Chapter 32 - Jenna

Councilman Hardy was still far enough away that I could make a break for it, turn around, and run. I needed more time to think things through, but I'd already sat in my room doing nothing but thinking, and I was still as confused as ever.

Gripping my hands so tightly that my nails dug into my palms, I planted my feet and rolled my shoulders back. That awful confusion, those mixed emotions, and guilt were easier to deal with if I let them come out as anger. And I had plenty to be pissed off about.

Lev had tricked me into marrying him, knowing who I was and what I stood for, when I only thought he was a handsome, eccentric businessman. No, he was a Bratva king, and that threatened my future goals. His possessive nature would never let me go on my own terms. He had to go down.

Now, it was too late. Hardy stood in front of me, reaching out to shake my hand. "Is this Jenna Brixton?" he asked. "What a surprise."

I flinched at my old last name, having grown accustomed to saying Jenna Volkov in my mind even though I still went by Brixton in public. Even Volkov wasn't really Lev's last name, was it? I held tight to my ragged anger, crystallizing it into a hard ball in my stomach to blot out the churning that threatened to make me flee for the nearest restroom.

I kept up the ruse of this being a coincidental meeting. "I'm here with my sister and friend," I said, loud enough for the few stragglers going into the dining room.

"This is a wonderful resort. My wife and I come here at least once a year."

I was about to start yawning from the staged small talk, but he wasn't suggesting anything else. This was my first time doing something like this, and my skin felt too tight, while sweat was starting to form under my arms.

Katie and Nat came down the hall from their rooms' direction, changing into comfy spa gear. Katie had her hand resting on the top of her stomach, and I heard her laughing at Nat about how it was almost a waste to get a pedicure since she couldn't see her own feet.

They stopped next to us and gave me inquisitive looks, nodding politely to the councilman. I flinched again, warning myself not to shout my lines. Lines that I was making up as I went along.

"This is my sister and friend I was telling you about," I said as Hardy held out his hand in that easy, jovial manner, he must have been perfecting all his years in public service. "And this is Councilman Hardy. I've been doing some work at his campaign office through my internship."

Katie and Nat accepted this despite every word sounding stilted to my ears. None of it was exactly a lie, but the fact we'd set up this meeting in advance felt like a neon sign over my head. Hardy did the necessary "what a small world" bit and asked how long we'd be staying. It was all so amazingly normal that I was able to calm down and let Katie and Nat go ahead to their scheduled pedicure while Hardy asked if I'd like to grab a cup of coffee and catch up while his wife was getting her facial.

I kept a sharp eye on Katie, but her face showed no sign of suspicion. I should have gotten an award because inside I was so sick it was making me dizzy. I was free and clear to move ahead with my plan. Somehow, that only made my stomach feel worse.

At a table in the dining room, I rolled the edges of the beige linen tablecloth between my fingers, only forcing myself to relax when Hardy's eyes cut to my fidgeting. We continued to talk about inconsequential things until after a server brought us a glass pot of herbal tea with flowers in it, along with a small tray of seed crackers and hummus.

Hardy dug in and leaned forward after crunching on one of the crackers. "Your employer is a dangerous man," he said, as if he was telling me it might rain tomorrow. No one at the other tables would ever think we were plotting someone's downfall. "You're probably somewhat aware from working for him, but you might not know the depths of criminal activity he's involved in."

He went on to tell me all about Lev's family in Los Angeles, and how Lev was busy trying to take over San Francisco to increase their hold on the state of California.

"It's an empire that needs to topple," he finished, shaking his head. He had a properly disgusted look on his face, but it wasn't keeping him from snapping up the last cracker and spreading it generously with the hummus.

"How do you know so much?" I asked. "And where did you get the information?" I already knew everything he told me, and it came straight from Lev's mouth.

"For the last year, I've been persuaded to go along with a lot of things he's asked. No, coerced would be a better word. He threatens my position at every turn, so I have no choice but to go along with pushing through the new bills he wants, or making changes to zoning. All under threat, of course, and I only go along with it out of fear for my family."

