Roy nods, considering my answer. “Well, you’re gonna have to dig pretty deep to find something,” he says, before finishing his drink. “What if Margaret takes care of him instead?”
“I’ll be the number one suspect, so forget it,” I tell him. “It’s too risky.”
“Suspect yes, but if they have zero evidence that you were involved…”
I cock my head to the side, slightly drawn to his advice, but I know the Department of Justice will do anything to avenge him. And Petra will believe them just as fast and go against me again. The trust we have for each other is already so low and fragile that another murder will probably lead to our end––if this one doesn’t. “All I want is for him to drop the case,” I say. “I have until next Friday to find something. Otherwise he’ll share the report in court and subsequently to the media.”
“What if we contact Jan and tell him it’s all bullshit?”
“He won’t believe us,” I say. “The report matches with the location they found his daughter’s cadaver. He’ll know Tess was telling the truth.”
Roy blows out a breath as his anguish takes over him, but he keeps quiet, considering other options. “What if we take care of Jan instead?”
But I find the flaw in his new suggestion once more. “Eric will be convinced it was me and contact his family, anyway.” And to make myself clear, I add, “It’s Eric we need to take care of. He needs to drop the case.”
“And what if he doesn’t?” he asks, forcing me to face this eventuality. “What if we don’t find anything in time for him to drop it and he goes to court with the report?”
“Then, I’ll let my sisters know that Jan might come after us.”
Despite Roy’s insistence, I don’t go back to my condo where my wife is. After all, Roy doesn’t know that Petra is cooperating with Eric, which makes her unreliable and untrustworthy. “I accept to be a witness in the upcoming trial, and will provide taped conversations that can help the case.” Those words… fuck… I can’t take them out of my head. It hurts seeing her like some sort of enemy, but it’s the truth and I have to remind myself she voluntarily sided with them. I go to my private residence instead where no one is there to deceive me.
Reaching the apartment, I walk into the empty hallway and head to the bedroom. Turning on the lights, I notice the housekeeper already slightly opened the sheets of the bed, which she does every evening, but my attention goes to the nightstand and my eyes narrow at the envelope leaning against the base of the lamp with To Mr. Van Dieren hand-written on it. Jeez, I can recognize that handwriting anywhere. Curious enough, I take the envelope, open it and find inside a photograph of Petra and I taken during our wedding at De Haar. We are smiling at each other without noticing the camera. It’s a candid moment that makes my heart reel and my lips pull up at the same time. I turn it and read, “Don’t forget us” written on the back. I shut my eyes tight because this is torture. She must have given the envelope to Ryan, and he gave it to the concierge. That’s why Ryan was so forgiving toward her actions. They must have been in touch a few times. Why is she doing this though? To make me go back home so that she can start helping Eric convict me? I could go home so easily, but what for? She made a statement in front of the state’s Attorney General on what her real intentions are. Unlike Ryan, I know she’s just doing it for revenge. And the way to do so is through my heart.
Chapter 7
The Netherlands, February 6, 2021
Tess Hagen
I have been locked up here for so many weeks and without seeing anyone but Winter and the security agents that I’m starting to believe I’ll never see my daughter ever again. As always, Winter walks into my room, carrying my breakfast to start yet another day, but I barely find the will to wake up.
“Good morning, Tess,” he greets softly, his voice always so welcoming. Winter is such a nice person that it’s hard to believe he’s cooperating in such a criminal activity.
I open my eyes timidly, the room already bright from the sun. Then I sit up on my bed while Winter puts the tray down onto my office table.
“When can I go out?” I ask him for the very first time since I have been here.
Winter looks at me a bit surprised. “You mean outside?”
“Yes, please, let me just breathe some fresh air and feel the sun beaming on my face.” It sounds like I’m begging him, but in reality, I am––I’m in desperate need of soaking up the sun. I feel sick to my core for being locked up here for months. Even my dogs would always get me to go outside every single day.
“Fine,” Winter says. “I’m sure I can escort you for a walk after breakfast.”
Wow. My eyes widen in surprise at how easy it was to convince him.
“Thank you,” I manage to pull from my excitement. I never thought Winter would agree to that so easily. And I remain staring at him, totally baffled, until he leaves my room again.
I hurry up to eat breakfast, my heart racing at the idea I will finally step outside. It must be freezing, but that’s the last of my issues. Afterwards, I jump into the shower and get myself ready.
A few minutes later, Winter walks again into the room, holding a coat for me. He’s already wearing his, plus gloves and a wool scarf. He helps me out with the coat and then asks, “Ready?”
“Oh, yes!” My smile is up to my ears and I even clap my hands with joy.
Winter opens the door for me, but as I reach the hallway, I find two security agents, holding automatic rifles over their shoulders. I tense immediately, and wait for Winter before taking one more step. Well, I imagine they will escort us to make sure I won’t try to run away. Needless to say, I don’t think they will hesitate to shoot if I try to do so.
Winter and I cross the hallway until we reach the main door of the house. He twists the doorknob, pushing the door wide open. The freezing air from outside hits my bones and I shiver instantly. Jesus! It’s so damn cold!
Yet, there the bright blue sky and sun are, and to me, that’s all that matters. We reach outside and Winter gestures for me to take the stairs that go down to the gardens and to follow the pathway in between the fields of snow. As I take in my surroundings, I realize we are in the middle of nowhere surrounded by nothing but snow and woodland.
My attention then goes to the house itself—it looks old and rustic, which leads me to believe we are most likely in a rural area, far from any city. I spin around, searching for any other sign of life, but all I can see is the woods stretching for miles on the horizon.
Yet, I open my arms wide, tilting my head back, and close my eyes, reveling in the rays of sunshine that are beaming on my face. “Why didn’t you take me out before?” I ask Winter upon looking at him.
He just shrugs. “You never asked.”
We start walking the pathway between the fields, and out of curiosity, I look behind my shoulder, noticing the security agents walking behind us but keeping a pretty big distance from us. Enough to give us privacy.
After a few minutes of silence, savoring the freezing air of the countryside, I quietly say, “If I decide to cooperate with Mr. Van Dieren, would he set me free?”