Convicted
Page 25
Of course, she recognized it. Looking up, she saw his blue eyes penetrating her black veil. Her world was no longer concealed, yet it didn’t make sense. How could Harry be there in Venice? Why was he there? Was he really there? New questions flooded her already saturated mind.
Listen to your intuition. It will tell you everything you need to know.
—Anthony J. D'Angelo
The familiar ring beckoned Sophia to the kitchen of their Provincetown home. She recognized the melody, telling her of her husband’s waiting call. Hurriedly, clicking the ANSWER button, Sophia allowed her smile to radiate through the screen. They hadn’t spoken in almost a week and her excitement at the handsome profile picture was hard to contain. Waiting for their conversation to connect, Sophia stared at his smiling face knowing that soon she’d see him, as if he were right there with her.
“Hi, honey,” she answered as the video feed fought to catch up to the audio. Her thoughts and concerns from earlier in the day disappeared as her husband’s soft brown eyes transcended miles, continents, and oceans.
“Hey, beautiful.” After almost a week apart, merely the sound of his voice made Sophia melt into her chair. “Tell me you’ve heard the news.”
Sophia’s mind searched for recent information. She’d been so busy with her parents’ affairs, art studio, old friends, and preparations to return to the West Coast, she hadn’t looked at a newspaper or even her homepage in a couple of days. That was part of the charm of living on the Cape—it was a world of its own. Grinning at her husband’s image, Sophia answered, “Oh, you know me—always up on the latest headlines!”
Derek grinned and shook his head.
Sophia continued, “I don’t think I have. Whatever it is, it must be pretty big if it got to you in Beijing.”
“Yeah, I’d say it’s big. It’s big enough that I’m heading back to Santa Clara tomorrow.”
“I’m getting there tomorrow too! I already have my flight booked.” Excitement about their reunion dimmed as Sophia pondered the possibilities of Derek’s agenda change. “I’m thrilled, but why? You aren’t scheduled to come home for another week. What happened? Does it have something to do with travel—has there been a safety alert, are you all right?”
“No, travel is fine. I’m fine, but Anthony Rawlings is missing!”
Sophia stared incredulously at the screen, trying desperately to put her husband’s words into a frame of time and space. She hadn’t spoken to Derek since her strange encounter in her studio with Mr. Rawlings. Wrangling her thoughts into a manageable quorum, she asked, “When? What do you mean he’s missing?”
Derek shrugged. “I’m not sure of all the details. A mandatory webinar just concluded. Roger gave everyone from Shedis-tics the basic information. I don’t think he wanted any of us to learn it from the news or internet. I haven’t had a chance to look, but Roger said it’ll be everywhere soon. The entire Rawlings Industries Empire is in defense mode. You know—circle the wagons—stand tall—and get ready for whatever happens.”
Sophia shifted in her chair. “Honey, remember we were supposed to talk last Saturday?”
Derek’s attention was suddenly diverted to something at the side of his screen. “Ah, sorry, babe, I couldn’t get to Skype. Things were crazy. You know, being back in the states for your parents’...” His voice trailed off as he looked back to the camera, concern filled the blue eyes peering only at Sophia. “I’m sorry. Don’t get me wrong. I didn’t want to be anywhere else, but with you”—the lines in his forehead disappeared as tiny creases formed around his eyes and a loving grin emerged—“That’s where I want to be now, too.”
Sophia smiled and shook her head; strands of long, blonde hair moved gently across her face. “I know that. Don’t worry, but Derek, I need to tell you something that happened on Saturday. First, tell me, when did Mr. Rawlings disappear? And what do you mean disappeared?” With each word, her volume increased, exposing her growing concern.
“I think it was last weekend, sometime—something to do with the FBI and the disappearance of his ex-wife.” The sound of an incoming call echoed behind Derek’s voice. “I really need to go. I’ll see you at home tomorrow. Things are insane! I love you!”
