Page 124 of Love is Angry

Laura: Call me ASAP

“Okay,” I sigh, anticipating another senseless scolding from her. “Let’s get this over with.”

Chapter 53

Madison

I wait in the alley, my heart pounding so hard my throat is dry. After a moment, the door swings open and Laura’s hulking helper is ushering me inside. The small office is buzzing with activity; there are only a few days left to ensure Julian Echeveria’s victory, and every person on his campaign has a personal stake in his ultimate victory.

Every person except his own daughter.

She’s in the AV room, editing the videos which are programmed to go out on every local and regional TV channel and every local server within the next 24 hours. Files have already been uploaded and approved; basic campaign ads which paint Julian as some kind of conservative hero and progressive family man; but Laura has back door access, courtesy of Lindsey. She and Cameron are here, wearing volunteer badges and lots of Echeveria merchandise to blend in.

Rita is here too, fixing her makeup. She’s not vain—but there’s a reporter waiting down the block for a big story to break, and when it does, Rita is going to be ready with her Echeveria hat and TV-ready makeup to nail down the narrative. We’re only missing one piece of the puzzle now.

“He called, he’s on his way,” Laura says, turning toward me. “Do you have the files?”

I hand her the flash drive. My palms are sweating, my stomach is rolling—in just a few minutes, the whole city is going to know my secrets. Laura takes it from me matter-of-factly and plugs it into her computer. Lindsey, beside her, starts sorting through the files.

“Family man,” she says, and drops the pictures in a file folder. “Integrity,” she says after opening another, and slides that into a different folder. I wrap my arms around myself and huddle back against the wall beside Cameron, who is keeping an eye on the office through the little window in the door.

“I don’t know what to do now,” I tell him.

“Just stay out of sight,” he says. “You deserve to be here for this—but you’ll blow the whole thing if someone recognizes you.”

I pull my hoodie up higher on my head and move to the far side of the room, away from the window. I’m not privy to the whole plan—a lot was established while I was missing. So when Cameron looks at Rita and says, “He’s here,” I frown at him, confused.

“Rhue?” I ask.

“No,” Cameron says. “Julian.”

My blood turns to ice and I feel like I’m going to throw up. Rita adjusts her bra to emphasize her generous cleavage, then shoots me a sassy wink. “That’s my cue,” she says.

“Wait—what?” She just waves at me and prances out into the office, looking for all the world like a bouncy, bubbly, die-hard Echeveria groupie. “I thought she was just here to talk to the press,” I whisper.

“Rita’s interest in anthropology has always been investigative,” Lindsey tells me without looking away from her screen. “She wants first-hand experience.”

I feel like I’ve been kicked in the chest. “She’s going out there—deliberately—to get ass—”

“Sshh!” They all hiss at me at once.

“Damn, keep it down, would you? You’re gonna blow the whole thing!” Cameron whispers frantically. He looks back out the little window, and steps back just in time to avoid being hit by the door as Steve opens it, ushering Rhue inside. Steve follows Rhue in and locks the door behind them.

“Do you have it?” Laura demands.

“It’s all on my phone,” he says as he reluctantly hands it over. “Mostly audio files. Couple videos.”

“Good.”

“And I already backed them up,” he says. “Gave copies to the sheriff’s office out in Ithaca and dropboxed them to myself. Did a hard upload to my laptop, too. Just in case you’re thinking about destroying the evidence or anything.”

The room goes silent and my jaw drops. Laura keeps working away like he didn’t say anything awful, but the rest of us stare, speechless.

“Rhue, what the hell?” I finally manage.

His eyes soften when he sees me, but his posture is still defensive. He gestures at Steve and Laura. “These two have been going to bat for Dad for weeks. Arguing with me about his guilt and innocence, demanding proof, acting like I’m the one tearing the family apart for trying to expose the bastard—now she’s demanding to see all the evidence I’ve scraped together so she can ‘take him down?’ Sorry, I don’t buy it.”

“God, you’re an idiot,” Steve mutters.