True Deceit (Blindsided Book 1) (23 page)

He’d just picked her up and was on the main road back into town. The plan was to hit the local bar and drink as much as he could before going back to her place and screwing her brains out. He hoped that might put thoughts of his damn family out of his mind for a few hours.

As he turned his attention back to the road, he was passed by a red Porsche traveling in the opposite direction.
There weren’t two cars like that in town!
Checking the clock on his dash, he saw that it was nearly 11 p.m. Where was Ted going at this time of night? His house was two miles out of town in the opposite direction.

With his curiosity piqued, he swung his car around and started following him from a distance.

“Hey! I thought we were heading into town?” Carrie protested.

“We are, there’s just something I need to do first.”

“Is that Ted Coleman’s car?”

“It sure is. And I’m wondering where he could be going at this time of night.”

“What on earth for? He could be going anywhere.”

“True, but it would be interesting to see.”

They followed him for the next ten miles, hanging back as the roads were quiet and he didn’t want to be spotted, before Ted took the turn-off toward Duke. Duke was a small town and it didn’t take long for Ted to get where he was going. Confused, Jake stopped a few cars behind him and watched as he got out of his car and crossed the street. He walked past several houses before turning a corner and Jake had to pull the car forward to be able to see down the next street, just in time to see Ted walk up to a run-down old house. As he watched, light spilled out onto the porch as the door was opened by a woman wearing a short robe and a smile.
What the hell?
She’d clearly been expecting him, and opened the door and let him in, closing it behind him.

“Wait here!” he told Carrie, checking his jacket pocket to make sure he had his phone.

“Why? Where are you going?”

“To see what he’s up to, of course. I have a feeling that this trip won’t have been a waste of time.”

Happy that his phone was there, he got out of the car and jogged across the street to the house where he’d seen Ted go in. It wasn’t a big house and there was no gate blocking access to the back yard, so Jake disappeared down the side before anyone could spot him. There was light spilling from one of the side windows so, creeping closer and praying that he didn’t make a noise, he carefully peered into the window.

What he saw made him grin.
Why, the dirty lying bastard!

Ted wouldn’t have noticed Jake even if he’d shined a flashlight in the window. He was sitting on a couch pushed back against the wall opposite the window with his head resting on the back of it, eyes closed. The woman he’d seen at the door was kneeling between his legs, ‘entertaining’ him.

Slipping the phone from his pocket, Jake took several pictures, checking each time to make sure you could see what was going on.

He stayed there for another ten minutes, taking several more pictures of Ted in increasingly passionate and compromising positions, before he was happy that he had enough.

Getting back to the car, he grinned widely as he slipped back behind the wheel.

“What are you so happy about?”

“Oh, you’ll see, honey. You’ll see.”

***

Ted had never had much to do with Jamie’s brother, so what little he knew of him, he knew from her. So it was a bit of a surprise when he got a call from Jake, asking him if he’d like to meet him for a beer. Actually, he could think of many things he would rather be doing but he couldn’t afford to upset his fiancée’s brother. Nothing could get in the way of this wedding. Nothing.

Jake had suggested a bar quite a ways out of town, and as he pulled into the parking lot he couldn’t for the life of him think why. The bar was a one-story building, seemingly just dropped by the side of the road. There were no other buildings for miles, as far as he could tell. It looked run down and only a couple of the letters on the illuminated sign spelling out the bar’s name actually worked.

There were only two other cars in the lot, both old, beat up pick-up trucks, and his Porsche seemed completely out of place. There was no sign of Jake’s Mercedes yet and, checking his watch, he realized he was a few minutes early. They’d agreed to meet at 9 p.m. and it was just before that now.

Pushing open the door to the building, he was immediately assaulted by the smell of smoke and stale beer. Once his eyes had adjusted to the dull gloom, he surveyed the room, taking in the old battered tables, the filthy floor and the yellowed lights.
The beer must be fantastic,
he thought to himself wryly. Why else would he have suggested this dump?

He’d just sat on a stool and ordered a beer from the very disinterested-looking bartender when Jake walked in.