“Derek!”—she yelled toward the small monitor—“Derek!” Making her words move fast, Sophia added, “He was here last Saturday! He was in my art studio!”
Listen to your intuition. It will tell you everything you need to know.
—Anthony J. D'Angelo
The familiar ring beckoned Sophia to the kitchen of their Provincetown home. She recognized the melody, telling her of her husband’s waiting call. Hurriedly, clicking the ANSWER button, Sophia allowed her smile to radiate through the screen. They hadn’t spoken in almost a week and her excitement at the handsome profile picture was hard to contain. Waiting for their conversation to connect, Sophia stared at his smiling face knowing that soon she’d see him, as if he were right there with her.
“Hi, honey,” she answered as the video feed fought to catch up to the audio. Her thoughts and concerns from earlier in the day disappeared as her husband’s soft brown eyes transcended miles, continents, and oceans.
“Hey, beautiful.” After almost a week apart, merely the sound of his voice made Sophia melt into her chair. “Tell me you’ve heard the news.”
Sophia’s mind searched for recent information. She’d been so busy with her parents’ affairs, art studio, old friends, and preparations to return to the West Coast, she hadn’t looked at a newspaper or even her homepage in a couple of days. That was part of the charm of living on the Cape—it was a world of its own. Grinning at her husband’s image, Sophia answered, “Oh, you know me—always up on the latest headlines!”
Derek grinned and shook his head.
Sophia continued, “I don’t think I have. Whatever it is, it must be pretty big if it got to you in Beijing.”
“Yeah, I’d say it’s big. It’s big enough that I’m heading back to Santa Clara tomorrow.”
“I’m getting there tomorrow too! I already have my flight booked.” Excitement about their reunion dimmed as Sophia pondered the possibilities of Derek’s agenda change. “I’m thrilled, but why? You aren’t scheduled to come home for another week. What happened? Does it have something to do with travel—has there been a safety alert, are you all right?”
“No, travel is fine. I’m fine, but Anthony Rawlings is missing!”
Sophia stared incredulously at the screen, trying desperately to put her husband’s words into a frame of time and space. She hadn’t spoken to Derek since her strange encounter in her studio with Mr. Rawlings. Wrangling her thoughts into a manageable quorum, she asked, “When? What do you mean he’s missing?”
Derek shrugged. “I’m not sure of all the details. A mandatory webinar just concluded. Roger gave everyone from Shedis-tics the basic information. I don’t think he wanted any of us to learn it from the news or internet. I haven’t had a chance to look, but Roger said it’ll be everywhere soon. The entire Rawlings Industries Empire is in defense mode. You know—circle the wagons—stand tall—and get ready for whatever happens.”
Sophia shifted in her chair. “Honey, remember we were supposed to talk last Saturday?”
Derek’s attention was suddenly diverted to something at the side of his screen. “Ah, sorry, babe, I couldn’t get to Skype. Things were crazy. You know, being back in the states for your parents’...” His voice trailed off as he looked back to the camera, concern filled the blue eyes peering only at Sophia. “I’m sorry. Don’t get me wrong. I didn’t want to be anywhere else, but with you”—the lines in his forehead disappeared as tiny creases formed around his eyes and a loving grin emerged—“That’s where I want to be now, too.”
Sophia smiled and shook her head; strands of long, blonde hair moved gently across her face. “I know that. Don’t worry, but Derek, I need to tell you something that happened on Saturday. First, tell me, when did Mr. Rawlings disappear? And what do you mean disappeared?” With each word, her volume increased, exposing her growing concern.
“I think it was last weekend, sometime—something to do with the FBI and the disappearance of his ex-wife.” The sound of an incoming call echoed behind Derek’s voice. “I really need to go. I’ll see you at home tomorrow. Things are insane! I love you!”
“Derek!”—she yelled toward the small monitor—“Derek!” Making her words move fast, Sophia added, “He was here last Saturday! He was in my art studio!”
