Page 80 of Inevitable Secrets

Yup, Taylor sure did. She had a million questions, mostly because she hadn't read the damn thing. She had totally forgotten this meeting was even happening, and so what she needed was a recap on all of it. But Taylor was never going to admit that, especially to Todd.

“Nope, I’m good,” she said closing the iPad cover in front of her. If there was anything she had learned in her time since taking over, it was that sometimes you had to fake it until you make it. And confidence often trumped ignorance.

Todd gave her a nod. “Okay, see you then,” he said turning quickly, his jacket billowing out a bit.

“What is that?” Taylor barked as she saw something under Todd’s jacket.

Todd looked around the room. “What?”

Taylor stood. “Under your jacket,” she said. “Is that a gun?” she asked, baffled.

“Yes,” Todd said flatly.

“Why do you carry a gun?” she demanded. “Is that even legal?”

“I have always carried one, and yes, it is legal.”

Taylor was a little horrified. “We have security, Todd, you don’t need to be gunslinging.”

“Your grandfather asked me to start doing it when I was working with your father. It was before personal security was a big thing,” Todd explained. “And so I did. There was a time we all had one hidden in our offices—me, Charlie, your Dad, hell, even your Grandfather. I suppose now it is a habit to have it,” he mused.

“Have you ever used it?” Taylor asked, still not completely recovered, looking at the place where she knew it now sat under his jacket.

“Not this one,” he answered.

Taylor’s office door opened after a quick knock and Henry came in. “Hello, Mrs. Preston-Fletcher, I am here to take you to your lunch date with your husband,” he announced.

Taylor furrowed her brow at Henry. She did not have plans with Derrick, “I…” Realization hit as the puzzle pieces fit together. “I am ready,” she said, grabbing her purse. She nodded at Todd and followed Henry out of the building, Mick and Ian trailing after her.

They didn't speak the entire way to the garage, and Derrick was just arriving with his own security detail as they made their way to the car.

Derrick leaned down and kissed Taylor. “What’s going on?” he whispered to her as they continued to walk to the car.

“No idea,” Taylor mouthed back, entering into the door that had been opened for her by Ian. They were alone for a few seconds before Henry slipped into the driver's seat. Taylor examined him and saw he looked just as tired as she felt, dark circles under his eyes and all.

“How are you doing, Henry?” Taylor asked. She was concerned her head of security was burning the candle at both ends. One end being Taylor’s problems and the other end his relationship with Marty.

“Dandy,” he said, and then turned to face them. “How are you?” he asked. Taylor could tell he was worried about her. She should be worried about herself, too, but unfortunately it wasn’t on her agenda for today.

“I’m dealing,” she offered and received a nod.

Henry turned forward and started driving. They were all silent until the car exited the garage, and it was Henry who finally broke the lull. “I spoke to one of my contacts about Cedric potentially being involved in something illegal,” Henry explained. “He agreed that the trauma to his head was suspicious, but he checked with every contact he had from every gang and mafia outlet he could think of and he got no hits on anyone dealing with Cedric Preston.”

“That can’t rule it out completely, though,” Taylor said. “I mean someone bashed his head in and tortured him, that sounds pretty illegal to me,” she said.

“It may be a lower food chain criminal, but my source confirmed that his manner of death was not one that followed with the usual pattern of the crime affiliates in LA.”

Another dead end, Taylor thought, shaking her head.

“And something else,” Henry said. “You mentioned a housekeeper finding Cedric’s body,” he hedged glancing and meeting Taylor’s eyes in the rearview mirror.

“Yup, that’s how he was found,” she said.

“My source says he doesn’t know anything about a housekeeper.”

Taylor furrowed her brow and looked at Derrick, who met her stare with equal confusion.

“How would this person know whether or not…” Taylor stopped herself, hearing Henry’s warning in her subconscious about not asking questions. “Never mind.”

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