Chapter Nine (by Misha)

Jack glanced at his watch. 10:30. Plenty of time to deal with whatever the kids were yammering on about and still have time to head Erica off at the pass. Kids? What the hell were Reggie and Lily doing at the office instead of at school where they belonged? There was one way to find out. Jack thanked Peggy for her help and leaned back in his chair. "Okay, you two, exactly what are you doing here and what is that you keeping waving around?"

"The spreadsheet, Jack. Lily and I were here working on it all night and–"

"You were what?"

"We were work–"

"I heard you the first time. What I want to know is what you were doing in my office in the first place. Correct me if I'm wrong here, but weren't you supposed to be spending the night at Bianca's?"

"We did, Daddy. We got there at 11:07 PM. We apologized to Bianca for getting there so late. Reggie told her we were with friends and lost track of the time." Lily turned to face her brother. "I still don't understand why we didn't tell Bianca the truth. I thought honesty is always the best policy."

"You're right sweetheart, it is. Reggie?"

"Okay, I should have told Bianca the truth but I didn't want to freak her out. Besides, she just would have asked a bunch of questions you'd just as soon have me avoid answering."

"Could you be any more cryptic here?" Jack asked.

"The ring? You? Erica?" Reggie replied shrugging his shoulders. "Look, I don't know why you guys are keeping whatever's really going on with the two of you a secret but, yeah, we know all about it. So much for honesty, huh?"

"Reggie, I can explain. It's just, it's complicated, man."

"Whatever. I'm sure you've got your reasons. You and me, we can sit down and have one of your famous man-to-man talks some other time. For now, I'm cool with it."

"Thanks, man. I appreciate it. So, what is it you need my help with and I'm sure whatever it is explains why you two are here and not in school?"

———

A loud screech filled the air and gravel showered the road as Erica peeled out of the hotel parking lot and onto West Chester Pike. Just missing the light, Erica pulled out her cell phone to dial Jack. She hung onto the line for a moment before noticing she had no dial tone. Realizing the battery had gone dead, she tossed it aside and figured Dino's news would have to wait until she saw Jack in person. In the meantime, she had a score to settle with a certain blonde behemoth.

———

Jack stared at the spreadsheet in his hand. Lily had circled one number down each row of the sixth column but for the life of him, he couldn't figure out what he was looking at.

"I'm sorry, sweetheart, but I still don't get it."

"It's a puzzle, Daddy."

"Yeah, honey, it's a puzzle, all right." Jack's furrowed eyebrows mirrored the confused look on his face.

"It's like an anagram but instead of letters being switched, the person used numbers."

"You mean, like a code?"

Lily's face lit up. "Yes. I can spell it out but the letters don't make sense to me. It's V – E – R – K – A"

"Verkaat" Jack finished.

"Good, Daddy. Verkaat. What does that mean?"

"I don't know sweetheart, but I'm sure going to find out." Jack sat down in front of his terminal and reached for his mouse.

"Uh, I think it's frozen" Reggie offered.

"Excuse me?"

"You know, locked up."

"How did–"

"We were kind of trying to break into your computer. Look, we would have called you but after NOT finding Erica's ring in your desk, I figured you probably didn't want to be interrupted. Bianca, Lily and me–we do enough of that as it is."

"So, that's what you were doing all night? Trying to hack into my computer?"

"Yeah, you know, you've got some crazy software on that machine. Usually I'm pretty good at getting into someone's system–not that I do that a lot, of course–"

"Of course. You and me; we'll talk about that later."

"But there was something really weird going on."

"Weird how?" Jack asked.

"Every time we got close to your root directory, we'd see a quick flash of numbers and then these funny characters would pop up and eat 'em or something. It was strange."

"Numbers, huh? You don't happen to remember what those numbers were do you?" Jack asked.

Reggie shrugged his shoulders. "Nah, I–"

Lily interrupted her brother. "It was 34216153893."

Jack quickly jotted the numbers down on a piece of paper, slipped it into his pocket and checked his watch again. 10:48 AM. Erica's lunch with Andrews wasn't for another two hours and still no word on her whereabouts. He needed to do something, figure out where the hell she could be but first he had to get the kids out of here.

