The Fidelity World: Retribution Read online

  “What my wife’s trying to say is all this anger you’re holding on to and your plans for retribution are causing your life to remain stagnant. Have you told Annie you love her yet?”

  Cole’s eyes snapped up to her father’s wide with shock. How did he know? Was Cole that obvious? Did Annie know? Cole’s mind raced, not holding on to a single thought for long.

  “Annie won’t tell us everything that happened with that other dreadful young man, but we know it wasn’t good. We hope that in her own time she’ll confide in us. She is different with you. I’ve never seen Annie so happy and free. When she lived here before she graduated and took off, she had become bitter and ungrateful. She thought she needed out of this town—out of the state. Then she met that young man, and she sunk even further into her unhappiness. It was hard to watch.” Her mother paused to take a sip of coffee.

  “Then she called and told us she was seeing someone new. At first, she seemed caged and frustrated. I’ll admit I was worried that her daddy and I were gonna have to go up there and force her back home. Then she called one day, and she was happy; truly happy. I thought maybe it was too good to be true, but then you all came here. Annie’s been walking around with her head in the clouds since she got here. She sees all of this in a new light; I can tell just by looking at her. She’s found herself, and you helped her do that.”

  Everyone was quiet for a minute. Cole had seen the change happen in Annie, but he hadn’t wanted to admit that it could be because of him. Annie was strong and fierce; she had always had it in her. The only thing Cole had done was offer her a roof over her head and not much else. He didn’t deserve the praise her parents were giving him.

  “Annie may not know it yet, but she’s finally figured out that the secret to life isn’t about where you live or the things you surround yourself with. It’s about loving yourself, so that you can truly love those around you. Who you choose to allow in your life, and the way they make you feel about yourself, will dictate your entire life. By choosing to follow through with this revenge, you’re giving your parents power over you. All the pain and hurt they’ve caused you is lingering inside of you. You have to let that go, so that you can live the life you were meant to—not the one that others have predetermined for you.”

  Annie breezed back into the kitchen, and the energy in the room was instantly brighter. Cole looked her over. Her parents were right; Annie was a completely different woman than the one he had first met.

  “Daddy, that damn pig’s at it again.” She huffed, slamming her hand down on the countertop beside her.

  “Obstinate little thing, isn’t he? Alright baby, I’ll come give you a hand.”

  “I’ll help her.” Cole said.

  “It’s okay, Cole. The pig listens to Dad; I’ll just be another minute.” Annie said.

  “Well, I’d like to get another try in before we head out. My ego may be a bit bruised.” He said with a chuckle.

  “Alright. Come on then, city boy. Let’s see if you’ve got any more country boy in you.” Annie winked.

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Annie

  Regardless of whether Cole was a city boy or a country boy, he was all man. Annie loved watching him out of his element, though. He had managed to get the stubborn pig out of his stall so that Annie could get it cleaned out which had impressed her and her dad. Cole seemed proud of himself as well.

  Between the three of them, they had finished the rest of the work in no time and then cleaned up quickly before taking off to town to meet Barry. The day with him had flown by. Barry had loved his tour of Annie’s small part of the world, and Annie had genuinely enjoyed showing it to him and Cole. Cole had seemed distracted most of the day. Several times he had snuck off to whisper quietly on his phone. Annie wanted to question him on it, but she knew it wasn’t the time or place.

  Barry had easily settled on a small building on the southside of Parkersburg surrounded by several other mom and pop establishments. It was also close enough to the hospital and other larger firms that he felt he’d have good foot traffic. Annie had always liked the area of town Barry had ended up in; her favorite cafe was just up the street.

  “I’m going to make some calls, but I have to be back in New York tonight. Annie would you be able to handle some of the footwork for me?”

  “Sure.” She said, elated to have helped him.

  “My assistant will send over a contract for you to read over. Once you agree to the terms, I’ll wire transfer your finder’s fee.”

  “Finder’s fee?” Annie questioned.

  “Of course, you’re the reason I was able to find this beauty, so in turn you’ll get rewarded. Help me get this thing up and running, and there’s a percentage of the profits in it for you, too.” Barry winked before turning his attention Cole.

  Annie couldn’t believe she was going to get paid for something that had been so simple and so fun. She couldn’t wait to tell her parents. Cole and Barry chatted briefly about a board meeting they had in a few days, and then Barry departed.

  “Can you believe that?” Annie squealed as she launched herself into Cole’s arms.

  “You did good. The places you showed him were perfect. I think he picked a great place, too.” Cole said proudly.

  “I’m just so excited and hungry.” She laughed.

  “Me, too. We could take something home if there’s someplace here your parents really like to eat.”

  “My dad loves Applebee’s, if that’s okay with you.”

  “Perfect.”

  As they drove over to the restaurant, Annie filled the time with stories of her growing up; how she and her friends used to drive to Walmart in the middle of the night just to wander the aisles. She admitted to stealing a whole slew of road cones one night when she had her dad’s truck. Applebee’s was a popular hangout for them, since it stayed open so late. When they got there, they ordered their takeout and then sat at the bar. Annie kept rambling, mostly because she could tell something was bothering Cole, and after the night they had shared, Annie was petrified it had something to do with that. Annie didn’t think she could stomach it if Cole admitted he didn’t feel the same.

