Smokescreen

“Goes without saying, babe, he’ll be taken care of. Generously.”

“So that’s it? They’re dropping the investigation?”

“That was enough, but there’s more.” Jake looks straight at Laci and she turns bright red. “We have sweet lips to thank for Daddy Dearest.”

“What?!”

“Laci’s dad is a powerhouse. His influence stretches wide and deep. He called in a few favors. Marshall contacted me on Sunday night with the name of a man that was doing some research. It isn’t the legal kind. We uncovered the mastermind behind this all and I gotta tell you. It shocked the shit out of me. It’s not Edward, man. Edward’s clean in this so far.”

The air in the room goes still. No moves waiting for his next words.

“You know a Brian Claxton?”

“Tell me you’re fucking kidding me.” Max’s body gets so hard my hand aches in his. “That bastard. How did he get so deep without us knowing?”

“When you fired his ass, he went to a national firm, keeping in contact with Edward. He convinced Edward that Sullivan PR was involved in the prostitution ring as well as other things. Edward asked for proof. Brian went down to South America and sought out Diaz. From what we can tell through communications, he made promises to Diaz if he could successfully frame Stella. Brian’s firm was in line to get the Hurst & McCoy business once Stella was discredited and fired.

“His boss had no idea of Brian’s plans, but he originally bid on the project. Brian told him that Sullivan was about to be fired and Edward promised the business to them. Edward wasn’t stupid though, he required evidence. Hence why Brian planned this elaborate scheme. I suspect this is why Edward held payment on Stella’s firm. What Brian didn’t count on is me, you, Pedro, and the entire Barnes family to stand behind Stella. He didn’t know what hit him. We can’t prove his involvement in Diaz’s death, but my guess is he has blood on his hands. He’s disappeared. His wife hasn’t seen him in days and his employer even longer. His passport most recently has him in Brazil. But he’s gone underground. Before he left, he set up an account for his wife and kids with two million dollars. The money was legit. He made good investments and had a decent savings. Taking his name off the account provided they would be taken care of for a while.”

“Holy shit,” I whisper. “The guy was a complete dick, but this is unreal. There has to be more to the story. Max would have never fired his ass if he wasn’t such a jackass to me.” I look to my dad apologetically for my language. His lips lift in a smirk.

“There is more to the story, but we’re at a standstill. With Diaz dead and Brian in the wind, we’re still tracing the money deposited in your account.”

“But it’s all cleared? No more suspicion of me?”

“No, you’re squeaky clean. But I got to tell you, I’m not sure you had anything to worry about. Pedro’s grandma and her church cronies were at the station everyday raising hell. The people at the community center were preparing a protest. Even the school officials in three different areas, were concocting a plan. You made quite a name for yourself. No one in an official capacity wanted to believe you were involved in any illegal activities. We just needed to prove it.”

Even with the tension in the room, Matt and Mason start laughing, Laci pumps her hands in the air and high fives Landon repeatedly. Max relaxes, pulling me closer to him. My head swims with all this information sinking in. I’m cleared. Everyone will know I’m not a dirty fraud. Tears spring to my eyes again but I hold them back.

I try to wiggle free from Max but he holds me close and snarls, “If you try to jump on him again, I won’t be responsible for my actions.”

The room erupts in more laughter and I giggle too. Winking at Jake my thanks. He dips his head in acceptance.

“Is it time yet?” Chris yells and holds up a bottle of champagne.

“One more thing. Are we sure Edward had nothing to do with this?” Max inquires again.

“No, but right now he’s clean. Absolutely nothing points to him in this scenario. He was willing to pull the business from Stella and embarrass you both. But that’s all we can find.”

“Shit. We still have a loose end.”

“Yeah, but Stella is safe. She’s in the clear.”

“That’s all that matters.” Max kisses the top of my head and motions to Chris.

Corks fly into the air as Chris opens bottle after bottle and Laci helps serve the champagne. When Max finally lets me go, every woman in the room engulfs me in hugs. Something in my dad is off, but he looks happy. Ecstatic actually, as he hugs me a little longer than normal.

“That man loves you all the way to his bones. And I approve of that,” he whispers in my ear.

“Thanks, Daddy, I love him too.”

We all toast and talk animatedly about the next steps. I decide to keep the office closed down until Monday but Landon and Laci agree to go in tomorrow and Friday to answer phones and handle the mail.

Chris and Jake’s phones ding with alerts and I know it’s official by the look on their faces. The investigation into me is closed. My name is cleared. Max and I give Laci and Dana the go-ahead to post the joint press release we prepared last weekend, hoping this would resolve easily. It’s a quick simple statement saying the investigation was dropped. Evidence shows Sullivan PR, Stella Sullivan, and Hurst & McCoy are in no way implicated in illegal activities surrounding bribery and child solicitation.

Within the hour phones start ringing but we ignore them except for my mom and Sara to take family phone calls. The fear and strain from the last few days is erased and replaced with happy memories. People who love and believe in Max and me surround us.

As the group celebrates, I sneak away to make a call. As soon as the deep voice answers, a lump forms in my throat.