Book 1 - Active Trust Read online

  She locked up her desk’s bottom drawer to seal in its secrets and gathered her coat while making her way to the elevator. Once a month, when she was sure no executives were around, she would hit the button on the 21st floor and breathe in the atmosphere of the floor of which she desired. There was something prestigious about the air at the top floor that called to her.

  Struggling to stay awake, she hit the button labeled “21” and awaited the elevator’s door to open. It swung open and she said to herself, ‘One day….one day.’

  She held the “door open” button for a few minutes. It was long enough to stare at the oak curved desk with its etchings that was home to the Executive Secretary Missy Erickson. She’d always sit there at the desk with her red hair neatly pulled back in a bun until she fixated her squinty gaze upon guests and associates alike. Victoria could picture her there now, seated at the expensive wooden desk and wearing a smart, navy blue pants suit with her signature pearl necklace.

  She hit the button labeled “1” and awaited its impending arrival to the firm’s bottom floor. The Briggs & Trice office building was large and daunting, just the way the partners liked it. She was close to the top of the building, but she still had more to do in order to fully prove herself.

  She climbed behind the wheel of her tidy silver Lexus and was home in a flash. She retired for the evening in her soft bed, surrounded by blankets and her blinking answering machine light.

  Meanwhile, Michelle had a late night meeting with a private investigator. She didn’t want the details leaking out to the media with regard to her visit with Mrs. McBride, so she had to do everything in person. It was likely that a reporter had followed The Governor’s wife into the Briggs & Trice building, but because of their vast array of areas practiced, journalists couldn’t make any assumptions about why anyone somewhat famous would retain their services.

  Michelle previously agreed to meet with Chase Freeman at a coffee shop around the corner from her place. She pulled into the parking lot of Mugs and briskly walked inside. She waited at the entrance for a moment, before a man’s gaze met hers and she knew it was him.

  “Michelle Mayor, we talked on the phone,” she said extending her hand to meet his.

  “You said this was a highly sensitive situation that requires the utmost in discretion; that’s why I’m here. Chase Freeman, nice to meet you.”

  A waitress approached them and asked, “Are you ready to order or do you need a few minutes?”

  Michelle grabbed a drink menu and asked for a chocolate chip iced coffee, while Chase ordered a black coffee.

  He was an inconspicuous individual, wearing jeans and a black t-shirt. He looked like your average everyday Joe. He was the kind of man who could be seen wearing a snazzy tuxedo or dressed down and fitting in at a rave party. He was perfect for the job, Michelle asserted to herself.

  “Before I can talk to you about this job, you are going to need to sign a non disclosure agreement. This basically states that you will not divulge the details of our conversations or the subject of which you would be investigating.”

  “Before I sign that, might we discuss my fee? It’s $200 per day plus any necessary travel, hotel or car arrangements. If the subject is a high profile target of investigation, I need to be able to play the part. I am good at what I do and I work on word of mouth only.”

  “Ahh, that explains why I couldn’t find you online. You don’t have a website or anything.”

  “Precisely. I am everywhere, I have a lot of resources at my disposal and if you require personalized services, I also have an assistant to accompany me on missions that require a delicate touch, if you know what I mean.”

  He had piqued her curiosity, but before Michelle could dive in further, the waitress dawdled back to the table with their beverages and plunked them down in front of each of them.

  The waitress smiled with her bright red lipstick and asked, “Will that be all or would you like to see a menu?”

  “That’ll be all,” Michelle said trying to usher her away. She gave a cool smile to her before the waitress began chatting up a nearby table.

  “Okay, I have to know more. What sorts of investigations require a delicate touch?”

  “Well, to be specific, I’d have to have you sign an NDA. But in general, cases of cheating husbands and that ilk.”

  “Interesting.”

  “Indeed,” he said before grasping the pen to sign along the dotted line, “Are we in agreement on my fees then?”

  “Yes, of course.”

  He signed his name on the non-disclosure agreement and then she said, “As soon as we are done with our coffee, we will go back to my car. Once there, we will discuss the details of who the subject is and what we think is going on.”

  Chase then whipped out his black leather wallet from his back pocket and withdrew a twenty dollar bill and placed it on the table. He stood and said, “Let’s get down to business.”

  Michelle stood, throwing her jacket back on to her busty frame and zipping it up tightly. She took a final sip of her coffee and followed Chase out of the door. She took the lead and he followed closely behind her as she approached her black Nissan Altima. The car was her gift to herself after working so hard on a case that merited the firm a ton of billing hours. The car was a symbol of her success and she was very proud of it.

  She unlocked the doors with a click of a button and seated herself behind the wheel. Chase entered the car and gave her the piece of paper with his signature on it.

  “Firstly, your perfume smells delightful. I just wanted to get that out there before we get started with business. Otherwise, I would be distracted by it.”

  “It’s White Diamonds and thank you.”

  “Okay, now who are we spying on?”

  Michelle could tell that Chase was more than excited to get this business started. With his non-disclosure agreement in her briefcase, she tucked it safely in the back seat and began spilling the dirty details.