  Surely he had to though. There’s no way he hadn’t felt what was between them the night before. They chatted lightly about the places Annie had shown him today. When Annie asked if Cole’s P.I. had any new information for them, Cole evaded the question. Annie was relieved when they finally called his name for their food.

  “After you had terrorized Walmart and ate Applebee’s, then what would you guys do?” Cole asked her as they started down her parents’ country road.

  “We’d truck surf.”

  “You’d what?”

  “Truck surfing: it’s where you climb out of the window of a moving truck and climb up on the hood or back into the bed and stand up.”

  “You’re joking, right?”

  “No, it was fun.”

  “How the hell are you even still alive?”

  Annie laughed at Cole’s wide-eyed look of shock.

  “I had good drivers.”

  Cole looked over at her and then back to the road several times. Annie kept laughing.

  “I feel like you’re going to tell me you’re joking.”

  Annie just shrugged. They finally pulled into the driveway; her parents were on the front porch, swinging on their porch swing. She and Cole unloaded the food.

  “Well, y’all didn’t have to do that.” Her dad called once they all filtered into the kitchen and began unpacking the food.

  “We know. I was really in the mood for Applebee’s though.” Annie replied.

  “How did your day go? Did your friend find someplace?”

  Annie launched into her day. Her parents ooed and awed at the appropriate places. When she was done, they both looked proud as peacocks, which made Annie happy. She just wanted to make them proud. There was so much she was ashamed of that it felt good to do something she was proud of and that she could share with them.
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br />   “How much longer will we have you with us, then?” Her mom asked.

  “I’m not sure. Barry is supposed to send me a contract that will lay out everything he’ll need from me going forward.”

  “What about school?” Her dad asked, without looking up from his plate.

  Annie chewed on her lip as she looked across the table at Cole. He nodded his head to her in encouragement. Before she could explain everything, Cole’s phone rang distracting everyone. Cole took the call outside. Annie excused herself and followed him onto the front porch to see if there was any update on Trey.

  Cole hung up and looked at her.

  “What are your plans now?” He asked, her studying her face.

  “What do you mean?”

  “When we started this arrangement, you had a vendetta of your own. Do you still plan on going after Trey?”

  Annie had to think about her answer. Cole was right, in the beginning it had been all about her revenge, but now it was just simply about her and Cole. That didn’t mean she wanted Trey loose to go out and prey on other women, though.

  “Yes, I do want him stopped. Not because of what he did to me, but of what he could do to someone else.”

  “Do you forgive him?”

  “No! Where are you going with this?”

  “If you don’t want to go after him for you, then it sounds like you’ve forgiven him.”

  “I’m not sure if forgive is the word, but I’ve moved past it.” She answered truthfully.

  “That was my P.I.; I need to get back to the city. I can’t stay any longer.”

  “What happened?”

  “There have been some things happening with my grandfather’s foundation. I need to get back there for the board meeting, and I have to play catch up with several important clients at work.”

  “Okay, how will I get back when I’m done working for Barry?” Annie asked, feeling sick to her stomach.

  Cole didn’t say anything as he walked into the house and straight back to the guest room where he began to gather his things. Annie followed him as anger welled up inside of her. The bastard was leaving her.

  “That’s it, huh?” She seethed.

  Cole didn’t say anything as he zipped up his bag. Annie grabbed his arm and tugged, trying to force him to turn and face her.

  “Dammit, Cole. Look at me!”

  “Annie, I’m sorry.”

  “You’re sorry? Are you fucking kidding me right now?”

  “Watch your language.”

  “Fuck you!”

  Cole turned and grabbed Annie by the shoulders.

  “Annie.” He growled.

  “What are you gonna do, Cole? Fuck me? Isn’t that what you said in the beginning? Was that all this was for you?”

  “You’re far too expensive to be considered just a fuck.” He sneered.

  Annie wasn’t sure what had happened to make Cole three-sixty, but she knew in that moment she hated him. Tears welled up in her eyes, but she refused to allow them to fall; not in front of him at least. She yanked herself away from him and then punched him hard in the chest. She punched him again and again until the strength to continue dwindled. Then she gave him a shove.

  “Get.” She whispered.

  “Get!” She shouted when he didn’t move.

  The last thing Annie heard was the click of the door as it shut behind him. Her knees buckled, and she hit the ground as the tears fell freely. Pain ripped through her heart. It hurt far worse than any hit she had ever taken from Trey.

  Chapter Thirty

  Cole

  Three days had passed since he had left Annie. Her dad’s parting words to him still echoed in Cole’s mind every day.

  Do what you need to do, but do it quickly; I’ll only tolerate her pain for so long. When I come looking for you I’ll be a dad with an agenda, and that’s a scary thing.

  Her father knew Cole needed to free himself of the battles he had been fighting. Cole had wanted to go about it differently, but after talking to his P.I., he had snapped. An emergency board meeting had been called to vote Trey Pennington onto the board of directors of his grandfather’s foundation. The bastard was working with his parents. All of Cole’s demons were going to be at one table in just a matter of hours, and Cole was going to take them all down.