He didn't actually seem scared, more gleeful to have someone so powerful on his side. I knew for a fact that Lev had donated to his campaign, and I wondered if the things Hardy had done had also benefited him in some way.

"If I don't keep doing what he says, he's threatening my position," he told me when I didn't respond right away.

"But yours is a voted position," I said. "How could he possibly keep everyone who's voted for you in the past from turning out again in the next election? Your track record with city outreach should speak for itself."

He shook his head bitterly. "You don't seem to understand how powerful your boss is. He has—he can easily spread lies that would poison the voters."

"So, what do we do? I haven't been able to dig up anything concrete since you first contacted me," I admitted. "Surely you have something we can use if he's been threatening you all this time."

"He's a pro at this. I don't have any proof of any wrongdoing either. But I have a plan where we can set him up to get caught. It's clear how much Lev trusts you, and as his personal secretary, you're the perfect one to help me put this into motion. I'd hate for you to get caught up with him, which will happen inevitably, one way or another. It's better that you're on the right side of things, and help hurry the process along."

Was that a threat? I laughed nervously. "Oh, Councilman Hardy, you're mistaken. I'm just a paid intern. I'm nowhere near as important as you seem to think."

Fear that he might go digging and find out more had me frozen in place, and I didn't like the coercive turn he was taking. I forced myself to stop gripping the sides of the table and leaned back in my seat, disappointed that this was a dead end, but also somewhat relieved. I wasn't cut out for this kind of intrigue.

"You're being modest," he said. "From what I've seen, I believe you have enough influence to convince him to fall for my trap. The cops will be waiting, and the game will be over. The city will be out from under his rule."

As much as I liked the sound of this awful game being over, I didn't feel great about his little plot to trap Lev. From what I'd seen, he hadn't exactly been out terrorizing San Francisco. His beefs were with other criminal organizations who messed with his people. Remembering that night at the bar where Lev first let me in on his life in the Bratva, all I saw was him helping that poor father and son who were on the verge of losing everything due to the attack. I was already on edge and plagued with second thoughts, but a setup to bring Lev down seemed shady and wrong.

"I thought you had hard evidence already," I told Hardy, not hiding my disappointment.

"He's much too professional for that," Hardy griped. "Are you in or not? Do you care about doing the right thing and bringing down a criminal?"

"I want to do what's right," I said, letting it hang there. "Let me think it over."

"You do that," he said with a kind smile that didn't reach his eyes. "I feel confident you'll make the right decision. I can see how dedicated you are to getting into politics when you graduate."

I only nodded and hurried back to my room. Getting through dinner with Katie and Nat was a nightmare of trying to stay focused on what they were saying and keep up the appearance that I was having a great time. Thankfully, Katie was exhausted from the drive up and didn't want to hang out on the terrace where there was a live jazz band, so I jumped on that excuse as well.

Nat looked disappointed, saying we single girls should scout for any single guys, and I nearly blurted out that I wasn't single. Feeling like I might explode from all the secrets I was juggling, I faked a yawn and told her I'd only drag her down.

Of course, sleep eluded me, and I tossed and turned all night. Just as the sun was finally coming up and I could ditch the pretense that I was ever getting any sleep, I heard my phone ping. It was from Councilman Hardy.

Meet me on the hiking trails. I've just received urgent new info that changes everything.

Before I even finished reading it, the message made me so upset I ran to the bathroom and puked. What could he have on Lev? Was it enough that we could really bring him down without having to fake a set up? Or was it nothing? Why was I hoping it was nothing?

I messaged him back to say I was on my way and hurried out before meeting Katie and Nat for breakfast. All I had to do was get through this day, and by the end of it, I'd be back in the car with Lev on the way home.

Why was the thought of being with Lev so comforting? No matter where I tried to send my thoughts as I trotted toward the meeting spot, they always veered back to Lev. His commanding voice that was always so comforting and strong, and the way he looked at me with complete trust.