  “Mrs. McBride, The Governor’s wife, came into my office earlier today with a very sensitive issue.”

  “Go on.”

  “She thinks that The Governor is cheating on her with a twenty-something woman and she needs proof. If The Governor is spending his time with other women, she is going to consider a divorce. There is also the possibility of a pregnancy involved.”

  “Do we want to bait the good governor? Or just photograph him in the process of things he’s already doing?”

  “Your assistant is the man bait?”

  “How did you guess?”

  “Do you have a picture of your assistant?”

  “Yes, of course.”

  Chase pulled out his cell phone from his pocket and scrolled through some images to show Michelle his gorgeous, young assistant Alyssa. She was thin, tan and had honey blonde hair.

  “How old is she?”

  “She is 24-years-old and as sharp as a tack. If you wish her services, it will be a little extra on top of my fees. This service will go into effect after I get acclimated to The Governor’s schedule and know more about what he likes and his taste in women.”

  “So she will change her looks based on what he likes? Like, if he likes brunettes, she’ll dye her hair?”

  “Of course.”

  “Yes, let’s do that. After finding out more about his schedule, let’s have her mold herself to his likes and plant her where we know he’s going to be. Before you go, call me on my cell if we need to meet again. We can’t let anyone see us together out of discretion for The Governor and his wife.”

  “Okay. And before you go, all information will be provided on a USB drive that will be provided to you. This is a one-way flow of information and you keep each one. We are very thorough and will provide many updates.”

  They shook hands quickly and he exited the car. She drove off to her apartment and tallied her hours into an Excel spreadsheet on her laptop. She closed the lid and snapped up her sleepwear from her dresser drawer. She changed, gave a big
yawn and headed into the bathroom to brush her teeth. Climbing into bed, she didn’t feel like her work would be done for the weekend.

  Naturally, Michelle was right. She received a message on her cell phone that a client was awaiting her arrival into the office as quickly as possible. She dressed casually, but smartly and sped off to the boxy enormous building that is Briggs & Trice.

  She walked briskly past the doorman and receptionist at the building’s entrance and greeted them with hellos. She pushed the “21” button and was whisked away to the floor containing her average sized office.

  She sauntered in, brushing her lush, wavy brown hair behind her ears. Arriving at her office, she found The Governor’s wife sitting there, waiting patiently.

  “Mrs. McBride, I wasn’t expecting you. Is there something I can help you with?”

  “Please call me Donna,” she said, looking defeated.

  “Yes, of course, Donna. Is there something I can do for you this morning?”

  “Yes, there is. I mean, I just don’t know what to do anymore. I love this man and we have been together for decades and he’s pulling this?”

  She tried to quell her tears, but they flowed freely. Michelle knew that she was going to be there for a while, but she was sympathetic to The Governor’s wife. She’d felt the sting of a cheater in the past and knew that Mrs. McBride needed to know the truth once and for all so that she could deal with the consequences, no matter what they were.

  Michelle opened her desk drawer and offered up a box of tissues to her client. Mrs. McBride grasped at several tissues and dried her tears. She had obviously been up all night and was on the verge of exhaustion.

  “He came home this morning, smelling of some other woman’s perfume. I’m not even sure what to do anymore.”

  “I can assure you that we are already on the case. I have hired a discreet private investigator to look into the matter and we are assured frequent updates on the matter. If The Governor is up to no good, we will know.”

  Just then her cell phone alerted her to a text message received. It was Chase with an update.

  “Mugs, 3pm sharp –CF”

  Michelle put her hand on Mrs. McBride’s shoulder and provided her with some words of hope.

  “If he is doing something that he’s not supposed to, you are protected with Briggs & Trice. We will find the truth for you and initiate legal proceedings should you wish to take this further. We will provide you with a lot of options so that you can secure your next steps in life.”

  Mrs. McBride wiped her tears again and said, “Thank you, Ms. Mayor. I am so glad to have retained your services.”

  “Of course, Donna, any time you need us, we are here. Also, here is the card of my receptionist Phillip Brant. If you cannot reach me for any reason, you can talk to him. He’s a good kid, fresh out of college and eager to help.”

  “Thank you,” Donna said, taking the card from her lawyer.

  “Another thing, here is the card of a well respected and discreet counselor, Dr. Francisco. You can talk to her any time and she only sees high profile clients like yourself.”

  “Thank you, Ms. Mayor. I don’t know what I would do without your services.”

  Mrs. McBride left the large building and entered into a waiting black car. The car sped off and Michelle eagerly awaited the afternoon hours so that she could learn what Chase was able to find out so quickly.

  She texted Chase and said, “You work quickly; I like that.”

  Michelle got into the elevator with her laptop in her leather carrying case and went to Mugs. It was too early for Chase to meet up with her, but she needed breakfast as she skipped it in favor of rushing to the office for her unexpected client’s visit.

  She arrived at Mugs and sat down at a booth where she opened the lid of her laptop and began searching for more information on The Governor and his wife. She pulled her cell phone from her purse and made a quick call to Dr. Francisco to give her advance warning of a possible call from a special, high profile client.”