"Listen, you two. You've been a lot of help but now it's time both of you got back to school. I'll give the office a call and explain that there was a family problem and that you were with me." Reggie opened his mouth but Jack headed him off at the pass. "No arguments. I need to concentrate here and I'm not going to be able to do that with you hanging around. So, for me, please, go to class, learn something and then go right home. Okay? No stopping off anywhere either. I'm not sure what's going on here but I need to know that if you're not at school you're safe at home. Will you do that for me?"

"Yes, Daddy."

"Reggie?"

"Fine, but I'm not happy about it" Reggie said and grabbed his knapsack.

Jack kissed his son's forehead. "Thanks, man. And don't worry, things are going to be okay."

"Now that I know that Erica and you are good, I actually think this family has a chance."

As soon as the door swung shut behind Reggie and Lily, Jack picked up the phone and called Hank Donia. Hank was an average guy in every way but one–he was a genius with the computer. Ten minutes later he was seated behind Jack's desk, mumbling to himself as he jotted down notes on a crumpled piece of paper.

"What is it, Hank?" What do you think's going on?"

"I'm not exactly sure yet but whatever it is, it's not good."

"That much I gathered. Any idea when you'll get a handle on it?'

"It might take a while. One wrong move and I could activate a worm that would bring Cambias Industries to its knees. Whoever did this to your system wasn't messing around."

"Great" Jack responded, somewhat deflated. "The one thing we don't have a lot of is time."

"I'll work as fast as I can but I'm afraid the soonest I can give you any meaningful information will be after lunch."

"Lunch?" Jack replied, his mood visibly brightening. "The way you were talking I thought we were looking at weeks, not hours."

"I guess us computer guys have a different sense of time than the rest of you mere mortals" Hank chortled.

"Yeah, well, you just keep working on it. In the meantime, I'm going to head down to your office and do some research of my own. I assume it's okay to use your computer?"

"Sure, just power down when you're done. Leaving a terminal on for long periods of time is just inviting trouble in my opinion. You wouldn't believe the number of people out there that know how to break into a computer . . ."

Jack shook his head thinking back to his recent conversation with his son. "Actually Hank, I'm getting a better idea of that all the time."

"Most of it's pretty harmless; I think it's this generation's version of making crank calls."

"Prince Albert on a hard drive, huh?" Jack laughed, ruefully.

"Something like that."

"Alright, well, give me a call when you find something . . . I'll be around for another hour or so and then I'm heading over to the Valley Inn. You have my cell phone number, right?"

Hank patted his breast pocket that was bulging from the weight of his PDA. "Right here."

Jack nodded and quickly left his office. It took him only fifteen minutes surfing the net to find what he was looking for and even less time to start piecing together more of the puzzle. Verkaat was not only the name of a rare fish indigenous to the icy waters of the North Sea but was also the name of an irrigation system that was completed in Sweden more than ten years ago.

———

As she slowed up in front of the security station that fronted the entrance to The Ardmore Crossing condominiums, Erica pasted the most intoxicating smile on her face. If she was to get the truth from Mariele it was vital that the scheming witch not be alerted to her surprise guest. Erica rolled to a stop and a rotund man, easily in his seventies, popped his balding head out of the booth.

"Good morning, Miss, uh, Miss uh, Ms. Kane?"

"Why good morning to you too, Mr. . . . Mr. Bailey is it?" Erica replied, having quickly read the identification placard propped at the base of the window.

The pudgy old man was visibly flustered. "Yesss, ma'am" the man stuttered, absentmindedly fingering the identical lanyard he wore around his neck. "Tom, Tom Bailey. Gosh, darn it all, why you're as pretty as a picture. Goodness! Why, if I were just a tad younger . . ." Erica let out a soft laugh and, as she gently patted the man's outstretched arm, a slight blush colored his cheeks. "Just wait until I tell the wife who I met today. My oh, my, I'll tell you, she sure is a big fan of yours. Why I can't remember the last time we made it out of Lacey's department store without first stopping to pick up a handful of your cosmetics. They like to take over the entire counter of our bathroom, you'll pardon my French."

