Page 10 of Unchained
“Getting there.”
The pilot called back and stated we would be landing in thirty minutes.
I moved the table aside and stretched out my legs, watching Veronica smoke another cigarette. “It appears being rich and famous has its quirks.”
Veronica shrugged. “Everything in life has its perks if you look hard enough.” She nodded at me. “You’ve put away some pretty significant criminals over the past ten years. How does that feel? I’m sure being the D.A. has its perks.”
“Former D.A. And it feels good anytime I take criminals off the street and protect the people I represent.”
“Yet here you are smoking weed and snorting coke.”
I shifted in my seat. She wasn’t making me uncomfortable. She was pissing me off. “Yet here I am,” I replied. “And you’re one to talk.”
“Mister O’Neil . . .”
“Deacon.”
“Deacon, my company employees nearly three thousand between the United States and overseas.”
“In sweatshops,” I added.
“I make sure people have jobs, Deacon.”
“And I made sure criminals went to jail.”
She nodded, obviously unimpressed. “When we get to Key West, I suggest you let me do the talking until we get settled in.” She finished the cigarette and stubbed it out in the ashtray. “I’ve arranged for you to have a couple of visitors. Are you interested?”
“How could I pass that up?”
“I suggest you treat them well while you are a guest in my house.”
“What the fuck is it with you?”
“I’m a private person and don’t want your shit dragging me into the limelight. That’s all.”
The pilot opened the cockpit door. “We’ll be landing in five minutes. Better buckle up.” He closed the door, and the plane began to descend.
Veronica cleaned off the table, and then we both buckled our seatbelts. Any other time I would have made a move on a woman in this situation, but Veronica wasn’t a normal situation. There was still a lot I needed to figure out about her.
“You ever been down here late at night?” she asked.
“You seem to think I’m some do-gooder who knows shit about what goes on after dark.”
“That’s exactly what I think.”
The plane touched down and headed toward one of the hangers.
“You’d be wrong, Veronica.”
“We’ll see about that.” She stood when the plane’s door opened, and the stairs were lowered. I stopped at the top of the stairs when I saw another Mercedes, black and shiny, waiting near the plane. She looked back at me and tossed a set of keys in my direction.
I crawled into the driver’s side, and she opened the door to the back seat.
“What the fuck are you doing?” I questioned.
Veronica lowered the window and lit a cigarette. “The GPS is already set. It’ll tell you where to drive.” She looked away and never returned eye contact.
“This is bullshit.” I started the car, and the voice from the GPS began. “Fucking amazing.” I pulled away from the hanger and the airport, chauffeuring a woman I’d known less than a day.
Veronica said nothing during the thirty-minute trip. And despite watching her in the rearview mirror, she never acknowledged me even being in the car. Her game, whatever it was, had my mind reeling.
I stopped at the gates to a large house overlooking the water. The gates opened, and I pulled forward, stopping in front of the immaculate home. When I got out, Veronica stayed in the backseat.
“I’m not your chauffeur. Open your own fucking door.” I took a seat on the steps leading to the front door and watched Veronica. She seemed to be unphased by my behavior.
Veronica opened the entrance and then walked past me, leaving the front door open. My last thought before entering the house was that I’d probably been better off back in the alley alone.
Inside, I found her in the living room, pouring two glasses of wine. My patience was about spent.