  The phone rang and Dr. Francisco’s receptionist greeted her.

  “Good morning. Dr. Francisco’s office, this is Lenora, how may I assist you today?”

  “Good morning, Lenora, this is Michelle Mayor from Briggs & Trice. Is the good doctor in today?”

  “She is actually out of the office until later today, but I can take a message for you if you would like.”

  “Sure. Please just tell her that I have referred a high profile client for her services should she need them and this is to be kept under her hat.”

  “I will tell her. Is there anything else, Ms. Mayor?”

  “No, thank you. That is all. I just wanted to make sure she had the heads up.”

  “Thank you for calling, I will give her your message.”

  “Thank you. Goodbye.”

  She clicked “end” on her cell phone and realized that it was still super early in the morning and she was starting to feel hunger pangs.

  A waitress came over and said, “Would you like some coffee, ma’am?”

  “Yes, please.”

  The waitress approached the booth with a coffee pot in hand and poured some into the cup she’d turned over for Michelle.

  “My name is Wanda and I will be your server today. Do you know what you would like, sweetie, or would you like a few minutes to decide?”

  After looking over the menu for thirty seconds, Michelle said, “Two eggs over easy, a side of sausage links, hash browns and wheat toast, please.”

  Wanda scribbled the order down on her book and scurried off to the kitchen. Michelle watched as she handed the ticket through the window into the kitchen. A hand reached for it and placed it on the line.

  Michelle glanced down at her watch and noticed that it was only 10:35 AM. How was she going to burn all of those hours until she met with Chase. The anticipation was beginning to kill her about something that Chase had obviously found already. This had to be good news for her client, she just knew it.

  Twenty minutes later, Wanda bounced back over to the table with the coffee pot in one hand and a plate in the other. She sat down the plate in front of Michelle and refilled her coffee cup.

  “Thank you,” Michelle said, looking ever so grateful. The feeling of being famished had set in and she began to tear into breakfast as if there was no tomorrow.

  “You are most certainly welcome, sweetie. Please let me know if you need anything else.”

  She walked off and left Michelle alone at the table to devour her breakfast. She shoveled it into her mouth at a rapid pace, eager to get started on the day’s work.

  After eating, she sat there typing away on her keyboard, looking for more information on Governor McBride. ‘Everyone has skeletons in their closet,’ she thought as she searched Google. After Google turned up negative things from his Democratic opposition, she began searching the county court docket for any lawsuits or court cases.

  Her search only provided her with one case number and she clicked the link to find that in 1992, The Governor was involved in a car accident. It was a huge lawsuit that netted the other party a half-million dollars. After a cursory Google search of the other party’s name, Michelle learned that he had been paralyzed from the waist down. It was a shame, just because the guy had one daughter in 1990, but couldn’t have any more children following the accident.

  ‘Wow,’ she thought as she learned more about Mr. McBride’s victim, Mitchell Rees. Apparently he was really active in his own community and was just a victim of being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

  Michelle decided to burn more time and went on to Facebook to search for Mr. Rees. He was an older guy with distinguishing features like the kind of man who would be in movies. Prior to his life changing accident, he was an architect. His lack of mobility took away his driving force, so he gave up and became a couch potato who just holed up in his house and drank.

  Michelle was saddened by this new information and wondered if the accident ever weighed heavi
ly on The Governor’s mind. She scrolled through Mr. Rees’ Facebook feed to its earliest entry and found that he was once so enraged over the accident that he vowed to return the favor and maim the man who did it. Mr. McBride wasn’t yet governor then, but a man without public office and with a whole lot of money and even less brains.

  McBride had been a trust fund baby to start with and inherited his father’s millions after a heart attack claimed his life in 1987. The media had reported at the time that McBride had been a wild playboy and was always drunk or coked up. Michelle wasn’t sure if this news had anything to do with the accident, but she was determined to find out.

  Michelle turned off her laptop and stuffed it back into its carrying case and flagged down her waitress for a check. Wanda returned to her table and asked, “Was everything okay today, honey?”

  “It was fantastic.”

  “Here’s your check and I hope you have a great day.”

  She pawed the check facing downward onto the table and walked away. Michelle turned it over, glanced downward at the total and fished out a twenty for the bill. She put it on top of the check and left it on the table.

  Michelle got into her car and decided that, in order to kill time, she would peruse the library’s record of events from Mr. McBride’s car accident. Surely, they would have some newspaper records of the incident and events surrounding it.

  She entered the library, found their microfiche area and began her investigation into the car accident. There was something about the accident that didn’t sit right with her and she had to settle the details in her mind.

  She looked through the records and hit pay dirt when she located something about a fundraiser for McBride to become Mayor back in 1993. He was seen celebrating and rubbing noses with the upper echelon of the city. ‘One year post-accident and he’s busy getting funds together to run for Mayor’, interesting, she thought as she continued her search.

  She knew that she couldn’t expect McBride to lay low and become dedicated to a man whom he paralyzed, but she knew there was a piece to the puzzle that was missing.