"Gerry, I'm sorry to bother you," Rachel said abruptly. "I'm in trouble. Financial trouble."
His eyebrows furrowed together as he gestured for them to come in and sit down in the living room. "What do you mean by financial trouble?"
She twisted her hands in her lap, unable to hide her nervousness. This was extremely important and she couldn't afford to have Gerry refuse her request. "I can't tell you, so please don't ask. I need a lot of money, and I'm hoping you'll be willing to buy my shares of stock in the company."
The stunned expression on Gerry's face would have been comical if the situation wasn't so grim. "Rachel, I'm happy to loan you whatever you need. There's no reason to sell your stock."
His offer was humbling, but she knew she couldn't take him up on it. Gerry was in his late forties and his two sons were currently enrolled in college. She couldn't take advantage of his generosity. "I insist on selling them to you. That way, if anything happens..." She couldn't bring herself to finish her thought. "It's just better this way, because I need ten million dollars."
"Are you kidding me?" Gerry leaped to his feet and began to pace. "Rachel, that just about covers all your stock! And how are you going to get the bank to give you that much money?"
"I'm hoping Edward Callahan, the bank manager, will bend a few rules for me," she said. "He knows the company is worth far more than that."
Gerry let out his breath in a huff and then turned to glare at Nick. "Can't you talk her out of this nonsense?" he demanded.
"I'm afraid not. Rachel is the one in charge here. I'm just helping her out as a good friend."
Gerry's gaze narrowed and he threw up his hands. "All right, fine. I'll help you. But, Rachel, please reconsider taking a simple loan. There's no reason to sell off your stock from your father's company."
His offer was generous, but she shook her head stubbornly. She'd never sleep at night with that heavy a debt hanging over her head. "I need you to buy the stock, Gerry. I want everything legal. Please don't fight me on this."
She couldn't explain that the likelihood of getting the money back was slim to none. And besides, if something happened to her during the exchange, she wanted the company to be in good hands. Gerry would be able to pick up where she'd left off without any trouble.
And even if she did survive, she knew full well that, after this was all said and done, she and Joey would have to start over, with a new job and maybe even a new house.
A price she was willing to pay if it meant getting her son back safe.
SIX
Nick watched the interchange between Gerald Ashton and Rachel with interest. There was no denying the gentleman, who he guessed was roughly ten years their senior, seemed to care about Rachel. There was a casual familiarity between them as they ironed out the details of obtaining the money. While they worked, he swept a curious gaze around the room.
Family photos featuring Gerald, his wife, Nancy, and their two grown sons were proudly displayed. The furnishings in the room, including the holiday decorations, were expensive and fancy-not to his taste at all but not awful, either. The place looked like something out of a fashion magazine, and he didn't doubt for a moment that a professional decorator had had a hand in the outcome.
He'd never been to Rachel's house and wondered if her style was similar to Gerry's. Not that he should care one way or the other. But somehow, he couldn't imagine Rachel raising Joey in a fancy, formal place like this.
Or maybe that was wishful thinking on his part.
He had to admit there was nothing to make him think Gerry was anything but what he seemed-a wealthy businessman who cared about his family and about Rachel. He told himself to relax and tuned back into the conversation.
"I'll call Edward," Gerry told Rachel, putting a reassuring arm around her shoulder. Nick had to grit his teeth to stop from going over to forcibly remove it, even though the gesture was clearly intended to be reassuring and friendly. "I'm sure we can come up with some way to get you the cash you need. But the earlier I call him, the better."
"We appreciate your help, Gerry," Nick said, determined to make his presence known. He was more than willing to play the role of Rachel's boyfriend, if necessary. "Rachel said such kind things about you, I'm glad to see she was right."
Gerry actually looked flustered by the compliment. He removed his arm from Rachel's shoulders and pulled out his phone. "Give me a few minutes to talk this through with Edward, okay? We'll have to sign the paperwork in front of a notary, too, and he'll have someone at the bank we can work with, I'm sure."
"Thanks, Gerry."
While the older man was making the call, Nick crossed over to kneel by Rachel's side. "Are you okay?" he asked. As far as he could tell, she was holding up pretty well, considering.
"I will be once we have the cash," she murmured in a low voice. "At least we're one step closer to getting Joey back."
"Agreed. Just hang in there a little longer, okay?"
She nodded again but was still twisting her fingers together. He gently put his hand over hers, stilling her motions. "We'll get through this, Rachel," he said reassuringly. He wanted to invite her to pray with him but, after her outburst in the car earlier, settled instead on praying silently for her and Joey.
When Gerry returned, Nick rose to his feet. Rachel stood, too, and he stayed close by her side. Gerry's gaze was openly curious as it moved between the two of them, but he didn't comment. "Edward is going to do his best to pull the funds together. He's asked that you call him in two hours. We can meet him at the bank to finalize everything."
"Sounds good. Thanks again, Gerry." She set the drafted forms aside. "Bring these with you, okay? I'll see you in a little while."
Gerry hesitated before taking the documents she'd handed over. "I feel terrible about this, Rachel, and my offer still stands. If something changes, and you still have the money, I'd be more than happy to rip this agreement up as if it never happened."
"Thanks, Gerry." Rachel's smile was heartbreaking, and she reached up to kiss Gerry's cheek before turning away. Nick followed, as they made their way back outside.
In the car, he turned toward her, half expecting tears, but her eyes were dry and her expression was determined. "What now?" she asked, as if she hadn't just agreed to sign her life away. "We have two hours until we need to be at the bank."
"We'll find a coffee shop with free Wi-Fi so we can do some more research on Frankie Caruso. I also need to update my boss." He put the car in gear, backing carefully out of Gerald Ashton's driveway. At this moment, he didn't think he'd ever admired a woman more than he admired Rachel. She was beautiful, smart, sincere, and the one of the best mothers he'd ever known.
And the part of his heart that he'd sent into a deep freeze after Becky's and Sophie's deaths thawed just a little.
* * *
Rachel gratefully climbed out of the car at the coffee shop, hanging on to her new phone with a death grip. Nick purchased two large coffees and then found a small table near a gas fireplace. It was nice and cozy near the fire, and she sipped her coffee, gazing up at the wreath hanging above the mantel as he booted up the laptop.
"You can do some searching while I figure out a plan about handling the exchange," Nick said, turning the computer toward her. "Plus, I need to call a friend of mine to help with the exchange. Don't worry," he added, when he saw her dismay. "Jonah is someone I'd trust with my life. Unfortunately, we can't do this alone, Rachel. We need backup."
She nodded, her stomach twisting as she understood what he was saying. Getting the money from the bank was the easy part. Keeping her son alive during the exchange was going to be much tougher.
But failure was not an option.
As Nick made his calls, she sat there feeling numb. Even after he'd finished, she could only manage to stare blindly at the computer screen. For a moment she was tempted to start praying again. She regretted her harsh words to Nick earlier this morning. She'd been angry and had taken that anger out on him, wanting to hurt him the same way she was suffering.
Was she crazy to ask for God's help? Why would God listen to her? Her parents hadn't been religious, but she sensed they'd believed in God. At least they'd seemed to. Maybe she really was missing something important.
For a moment she bowed her head and opened her heart. I'm sorry, Lord. I never should have said those hurtful things. Especially when they're not true. I know Nick believes in You and I want to believe, too. Please help show me the way. And please keep my son safe in Your care. Amen.
As before, the moment she finished praying, a sense of peace settled over her. She looked up and caught Nick staring at her, and she forced herself to smile. "I'm sorry, Nick. I do want to believe in God. I want to believe He'll keep Joey safe."