“Baby what’s wrong,” I said, holding her face.
“This is just … a lot. It’s a lot. I am just … I have so many questions. I don’t like signing things I haven’t read. I know I sound like an idiot and I should just do it, but I...”
“Do you want me to ask to read it, Rob drafted it with them, knowing my wishes,” I said.
She looked lost and confused.
I held her, and stroked her hair.
“Your grandfather will know it was me now though, and I’m stupid, I’m just being stupid,” she said.
“I know this is a lot, more than you could have ever imagined, but this is our life now. You have to be okay with it though, I need you to be okay with it all.”
“I don’t like putting my fate completely in someone else’s hands, I’ve always known to the dollar what was
Eve and I stayed in Vegas only until Tuesday morning, with me promising her a proper honeymoon at some point.The lawyers were working around the clock to finalize things, and I was buying out the Maxwell shares that grandfather and his business partners owned. It was a lot, but I used all my own money, not utilizing the trust for it and that meant everything to me.With a few last minute additional shares, my total ownership of Maxwell Enterprises was now at 67%. My spies told me that Phil’s shares were now less than 3%, with Chris owning 10% ... likely inherited since I doubt he would’ve bought it himself.The rest was stockholders, board members and some employees. Rob was meeting on the down low with an investigative reporter for the New York Times, feeding them information on Phil and Helen’s tax evasion but they were not going public with it just yet.We set up “T-day” as we called, “
I told Heath to keep a close eye on Chris, I needed to be sure I could trust him. It seemed like it, but I had many years of distrust with him.He was unbelievably shocked that I somehow found Eve and I did agree it was a weird coincidence, but I didn’t care. She was mine now and it was his loss … and he had to live with that.I wouldn’t have let anything ... not a promotion or my mom’s opinion come between what we shared.I got home and told Eve what happened with Chris and her face ran through every possible emotion. She was angry, sad, happy and then murderous about Helen.She was glad to know that she hadn’t done anything wrong, but sad to know he didn’t have the balls to stand up for her the way she deserved.She then felt bad for Chris, saying he was a victim as well but I wasn’t going to give him that much credit.It was time for Sunday dinner with mom, and
~Eve’s Point of View~I was bursting and so incredibly proud of Derek, I really had no words. I had known him for only this summer, but I felt like it had been an eternity.I couldn’t wait to see what the future held for us.However, I still had a year of school and he was going to have a hard few months getting things sorted out with the businesses. I had just one thing I still had to do, and that was talk to Chris.I wanted to get it out of the way as soon as possible, I just needed to put all this behind me.Derek arranged for us all to meet at a quiet coffee shop, and I sat at a table in the back, with Derek at a table roughly in the middle.I was nervous, but I was ready.I saw him walking in and my breath caught in my throat, he was still hot as hell.He walked with such a confidence that seemed to say he could get you to drop your pantie
Four Months Later~Derek’s Point of View~I was getting burnt out, burning the candle at both ends. Eve was able to schedule her classes so they were all on Tuesday and Thursday, and two she was taking online. So we spent half the week in New York and the middle of the week in D.C.Maxwell Enterprises had offices in both locations, and I was still trying to hold down the fort for grandfather’s businesses as well. I had hired a new COO to be a go-between for both. I had been grooming him for about three months and I seriously hoped he would soon be able to take a lot off my plate,My parents both took pleas, not wanting the public humiliation of a trial. They also couldn’t afford to post their bail, so they would have just been held in prison until trial anyhow. They were both sentenced to eight years in federal prison, likely getting out in five ye
~This is part two, Heath's story~~Heath's Point of View~What did I hate more than anything? Sending in resumes and filling out questions for jobs. I’d been out of the army a little over a year and I had no desire to find a job. I didn’t need the money, I had more than enough tucked away, but my head was all over the place.I needed to hone in on one thing, I needed something to focus on. I did three tours in the sandbox and got out after nine years, I had enlisted at 18. I was used to structure, a set way of doing things.Going to work for some corporate asshole, some douchebag … was not for me. I decided I’d hold out for the right fit, but it wasn’t looking like I was going to find it.
I’d been with Derek and his little posse about two months now, and it was crazy how well I just fit in. We all had the same sense of humor, liked the same food and we were all workaholics. We were all completely on board with and dedicated to Derek's mission. His assistant Marcus often rubbed me the wrong way but Derek said he was hard to impress.Derek really impressed me the most though. At first I took him for messy and disorganized, but they really had their shit together. Once they let me fully in on everything I was not only beyond impressed, but my wheels immediately began turning a mile a minute with new ideas.I convinced Derek he needed to add another observer, we needed a fixture in the accounting department at Maxwell, and I went right to work looking for the right person. We needed to build a tax fraud case against Phil, and we ne
Two hours later, I wandered back into Derek’s apartment, positively lost and spent. I was whipped, tortured and defeated … and I never even touched Holly. I felt like I’d run a marathon.I quickly found Derek and he looked at me with hopeful eyes but he also quickly took in my appearance. I had loosened my tie and been wringing my fingers through my hair so it was likely a mess. I left my suit jacket in the car and I had pulled my shirt out of my pants, needing to feel … less constricted.“Dude, are you okay, you look like shit,” he asked.I threw the file on the counter in front of him and just said, “she’s in, but do your own interviews from now on … I’m … taking the rest of the day off.”
