Leon
It was business as usual for the past two weeks since our run-in with Sadie at the mall, and things seemed to have quieted down on her side. It was quite astonishing, given she’s typically not the silent type, but I knew it was in our best interests to proceed with caution. The last thing we needed was to be lulled under false pretenses when, in reality, the stillness represented the calm before the storm.
Annika and I have been working non-stop with Counselor Malloy and Jorge in our pursuit of vengeance. Although my initial meeting with the counselor was rather unpleasant, he and I have become quite close on a professional level now that we’re all on the same side. Seeing his enthusiasm for taking down the current D.A. of our city made him seem like a teenager trying to take down the school bully, and it was pretty entertaining to watch him sift through all the evidence Jorge and his apprentice dug up.
After Jeffrey realized he was locked out of the penthouse and subsequently removed from the premises by Annika, he too has been laying low and hasn’t met with Sadie as often. But that didn’t stop them from their nightly phone calls, which were easily recorded through a sound amplification device. Some of the calls we listened to thus far were the same old script, Sadie bitching and whining while Jeff consoled her. At first, it was hard for Annika to hear the phone calls, and she bolted out of Malloy’s office the first time she heard one of their recorded calls. The counselor later explained that it was because the way that jagoff spoke to Sadie was how he used to talk to her exactly, and it must have triggered her pent-up emotions all over again.
But now, after hearing about a dozen of these calls, Annika has grown indifferent and detached. Granted, no one could actually blame her for the sudden change in demeanor either. The problem was that as she became more hostile about Jeff and Sadie’s relationship, she also became increasingly distant towards me. I couldn’t help but feel her resentment, considering Sadie is my ex-wife and the common denominator of our current predicament. It was hard not to blame myself for not taking the divorce and her affair more seriously because if I did, maybe Annika wouldn’t be suffering this way. Perhaps she would have known sooner and could have saved herself from further humiliation.
Leading up to the dramatic shift in Annika’s behavior, things were progressing smoothly, and despite the drama that ensued at the mall, she didn’t stop texting or calling me. We even transitioned from only discussing our revenge plot against Jeff and Sadie to having more personal and, dare I say, somewhat flirtatious conversations. But as of now, those calls and texts have stopped altogether, and I couldn’t deny that her newfound iciness towards me was beginning to worry me. The only time I had the chance to hear her voice was during our meetings with Jorge and Counselor Malloy, and I looked forward to my upcoming opportunity as I waited in the lobby of Malloy’s office building.
“Mr. Von Doren, Counselor Malloy is ready for you,” the receptionist informed me, interrupting my train of thought.
“Thank you,” I replied and followed her to the elevator, where she bid me farewell before I went up alone. To my surprise, Annika was already there, but Jorge wasn’t. “Aren’t we missing someone?” I asked as I took my seat. I peeked over at Annika, but she didn’t even glance my way. Things with Annika were rapidly going south and were concerning in many ways.
“Jorge is running late. He said that Jeff and Sadie met at his hotel again, and according to his inside man at the hotel, they were arguing about Jeff’s apparent refusal to meet her parents,” Malloy explained.
“What? He hasn’t met her parents?” I asked, finding it odd since he played an integral role in helping her father get rid of the evidence of her affairs.
“From what I can tell, Jeff hasn’t met them formally. You once mentioned that he had helped conceal and tamper with evidence about Sadie’s affairs during your divorce hearing, right?” he asked me. I nodded my head and waited for him to continue. “Hmm, then from what I can ascertain, Jeff helped Sadie’s family from afar without revealing his identity to them. Regardless of whether they knew of his existence or their ongoing relationship, the Galloways may be unaware that he’s the D.A. and that he’s a married man.”
“He’s probably just waiting for our divorce to be finalized so it won’t humiliate him to be seen as a man-whore,” Annika grumbled and crossed her arms over her chest with a huff.
“Not only that, but if it becomes known that Jeff was the one Sadie was having an affair with during her marriage with Leon, they’ll reopen his case, and Jeff could be seen as a suspect on account of the evidence tampering. His role as a D.A. would have just enough merit for speculation and doubt. And if that is proven to a judge in court, it won’t just ruin his image; it will be disastrous for his career. The D.A. tampering with evidence? That’s career suicide. He would be disbarred, have to stand trial on his own case, and he would most definitely be sent to prison.”
“That would also mean Jeff’s family wouldn’t get their monthly dues from him. He pays for all their s**t now, and if Jeff goes to prison, his family stands to lose everything. So, you better believe that he will fight tooth and nail to keep any of this from becoming known,” Annika solemnly insisted.
“Once we can catch Jeff admitting to the evidence tampering, then we have him dead to rights, and he will lose no matter what,” Malloy assured her. I nodded my head as well because he spoke the truth.
“I don’t think Jeff is stupid enough to admit something like that out loud,” she retorted matter-of-factly.
