The Ghost in the Mist
The family sat in the sitting room after dinner. The conversation was lively and animated, and everyone was smiling and engaging.
Everyone except for Jessica. She had been texting and emailing Anthony Shaw since the middle of dinner. She had finally received a reply. Her eyes were frozen on the small notification:
To: [email protected]
From: Anthony Shaw
Subject: No cancellations
Her finger trembled over her phone, the realization of the situation hitting her squarely in her chest. She was not going to be able to cancel the hit. She opened the email and read it slowly three times.
"I am already here, beautiful. I have never known you to change your mind once it was made up. I will complete this for you and I will only owe you three more."
Jessica quickly hit reply.
"Cancel this and you owe me nothing."
She hit send and held her breath.
"Jessica?"
She looked up slowly, already knowing who was standing before her. Still, her eyes went to Dan before going to Amber—who had said her name. She looked to Dan with a smile and he immediately looked away.
Amber smiled at her sister.
"Dan and I are leaving." For the umpteenth time, Jessica looked to the beautiful tennis bracelet on Amber's wrist. She once again wondered how she missed the bracelet and part of her truly wanted it.
"I want you to know I am excited about the babies, and…" She leaned forward to whisper in her sister's ear. "… You don't need to cancel any of your shenanigans. I can handle anything you dish out."
Jessica looked at her sister wide-eyed. Amber smiled at her broadly. Their eyes were locked for a long moment, and then Amber looked away and walked to their parents. Jessica watched her sister tell their parents good night, then she and Dan fell in step with the guards and she watched them leave the sitting room.
Virginia came over to her with a wide smile. "I know why you would never mess with me the way you do Amber, but I can't understand how you thought our sister was such a pushover." She cocked her head and looked at Jessica brightly. "If something does happen to her, Jessica, I have a feeling you will be in more trouble than you ever bargained for."
She patted her elder sister's leg affectionately and stood to go speak with Samuel and Damon Jr. Jessica knew her sister was absolutely correct in what she said.
Amber sat next to Dan as they rode back to their home. She seemed calm and reserved and there was a sense of true peace exuding from her.
Dan sat fretting. He was texting David madly as they continued working on ensuring that Blue Serene Lake Resort and Spa remained financially sound. David had already found the two investors that had backed out. They had already bought all of their shares. They were now working with Julia—Amber's CFO—to set up a new investment plan that had Dan and David's property development company as Blue Serene's biggest investor.
Even as the two negotiated with Julia, she was messaging Amber—Amber had turned them down twice during dinner and now once in the car.
She looked up to Dan, a smirk on her face. "Is it really that important for you to invest in Blue Serene?"
"Yes." He spoke quickly and absent-mindedly. Amber nodded, gave approval to Julia, and looked out of her window and at Carson City. Dan sagged in his seat in relief when Julia finally accepted their offer. His heart lightened a bit and he once again felt like he was making headway. With Jessica out of the way, he once again had a chance.
As they pulled onto their driveway, Anthony Shaw was turning onto the long drive of Blue Serene. His eyes flicked across the terrain and he didn't see anything odd.
As Anthony Shaw drove down the long lake road, the first group that Samuel hired clocked him. The encrypted channel came to life.
"Nest Robber has entered the forest in black feathers."
"Roger. Black feathers."
The protection detail spread out.
"Remember, Nest Robber knows an ambush and camouflage. Police all movements."
Anthony Shaw was about to set up his camp within a hornet's nest.