“Beer?” he asked, as he stood up and shook his hand.

Jake nodded. “Yeah, that would be good. Shall I grab us a table?”

Ted nodded, waiting and then paying for the beers before following him over to a table in the corner of the room. There were no mats and the table was sticky as he put the glasses down. God, he hoped he could wrap this up quickly and get out of this shithole.

“So, what are we drinking to? You becoming my brother-in-law?”

“Yes, we can drink to that, if you like.” Jake smiled. “Of course, that’s assuming the wedding actually goes ahead.” He took a sip from his glass, watching Ted over the rim.

“What do you mean, if it goes ahead? What are you talking about?”

“Well, let’s see, I’m not sure my sister is going to be quite so willing to marry you once she finds out about your little trips to Duke.” He smiled slyly and Ted put his glass down hard, beer spilling over the sides.

“What the hell are you talking about?”

Jake just smiled. Slipping his phone from his pocket, he selected one of the best pictures and slid his phone across the table. Picking it up, Ted looked at the image and felt all the blood drain from his face. Dragging his eyes away from the phone he looked up at Jake, who now had a smug look on his face.

“It’s just a bit of fun before I get married. Come on man, you know how it is.” He tried to make light of it but he could see that Jake wasn’t buying it.

“To you it might be a bit of fun but I doubt my sister, or my folks, will see it that way.”

Ted tried to take a deep breath. He felt as if he was going to be sick. He could see everything he had planned, everything he had worked for, disappear in a puff of smoke.
But if he wanted to split them up he would have told her by now, wouldn’t he?
It dawned on him then that this wasn’t about Jamie. He wanted something. “What do you want from me?”

“What do most blackmailers want? Money.” His smug grin wrenched Ted’s stomach. He looked so pleased with himself.

“Money? This is about money?” Ted was stunned. This blackmailing little shit came from one of, if not the, wealthiest families around and he wanted
money
?

“You’re joking, right?” The shock was clear on his face. “What on earth do you need money for?”

Jake’s face darkened. “I wouldn’t if you hadn’t just stolen my job.”

“What on earth are you talking about?”

“Your nice, new job was supposed to be mine. Instead, I got fired. I think it’s only fair that you pay my salary from now on since it’s your fault.”

“So this is all about a spat between you and your dad? Why drag me into it? You’re only going to end up hurting your sister!”

Jake slammed his palm on the table, smiling as Ted jumped. “There’s only one person here hurting my sister and I’m looking at him. Now, do we have a deal or not?”

“What kind of money are we talking about here?”

“Ten thousand a month. Every month.”

His stomach sank.
No way could he find that kind of money!

“I can’t do it, Jake. I don’t have that kind of money.” It was the wrong thing to say and he watched as a black cloud seemed to cross Jake’s face and he sneered.

“Don’t give me that, you prick. Your family is loaded. You can easily afford that.”

Ted didn’t know what to do. If he didn’t find the money he had no doubt that Jake would share the photos, and if he explained why he couldn’t find the money, then he was sure that he would revel in being able to share that, too. Either way, he was screwed because there was no way that Jamie’s parents would let her marry a cheater or a pauper. He needed to buy some time.

“Okay. You’re right. But before I pay you a dime, what guarantee do I have that you won’t show Jamie the pictures anyway?”

Jake laughed. “There are no guarantees. But if I showed them to her, what motivation would you have to keep paying?”

He had a point. “Okay. Meet me back here tomorrow night and I’ll have the cash.”

Jake stood up. “Nice doing business with you. Oh, and thanks for the beer.”

Ted watched him leave then drained his glass, his hand shaking as he raised it to his lips. What was he going to do?

Seven

He’d had to scrape together every bit of cash he could find, emptying his accounts in the process. It wasn’t as if he could go to his folks and ask for the money. They didn’t have it in any case.

He couldn’t believe he was in this position. He didn’t even want to marry Jamie, but he refused to let his family’s troubles get out, and they would if they didn’t do something soon.

