Page 25 of The Summer Request
Chloe shook her head. “No, it’s not too soon. It’s way overdue, actually.” She paused and cleared her throat before continuing. “I was sorry to hear about Justine. Lou didn’t talk much about her, even when I would ask, but I knew her a bit through my early Emerald sessions. She was always so kind and welcoming and…yeah. Just a lovely person.”
Lisa pinched her lips together. Chloe was a nice girl. She deserved much better than Lou.
“Thank you.” Michelle said.
Chloe continued. “I met Lou after a friend convinced me to go to an Emerald recruitment event. I was struggling in my PhD program and felt like a failure. I went to this class and it was all about figuring out what you wanted in life and building confidence. It was so inspiring. Lou was so inspiring.”
Val waved the waitress over. “Cappuccino, please.” She turned to Chloe. “That’s how they get you, isn’t it? All that stuff was Justine’s idea. She was always talking about positive energy and building the life you want.”
Chloe nodded. “It was all positive at first. Later, when Lou and I started dating, he wanted to keep it quiet. I should have been suspicious then but….” She groaned. “I’m an idiot, I guess.”
Lisa let out atsk. “You’re not an idiot. Lou is much older than you and quite a skilled manipulator.”
“The woman in the painting is an Emerald Elite,” Chloe said. “I’ve taken classes from her. She’snice. I don’t know why Lou would do this. I don’t know why she would lie. It feels like my life has fallen apart over the last twenty-four hours.”
Lisa didn’t know what to tell this girl. At least she hadn’t married the guy, but that wouldn’t be much of a comfort now.
Michelle had an idea, it seemed. “You know, we don’t hate Lou. We were all friends once. But we’ve watched Justine’s vision become more corrupted over the years.”
“Even when Justine couldn’t see it,” Val added. She took a sip of the cappuccino that had just arrived. “You can’t really blame yourself. At least you’re out of it and now you can make him pay.”
Chloe laughed, but Michelle and Lisa exchanged glances. They knew Val wasn’t joking.
“I’ve been blind to it for so long,” Chloe said. “I dropped out of my program and dedicated myself to the Path of the Emerald. I was convinced it was the only way to find happiness, and some of it did make me feel better. Well, not the sessions so much. They were really expensive, but thecommunityis so great. I made so many friends. But I started to get the feeling that something wasn’t right a few months ago.”
“You poor thing,” Lisa said. She no longer feared being arrested and could finally feel for this girl. “You can’t let him hold you back. Let this be the last time Lou Emerald ruins your day.”
“Hang on,” Val said, holding up a finger. “Wouldn’t you like to get back at him?”
“Val,” Michelle said, voice full of warning.
“What?” Val shrugged. “The only thing that could make a breakup sweeter is a little revenge.”
Chloe looked at her, eyes wide. “Uh…”
Val leaned in. “Have you broken up with him yet?”
Chloe shook her head. “Not yet, but I will. I think I was in shock.”
“Don’t do it quite yet,” Val said, ignoring Michelle’s glare. “You might be able to help us. I mean, if you want to.”
“Val,” Lisa said, “don’t drag her into this.” She was already full of regret for going along with Val’s plan. Chloe didn’t need to be a part of it, too.
“Help you do what, exactly?”
Val smiled brightly. “It’s come to our attention that – ”
Michelle cut her off. “No, Val. Just stop.”
Chloe’s eyes darted between them. “I’d like to help. If I can.”
The thought of saying Val’s theory out loud was suddenly mortifying to Lisa. She interrupted Val just as she started to speak. “We think there are some things Lou might’ve been dishonest about. About Justine, and about the divorce.”
Val narrowed her eyes, but said nothing about being silenced.
“What kind of things?” asked Chloe. “Like assets?”
“Sort of,” Michelle said. “But you don’t want to get involved. Trust me.”
