Would he understand? Would he try to turn her in…or try to help her?
“You look…upset. Am I asking too many questions?” His gaze found hers and held it. “I’m sorry. A policeman’s habit.”
The urge to pour out her heart nearly overwhelmed her. Then suddenly, she stepped back from the edge and got control of herself.
“It’s okay. I’m just tired… My husband died a little over a year ago. The holidays are hard.”
That wasn’t entirely a lie. Though if Tom were still alive Carey doubted they would still be married. After a whirlwind courtship, they had never been happily married and were about to separate when she’d found out she was pregnant. They decided to stick it out until the baby came and give it one more try.
Then Tom had died and she was left a widow, three months pregnant.
“That’s tough. I’m sorry,” he said sincerely. “Was it sudden?”
Carey nodded. “An accident at a construction site.”
Tom had worked in the front office of Quinn’s construction company, a project manager. He’d been at a building site, gone up on scaffolding and had fallen off. He’d died instantly from his injuries. The autopsy found a high level of alcohol in his blood and there were witnesses who claimed he’d been drinking at lunchtime. Their insurance company was absolved from paying her anything more than a small death benefit.
She didn’t mind for herself, but there was the baby to think of. That’s when Quinn had stepped in. Swooped in, more like it.
When she’d first met Quinn, she’d thought he was a kind man. It was a dark time and, with no close family to help her, she’d taken the help Quinn had so generously offered. Money to tide her over until she was ready to work and a good job as a bookkeeper in the main office. Perhaps he’d been afraid that Carey was going to sue him for responsibility for the accident, but she wasn’t that type of person. Besides, lawsuits and lawyers cost money and she needed every dollar to support herself and Lindsay. Her pregnancy with Lindsay was difficult. She was sick all the time. She didn’t have any close family to help her and he’d insisted on helping her financially until she was able to work again.
Carey was alone in the world. Her father had left when she was very young. She’d never really known him and didn’t know now if he was dead or alive. Her mother had raised her in a loving home, though they’d never had much money. She’d been very proud when Carey graduated college and had high hopes for her only daughter. But she was killed in a car accident a few months later. Carey was devastated.
She could see now that was part of the reason she’d married Tom so quickly. He’d swept her off her feet, acting as if he couldn’t live without her. But once they were married, he’d grown bored and restless very quickly.
Looking back, Carey could see that she’d been very naive and vulnerable. Easily taken in by Tom and, later, by Quinn, who was older. He’d acted very fatherly toward her, though sometimes taking too great an interest in her personal life, wanting to have too much control.
After Lindsay was born, he offered her a job at his company, her office steps from his own. A good salary, flexible hours and she was even able to bring the baby with her whenever necessary. Quinn didn’t mind.
He doted on Lindsay and bought her every kind of toy and stuffed animal imaginable. He seemed to enjoy having her in the office. Carey thought of him as a loving uncle. Or even a father figure. She’d been very stupid and blind, never realizing how Quinn really thought of himself.
As Lindsay’s future stepfather.
No matter how gently or diplomatically she’d try to explain that she wasn’t interested in that kind of relationship, he still held out hopes. He still acted as if someday she’d change her mind. He was waiting for her to get over Tom’s death. Then her feelings for him would change, he’d say.
The only thing Carey wanted to change was her job. But it wasn’t that easy. She began to fear his reaction if she resigned. His reprisals to business rivals who he believed “crossed him” were chilling. Carey began to feel stalked by his obsessive interest, to be truly afraid of him and felt a prisoner under his ever-watchful eye.
She could save a little money out of her weekly paycheck, but never enough to escape. Still, she scrimped and saved for her freedom, knowing she could never tell him outright that she was leaving town. She’d hinted at it once and his reaction had been frightening. Of course, he was sorry afterward. So miserable and contrite, leaving a dozen roses on her desk, a snowsuit and stuffed toys for Lindsay, begging her forgiveness. Quinn needed help. Serious help for his mood swings and temper tantrums. But who in his circle had the guts to tell him? Not Carey.
Finally, Quinn went too far. She discovered that he was meddling in the books and tax records, in ways that were unethical, even illegal. She was afraid of his reaction, but confronted him anyway. Her conscience demanded it. As she expected, he flew into a rage, and threatened her.
He claimed she was culpable, too. She was handling a lot of the financial records, wasn’t she? She could never leave now because he’d use the improprieties against her.
Carey pretended to heed his warnings and played along, promising that she’d let him judge what was best for the business. But when she had a chance, she scraped up what little money she could, accepted help from friends and ran as far away from Quinn as she could manage.
She went to Chicago, figuring it would be the best place to disappear into a crowd. She also had a college friend who helped her find a job and get settled under a new identity. Her life was falling into place again.
The friends back in Ohio who helped her get away and stay hidden were Paul Newton and his wife, Nora. Paul was one of Quinn’s site foremen and kept Carey informed about Quinn’s activities. Quinn had been looking for her, Paul reported, but after a few months when her trail went cold, he seemed to give up or be distracted by more immediate concerns.
A few weeks ago, Paul reported that Quinn’s business practices, along with a mortgage company that he dealt with often, had come under investigation. He was indicted as part of a ring, charged with rigging fake mortgages and defrauding the bank of millions.
Carey learned that investigators for the prosecution were looking for her. They wanted her testimony and maybe even believed she’d been involved in the illegal deals, too.
Carey knew if she dared to come out of hiding and profess her innocence, and testify against Quinn, he would find a way to take revenge on her…and Lindsay. While her conscience urged her to offer her testimony, her instincts as a mother overruled. She didn’t dare risk putting her baby in danger.
She didn’t trust the authorities to believe her. Or protect her. The man was more than obsessive, he was insane. What if he wasn’t found guilty? Or wasn’t given a long prison sentence? He would come after her for sure. She couldn’t take that chance. So now she had both the legal authorities looking for her and Quinn’s private investigators.
If she stopped to think about it too much, it was hard to function…to keep going. To do what she had to do to survive…
Ben’s voice broke into her rambling thoughts. She could tell from his expression he thought she must have been lost in thoughts of her late husband.
“The holidays can be hard if you’re alone,” he said finally. “Everywhere you look, everyone seems so happy. If you don’t feel that way, you think something must be wrong with you. You feel so…out of sync.”
That was exactly the way she felt. Though in her case, it was even more complicated. He seemed to understand and feel the same. She wondered if he had any plans to celebrate Christmas Day or would avoid it by going to work. But she didn’t feel comfortable asking him.
“Would you like some more coffee?”
“No, thanks.”