"Oh, Tom–may I call you that?" Erica queried, fluttering her lashes for effect. Bailey shook his head in the affirmative. "Tom, please give her my regards. And, as a matter of fact" Erica reached into her briefcase for a business card "may I borrow your pen?" She quickly scribbled something onto the card and signed her name. "Give her this. Next time she's at Lacey's the moisturizer's on me" she said brightly.

"Thank you Ms. Kane, that's mighty generous of you. I sure do appreciate it and I'm sure Floreen will too. She, uh, forgive my manners. You're a busy woman and I'm just going on and on. I'm sure you've got someplace you need to be right about now. Now, uh, um, who did you say you were visiting today? I'll let the lucky person know you're here" Bailey finished and picked up the telephone receiver that was mounted on the wall.

Erica flashed the man a sweet smile. "If you wouldn't mind bending the rules just this once, I'd love it to be a surprise."

"I don't know, Ms. Kane. This place is really funny about that kind of thing . . ."

Erica quickly switched gears and appeared crestfallen. "I understand, of course. It's just that . . . well, I was hoping . . ." Erica slowly moistened her lips. "I hoped, Tom, this could be our little secret" she whispered. "I'm on a mission of love."

Tiny beads of perspiration broke out on the guard's forehead. "I guess it wouldn't do any harm if I waved you through. Floreen's always said I was a fool for romance."

"Oh, Tom, you have no idea how much this means to me. Your wife is a lucky woman," Erica purred as she waved and slowly pulled through the opened gates. At the stop sign she glanced at the address she had jotted down just before leaving the hotel room. Okay, now where is that woman's building, Erica wondered, as she stared at the half dozen or so identical towers. Turning the corner, she spotted a giant "F" on the side of one of the edifices. There it is . . . F for fraud. Erica pulled into a nearby parking spot and simultaneously collected her purse and her thoughts. She was certainly no fan of Mariele's but after what Dino told her, she couldn't help but admire the woman's temerity.

Erica was just about to ring the doorbell when the door swung open. "Going somewhere?" Erica inquired.

"Erica? How did you get in here?" Mariele asked, obviously startled by her nemesis's presence.

"The usual way. I used the door."

Mariele rolled her eyes in disgust. "What I meant is, how did you get past the gate? Security is supposed to check with us before letting just anyone in" she finished haughtily.

"Well, first of all, I'm not just anyone. And if you must know, a friend in a nearby building was more than happy to give the guard the go-ahead" Erica lied.

"Yes, well, then I'm sure he or she will be delighted by your visit. I, on the other hand, have someplace I need to be."

Erica pushed past her. "I'm afraid that's going to have to wait. You and I have some business we need to discuss."

"Call my office and make an appointment. Now, if you'll excuse me . . ."

"Oh, I'm not going anywhere, not until you and I get a few things straight." Erica quickly took in her surroundings and, sizing up the room, was immediately struck with the spartan feel of the space. The sterile design perfectly mimicked Mariele's icy exterior.

I give up Mariele thought. The only way to get rid of the little she-devil is to humor her. "Okay, Erica, have it your way. What is it you need to get off that tiny chest of yours?"

"I just had a very interesting conversation with a friend of mine overseas."

"Oh, let me guess; was it a man?" When Erica refused to acknowledge the question, Mariele continued "Of course I'm not the least bit surprised. You're just the type to have a man in every port. I'm sure that's just one of the many reasons Jack crossed you off his party list."

"Aren't you clever?" Erica responded without missing a beat. "It seems that with your history, you've been crossed off more than a couple of guest lists of your own."

"My history? What on Earth are you talking about Erica?"

"You've been keeping quite a few secrets, Mariele."

"Have I?"

"Oh, most definitely. In fact, why don't I give you an example" Erica taunted, raising her index finger for effect. "Tell me something, Mariele. Does Lars Thorquist realize that he hired the daughter of a known eco-terrorist?"

Mariele's frosty veneer immediately dissolved and was replaced with a fiery glow. "Just what the hell are you talking about, Erica?"

"I'm sorry. Did I strike a nerve?"

"Erica, if I were you, I'd drop this right now."

