The Simmonses cut their vacation short and hurried to Tony’s bedside. Although he was happy to see them, they entered his hospital room right after Tony had finished another round of examinations and blood draws. His demeanor was not pleasant.
Their expressions were a mix of sadness and exhaustion. The trip from Fiji to Iowa had been long. Courtney was the first to speak as she rushed to Tony and swallowed him in a hug. He flinched at the discomfort. With tears in her eyes she said, “Oh, Tony, thank God! We’ve been so worried about you.”
Brent gently slapped Tony’s shoulder. “Hey, we rushed home because you’re supposed to be at death’s door. You look good to me.”
“You missed the good part,” Tony replied. “Apparently, I was more than at death’s door—I passed the threshold. The doctors said they had to restart my heart.”
Tears flowed from Courtney’s eyes as she hugged him again. “Oh! I can’t believe this. What happened? With all the traveling, we’ve only heard small snippets.”
Brent cleared his throat. “We heard that Claire’s been arrested. Man, tell us that isn’t true.”
Tony sat straighter and watched his best friends. “It is.”
“No!” Courtney stood. “Claire wouldn’t do this! There has to be some mistake.”
“Do I look like there’s a mistake?”
Using the voice Tony had heard in courtrooms and conference negotiations, Brent said, “Courtney, let’s hear what happened before jumping to any conclusions.”
“She poisoned me!” Tony lowered his volume. “In front of a live web conference, I took a drink of coffee that Claire brought to me and I died! My damn heart stopped. Last I heard that’s the definition of death. The police have reviewed all of my in-house surveillance and everything points to her. Marcus Evergreen has been here a couple of times. They have Claire locked up.” When neither of his friends commented, Tony added, “She’s being held on charges of attempted murder. Apparently, even though my heart stopped, the fact it restarted gets her out of a murder rap.”
Brent wrapped Courtney in his arms as she hugged her midsection and her shoulders shuddered. Finally, she broke free and asked, “Why? Why would she do this? What happened? What did you do?”
Tony stared as red seeped into his peripheral vision. First, there were the damn doctors who poked and prodded, and now Courtney had the audacity to accuse him! It was all he could do to keep his lips pressed together in a tight line. When he looked away from Courtney, his eyes met Brent’s. By his friend’s expression, Tony believed that Brent knew what he was thinking. Tony didn’t intend to say too much in front of Courtney, but he sure as hell would tell Brent.
Taking a deep breath, Tony winced and said, “I’ve spoken with Tom. No Rawlings money will be used for her defense. That means personal or corporate. No members of the Rawlings legal team will assist her, and that includes you,” he looked to Brent, “and your wife.”
Courtney shook her head and turned away.
Tony went on. “I personally hope that a trial can be avoided. I hardly want the world to know that I married a psycho who wanted me dead … nevertheless, the evidence is straightforward. I believe we should start thinking about a divorce.”
“Tony, please,” Courtney pleaded. “Please think about this. Please don’t make decisions that you’ll regret.”
“Brent, I’d like to speak with you privately.” Tony had never treated Courtney with anything other than respect. He didn’t want to start now. To facilitate that—to avoid a possible confrontation, Tony needed her to leave. “Courtney, I’ve had nothing to do for the last few days but lie in this bed and think. I’ve thought this out multiple different ways. You two have been traveling and are obviously exhausted. I promise this was not a rushed decision. Now, I’d like to speak to Brent for a moment.”
Brent nodded to Courtney as she picked up her coat and purse and headed toward the door. Just before she reached the handle, she said, “Tony, I’m really glad you’re all right. You know how much we care about you, but you were the one who brought Claire into our lives. I don’t abandon friends. Don’t ask me to do that.”
“I’m not. I’m asking you to support me.”
Her shoulders lifted and dropped before she looked down and left the room.
Trying to keep his voice in check, Tony glared at Brent and waited for the door to shut. Once they were alone, he said, “Control your wife! That’s not a recommendation nor a suggestion—I’m fuck’n serious. Claire did this to me. Neither you nor Courtney will visit or help her in any way!”
Brent nodded. “I hear you. Let me talk with Cort.”
“Talk to her, do whatever you need to do, but I’m not backing down on this!”
Brent feigned a smile. “I guess we don’t need to worry about you anymore. You’re obviously feeling better.”
Tony nodded. “Check in with Tom and get up-to-date. Evergreen seems to have everything under control, but I don’t want a trial. I’m willing to do anything to avoid that. You know what I think about the damn press—they’re already having a field day. I don’t want to give them any more ammunition. I have no idea what my wife was thinking or why she did this. She’d been acting strangely since that old friend of hers died. Then, after she heard about John, she must have snapped.”
“John?” Brent swallowed hard. “Did the shit hit the fan?”
“Yeah, a few days ago. His firm pressed charges.”
Brent closed his eyes and shook his head. “Damn, I didn’t know it would happen so soon.”
“Focus! This isn’t about him or even her. I’m getting out of here soon. Find out exactly what Evergreen’s planning. He just trips over himself whenever I talk to him, with all his damn yes sirs and no sirs.”
“I’ll find out what’s happening. Would you drop the charges to avoid a trial?”
“That’s just it. I never pressed charges—the state of Iowa did. I fuck’n lost control of this, and I want you to get it back for me—yesterday.”
Brent nodded and looked at his watch. “I’ll see what I can do. Do you have your cell?”
“Yeah.”
“I’ll call you later tonight. When are they letting you out?”
“If I had my way it would’ve been yesterday. My doctor’s this little five-foot firecracker who refuses to release me until some damn numbers drop in my blood.”
Brent smiled. “So the administrators don’t give a damn about your donations?”
“They do, and they’re making sure I get the best. Apparently, that’s her and she’s not interested in my donations or cash on the side—I’ve tried. Maybe I should pay off the damn lab techs. I’ll pay for the fuck’n numbers to go down.”
“Jesus, Tony! Listen to the damn doctor. I’d bet they want you out of here as much as you want to be out.”
Tony couldn’t help but smile. “You’re probably right, but I might look into the lab tech angle.”
Brent walked toward the door. “I’m leaving. I’ll call you after I talk with Evergreen.”