Page 76 of The Wrong Guy
“Right. I know you and Jed have agreed to a split of properties and assets. But I think it’s worth each of you looking at these reports.” I pull the printouts from a folder and set them on the table.
Maggie takes a slow, deep breath and then mutters so quietly, I’m not sure I heard her or if I imagined it. “Page four.”
Chrissy gets there first and scans down the page. When she sees Lucy’s name, she pauses. “You’ve got property here? I thought you were from Brookstone?”
“I am,” Lucy answers, not understanding what Chrissy’s asking. But when Chrissy holds up the paper, pointing to the listing of property owners, Lucy’s eyes go wide. “What’s that?”
The surprise and confusion on her face is all I need to know that our suspicions are right. She has no idea what Jed’s doing in her name.
I can lead them to it, but I can’t draw the conclusions for them without going way out on a limb over lawyer-infested waters that’ll eat me quicker than any shark would. But Jesse can say things I can’t. He’s under no obligations, legal or ethical, to not hypothesize about property records.
He must feel the weight of my gaze, because he meets my eyes with a questioning look in his dark ones. Do you want me to step in and help you? his eyes ask. Any other time, the answer would be a resounding no and likely even a ranting diatribe about being able to save myself. But this time is different. I need to walk the tightrope of what I’m allowed to do and what needs to be done.
“You thought Jed was hiding money in the company,” he tells Chrissy. “Turns out, he’s hiding property in your name,” he tells Lucy. “Under false pretenses, likely forging your signature so he could move property under your name and it wouldn’t be caught in the divorce settlement. My guess is that he plans to move it back into his name as soon as the divorce is final.”
“What?” Lucy says quietly as her eyes jump around the room to each person. I think she’s hoping someone will tell her that’s not true.
But Maggie nods pretty convincingly. “He tried it before,” she admits, before telling Chrissy specifically, “and I refused.”
Situations like this are where Mom shines, and she sits down next to Lucy. “I’m sorry. It’s what he does. He uses people, manipulates them without concern for anything other than himself. He almost killed Bill, running him into the ground with his lies and exploitation. He destroyed his own brother’s career and almost his life, and then blamed us. We were left to rebuild—our relationship, the town, and the town’s trust in us. And Jed went on like nothing had happened, completely uncaring of the destruction in his wake.”
Her eyes flick to me, and I know she’s talking about when I became city attorney. There were people concerned because of my last name, especially when one of my first deals was Township with Uncle Jed. People thought I was a plant for him, someone who’d sign off on his shit no matter what. Fortunately for Cold Springs, I’m the exact opposite and don’t trust Jed at all, because he’s proven time after time that he’s not trustworthy.
Lucy nods woodenly. Her eyes have gone vacant as she stares at the coffee table, but I don’t think she’s actually seeing anything. Not even the Blue Balls. She’s lost in her mind, thinking and processing.
“I was a waitress, barely making ends meet,” she whispers. “Jed came in one day, and we hit it off. He became a regular, and the next thing you know, we’re ...” She looks at Chrissy apologetically and explains, “I knew he was married, but he took care of me. I wasn’t hungry, my bills were paid, and he bought me nice things. Things I’d never had before.”
“He can be charming when he wants to be,” Etta offers kindly.
But Lucy shakes her head. “He’s not charming. It’s fake, a mask he puts on, and I know it, but it’s better than where I was.”
“Lots better now,” Chrissy says cynically. “This property’s tax appraisal is in the seven figures.”
Lucy huffs out a laugh. “But it’s not mine. He’s using me like I’m using him. Should’ve known. That’s what men do.”
She sounds more bereft than I expected. I guess, like everyone else, I kinda thought she was either a careless homewrecker who stole a married man from his marriage or a naive pushover seduced by Jed’s charms, whatever those might be. But it seems like she’s simply a woman in a rough situation, with some painful history, who was willing to do anything to make a better life for herself.
Even if what she had to do was ... Jed.
“Actually,” I say, “regardless of how you received them, right now, you are on record as the sole owner of several properties in Cold Springs. If you were interested in doing something with them ... say, moving them into an LLC or selling them, I might know a lawyer who could help with your properties.” I choose each word carefully, not giving legal advice, but making sure that Lucy understands what I’m saying.
“You. Own. Them,” Chrissy utters, realizing what I mean first. “They’re yours. And he doesn’t know that you know, so you can do whatever you want with them.” Her glee is bordering on madness as she considers Jed truly losing everything.
“You could do a lot with seven figures,” Etta suggests casually, popping a cheese-and-cracker combo into her mouth. “All of which involve a nice life for you and your baby, and none of which involve sucking Jed’s dick.”
And there it is. The opportunity that Lucy has. She can legally take the money and run, or she can stay.
“Are you really in love with Jeddie-Weddie, Lucy-Juicy?” Jesse asks from the doorway, where he’s been leaning and silently observing. “If so, go home, tell him you know ... or don’t, and live your life with Jed Junior, nose kisses, and baby talk. If not ... if he was a ticket out? There ain’t no shame in doing what you gotta do to get by. And that’s true for what you’ve already done and what you do now.”
“Someone pretty smart once told me that you choose your life every day.” Chrissy looks to Etta with sadness shining in her eyes. “I wasted a lot of years making that choice by default, not actually deciding.” She goes quiet for a moment, but there’s more on the tip of her tongue. “I guess I did decide, I just didn’t want to admit it. But you have the chance now, while you’re young. Don’t waste your life on Jed Ford, honey. He’s not worth it, I swear.”
Lucy stares at Chrissy, Etta, and then Jesse for a long moment before her eyes fall to the floor, seemingly contemplating Mom’s rug. I’m holding my breath, scared that she’s going to tattle on me ... to Jed, to the city council, to the bar association. I’ve been careful with my words, but that doesn’t mean they won’t launch an investigation into my behavior. When her eyelids fall closed with a heavy sigh, I’m sure I’m done for. But when she lifts her gaze, cold resolution burns in the blue depths. “Can I talk to that lawyer you said you could recommend?”
Surprised, I answer, “Yeah. Absolutely. I’ll call him right now.”
I pick up my phone and step into the foyer, leaving Jed’s trail of women to talk among themselves.
“Unless city hall is being overrun by picketers again, there is no good reason for you to interrupt my nightly news and Samuel Adams, Wren,” Ben declares when he answers the phone.