"Yes, well, you're not me and I have no intentions of dropping 'this' anytime soon. You're a fake and a fraud and someone needs to let Lars know what he's dealing with sooner rather than later. . ." Erica jeered, moving toward the phone that was resting on the side table.

Mariele jumped in her pathway. "You're not calling anyone Erica. Not about this, not about anything!"

"Are you threatening me, Mariele?"

"Threatening you? You mean, am I going to snap your chicken neck like the foul person you are?"

Erica stood as tall as her petite frame would allow. "Oh, you just try it, you glacial bitch."

Mariele eyes hardened as she towered over her adversary, hoping to intimidate Erica with her size but it was clear that Erica's diminutive stature belied her steely determination. "Fine, tell Thorquist whatever you want" Mariele offered. "It doesn't matter now anyway. It's too late for him or Jack to do anything about things now . . ."

Erica stopped dead in her tracks. "Jack? What does any of this have to do with Jack?"

"I guess now it's my turn to hit a nerve, Erica, yes?"

"What does your father being jailed for blowing up an irrigation system have to do with Jack?" The sudden fear radiating in Erica's eyes struck a chord in Mariele's dormant heart.

"Relax, Erica. Jack's in no danger. I would never harm a hair on that beautiful blonde head of his. And, from the look on your face, it's obvious that the sudden breakup between the two of you isn't quite as serious as you've led everyone to believe."

Erica was thrown by the soft tone in Mariele's voice but was hesitant to reveal too much too quickly. "Jack and I have a long history together. And, as you well know, my daughter Bianca's also his niece."

"Yes, the two of you do have an interesting, if tangled relationship."

"Let's get back to the part about Jack being involved with whatever went on with your father . . ."

"First of all, let's be clear on one thing. My father is not an eco-terrorist. Whoever told you that he was, is lying to you."

"So you deny that he's in jail for that very thing? Come on, Mariele, try and be honest for once in your sorry life . . ."

All of the spit and fight that filled the room evaporated as Mariele folded herself onto the nearby rocker. "It's not true; none of it. My father is a good man."

Caught off guard, Erica's pulse quickened as thoughts of her own father raced through her mind. "I know we all like to think our fathers are decent Mariele, but that's not always the case. Believe me, I know from painful experience."

"Erica. I know your father was a despicable man and for that, I'm sorry. Truly, I am. But my father is honest and kind and would never do any of the things he was accused of. He was framed, plain and simple. The charges, the terrible lies that were told about him were manufactured by evil men and today I got the evidence I needed to prove his innocence."

Erica didn't know what to make of this sudden turn of events. For the first time since she met Mariele Girtz, she felt an odd sort of kinship. No, not quite kinship; perhaps just a hint of empathy. "Let's assume for the moment I believe your story and trust me, I am still a long way away from that. I still don't understand how any of this involves Jack. Correct me if I'm wrong but your father has been in prison for close to eight years and I know for a fact that the two of you–Jack and you–crossed paths less than a month ago. Or are you trying to imply–"

"I'm implying nothing. It's true. Jack and I met only a few weeks ago, right after he took over the reins of Cambias Industries."

"Then how does this involve–"

"Twelve years ago my father entered into a business agreement with Olaf Thorquist–Lars' father. Three months earlier Olaf purchased a fishery that was in bankruptcy. It had once been among the most successful mackerel and herring farms on the East coast of Sweden, that is, until unscrupulous developers diverted one of the streams that fed the wetlands. Before long, the water tables dropped and production levels declined. That's where my father came in. He was hired to install a state-of-the-art irrigation system that tapped into a natural river basin twenty miles away. Once the work was completed, the fishery would again be profitable and the surrounding community was expected to thrive."

"Go on . . ."

Mariele continued "My father did the construction–at a much lower profit margin than he needed to, I might add–he was that committed to helping revitalize the area. The new system worked like a dream, much better than even he had hoped for. Unfortunately, Thorquist's motives were not so pure. That's when the trouble started. Unbeknownst to my father, Olaf had also entered into a side agreement with Alex Cambias Sr."

