Temptation's Prisoners

2. Three months later--September 27

TWO

THREE MONTHS LATER--SEPTEMBER 27

Paul walked down the stairs carrying his suitcase. He picked up his briefcase from the dining room table and walked towards the front door. Beth came from the kitchen and met him in the entryway. He put his bags down and threw his arms around her. Beth gave him a tender kiss and looked at him with worried eyes. “This is where it all begins,” she said. “I still can’t believe this is happening.”

He nodded and replied, “I don’t want to leave you in case this all goes wrong.” He took a deep breath and said, “Please be careful. We all have to find a way through this and we won’t even know if everyone makes it for the next few days.”

She held him close, not wanting to let go; not wanting any of this. After a time, she slowly pulled back and asked, “Can we do this? Can we live on the run from people we can’t even identify?” She took a deep breath.

“We’re going to make it,” he said softly, trying his best to sound confident.

She nodded and asked, “How many will be watching your presentation to the employment lawyers tomorrow?”

“There will be a couple of hundred lawyers, a number of HR people and a few insurance people trying to pick up a few tidbits before they go gambling or partying.” He paused and added, “Plus anyone who is there for other reasons.”

“So, you’ll have a lot of eyes on you,” she said. “That’s the good news.”

“I should be safe in a crowd,” he agreed. “Then I’ll disappear from the convention Sunday morning, so I don’t think I’ll sleep much tomorrow night.”

“I get it,” she said. “I don’t think that I’ll sleep from the moment you walk out that door.”

He reflected and then said, “Do you have everything you need for your transition?”

She nodded. Her liquid, brown eyes shone brightly as she said, “I’ll miss you.” Her dark hair framed a soft smile as he moved in closer and kissed her one more time.

“I’ll miss you, too,” he replied. She reached down and rubbed his pants below his belt. “Not fair,” he said. “I have to leave now. Besides, I can’t think when you do that.”

“Yes you can,” she replied grinning. “It’s just a matter of what you are thinking about.” She paused and then added, “Or maybe what you’re thinking with.”

“You and I are going to be back in bed in about two minutes if you keep doing that,” he whispered. “That might be a good way to forget all this craziness.”

“Something to remember me by until I see you again.” She gave him a hug and then said, “Promise me that you’ll see me again. I know that we can’t control everything that will happen, but promise me anyway.”

Paul smiled and said, “I promise.” He picked up his bags and she opened the door for him. He stepped outside and then looked back at her. “I love you.”

“I love you, too.”

He nervously walked out into the early morning sunshine. After eight years of marriage, he was happier than he ever thought possible. The mess they were caught up in threatened everything and this life he loved was now hanging by a thread. He made a show of looking confident and happy as he walked to his car like it was just one more beautiful fall day; maintaining the illusion just a little longer. But it was all about to happen, and everything he valued could be lost. Maybe they would both be dead within the next few days. All he could do was play his part and hope the plan worked. In a matter of hours, he would be in Las Vegas, finalizing tomorrow’s presentation for the California lawyers traveling there to gather up fun and wisdom at the convention. His presentation had to be a successful distraction; a pretense to convince watchful eyes that he was living life as usual and not about to run.

September 28

At 3:00 p.m., Paul was introduced and took his position at the lectern to applause from the full house of casually dressed lawyers. Some of the audience looked on with enthusiasm, some with yellow pads poised to take notes, while still others were just biding their time until they could get to the crap tables.

“Greetings to all of you. How many of you conduct investigations either as employees of a corporation or as independently hired investigators?” Twenty percent of the audience raised their hands. “How many represent defendants in employment litigation?” Thirty percent of the attendees raised their hands. “And how many of you represent plaintiffs in employment litigation?” Another thirty percent acknowledged.

“Let me start by saying that legally adequate workplace investigations are critical to all of you. For those who do investigations, you don’t want to have your investigation found to be legally inadequate under California law, or it will not protect the company that hired you. If your investigation is the reason the company suffers a big verdict, you may find less demand for your work in the future.” There was relaxed laughter around the room. “You defense lawyers can rely on a legally sufficient investigation to defend claims of harassment, discrimination or retaliation, and if the investigation holds up, your client looks like a thorough and cautious employer who acted in accordance with the law. Pretty nice, right?” There was nodding around the room.

“And for you plaintiffs’ attorneys out there, if you can successfully attack the investigation as legally inadequate, there are multiple benefits. First, that investigation will not protect the employer from liability. Secondly, it gives you numerous talking points to the jury about all that was not done in accordance with the law; all the ways that the employer didn’t protect your client, but instead used an inadequate investigation to justify harassment, termination or retaliation.” Paul grinned and added, “You can see how that can make for a pretty compelling closing argument.”