“You’d be surprised how stupid some people really are under the assumption that no one is watching, Anni,” Malloy countered. “After all, Jeff was stupid enough to walk out of the penthouse with his own two feet, and the first thing he did was go to the hotel to meet up with Sadie. That alone already proves his affair and that he’s been lying out of his teeth the entire time. Plus, one of the last recorded calls contains their admission to having their affair while she was still married to Leon. That right there is sufficient evidence to reopen his case and file an appeal. Not to mention, the video you took of them is date stamped.”
“Why is this hard for me to swallow? I know what Jeff’s doing; the evidence is right in front of me, and I’ve seen it first-hand. I’ve heard all of his most recent calls where she does nothing but degrades me and talk s**t, and he just validates her while assuring her that I’m nothing to him. And yet, it’s like I’m suffering from spontaneous brain and heart failure because I can’t seem to accept the fact this is happening right now!” Annika exclaimed as she slammed her hands on the desk and stood from her seat.
Mutually sensing it was wise to keep quiet, Malloy and I watched as Annika turned to face the city skyline and approached the skyscraper window. Soon, the faint sound of sniffling began to fill the room, and we saw her shoulders bobbing up and down, indicating her emotions were getting the best of her. We gave her more time, but her cries grew more intense as her entire body began shaking. Annika then unleashed her pain against the window with her fists, wailing in pure agony. I instinctively jumped to my feet and brought her into my embrace since I couldn’t bear to see her like this. This led her to switch targets, and Annika hit me instead, which was perfectly fine since she couldn’t hurt me anyway. I glanced over at Malloy and noticed his eyes were also tearing up. I knew that he regarded Annika as his younger sister, so this must be killing him inside.
“Let it out,” I whispered to her. “Don’t hold it in anymore. Cry, scream, curse, hit me all you want. I know a part of you blames me for what’s going on. I should have considered others’ feelings and images back then. I should have outed Jeff as her partner in crime. Maybe then, you wouldn’t be going through this right now,” I gently murmured, opening my heart to Annika so only she could hear. It took a moment for her to respond, but Annika eventually shook her head as she looked up at me with tear-stained doe eyes.
“I don’t blame you, Mr. … I mean, Leon. I blame myself. I should have listened to my family and never hidden my identity all those years ago. Maybe if I had just been unapologetically my true self, then maybe I wouldn’t be in this sham of a marriage,” she explained, burying her face in her hands.
“Then we never would have met.” Annika sniffled again and slowly returned her gaze to me as she tried to digest my words. I patiently waited for her reply, but the sound of Malloy’s phone ringing diverted everyone’s attention.
“Hello? … Uh-huh … Yes, they’re here now …” Annika and I furrowed our brows as our eyes briefly met before we circled back to Malloy’s desk, and he immediately put the phone on speaker.
“Mr. Von Doren, Ms. Silverton, we struck gold!” Jorge’s voice boomed through the phone while the three of us exchanged sideways glances in reaction to his sudden gung-ho announcement.
“What’s going on? What did you find?” I asked him, growing impatient for Jorge to reveal his findings.
“That i***t D.A. just confessed to evidence tampering. We have him on record admitting to trashing the evidence of his affair with Ms. Galloway during your marriage to her, Mr. Von Doren. She even goes on to thank him for his actions because they paved the way for her to receive the money she wanted from the divorce. Sir, she even admits that her marriage to you was a plot she and her mother came up with to get their hands on your wealth.”
“Are you serious?” I gnashed my teeth and narrowed my eyes. A plot to get my wealth.
“That’s not all, Mr. Von Doren,” Jorge continued, collectively piquing everyone’s interest. “Ms. Silverton, after the D.A. left a few minutes ago, we kept the recording device on since Ms. Galloway was still in the room. She made another call, and even though we can’t access who’s on the other side since the number wasn’t pre-programmed to be recorded, her input alone was sufficient.”
“And? What did she say to this person that has you all riled up, Jorge?” Annika asked while moving closer to the phone base and wiping her residual tears away.
“Counselor Malloy, I think you might want to get a warrant for Ms. Galloway’s arrest ready soon,” Jorge cryptically replied. The three of us were speechless as we blankly stared at one another, trying to unravel his words.
“I’m sorry. What did you just say?” Malloy asked to verify we didn’t mishear him. “Did you say arrest warrant?”
“Yes, sir, I did. Listen to this …” We heard a click on the other end of the line, and the most unwelcoming and malicious voice echoed throughout the office.
“Hey, it’s me. I need a favor … I need you to find some of the best guys you know who can be discreet, and I need you to cause an accident. Make sure the target doesn’t make it. I want her D.O.A … I was going to wait for him to divorce her, but it’s taking too damn long. If she’s dead, then he doesn’t even have to divorce her. Her death means he gets everything. Which, in turn, means I get everything. And I mean everything … Don’t question me! Just do as I say! Remember, make it discreet and a complete accident! Do you understand!? … Good. You’ll get paid as soon as I see her body has been found on the news.” We heard another click, indicating that Jorge had turned off the recording, and an eerie silence blanketed the room after hearing the contents of Sadie’s phone call. Annika was gaping at the phone for some time before breaking the awkward silence.
“THIS b***h IS PLOTTING TO HAVE ME MURDERED!?!”