Pulling into the lot outside the bar, he saw that Jake’s car was already there. Parking his Porsche next to it, he saw that Jake was sitting inside, waiting for him. Getting out, he walked around to the passenger side and slid in next to him.

“You got the money?”

Ted nodded. “Yes,” he replied, taking out an envelope from his jacket pocket and showing him. “It’s all here. Ten thousand dollars, as agreed.”

Jake reached for it.

“Not so fast.” Ted put the envelope back in his pocket, out of Jake’s reach. “I can’t afford to do this every month. This is a one time deal. Take it or leave it.”

Jake’s jaw clenched and his eyes turned to steel. “No. That’s not what we agreed. 10k every month or my sister sees the photos.”

“It’s not up for negotiation.” Ted’s insides felt as if someone was stirring them with a stick. He had to bluff this out. There was no more money, and if Jake didn’t back down, he was finished.

Taking the money out of his pocket again, he handed it to him. “This is it. Done. Don’t bother me again.” Opening the door, he got out of the car. He was sweating and his skin felt clammy. Determined not to look back, to look weak, he strode to his car.

The hand on his shoulder, spinning him around, came as a surprise. He hadn’t heard Jake come up behind him. Losing his footing, he fell back, leaning on his car for support.

“Don’t you dare walk away from me!” Jake screamed in his face, spittle flying from his mouth. His red face and bulging eyes were inches away. “I
own
you, you piece of shit!”

“Why are you doing this? She’s your sister! Why would you want to hurt her?” Ted tried to reason with him.

“
Me
hurt her? You’re the one screwing around!” The veins in Jake’s neck looked as if they would burst, and Ted tried to back away, almost sliding up on the hood of his car.

Ted could see his plan wasn’t working. If anything, Jake seemed to be getting even more out of control. “
You
get my damn job and
I
get fired! Seem fair to you?” He was breathing really heavily now.

Ted raised his hands in surrender. “Look, I’ll turn the job down if it’ll make you happy. I don’t want to get between you and your dad.”

“Just pay the damned money,” Jake hissed.

“I can’t!”

Ted saw in Jake’s eyes the moment he lost it, and everything that came after appeared to happen in slow motion. He watched as Jake pulled his arm back, fist clenched, and swung a punch at his face. Even though he could see it happen, he wasn’t able to avoid it and he felt the bones in his cheek crack as Jake’s fist made contact. The force of the blow knocked him off his feet and he fell like a dead weight to the ground, hitting his head on a rock as he did.

In the last few seconds before the life left him, his thoughts went to his parents.
Who would help them now?
After that, there was nothing.

***

Shit!
What had he done? For a moment, Jake stood stock still as he came out of the fury that had overtaken him. His mind flashed over the last few minutes, and he remembered feeling completely enraged and out of control. Now, as the fog lifted, he saw Ted’s body on the ground, bile rising in his throat as panic swept over him.

Quickly glancing around, he checked the parking lot to see if anyone had witnessed what had just happened.
All clear.
Crouching down, he checked for a pulse. Nothing.
Crap!
He’d never meant to lose his temper like that, let alone punch him.

He couldn’t stay here. He needed to get far away, and fast. Going back to his own car, he quickly got in and drove out of the lot. Hands sweating on the steering wheel, he quickly turned things over in his head.
Was there anything that would tie him to this?

The only thing he could think of was the bartender seeing them together the night before.
Think!
He needed an alibi. Just in case. The only person he could think of that would give him one without question was Carrie.

***

Carrie lived in town in an apartment above the hardware store. Parking around the back, he climbed the outside staircase that led to her front door. Banging on it, he waited.
Come on! Be home!
He was relieved when she opened the door.

“Jake. What are you doing here?”

“We need to talk.” He walked past her into the apartment.

Looking confused, she closed the door and followed him. “What’s wrong?”

Dropping down onto the threadbare couch, Jake dropped his head into his hands. “I screwed up.”

She had known about the photos but not what he had planned to do with them, so he told her now. When he got to the part about what had happened that night, she gasped and raised her hands to her mouth.

“Oh, my God! What have you done?” She looked stunned. “Are you sure he was dead?”