Heads were nodding around the auditorium as he paused, noticing the smile of a gorgeous, blonde woman in the second row. Her big blue eyes smiled widely as she looked at him. Paul began to talk about cases that held investigations legally inadequate. He couldn’t help look back at those blue eyes. When he did, the blonde woman was looking back at him with a warm smile. He detailed controlling law for over an hour, using a PowerPoint presentation that addressed critical cases. Every few minutes, he was compelled to check in with those eyes. They were always watching and waiting. He asked himself if he was he imagining something that wasn’t there.

“The courts are holding that an investigation has to be prompt, thorough, and designed to get to the underlying truth of the complaints. Not just aimed at going through the motions and sweeping the problem under the rug. You can’t ignore critical evidence and you can’t fail to get evidence. If there are witnesses to the harassment or discrimination, you have to talk to all of them. If there are sources of documentary evidence, you need to check them out. Whatever you don’t explore and knew about or should have known about could be the smoking gun.” Faces were nodding around the room, and the blue eyes were smiling and inhabiting his thoughts. He continued, “If the employer’s investigation meets these requirements, the employer can be protected in making a good faith decision based on the investigation. If it doesn’t, the failures will come back to haunt. Thank you all so much for your time this afternoon and I hope this information has been helpful. I will stay around to answer any individual questions you might have.” There was applause throughout the auditorium as Paul looked around at the crowd and gave a wave to acknowledge their appreciation. He couldn’t help looking back to the second row, where those blue eyes awaited. It was all he could do to look away.

As the auditorium began to empty, a few people made their way to the front of the room to ask their individual questions, to comment on critical cases, or to commend him on his presentation. Three of the lawyers posed hypothetical questions based upon investigations underway in their firms. Two others asked for copies of trial briefs he had prepared on the topic of investigations. Three others seemed to want to chat about the topic generally. Thirty minutes had passed by the time he said farewell to the last of those with questions and comments. He looked around the room, but she was gone. The room was almost empty.

Paul packed his materials and walked towards the exit at the far end of the auditorium, where two big doors had been propped open. He felt a strange combination of relief and disappointment that the mystery woman was gone, but he knew it was definitely for the best. As he stepped outside the door, he saw her standing there, waiting for something. She walked over to him and said, “Nice presentation, Paul. I’m Amy Gardner.”

“Thank you, Amy Gardner,” he replied, feeling a little idiotic.

“Will you have a drink with me while we talk?” she asked.

He was silent for a moment. He needed a distraction of his own so that he didn’t have to think about what lay ahead. He gave her a smile and said, “Yeah, okay.”

They walked into the Mandalay complex and towards one of many lounges. It was a well-decorated place with randomly placed tables surrounding a horseshoe-shaped bar. The lounge could seat about sixty but was currently occupied by a half dozen. They sat down at a table that gave them a view down onto the casino floor.

A woman appeared in shorts and a tee-shirt that said Mandalay. “What can I get you?” she asked. “You have good Pinot Noir?” Amy asked.

“We do. House Pinot is from the Napa Valley and very popular.”

“Perfect,” Amy replied.

“And what would you like?” the woman asked Paul.

“Sounds good to me,” Paul replied. “I’ll have the same.”

“Great,” she said. “I’ll bring them right out.”

As she moved away, Paul asked, “So, Amy Gardner, what do you do?”

“Like everyone else hanging around here this weekend, I’m a lawyer. I defend

employment cases, so I need to stay current on investigations.”

“Where is your office?” Paul asked.

“Westlake Village.”

“Nice area.”

“It really is. The offices are gorgeous, and it’s also a great place to live.” She took a final sip on her glass of wine and then waved the glass at the server, who nodded. New glasses promptly were delivered.

Paul took a sip from the new glass and then looked over at Amy to see her smiling.

“What?” he asked.

“Nothing, just thinking that this is a wonderful way to bring on the evening.”

“I agree,” Paul said. He reflected a moment and then added, “You really caught my attention during the program.”

“I noticed,” she said, with a wry grin. “How did I do that?”

“Those eyes and that smile,” he replied.

“I’ll take that as a compliment.”

“Good, because that is most definitely how it is intended.” She gave him that smile again.

He shook his head and said, “That’s what does it.”

“What does what?”

“That smile,” he said, “makes it hard to look away.” She smiled, and her eyes sparkled.

“Are you married?” she asked.

He nodded. “Yes,” he replied, without elaboration. “How about you?”

“Divorced,” she said. Almost a year now.