———

Jack pulled into the far end of the Valley Inn parking lot at 12:45 PM and waited for Erica to arrive. About five minutes later, he saw John's car turn in and quickly ducked to avoid being spotted. Fortunately, the man parked a good distance away allowing Jack to comfortably watch as Andrews made his way into the building. Close to another thirty minutes passed and still there was no sign of Erica. At least I'm not the only man you like to keep waiting he thought to himself. Just as St. Timothy's church bells marking the half hour quieted, Jack heard the squeal of tires and knew that Erica had arrived. She's going to kill herself one day if she's not careful. If it's the last thing I do, I'm going to get that woman to slow down. Jack slammed out of the car and started making his way to Erica but stopped short when he saw John emerging from the Inn's entrance to greet her. When he finally reached Erica, John gave her a perfunctory kiss on the cheek and escorted her inside. On the surface everything appeared perfectly normal but something about Erica's gait gnawed at Jack.

He was still stewing two minutes later when he was startled by a light tap on the window. Jack looked up and saw Mariele standing in front of him. Great, just what I need Jack thought as he smiled politely. Jack raised his hand and waved hoping she'd go away but Mariele held her ground. Finally, he unfastened his seatbelt and exited the car, bussing her lightly just beneath her jaw. "Mariele . . ."

"Jack."

"Meeting someone for a late lunch?"

"Actually, I was looking for you . . ."

Jack was taken aback. "Me? What made you think you'd find me here?"

"Erica."

"Erica? I don't understand?"

"She said you'd be here . . ."

"How–?"

"She called her office from my place and spoke to some underling, Meggie, perhaps? I don't remember; whatever, it's not important" Mariele finished, brushing a lock of Jack's hair away from his eyes.

"Peggy."

Mariele's nerves were on end and she was growing increasingly impatient. "Okay, she spoke to Peggy. You Americans. You get bogged down in such trivial matters" she said, waving her hand dismissively.

"Oh, I don't know Mariele. It seems to me that it's only good manners to call people by their correct names. And we got rid of serfdom years ago."

"Are we going to discuss this all afternoon or can we move on to a more interesting topic?"

Jack grandly stretched out his arm. "Please forgive me. The floor is yours . . ."

"Peggy" Mariele said with emphasis "mentioned to Erica that you were looking for her and knew about her lunch meeting with John Andrews. I guess she knows you pretty well, because Erica automatically assumed you'd be here waiting for her."

"Is that right? And just why would Erica share that information with you or for that matter, be at your place to begin with" Jack asked, clearly puzzled. "The two of you are not exactly friends." The bitter set of Mariele's mouth confirmed Jack's suspicions. The two women had not turned a corner in their relationship.

"We had important business to discuss. It seems the two of you are–"

"The two of us? Mariele, there is no 'the two of us.' Obviously you misunderstood something Erica said–"

"Give it up Jack. I know the two of you are together. The jig, as you say, is up."

"Mariele, suppose you tell me exactly what the two of you were up to this morning. And do us both a favor and don't leave anything out."

"Fine, but let's do it inside. I'm getting chilly and besides, the whole reason I'm here is so that you can keep an eye on John–and your sweet Erica, of course."

As Jack took Mariele by the elbow and began escorting her into the Valley Inn he glanced over in the direction of John's car. He stopped dead in his tracks when he noticed it was gone. What the . . . Jack quickly scanned the parking lot for Erica's car. It was still there. For a brief moment he was relieved but then a sudden chill ran down his spine. "What the hell are you up to Mariele?" he shouted. "So help me, if anything has happened to Erica . . ."

The color drained from Mariele's face. "Jack, I swear" she yelled after him but he had already taken off in a dead heat, bounding up the stairs to the Valley Inn, two at a time. When he reached the dining room, his darkest fears were confirmed. Erica was nowhere to be found.

Jack stood motionless at the doorway. Though his mind raced in a thousand directions, his body remained rooted to he floor. Derek, I've got to call Derek. And Tad. Aidan. Anyone, anyone that can help me find her. My God, if I lose her now, after all of this, after everything we've been through, I . . . I . . . Jack was unable to complete the thought, the horror of it all so overwhelmed him. He grabbed the cell phone out of his suit pocket and began dialing the PVPD when he felt a hand on his back. "Please, Mariele, not now" he barked, and stepped out of her grasp. When again Jack felt the woman reach out to him he spun around to confront her and found himself staring into the most beautiful pair of brown eyes ever to have graced the planet. His heart just about exploded in his chest as he took Erica into his arms and held her close. He wanted to stay like that forever but the fear of losing her overtook him and as his body relaxed into Erica's, Jack felt his knees buckle. Somehow, Erica managed to support his weight and nudged him toward the lobby chairs.

