Lies Beneath the Surface (Buried Secrets 2)

Luke: Lunch?

Me: In a meeting…don’t know how long I’ll be.

I wait for his reply, but before the phone vibrates in my hand, Jodie, the receptionist shows me back to a conference room where I’m met with two women. They both stand, greeting me as Michele introduces herself, then to the other woman. “Miss Simon, this is my lead investigator, Tiffani. She’ll be sitting in on our meeting today if you don’t mind.”

“Hello, Tiffani. It’s a pleasure to meet you.” I tell her shaking her hand briefly. We all take a seat around the table, looking to Michele to begin.

“Okay Miss Simon, explain what you believe is happening at the Black Ridge mines.” They both have a legal pad and pen ready to scribble down all of the facts I can fill their heads with. I start from the beginning, telling them the events from two nights ago.

“I’ll call the KSP and get a copy of the accident report.” Tiffani states, keeping her eyes trained on the notes she’s taking.

“Thanks Tiffani.” Michele states briefly before turning to me. “Ms. Simon, who do you believe is seeking revenge?” Very point blank. Meet Michele Runyon; no she ain’t Willy Wonka, she don’t sugar coat shit. Quick, fast and to the point. Now, if she can be just as effective and precise as she is blunt.

I know that Attorney-Client Privileges will bind Michele to protecting my privacy, but my heart scatters frantically just considering breathing these secrets to anyone. And it ain’t even the shame that I carry, knowing that Daddy had a bastard son that hinders me…it’s speaking the very words aloud that confirms the truth, etching it in stone. I take a deep breath to steady my pounding heart and begin to tell Michele and Tiffani about Daddy’s buried secrets.

An hour later when I’ve finally finished telling my story, connecting the dots and reconfirming a few very confusing facts, the two women sit across from me with a stunned look on their faces, mouth agape.

“Pardon the language, but damn that’s straight outta One Life to Live, if you ask me.” Tiffani blurts out. Michele’s eyes bulge hearing Tiffani’s language and she immediately apologizes.

“So do you believe that Drew Varney is responsible for the sabotage at Black Ridge?” Michele asks me.

“I think he has hired one of my employees as his lackey to cause sabotage at the mines, which in turn is costing us millions of dollars. The D9 dozer we replaced a few months back was close to a million dollars itself, not to mention the recent destruction.” I shift around in the seat, crossing one leg over the other.

“How much do you estimate the belt repair is going to set Simon Energy back?”

“At this point, I’m not sure. I’m hoping to have it repaired within the week, but it just depends on how quickly we can get the belt delivered and repaired. When production halts like this, everyone is affected. Our men lose pay, truckers lose loads to haul, and Simon Energy loses millions when coal aint being cut.”

“And you beli

eve Drew is doing all of this to extort Simon Energy from you?”

“I don’t believe so, he stated the fact.” I reply.

“When was the last time you had contact with Mr. Varney?” Michele asks.

“The last contact I had with Drew was a little over a week ago. We were both guests at my sister’s house for dinner.” They both peer up at me with their eyes furrowed deep between their brows, shooting me that ‘what the hell’ look.

“What? Why was he having dinner at your sister’s house?” Tiffani bursts out, excitement shining through her eyes. I can see that she loves digging deep as she investigates, and prefers that no leaf be left unturned.

“Apparently, Savannah’s husband Josh works at American Heritage Coal Company and has since before he and Savannah met.”

“Damn, this is one jacked up case. I’ve never heard of anything so twisted in my entire life and I investigate some shady, sinister people. This case here…it takes the cake. Top priority for me. I’m so excited to watch the pieces of the puzzle snap into place.” Tiffani proclaims with trepidation.

“It’s all very interesting to say the least. However, we’re gonna need more evidence than hearsay before we can build any case against him, but for now I think it’s necessary for you to take some steps of precaution to protect Simon Energy and yourself. Your father left an iron clad will, so that can’t be contested. No judge in the state of Kentucky would overturn your father’s last wishes as long as the will was written when your father was of sound body and mind.” She crosses her arms, bracing herself on the edge of the table. “What attorney handled your father’s affairs?”

“James McCoy. He handled everything for Daddy.”

“I have to admit I was hoping you’d say that, and praying you wouldn’t all at the same time.” She laughs.

“Care to elaborate?”

“His office is already giving us the run around on receiving their case files for Simon Energy. Bulldozing us over with one excuse or another, simply trying to stall. If I don’t have all of the files in my office within the next seven days, I’ll file a lawsuit against his firm.” She takes a drink of her coffee, then leans back in the chair clicking the pen in her hand. “Ya see, he’s the one attorney I’ve been itching to go toe to toe with. He sits high on his horse and most attorneys are scared of him and the power he’s believed to have. Me? I can’t wait to watch him fall. If anyone in the state of Kentucky can bring him down legally…it will be me.” A prideful smile splays across her pink cheeks as her cat like eyes glisten with enthusiasm.

“Thanks so much, Michele. I’m so happy that you are eager to jump in feet first and get the situation under control.”

“Glad to help. Tiffani and her team will be handling all of the investigations, and once we have anything concrete, we’ll meet again. In the meantime if you think of anything else or if there are any other issues, just call me.” She smiles, a hint of ambition twinkling in her eye. I have to admit that going up against Drew Varney terrifies me, but at least with Michele’s team’s help I will know what I’m up against.

Starting the engine, I crank up the ass warmers as I pull my phone from my purse to check my missed messages. There is a reply from Luke, but it’s Colton’s name lit up on the screen that causes my heart to skip a beat. I hesitate opening the message, checking the text from Luke first. I shoot him a quick reply that we may be able to meet for lunch tomorrow. I let my finger hover over the text that has my heart racing at an erratic pace as I contemplate opening the message, before I finally give in.