Page 3 of Denying Davis
Whatever Junior did, it must be awful…
Regardless, I couldn’t fathom a sum like that, much less a lifestyle where that kind of cash could be accessed on demand. It wasa lotof money. More than my mother made in many years of housekeeping.
She’d never told me her salary, but I knew it wasn’t much. We couldn’t afford a lot of things that my classmates had, and she’d already told me that if I wanted to go after my dream of going to Florida State for college, I needed to get school loans. We were barely middle class, and it never felt like we had solid footing. The small apartment we lived in gave us a daily reminder of that.
“What do I have to do in return?” my mother asked.
“It’s very simple,” Mr. McCord replied. “You and your daughter must sign a legally binding agreement that states you will not pursue a criminal case against Davis Armstrong II. The contract also says that you will not sell this story to any media outlet or publication.”
“Criminal case?” As the question escaped my mouth, my mother glared at me.
“After you sign, the events that happened that evening will be considered resolved.”
I gaped at him. “Resolved?”
I looked at my mom again, and shock pulsed through me. I knew what Davis did to her that night was bad, but this?Thiswas on a different level, and I struggled to understand it. “What does he mean?”
“It’s all very complicated, honey.” Her shoulders sank, and her eyes widened. Suddenly, she looked much older than forty-two. “I’d wanted to shield you from this. I didn’t want you involved.”
“Unfortunately, she must be,” Mr. Perez said.
“She’s only sixteen.”
“We know she’s aware of what happened.”
“I need a cigarette,” Mom muttered.
“No, you can’t smoke,” I insisted. “You quit.”
“You’ve got a live one here, don’t you?” Mr. McCord gave me a cold glance then refocused on my mother. “She’s old enough to cause problems.”
“She won’t.”
“Regardless, your daughter has to be part of this too.” He cleared his throat. “And finally, you must also accept the termination of your employment with the Armstrong family. From here forward, you and your daughter must end all contact with everyone in the Armstrong family. This includes Mr. Armstrong Senior, his son, Mr. Armstrong Junior, and his grandson, Davis Armstrong III.”
“No!” I almost shouted my protest. “I won’t do that.” I leapt from the chair, and it toppled to the carpet. “Absolutely not. No way. I won’t.”
Mom stood too. “Samantha, come with me, please.” She turned to the two lawyers. “If you don’t mind, we need a minute.” She crossed the room and grabbed my elbow. “Let’s chat in your room.”
“Mom, this is—”
“Now,” she said in her sharpest voice.
Without another word, I followed her down the short hallway and into my bedroom, the place I’d called my own domain for the last six years. She shut the door then sat us on the frilly white duvet that covered my bed.
“You’re not seriously entertaining this idea, are you?” I asked.
She glanced in the direction of the hallway. “Samantha, they are making us a very generous offer.”
I scoffed.
“This is more money than I will make in three years of housecleaning. Five years, even.”
“So, what? This is blackmail.”
“I know.” She moved closer to me on the bed and gripped both of my arms. “But Sam, you don’t know how much I’ve been trying to spare you from what happened. It was awful.” She glanced away for a beat, and when her attention returned, I saw a deep sadness that seemed to go all the way to her soul. “I didn’t—”
“Tell me what exactly happened. All of it.Tellme.”
