Chapter 2 - THE CALL HE NEVER EXPECTED
“Because the CEO just called me. And he knows everything.”
For several seconds, I could hear nothing except Ryan’s uneven breathing through the phone.
I sat on the edge of Nathan’s guest bed, still wearing one of his old Northwestern sweatshirts. My damp hair rested against my shoulders. A thin red scratch from one of the anniversary candles ran across my cheek.
“What exactly does he know?” I asked.
Ryan exhaled sharply.
“Don’t play games with me, Lauren.”
The fear in his voice was real, but beneath it was the same accusation he had thrown at me in the restaurant. Somehow, even now, he believed I was responsible for whatever disaster had reached him.
“I haven’t spoken to anyone from work,” I said. “I called my brother. I came here. I showered. That’s all.”
Ryan went silent.
Then his voice dropped.
“Evelyn Mercer called my personal phone.”
My spine straightened.
Evelyn Mercer was the founder and CEO of Mercer Distribution Group, the company where I had worked for nine years. She was famous for remembering every employee she met, reading contracts line by line, and firing executives who believed their titles made them untouchable.
I had spoken to her only four times.
The last time had been that afternoon, when she congratulated me on becoming Senior Operations Director.
“What did she say?” I asked.
“She told me not to contact you.”
Nathan appeared in the doorway, carrying a glass of water. When he saw my expression, he set it down and leaned against the frame.
Ryan continued before I could respond.
“She said Mercer’s legal department had been notified about an incident involving one of their senior employees. She said any attempt to threaten, intimidate, or pressure you into resigning would be documented.”
The room suddenly felt very quiet.
“How did she know what happened?”
“That’s what I’m asking you!”
His voice exploded so loudly that Nathan heard it from across the room.
I pulled the phone away from my ear.
“Do not shout at me again.”
Ryan lowered his voice immediately.
“Lauren, listen. There were people outside that room. Somebody recorded part of it. The restaurant manager called Mercer because the reservation was made through your corporate account.”
I closed my eyes.
I had used my executive dining benefit to reserve the room because Ryan had complained that our anniversary dinner was costing him too much. The company concierge service must have attached my employment details to the booking.
Ryan kept talking, faster now.
“The video only shows the cake thing. It doesn’t show the whole conversation. It makes me look—”
“Like a man who smashed a cake into his wife’s face?”
“That isn’t what I meant.”
“It is exactly what you did.”
“It was frosting, Lauren. Not a brick.”
Nathan’s jaw tightened.
I looked at him and shook my head, silently asking him not to intervene.
Ryan mistook my silence for hesitation.
“I lost my temper,” he said. “I shouldn’t have done it. But you humiliated me.”
A small, exhausted laugh escaped me.
“I told you I got promoted.”
“You announced that you were going to outrank half the men I work with.”
“I don’t work at your company.”
“It affects me!”
There it was.
Not regret.
Not concern.
Not even shame.
Only fear about what my success might do to him.
“What aren’t you telling me?” I asked.
Ryan stopped breathing for a moment.
I heard movement on his end of the call. A cabinet opened. Glass clinked against glass.
“Nothing.”
“Evelyn Mercer does not personally call someone’s spouse at eleven o’clock at night because of a restaurant video.”
“She’s protecting her image.”
“Ryan.”
“I said nothing.”
His answer came too quickly.
Nathan held out his hand. I placed the phone on speaker.
“You have five seconds,” Nathan said.
Ryan’s breathing changed.
“Nathan.”
“What did you do?”
“This is between my wife and me.”
“You made it public when you assaulted her in a restaurant.”
“I did not assault her.”
“You grabbed an object and deliberately struck her in the face with it. There were witnesses. You want to debate terminology with an attorney?”
Ryan went silent.
My brother worked in commercial litigation, not criminal law, but Ryan had always been intimidated by him. Nathan rarely raised his voice. He did not need to.
“Tell her,” Nathan said. “Right now.”
For a moment, I thought Ryan might hang up.
Instead, he whispered, “Mercer is reviewing the Branton contract.”
I looked at Nathan.
“What is the Branton contract?” I asked.
