I don’t want her within 100 feet of me”

Rayne rolls her eyes. “No because she hasn’t threatened your life”

“She fucking has, she snivels anywhere near me and I will get sucked up in a vortex”

Rayne slaps my shoulder.

“Be nice Guy. She’s got quite a male fan base now. Wait until she’s had a Rayne make over, you’ll be begging her for a date”

“Yeah, I think I’ll pass.” I want to vomit

Rayne’s phone rings and Connors face flashed across my desk. “Hey Love” she answers. “Just with Guy. Yes. Tomorrow. At my office, less paps” she winks at me as she says it. “Me, you, Guy, Malachi, Leilani. No I still haven’t heard from her. I guess she was sleeping when I went by. Ethan said she was ill on Sunday too. Yes if you can. I will swing by after I finish here. Love you too”

That’s all I hear. Alarm bells ring. Leilani is not the kind of person to go missing in action. Ethan hasn’t heard from her and neither have I. I can’t say anything to Rayne because it’s complicated enough as it is, I don’t even know if she’s talking to me. I just want to know she’s ok

“Everything ok?”

I ask whilst absentmindedly tapping my pen on my notepad.

She wrinkles her face

“Not sure. Haven’t seen Leilani since Saturday. She seemed ok, but I had to wake her up because she’d slept in, then Ethan said she was ill on Sunday and didn’t make it to family dinner, she left work early yesterday and told the office she was sick again today. Ethan says his mum thinks she’s pregnant” Rayne shoots me a look. “I’d like to think she’d tell me if she was. I think I would combust if she was. She is going to make beautiful babies”

My heart skips as she says it. A baby? That would make me a dad. It doesn’t scare me, it excites me, A family of our own.

Rayne clicks her fingers in my face. And I jump out of my thoughts.

“Still with me then? Thought I’d lost you”

“No just sidetracked by my meeting later. I need to head out, do you need a lift anywhere?”

“Nope. Connor is insisting I drive the beast everywhere, not allowed to do public transport anymore”

We’re interrupted by Jill knocking on my office door

“Yes”

“Sorry to interrupt Guy, I have someone from the SAR here to see you, I have put him in the meeting room ”

Panic, dread and anxiety all create a cocktail inside me. Damn it.

“I will be right there”

Rayne looks nervously at me, I shrug my shoulders, whatever he wants, I wont know until I get in there

“Go on, go see what’s happened and let me know if I can do anything”

It’s a quick kiss on the cheek and she’s off.

I make my way to our boardroom, I know they cancelled the meeting yesterday but having member of SAR just rock up to my office scares me. I open the door and am met by an unassuming man in a charcoal suit, a badly fitted charcoal suit.

He introduces himself and launches into his speech

“This is completely unprofessional, and I am risking a fair amount by having this conversation with you, but you ought to know. The call we had in regard to the complaint although anonymous, I believe the motive was to lessen your stock value. I wouldn’t be surprised if you received an offer to sell or merge. You’re spearheading a fantastic operation here Mr. Pearce Morgan, people will want your scalp. Trent Fitzgerald is a good friend of mine, we have had words and I have cancelled any intended investigation into you.”

I stand up to shake his hand.

“I am grateful for your honesty, thank you for your comments, we are proud of what we have achieved. I don’t know that we are that desirable a firm for someone I go to such lengths, but I am sure time will tell.”

“Indeed it will. The sharks are circling, remember I told you that. You on your own are worth more than this entire company. If someone can’t tempt you to leave they will do what they can to control you. Be careful. Make wise decision and trust your instinct. Be warned that sometimes family are more dangerous than strangers. I have said enough. Good day.”

 

With that he leaves. The sharks are circling. Interesting point. I haven’t received any formal offers from any company. Except Willie of course. Family. Shit.

“Of course!”

I call my father’s office and he is out for the day. Convenient. This just his style. Loyalty means shit. He wants the deal, but to have the deal he needs me. During our negotiations I know they approached his firm too. Well well well. Father dearest.

 

3pm is here faster than I anticipate, I crunch my way up Trent’s drive. Considering he lives in London his driveway must be half a mile long. I pull up to side, there’s another entrance to the house by his office,

I knock on the side door, and hear him tell me to come in.

He’s on the phone,

“Yes, it’s time, I think she will need your support more than anything else. I didn’t think it was my place to say anything. It was very difficult, but you really must speak to her. She’s tenacious and her spirit is fairly broken. Of course. I know you would afford me the same. Although Rayne may not be biologically mine, but I will fight for her as though she was. Please update me when you can”

 

He hangs up the phone.

Is Rayne in trouble? I want to pry, I hope her father isn’t back causing trouble, she’s handled everything so well, I am not sure she can take another knock.

“Everything ok?”

I have to ask, because it’s in my nature.

“It will be. Sometimes Guy, people put you in situations that can conflict you. You know what’s right but that’s not always the best way, you know?”

I don’t, but he’s being cryptic. I nod.

He moves some pieces of paper off his desk and his computer screen comes to life. It’s a paused video. A pornographic video.

He realises that I have seen the screen.

“I am working on something for someone, a friend. They inadvertently made a video a few years ago and it’s come back to haunt them”

“How can you inadvertently make a porno? Did they not know they were being filmed?”

“Not initially no, it’s rather complex, they signed over the rights to the videos and I need to find a way out of it. Anyway that’s not what I wanted to see you about”

“Fair enough. Although if they signed over the rights there is nothing you can do, that video will be around forever and it’s something she will have to deal with. How can you be so stupid though? Signing over something so personal? “

Trent silenced me with a glance.

“Sorry”

I hear Rose in the kitchen next to the study. Then the front door closes. She must be in a hurry as she always stops to say hello.

“I had a call from a friend of mine. I believe he spoke to you this morning”

“Yes. Glad it is all over. What do you know about his theory?”

“I know of no theory. We deal with facts Guy and the facts are that you are a scalp.  I cannot be sure as, obviously I am privy to the same information as you, however If you have checked the files that I gave you, you are smart enough to draw your own conclusions . There is no more that I can do now it is up to you”

I get the feeling I am being dismissed

“Are you not going to say anymore?”

“No son. It’s up to you now.”

“Ok. Well Thank you?”

“Anytime. See you soon Guy”

I go back to my car. I grab the file from my case and cast my eye over it again. There are details  of a merger, dated just before Trent retired. There are some stipulations that look fairly straight forward. So there has been further interest to merge.

I flick through some of the other pages, things I missed when I got caught up with the Leilani company details, there is a fitness and proper test attached. It looks like Trent had some private work done on the company interested.

How did I miss this before?