  After Cole had left West Virginia, he had gone straight to his attorney’s office. Everything he and his grandpa had gathered on his parents had been pulled and spread out in front of him. He and the attorney had worked through the night. They traced every single transaction over and over again, but nothing turned up. As dawn approached, Cole called his P.I. in to see if he could find something they had been missing. Three hours later, they had done it.

  It was a withdrawal from the foundations account that happened every month. It seemed legit at face value as the company was one Cole knew the foundation worked closely with. His P.I. had gone a step further and dug into the receiving bank account’s information. Turns out the account was a front, and as soon as the money hit that bank, it would then bounce around until ending up in none other than his parents’ bank account. The trail was intricate, but it was there. Cole finally had it.

  Not only did he have evidence on his parents, but on the other company who just so happened to have ties to the Penningtons. They had been helping each other launder money for years. The dollar amount was unfathomable. When Cole had first started the journey, he had always imagined it ending with him watching the feds take his parents away in hand cuffs, and that he would stand there and watch as their world crumbled, taking in every heartache they endured. All Cole wanted now was to call Annie and tell her he had succeeded. Then he wanted to beg her for forgiveness.

  The words he had spoken before he had left were cruel. He wasn’t even sure why he had said them. The woman had a way of making him crazy. At the end of the day, the reason he had done it had been simple. Cole didn’t deserve a woman like Annie. His life had been built around his retribution. Annie deserved a man who built his life around her.

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Annie

  Life moved on even though Annie felt stuck in place. Her parents were supportive, but they seemed to think it would all work out. They didn’t know just how unfair life had been to Annie lately. That was her fault because she refused to tell them about Trey and college and the truth about how she had ended up with Cole.

  The real hit had come when Karen had called Annie to tell her that Cole had bought out her contract early, and the money had been deposited into her account in full. Annie didn’t want the money, but Karen said the money was hers and there was no giving it back. Annie had thought about calling Cole and telling him to shove it up his ass, but she figured he wouldn’t answer.

  Karen unfortunately needed her to sign papers to terminate her employment with Infidelity, and Barry wanted to speak with her about something which was why Annie was back in New York. Her meeting with Karen had been brief, and she had time to kill before she met with Barry. Even though she didn’t have a lot of things left at Cole’s apartment, she wanted to get them. So much had been taken from her that leaving her few things at his house to be tossed out didn’t sit right with Annie.

  She knew he would be at work in the middle of the day, so she had her Uber drop her off. Luck was on her side because Cole hadn’t taken her off his approved visitor list, so she was let up the elevator without any trouble. As she approached the door to his apartment, her heart clenched, and she felt the tears threaten to spill. A door opened across the hallway. As long as she had lived with Cole, there had never been anyone in the apartment, so Annie turned out of curiosity.

  “Mr. Berkley!” She cried as she ran to the man who had no doubt saved her life.

  He wobbled on his cane while he welcomed Annie’s embrace.

  “Annie, it’s so good to see you!” He said.

  “What are you doing here? Did Trey do that?” Annie asked, pointing to his leg.

  “Don’t you worry abou
t that. It’s all in the past now. As for what I’m doing here, your new man had me moved here.”

  “Cole.” Annie said, stunned.

  He nodded.

  “I was hoping when I heard the elevator during this time of the day it was you. How have you been?”

  “I’ve been good, Mr. Berkley. Thank you for what you did for me. You’ll never know how truly grateful I am.”

  “So, are you back in school yet?”

  “No, I’m actually just here to get a few things. I’m back home with my parents for now. I think I may end up finishing school back home. I’ve been helping one of Cole’s friends open up a new store back there, so it makes sense. There’s nothing here for me anymore.” Annie said, looking back at Cole’s apartment door with her final remarks.

  “Don’t be so sure of that, Annie. Life has a funny way of doing things.”

  “I’m glad you’re here and you’re okay, Mr. Berkley.”

  “Right back at ya, kiddo.”

  Annie gave Mr. Berkley another hug before she left him to go finish her task. Cole’s apartment looked exactly the same. It had only been a few days, so Annie wasn’t sure why she thought it would seem different. Her hand slid across the top of the couch as she walked by it. Her heart fluttered as she walked past Cole’s bedroom, willing herself not to look inside. She made quick work of gathering the rest of her things. The t-shirt of Cole’s she had worn was on the floor as Annie was walking out of the room. She knew she should have left it, but Annie wanted to take something with her no matter how depressing it seemed.

  Annie grabbed a cab out front. She had just enough time to make it across Manhattan for dinner with Barry. Annie touched up her make up in the back of the cab and smoothed her clothes. She knew the restaurant they were meeting at was pretty fancy, but Annie wasn’t going to change. She was tired of changing who she was. The cab pulled up in front of the restaurant forty minutes later. Annie paid her fare, grabbed her oversized purse filled with her things, and headed inside.

  “Welcome to Houston’s, how many?” The hostess greeted her.