Fast forward about three years … things with Maxwell were progressing rather well, Derek was able to scoop up some more stock and buy off another board member. Derek took us all on vacation to Hawaii last month, it was totally awesome. I mean who gets this kind of boss?I had no clue what I did right in my life to land this “job” but it really wasn’t even a job. I mean yeah there was a lot of actual work, and I was by Derek’s side 24/7 but he was really my brother at this point.He wanted us all to be close and he wanted us all to feel appreciated. That’s how you make a happy and loyal employee.Derek was about three months into dating a girl named Cassie, a stuck-up socialite from a wealthy family … personally hand picked by his mother. I was honestly sh
~Heath’s Point of View~This is it, the day I’ve been waiting for my whole life. My perfect redhead, my dream girl. Only she’s not a dream, she’s real, and she loves me. She loves me and she’s giving me a baby.I couldn’t even wrap my head around it all still, and I just knew I’d cry at the wedding. I hated that my dad couldn’t be here, but it meant everything to me that we could speed things along for my mom’s sake.I’d had dinner sent to Liz’s room, Chinese food to honor our first night together. I had a special fortune cookie made for Beth with a slip of paper in it, asking her to marry me. Around the paper was an engagement ring.She wasn’t going to be allowed to come see me t
~Beth’s Point of View~I had started wondering when we might all go back home, but everyone seemed to be happy out here and I didn’t want to rock the boat or seem as if I didn’t like it. Heath really liked being able to see his family, and I did greatly enjoy his mom.There had been a couple times I caught everybody whispering like, hushed voices. They’d shut right up and move on once they saw me. I just thought it was stuff about Miss Reba, but I was starting to get annoyed.Heath better never keep stuff from me, and if he did, I’d punch him in the nuts!Heath’s sisters went on and on at dinner one night about some spa in town, and I didn’t care for that stuff. But as they went on I started to reckon that a m
~Eve’s Point of View~We had been out at the Jackson ranch through Christmas, and it was certainly a much more different Christmas than I would have imagined a month ago.I also wasn't thrilled to have my ankle in a cast but I was dealing with it. There was still total radio silence on Haven and her brother, but Derek still had everyone possible trying to track them down.At last count, his hackers were able to recover about $39 million of the ransom, which we all thought was pretty remarkable.It was great to meet Heath’s family, and they were the distraction that I think we all needed. They knew nothing about what had happened to Beth and I, and I was so glad for it. Being around our group would have given me nothing but sad, pitiful faces.
~Beth’s Point of View~“Ugh my momma keeps callin’, lemme see what she wants,” I said to Heath.I ran out of the hospital waiting room and into a stairwell.“Hey momma,” I said, answering the phone.“Bethany I have only talked to you twice in the past month, and now you’re onto only texting me all the time. Explain yourself young lady,” she said.Oh shit.“Well I did text you at least,” I said, lying.Heath had texted her from my phone since it was recovered when they found the car we were abducted in.I h
The cops were trying to get ahold of the landlord to ask about breaking out a wall or taking up the floor and I didn’t give a fuck about all that. I’d buy him a new goddamn building if wasn’t in on the scheme.About four hours went by and I was seriously losing any ounce of patience I had left.Heath had me on speakerphone in his pocket so I could roughly hear what was being said inside.I heard a guy in the crowd yell that he was the landlord and I immediately rushed him but Mick held me back.A cop went at him, “sir we believe there is a kidnapping victim being held here, is there a basement or a false wall anywhere?”“What, someone was kidnapped? You think they are here?”
~Derek’s Point of View~It had now been nearly two days since Beth was released and I was really close to losing my shit. There was just nothing more we could do, we were totally helpless.The kidnappers had been more than careful and if I hadn’t been so insaney furious I might have admired their work. They had to have slipped up at some point, we just had to catch a break.It was extremely illegal but Mick was running the photo we got of the driver from a street camera through the DMV. It was the middle of the night and everyone was half asleep or actually asleep.Heath and Beth had been holed up in his place and I didn’t want to bother them, not that I had any news.I was in the kitchen
*Warning, this chapter depicts an assault*~Eve’s Point of View~I guessed it to be about a day since they snatched Beth away from me. The whole speech I gave at first about us having a united front and not showing we were scared was pretty much going out the window.I didn’t know what the hell Derek was doing, did he not give them all the money? I had no clue. Since they took Beth nobody has come back. I don’t have much food left and I’m starting to have to fill up my water bottles in the sink.Maybe they’ll just leave me here to starve, I thought.No, they said they wanted me, they have to want me for something … sex? I mean they hadn’t so far t
~Derek’s Point of View~Our hackers were working non-stop to trace the money we already sent. As soon as it hit the bank it went to three other accounts and so on. It seemed like they were just trying to put it through so many places to keep it from being traced but we weren’t giving up.We had the FBI and different forensics teams monitoring the video they made the girls take, but we were getting nothing there.I was completely torn on whether or not to send the rest of the money … I didn’t care about the actual money of course but just the fact that I would be sending it with no guarantee of getting them.After some back and forth we went ahead and sent another 15 million, and decided to wait and see if they responded.
~Heath’s Point of View~All I could think about was how scared the girls had to be. My poor little Beth, my innocent little Beth. She’s never even remotely experienced something like this. I had a Bronze Star, I’d been shot down behind enemy lines. I’d known hand to hand combat, I’d know the terror of a real fight.I never wanted her to have to know anything like that.Derek was in full on control freak mode. This was supposed to be my domain, security. But everything seemed to be moving around me in slow motion, I couldn’t focus.The FBI was able to track down the car and in it was a note with instructions. They wanted 50 million dollars wired over ten different bank accounts.