Ryan swallowed audibly.
“It’s a regional transportation agreement. Warehousing, last-mile delivery, fleet coordination. Halcyon has been bidding on it for months.”
Halcyon Freight Solutions was Ryan’s employer. He was a senior account manager, although he introduced himself at parties as a corporate strategist.
“How much is it worth?”
“Forty-eight million over five years.”
Nathan’s eyes sharpened.
“And Mercer Distribution controls the award?” he asked.
Ryan hesitated.
“They lead the selection committee.”
A terrible understanding began to form.
“Did you know about my promotion before tonight?” I asked.
“No.”
“Did you know the Senior Operations Director would oversee the Branton review?”
Another pause.
“Ryan.”
“Yes.”
The word was barely audible.
I stood up.
Nathan watched me carefully.
“You knew the person who got my position would have influence over a forty-eight-million-dollar contract your company wants.”
“It’s not like that.”
“What is it like?”
“I was under pressure. Halcyon is cutting departments. If we lose Branton, people will be fired.”
“So you accused me of sleeping my way into a promotion because you were afraid I wouldn’t favor your company?”
“I didn’t ask you to favor anyone.”
“You demanded I quit.”
“Because it would be a conflict.”
“No. A conflict would be disclosed and managed. You wanted me removed.”
Ryan’s voice cracked.
“I didn’t know they were already investigating.”
Every muscle in my body went still.
Nathan stepped closer to the phone.
“Investigating what?”
Ryan muttered something I could not hear.
“Speak clearly,” I said.
“I sent an email.”
“To whom?”
“The Mercer ethics hotline.”
The betrayal landed differently from the cake.
The cake had been rage.
This had been planned.
“What did the email say?”
“That there were concerns about your relationship with senior leadership. That your promotion might not have followed normal procedures.”
My vision narrowed.
“You filed an anonymous complaint accusing me of misconduct?”
“I was trying to slow the process down.”
“When?”
“Three weeks ago.”
Three weeks.
During those three weeks, Ryan had watched me prepare for interviews. He had kissed my forehead before my final presentation. He had opened a bottle of wine when I made the shortlist.
All while knowing he had tried to poison the process behind my back.
“Did you use my laptop?” I asked.
Silence.
Nathan’s face hardened.
“Ryan,” I said, “did you use my laptop?”
“I only needed the committee schedule.”
My knees weakened.
I sat back down.
My work laptop required multifactor authentication, but I sometimes used my personal computer to access internal email through a secure portal. Ryan knew my passwords better than anyone. For years, I had believed that was trust.
“What did you take?”
“Nothing important.”
“What did you take?”
“A calendar. Two names. A draft agenda.”
Nathan was already reaching for his own phone.
“Do not touch any device in the house,” he said. “Do not delete a message. Do not destroy a document. Do not contact Lauren again.”
Ryan’s panic returned instantly.
“You can’t threaten me.”
“That was not a threat. That was the best advice you will receive tonight.”
“Nathan, stay out of this!”
“You involved a forty-eight-million-dollar corporate bid, accessed confidential information, and filed a false ethics complaint against my sister. I am now very much in it.”
The call ended.
For a moment, neither Nathan nor I spoke.
Then my phone vibrated.
A new email had arrived from Evelyn Mercer.
The subject line contained only three words.
URGENT: PERSONAL SECURITY
I opened it.
Lauren,
I am sorry to contact you under these circumstances. Our information-security team detected unauthorized access associated with credentials connected to your household. We believe the activity may relate to the Branton procurement process.
You are not currently considered a subject of the investigation. We need to speak with you before 8:00 a.m. tomorrow.
Do not return to your residence alone.
Do not warn anyone involved.
Preserve all messages.
A car and security officer can be sent to your location.
Please reply with one word: SAFE or UNSAFE.
Evelyn
My hands trembled.
Nathan read the email over my shoulder.
“Reply safe,” he said. “Then turn off location sharing.”
I opened my settings.
Ryan and I had shared our locations for years.
His icon showed him at our home in Lincoln Park.
Then, as I watched, the icon began moving.
May you like
He was heading north.
Straight toward Nathan’s apartment.
