Page 60 of Wine, Whiskey, & Lipstick 2

555-571-3232 – Anonymous: I know who killed Steven.

Her stomach dropped. She wondered if this was some kind of sick joke.What if it wasn’t?Dillyn’s fingers began to move a mile a minute.

312-719-0036 – Dillyn: Who is this?

555-571-3232 – Anonymous: I’m a friend. Do you want to know or not?

312-719-0036 – Dillyn: I need proof you’re not a weirdo.

Dillyn saw those dreaded three dots as she waited for a response. Several long moments went by without any response. She wasn’t sure if they’d stopped communicating, so she sent an additional text.

312-719-0036 – Dillyn: Hello? Are you there?

She almost ran over to her closet and threw the doors open. “I know it’s in here somewhere.” Dillyn had used her special device in forever. Until now, she had forgotten she even had it. She bent low and started throwing items out of her closet while searching for them.While looking,Dillyn heldher phone in one hand while waiting for a response.

Where is it?

When she was about to give up on finding the device and getting a response, Dillyn found the indexed-sized silver box. It was inconspicuous looking. Quickly, she took it back over to her computer. Dillyn wiggled the mouse to bring her monitors to life, then plugged the device into one of the USB ports.

Finally, her phone chimed with a new notification.

555-571-3232 – Anonymous: Click on the attachment.

Dillyn attached her cell phone into that device, then clicked on a program on the home page of her computer, and it began to run a diagnostic on the call.

Dillyn also did as instructed. She clicked on the attachment, and it opened to a video. She was surprised to see the current New York Attorney General sitting at a desk in what could have been a home office. Across from him sat someone Dillyn didn’t recognize.

Her knees got wobbly when she heard them speak Steven’s name.

Attorney General David Swanson: “You were supposed to make it look like a fuckin’ accident! You’ve got Steven’s name splashed across every goddamned national newspaper and television platform in the country!”

Unknown man: “He’s dead. Why does it matter how?”

Attorney General David Swanson: “It matters because it looks like he was murdered. Do you know what I had to do to squash that investigation?”

Unknown man: “We could have blamed it on the wife.”

Attorney General David Swanson: “No, we couldn’t have. I had to send cleaners to his house and remove all traces that might have led back to me. I had to make it look like he was involved with some shady people.”

Unknown man: “He was involved with shady people.”

Attorney General David Swanson: “Yes, he was, and they have deep pockets. Never mind that they are also crazy as fuck. I don’t need those knock-off Opus Dei nuts gunning for me.”

Unknown man: “I told you, none of this will blow back on you. We’ve covered your tracks too well.”

Attorney General David Swanson: “It better not. If I go down, so do you. What about the wife? What does she know?”

Unknown man: “We took care of it. She’s too consumed with finding out he was cheating on her to give a shit.”

Attorney General David Swanson: “Isn’t she a forensic IT investigator? That sounds dangerous for us.”

Unknown man: “She’s oblivious. Plus, we need her alive a little while longer.”

Attorney General David Swanson: “And the mistress?”

Unknown man: “She knew too much. Let’s say she and Steven can now live happily ever after.”

The video cut off. Dillyn was horrified. Her phone notification went off again.

---