Chapter 3

Kathy Ward reached her SUV in record time. She stood by the door with racing heart as she tried to catch her breath. She kept looking frantically around, expecting somebody to step out of the shadows at any moment. But after several minutes of waiting she didn’t see a soul. Several more moments of nervous waiting and she still didn’t see anybody. Feelings of relief began to pour over her but the wait was nerve wrecking.

Maybe this is some kind of sick joke somebody is playing on me, she thought. Maybe I should just take off and forget about the whole thing. Kathy felt tempted to do just that but she hesitated. The emails were definitely real and the sender certainly seemed to know exactly what she’d done. She decided it was best to give her blackmailer a few more moments. Time ticked by as if the minutes were hours. Kathy was about to leave when her phone beeped. She dug it out of her purse and read the text message.

“Don’t you dare leave, just be patient and you’ll see me in a moment.”

“Damn,” Kathy cursed. It’s almost as if this person is reading my mind. Or maybe, the blackmailer has been watching me all this time. Deliberately making me wait to heighten the tension and soften me up for the negotiations.

She looked around and peered into the shadows of the far reaches of the parkade, wondering if somebody was lurking nearby and getting off at seeing her suffer with anxiety. She saw nobody then jumped at the sound of a door slamming. She turned and saw a shadow appear at the stairway exit sign.

“This is it,” Kathy murmured. She stood up straight, prepared to finally meet her blackmailer. It wasn’t until the shadow grew closer that she was able to see its features.

“Oh Christ,” Kathy cursed. “What the hell is he doing here?

She watched the hulking, overweight nerdy guy step out of the shadows and look around before settling his beady eyes on her. He’s making his way right towards me. Of all the luck! As if being discovered in a fraudulent bank transaction wasn’t bad enough. Now that stupid, ugly mailroom clerk idiot happens to appear just when the blackmailer could arrive at any moment. This is not good. I have to get rid of him right away because he could spoil everything.

“Hey, Ms. Ward. How’s it going?” Jeremy wore a big smile as he approached her. As usual, his fat, piggy eyes seemed to be permanently fastened on her boobs. She shook her head in disgust. It was what he did to all the female staff. Some complained he was practically drooling as he ogled them.

Kathy didn’t bother to answer him. Instead she responded with a grimace. She stole another furtive look around the parkade. Thank god the blackmailer hadn’t appeared yet but he could arrive at any moment. This stupid kid could really screw things up. She had to get rid of him right now.

“Waiting for somebody?”

Jeremy smirked as Kathy turned her attention back to him. At least she’s acknowledging me now. He enjoyed her look of bewilderment and then the flash of anger and disgust as the truth hit her like a slap on the side of the face.

“It’s you, isn’t it?” Kathy’s voice rose in anger.

“Me? What are you talking about?” Jeremy replied. He loved playing this game with her. It was lots of fun for him but it must be driving her crazy, especially when she’s used to being the one in control.

““You know, you bastard. You’re the one that sent that message, aren’t you?”

Jeremy’s smile grew even bigger. “I confess it was me Kathy but I just wanted to help you. Now let’s see what we can do to keep your ass out of jail.”

He was still beaming in delight when the woman yelled at him.

“It’s Ms. Ward to you. And I’ve changed my mind. I don’t know what kind of sick game you’re playing but it won’t work. There’s no way I’m gonna make any kind of deal with you. Just who the hell do you think you are? You’ve been spying on me, haven’t you? I’m gonna report you.”