“Are you happy?” he asked.

She nodded. “I am. I like the independence.”

They finished the second glass of wine, and then she said, “So, Paul Braddock, do you want to walk me to my room?”

He considered what that ambiguous request might mean for a moment, and without knowing said, “Sure.” His nervousness was growing as the time for his exit drew nearer, and this diversion seemed to help him cope.

He paid for the wine and they walked through the casino to the hotel and then to the North Tower elevators. They stood next to each other, silently looking out at the interior of the hotel as the elevator doors closed and it moved quickly upward. The backs of their hands touched, and neither pulled away. Paul didn’t know if he was simply accompanying Amy to her door, or if something more was happening. Were they going to sleep together? He had no idea, but for some reason, he wasn’t ruling it out. He had never cheated on Beth before and didn’t know why he was being pulled into this flirtation at the worst possible time. He should probably be feeling guilty for entertaining the thought of intimacy with this woman, and maybe he would later, but right now, there was only the comingling of fear and excitement.

When the elevator doors opened, they stepped out on the fourteenth floor and Amy turned left. “I’m in 1461,” she said, softly. “Thank you for walking me home.”

He wondered if that meant the walk to her door was all there was. Maybe he would say thanks for the shared wine and conversation, and never see her again. She looked at him with those bright eyes and he couldn’t help himself. He leaned towards her and she didn’t move away. He kissed her softly in the quiet hallway. She put her arms around his neck and pulled him to her and they disappeared into a long, passionate kiss, losing track of everything around them. Paul put his arm around Amy and they slowly walked towards her room. Now he knew what was going to happen and his thoughts were consumed with the passion that lay ahead. He leaned towards her and kissed her again, wanting to eliminate any doubt about his intent.

“Can you make it another five doors along this corridor before we start taking our clothes off?” she asked.

“Is waiting that long necessary?”

“Probably advisable. We could walk faster,” she responded. This time she initiated a kiss. It was long and lingering, sweet and delicious. “Wow,” he said, almost involuntarily. She grinned and grabbed his hand. They started to walk further down the hall. Suddenly, he stopped in his tracks. When she looked over at him, Paul gave her a sad smile and shook his head. He said, “I’m really sorry, but I can’t do this.”

“Why?” she asked. Before he answered she said, “Guilt?”

He nodded. “I’ve never cheated before and I just can’t.”

She smiled, and then said, “I get it. Your wife has a good man.”

“Thank you for understanding,” he replied.

She shook her head and smiled, adding, “But you don’t know what you’re missing.”

He laughed and replied, “I believe it, and I’ll probably t*****e myself over this decision.”

They walked slowly down the hall, the heat gone, now looking for the right words to allow them to part with good feelings and an amusing memory. With just a few feet to go, those thoughts disappeared and the whole world was turned upside down. The last door at the end of the corridor flew open and a man emerged holding an automatic rifle. He pointed and fired his silenced weapon down the hall in their direction, and Paul heard the whoosh of a spray of bullets, at least one of them passing close to his ear. Then the explosion of two more shots came from behind them. In the corridor behind Paul and Amy, two men in suits had emerged from the elevator and had handguns pointing at the man at the end of the hallway. They were suddenly caught in the crossfire.

A guest room door opened right next to Paul and Amy. Without thinking, Paul pushed Amy through the door and into someone’s room. That door was slammed closed after she entered, and Paul was left in the hallway. He threw himself down on the carpet as bullets whizzed overhead in both directions. The two suits behind him were seemingly overpowered by the automatic weapon fired from the end of the hall. The suits leaned against the wall and continued firing over his head, as they slowly retreated back towards the elevators. The man at the end of the hall continued to fire his weapon, stopping just long enough to look at Paul, point the weapon at him and wave him towards the room at the end of the hall. As Paul crawled the last thirty feet down the hallway, bullets ricocheted around him. With just a few feet to go, a bullet tore carpet beside his hand. He stayed close to the wall and moved as rapidly as he could without raising his head. Paul crawled into the room, where the man with the g*n gestured to a chair and yelled, “Sit.” The man had jet black hair and wire-rimmed glasses over cold, hard eyes. He turned his attention back to the hallway and fired a few more rounds. When there was no more return fire, he stepped back into the room. Paul saw another man with an automatic weapon across the room. He was muscular, short-haired, and looked like he didn’t make friends easily.

“This is your partner’s room. So where the hell is he?” the muscular man asked, as the other man continued to gaze down the corridor in the direction of the two suits who had disappeared into the elevators.

“I don’t know,” Paul replied. He was coming for the convention, but I don’t know where he is.”

