Page 85 of Inevitable Secrets

“Oh my God! Stop!” Taylor screamed and watched as all of the men worked and hoisted Henry up.

The officer turned the taser at Taylor. “If you take another step towards him, I will assume you are interfering with a federal investigation,” he threatened, “and you will also be taken under arrest.”

Derrick pulled Taylor back, and put himself between her and the officer. “She’s scared, dammit,” he barked at him. The two glared at each other as the officers around them worked to move Henry’s limp frame through the door. The taser-happy agent left as well, slamming it closed behind him.

“We have to do something,” Taylor said. “Should we call the police? I mean this isn’t right!”

“I know, Tay, but I think someone is working overtime to get a clear path to you,” Derrick said holding his panicked wife to him. “We need to get you out of here,” he said finally.

Charlie came rushing back into the room. “I called Kurt and he is getting on it immediately,” he said, his face now flushed. “I saw them with Henry, got them to leave through the back door.”

“I need to get Taylor out of here,” Derrick told him. “Can you and Todd get the company helicopter here?” Derrick asked.

“Todd’s not here,” Charlie said to Derrick as if this was quite obvious. “Taylor sent him to New York for a meeting,” Charlie said.

“No, I didn’t,” Taylor said mystified. “When the hell did he leave?”

“About two hours ago,” Charlie said, flabbergasted. “He said something had happened with one of our manufacturers there and you were sending him because traveling would be too dangerous for you right now.”

“I didn’t send him anywhere,” Taylor said, panic filling her. “Let's get that helicopter and then I need you to find him,” she told Charlie and once again he was off faster than one would think the older man was capable of.

“Come on, Taylor, let’s pack it up,” Derrick said, moving back to her desk.

Taylor nodded and got up, but her mind was darting all over the place. She walked over and went to pick up her laptop, when she noticed a folder she hadn't placed there. She picked it up and opened it and found a copy of the decree in there. It had notes, from handwriting she thought she might have recognized.

“What is that?” Derrick asked, coming to look over her shoulder.

“The decree,” Taylor said.

“That’s Cedric’s copy Henry was starting to tell us about.”

Slowly Henry’s mouthy babble from just moments earlier filtered into Taylor’s head. “Henry was saying something about a decree to the cops just now,” she said to Derrick.

Derrick nodded, “Yeah, I think he was trying to stall them for some reason, telling them they were missing pages,” he said.

“Yeah but he kept using the word ‘decree’. Maybe...,” Taylor trailed off as she turned the pages slowly. “Here,” she said. “It goes from article number 3 to article number 5.”

“Where is your copy?” Derrick asked.

Taylor opened her iPad up, and opened her coded files. “I scanned it so I wouldn’t have it lying around,” she told him. She swiped through the pages.

“It’s missing here, too!” she whisper-yelled to her husband.

They looked at each other for a moment. “We have to find it,” Derrick said.

Taylor picked up the decree from Cedric again and flipped through the pages. There were notes on each page, things were underlined, notes were written on the side. Taylor got to the end of the pages and flipped it over. In small, shaky handwriting it saidFind article 4 for Taylor, and it had a small box next to it that was checked, as if it had been on his to do list.

“Look,” Taylor said, showing Derrick, “he checked it, like he found it.”

“Yeah, but then where the hell is it?” he asked, thinking they were no closer to it than they were a minute ago. Derrick took the decree and put it back into the folder Henry had brought.

Taylor felt lost yet again. As she tried to think of a place they hadn’t looked yet, Charlie came in. “The helicopter is ready,” he said, clearly flustered. “Let’s get you home, Taylor,” Charlie said.

Taylor nodded and looked at Derrick, attaching herself to his side.

Twenty-Six

The helicopter landedat Fletcher Mansion fifteen minutes later. Derrick and Taylor had ridden in silence, not willing to say anything because they didn’t know who the hell might be listening.

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