It had to be a sign. Unless Hardy had some real, solid evidence, I was going to tell him I was hanging back until we found some. I wasn't going to commit fraud, even in the name of so-called justice. That wasn't how I wanted to bring Lev down.

Hardy waited for me at the beginning of one of the more difficult trails that twisted up into a dense forest about a mile away.

"Let's walk a bit," he said. "So we're not overheard."

I traipsed beside him, trying to breathe in the pine scent mingling with the ocean breeze blowing in from the nearby coast. Pretty soon, we were surrounded by trees and ferns, and the quiet forest noises from birds and skittering animals had soothed my nerves to where I felt like I could firmly stand up to him.

"What new information did you get?" I asked when we'd been walking in silence for about fifteen minutes. I'd barely eaten yesterday and didn't get a wink of sleep, so hiking much further meant I was going to have a bad time getting back.

He stopped, and I took advantage of the moment to rest, leaning against a tree. I straightened up when he turned to me with gleaming eyes.

"I knew you had influence over Lev," he said, a smile on his face that I didn't like at all. He suddenly wasn't the easygoing older man with the big jovial grin. Now, he looked like a ruddy, balding, wolf. "But I never would have guessed how much until my informant told me it's because you're not just his secretary. You're his wife."

I shook my head, opening my mouth to happily lie for once. There was no way he should know that. Lev was adamant about keeping it a secret and had used his power to keep the records sealed. Someone had been snooping into our lives.

"No, don't bother," he said, holding up his hand to silence my repudiation of his facts. "I just wonder why you've been keeping it a secret? It should have been the society wedding of the year. You must not want it getting out. Or is he holding something over your head?"

"You're mistaken," I said, turning to walk back down the trail.

He jumped in front of me as effortlessly as a mountain goat. "I don't think so. My source is reputable and has as big a stake in this as I do. As we do. What would happen if this info got leaked? It's best if you help me out."

"Are you threatening me?" I asked.

He shook his head, trying to smile benignly. But I'd seen through his mask and wasn't buying it, and he could see I was no longer on his side. "You're as dirty as Lev if you don't agree to this plan. You'll never make it into any public office, because he will be going down. That means you'll be dragged down with him."

"What does he have on you that's making you so desperate to get him out of the picture?" I demanded, no longer believing he was as squeaky clean as his public image let on. All the sour faces Lev made whenever I praised all his outreach efforts came rushing back to me.

"You have a lot to learn. Don't let this relationship with that criminal ruin your future," he said, changing tack from threatening to cajoling. "I've aligned with a new organization, and there's no longer room for Lev in San Francisco. If I don't get rid of him, then I'm out, which means my bid for mayor, and eventually, governor, is out as well. I'm not letting that happen, and if you want to have a career in politics, you should pick the right side."

He was much too close, his eyes too bright. I stumbled back a step. "Are you telling me you want to replace Lev with some other criminal organization? It has nothing to do with him threatening you, or trying to clean up the city?"

The mask was so far gone I wondered how he'd ever managed to keep it in place for as long as he did. He'd tricked an entire city into thinking he was a kind, generous man who only wanted to help.

"Listen to me," he said, grabbing my forearm just as I was about to make a break past him and race down the trail to the resort. "My motives never mattered. One way or another, you're going to help me get your husband out of the picture."

I jerked my arm, but his grip was as tight as a bird of prey's talons, locked around my wrist. He lunged at me, shoving me off the trail and slamming me into a tree. I reached up with my free hand, mashing my palm into his face to try to get his thick, barrel body off me. He slammed me backward again, and my head knocked hard into the solid trunk, sending pine needles floating around us and a shooting pain down my spine.

I saw stars and fell to the side, trying once again to run. He jerked my arm almost out of the socket, then took my chin in his hand and smashed my head backwards once more. I heard the thudding sound as a lightning bolt seemed to flash through my skull. I cried out, hoping there might be other hikers nearby. Hardy loomed over me with hatred in his eyes, knocking me into the tree again. I felt my body going limp and there was nothing at all.