"Sweetheart, you're okay?" Jack said, turning to face her.

"I'm fine, but I'm not so sure about you" Erica replied, concern etched in her voice. "You look white as a sheet."

"Now that I have you next to me, I couldn't be better."

"Yes, well, maybe we should drop by and see Joe Martin just to be sure. You almost collapsed in there . . ."

"Erica, really, I'm fine. I was just so, I was just so worried about you. What happened? I saw you walk inside with Andrews and the next thing I know, Mariele's talking my ear off, he's gone and you're nowhere to be found."

"Where is Mariele anyway?"

"Forget about Mariele. Just tell me what happened."

"Honestly, Jack, there's really not much to tell. We sat down, exchanged a few words–nothing important, I promise you–and then his phone rings. Two minutes later he's making his excuses and saying goodbye. Rather than sit alone for lunch I decided I'd go back to the office and catch up on work."

"Then where were you when–"

"The ladies room, Jack. That's all."

"I see you found her" Mariele said, suddenly appearing by Jack and Erica's side. "You do like to create drama, don't you Erica?"

"That's almost funny coming from you. After all, you're the one responsible for putting this entire scheme into motion."

"I told you why–" Mariele offered.

"Oh yes, you told me but only after I confronted you. And if you think for one moment you're going to play on Jack and my sympathies, you've got another think coming."

Mariele let out a rueful laugh. "Sympathy from Erica Kane. Is that even possible?"

"Okay" Jack interrupted. "How about we table this little lovefest for back in my office? I'm sure whatever it is that went on between the two of you today is better off being discussed in private, yes?" Both women nodded their heads in agreement. "Okay then, my office in" Jack looked at his watch "ten minutes. And no detours. It's time I found out—"

"Mom? Uncle Jack? What are you two doing here?"

Jack's back was to Bianca so she was unable to see him close his eyes and count to ten. He loved his niece to death but damn. if she didn't have the worst timing in the world. "Bianca, sweetheart, how are you?" Jack asked, rising to his feet. He leaned in and gave her a quick kiss on the forehead.

"Honey, what are you doing in this neck of the woods? And where's that beautiful baby of yours?" Erica said, hugging her daughter.

"She's with Kendall. They're having godmother/goddaughter time. Don't ask me why but I think Kendall's going to attempt baking cookies." As Jack and Erica both smiled at the notion, Bianca noticed a tall blonde woman, standing off to the side. "I'm sorry. Have we met?"

"Forgive my manners" Jack said. "Mariele Girtz, I'd like you to meet my niece and owner of Cambias Industries, Bianca Montgomery. Mariele is one of Thorquist's chief architectural consultants; the firm Ryan hired to work on the building upgrades." After the two women exchanged pleasantries, the room was suddenly filled by an awkward silence so Jack jumped into the breach. "I'm sorry, honey" he said turning back to face Bianca. "Your mother, Mariele and l were just about to adjourn to my office to finish up a meeting about the project. You're welcome to join us . . ."

Bianca smiled politely. "As fascinating as that sounds, I think I'm going to pass. But if it wouldn't be too inconvenient, mom, I'd love to talk to you about something. I know now's not a good time."

Jack could tell Erica was torn. Much as he wanted to get to the bottom of this whole thing, he knew how important it was for Erica to spend time with her daughter, particularly since Bianca was the one initiating the conversation. "Erica, Mariele and I can get take it from here. Just check in with me when you're done. We still have those campaigns to discuss."

"I'll do that. Oh, and Mariele, please don't forget to mention all those little details you and I went over earlier. Jack thrives on learning ALL the facts and figures."

"I promise you, Erica. Jack will be in good hands" Mariele offered smugly. As if on cue, she took his arm and made a big show of being escorted out of the Valley Inn. Once they exited the building, Jack turned to Mariele. "You can let go of my arm now."