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“This is a bad idea,” hissed Selma.
“Actually, it’s the best idea I’ve had since I lost any claim to sanity or intelligence and had sex with that lowlife, Gregory Thompson.”
“I thought you were in love with him,” said Jessica.
“I wasn’t that stupid,” replied Barbie with a laugh.
“These people are dangerous,” said Selma, clearly frightened.
“What people?” asked Thorn.
“Thompson and whoever he’s working with,” answered Selma.
“I don’t think Lorelei, per se, got him killed,” said Barbie. “I think someone he was blackmailing did that. And if I thought it would stop with his death, I’d keep my mouth shut. But I don’t think it will, and I think whoever killed him will be willing to kill again. Don’t they say your first one is always the hardest?”
“We’re doomed,” said Selma, defeatedly.
“Don’t be so melodramatic,” admonished Barbie.
“Easy for you to say. You have all the money in the world. If any of this—any of this—comes out, my political aspirations are over.”
“Maybe. Maybe not. Maybe you could stomach allowing Martin and his cronies to ruin the landscape, bring in casino gambling, and destroy the beauty and tranquility of Badger’s Drift, but I can’t. Like Jessica, my family was one of the founders of this village, and I’ll be damned if I let a little embarrassment force me to stand back and do nothing. And if you allow them this, Selma, they will come again with a bigger ask.”
“If Thompson or Martin blackmailed you to get you to abstain on the development deal, Barbie is right,” said Thorn. “Blackmailers always come back for more. In the end it comes down to you either exposing them and getting them put away, or them killing you.” He paused for a moment. “Which is it to be, Selma? Do you get them, or do they get you?”
CHAPTER 15
THORN
“It sounded like a little, decadent fun,” said Selma walking from around the island to sink into one of the comfortable couches arranged around the fireplace in the great room off the kitchen.
Barbie joined her. “I know. I’d read about all the high-class ladies of Rome who secretly visited places where they could be serviced by and enjoy the carnal pleasures of gladiators. Thompson made it sound like this was just like that. Discretion, he assured us, was guaranteed.”
“He lied,” said Selma morosely.
“Not technically. After all, he never told anyone. He just expected us to keep paying in order to ensure his silence. I’d figured out he’d blackmailed Selma when I tried to do the same to get her to continue to fight the development. That’s a fragile ecosystem up there.”
“I thought the environmental impact statement found no cause for concern,” said Jessica.
“Dear girl,” said Barbie in a world-weary voice, “those things can be bought for the right price if one knows where to shop. In any event, the opposition was gaining momentum, but we needed Selma to stay the course. When I came here to apply pressure, she’d had too much to drink and confessed all. She was damn near suicidal.”
Selma reached for Barbie’s hand and squeezed it. “Barbie didn’t want me to feel alone. She stayed and told me a similar story. I told her that Thompson had proof—photos, records of payment—everything he’d need to ruin us.” She laughed bitterly. “Here’s the ironic part—Barbie and I actually thought about killing him…”
“We planned to get the proof first and destroy it as well, but the thought of Thompson being dead and no longer a threat to anyone had a lot of appeal. You haven’t found it, have you? The evidence.”
“We’ve located a lot of files with photos, correspondence, and a ledger which records payments.”
“His phone?” asked Selma. “He had a lot of it stored on his phone, including video and recordings.”
“That we don’t have. Everyone says he never let it out of his sight, and yet we can’t seem to put our hands on it.”
“Then we’re not safe,” said Selma. “Whoever he was working with could still destroy us.”
“Would you quit saying that?” said Barbie. “I’m much more concerned that they’ll try to get us.”
“Not an unfounded fear,” said Thorn. “The State has a couple of safehouses. I can get you moved to one with round-the-clock protection, provided you’re willing to testify to what you know about Thompson’s death, his illegal activities and his blackmail schemes. We’ll need to see if you can help us out with decoding the ledger and some of the other documentation.”
“We don’t really have a choice, do we Barbie?” asked Selma, looking at her friend.