“You don’t want to f**k with us Braddock,” the cold eyes offered. “He checked into this room yesterday and didn’t show up all night. Where is he?”

“I don’t know,” Paul replied, apologetically. “I really don’t. I didn’t even know that this was his room.”

The gunman with the wire-rimmed glasses stepped back into the room and looked at the muscular man. “What are we going to do with this guy?” he posed, gesturing in Paul’s direction with his chin.

Paul sat silent and motionless until the muscular man said, “Give me your ID.”

Paul fumbled for his wallet and pulled out his California driver’s license. “Here,” he said, hastily passing the license.

“What do we do?” the gunman repeated.

“He’s not our assignment,” The muscular man replied unhappily. Shaking his head in Paul’s direction, he said, “You have the worst timing, man.”

“Do we let him go?” the gunman asked.

“I don’t think we can. I think we need to handle both of them.”

Paul said, “Please, guys, I don’t know anything and I don’t need to. Just let me leave and it’s like I was never here, okay?”

The muscular man walked towards the balcony and looked out to the street thirteen floors below. The taller man with the automatic weapon walked over to Paul and said, “I’m afraid that’s not going to work.”

Paul’s mind was racing. He didn’t have much time before these two guys made him take a step off the balcony, thirteen stories up. It occurred to him that they took his ID so that it would take longer to identify him after he hit the pavement; one more gambler who lost too much. He had to take a shot at getting out of this before it was too late. He waited for the man with the automatic to look in the direction of his partner, and then he stood and slammed his head into the gunman’s jaw. The man fell backward and Paul ran out the door and to the emergency stairway across the hall. He raced down the stairs, already hearing running footsteps above him. At each landing, the stairs reversed direction. As he turned the corner, he could hear bullets tearing at wood behind him. Running as fast as he could, he took two, and then three steps at a time. He saw a sign at the door that said ‘Sixth Floor.’ He raced past it and jumped for the next landing. As he made the next turn, the footsteps behind him were louder than before. They were gaining ground. He went even faster, fearing that one of the bullets would find him before he made the ground floor. As he flew down the next flight of stairs, he missed a step and fell to the landing. He felt a sharp pain in his ankle and wondered if this would be where he died. Gritting his teeth, Paul climbed to his feet and raced on, grimacing at the biting pain when he put weight on his left foot. He was limping, but still running, as he passed a sign that said, ‘Second Floor.’ Just one more floor to go, he told himself, you can do this. He ran faster and his ankle screamed beneath his weight. He opened the doorway to the first floor and found himself at the far end of the lobby.

Paul saw the elevator open on the other side of the huge lobby and the muscular man stepped out and searched all around. He could still hear the footfalls of the other man on the stairs behind him. Paul could not pass through the lobby to the street without confronting the man by the elevator. He made a one hundred eighty degree turn and took off down a hallway that said, ‘Employees only.” He opened the third door on his right and walked inside to find a young woman staring up at him from a desk.

“Are you okay, sir?” she asked, getting to her feet.

“No,” he replied. “I have to get out of here, please help me.”

She looked puzzled. “The lobby is right down the hall and it leads to the street,” she said, trying her best to be helpful.

“I can’t go out that way,” he replied. She stared at him without speaking. He saw that there was a slightly open window on the other side of the room. He limped over and raised the window, and then climbed onto the sill. He called back to her, “You never saw me.”

She nodded, mystified, as he jumped the short distance from the window sill to the grass below, landing on his good leg and rolling. Paul limped across the parking lot and made his way down a street of retail store windows. He turned into an alley that provided access to the rear of the stores for deliveries. He limped past a wooden structure that contained two big dumpster bins, and then he sat down against the wall behind that structure, hidden from the street. He took a series of deep breaths, grateful that he had made it out of there alive but not yet feeling safe. His head hurt from his use of it as a battering ram against the jaw of the man with the automatic weapon. His ankle was already swelling. He may not be able to stand for long, but at least he was alive. He sat down in an alley between stores, pulled out his cell phone and dialed. Once he got out of here without being spotted, everything would be all right.

“Yeah,” came the answer.

“Pick me up. It’s an emergency.”

“What happened?”

“You have to get me right away. They’re coming after me.” He looked around for some kind of a landmark. “I’m in an alley between a woman’s clothing store and a shoe store on Lake Parkway. Please hurry.” He sat in the alley nursing his throbbing ankle while he waited for his rescuer. As much as his ankle throbbed, he knew that if he took his shoe off it would never go back on again. He was starting to regain normal breathing when it occurred to him that the two gunmen still had his driver’s license.