Unscrambling his mind took a bit of time because his active imagination wanted to figure out what Ella wanted. He tried to stuff worse case scenarios out of his head. The worse case as in maybe his ex-mother and father-in-law had been in an accident, or someone else got sick. He slapped his hand across his desk until one of the staff came by. He couldn't take any more bad news. Noting the frustration the woman said, "Is there anything I can do to help you, Mr. Gray?"

That jarred him back into focus. "Uh – no, but thank you." He glanced back at the monitor watching Zara wear the carpet out. Finally, his brain kicked in – call her.

"What was in the box that's got you so upset?"

She held up the red gown, then tossed it on the ground, and stomped it. "Can you believe this, Roe?"

"He's marking you like he did that other woman." The tips of his fingers pressed into his temples relieving the pressure. The throbbing headache hadn't let up an inch. Anger trickled through him like spilled ink. Darkening his emotions as it seeped in his heart. "Hey, hey, Zara – it's okay. Don't destroy the gown. All this is doing is telling us how predictable he is. Wear the gown. Get excited about it when he comes, okay?"

Zara snatched the gown off the floor and was about to shove it into the remnants of the box. Instead, she thought about what Roman said. Ethan was being predictable. They would use that to their advantage. "I'll give him the predictable response that he will be expecting."

"There you go, treasure. Now, get some rest before he comes back. You're doing good."

***

In playing the game she decided to be 'the dutiful wife,' and cook. A quick pot of spaghetti and a salad was all that she could muster up. Her stomach soured thinking about having to do anything for this man. She snatched pots and ingredients with reluctance. After thirty minutes the house smelled like an Italian restaurant. She plated the dinner, wrapped it, and placed it in the refrigerator.

It didn't take long to clear the kitchen. Taking the box to her bedroom, she made a quick change into the red gown. A pair of black stilettos accented the dress. Zara fluffed her hair and applied some lip-gloss. Then she rummaged through her bag and found a gold necklace and put it on.

Her cell phone flashed a text message. You look awesome, though I wish the neckline were higher.

She sent Roman a smiling face back. Just then she heard the lock on the front door opening. Zara deleted the message then placed her cell phone on the nightstand. She smoothed the dress and headed down the hall.

Ethan's eyes widened when he saw her. A lustful gleam flickered in his eyes. He made sure that the dress he ordered would expose her ample bust. Thought it would be good entertainment for the men at the meeting. He stepped towards Zara. "It came already. I wasn't expecting it for another day."

She pushed a fake smile across her face, spun around, and did a gracious bow. He walked around Zara, slowly. "I knew that it would look great on you."

"It's re-MARK-able," she drawled, irony stiff in her voice. "I bet no one will have a crimson gown like this." Zara toyed with him, masking the meaning of her words. She'd never slip about how much she knew. "Ethan, if I wear this, won't everyone be looking at me? I thought the night was for you and me. Is that what you really want?"

He scrolled a finger down the side of her cheek. "Yes, darling," he whispered, "I want people to know exactly who you are. "

Bastard.

***

Three Days Later

Ethan sat around a large conference table at the corporate offices of the ring. A group of five men and three women surrounded him. One of the women was Judge Tolliver. They sat around the table laughing and kidding around. Zara's life was a big joke to them. She was as disposable as toilet paper. They would finish the details of the gathering and then move on to the next victim. In two days the event would take place in the ballroom in the lower level of the building. The massive ballroom could hold 800 people.

"Are you sure that's there's no other way to get Zara Peters out of the picture when it's time?" Asked one of the men seated at the table. "She's so well known in the online world and liked. We don't need public support coming to her rescue. It will be too noticeable. And if people dig too deep..."

"You leave that to me." Ethan tapped his pen on the table. He always tapped his pen when thinking. Zara's good girl image wasn't considered. "We'll attack her character, and get her associated with some of our illegal partners. Photos will be enough to establish a relationship. We'll start taking the photos at the gathering."

"I like guilt by association," said Judge Tolliver. "I know a few men that can plant things. I'll make sure that she attends some illegal transactions so that we can get a good plant."

"If we do get a public outcry, we can always spin this as - 'good girl has a dark side,'" said one of the other men at the table. "We've never dealt with anyone this public before. Ethan, I feel that we can stay ahead of the situation."

"We've got nine months to get the kinks knocked out. We roll this out immediately. When Zara is out of the way, we will buy all the remaining shares of her company, replace her board, and take over."

The group pitched about their dark plan over endless cups of coffee. Adding to the stakes was international money. Two Russians in the group wanted a part of the ring in their country. They offered to buy out any remaining shares that the investors to the organization did not complete. Zara's company got discussed like they were doing an intricate surgery. They had a wealth of information on every area of her company.

"Zara Peters company is a gold mine. She totally saturates the demographics that we want," Ethan said, poking out his chest in pride. "Her company knows how to push out persuasive content. This is going to be the biggest takeover that we've ever done to expand our interests."

"The Russian's are going to be a great test market to see how we can get this rolled out into different countries," said Judge Tolliver. "Now, Ethan, back to the money. I want forty percent more for this case. I'll make sure that she's put away for at least ten years."

Ethan's eyes glazed over and bore through the judge. No one had ever challenged him in a meeting, especially demanding money. He masked his anger, but he wanted to rise from the table and slap the judge. "Not one dime more, Tolliver. You seem to forget that we have records of all your misconduct."

Judge Tolliver laughed with ire. "When this ship sinks, we all go down together – Russo. I dare you to throw the first stone. We're all living too damn well off these rich boys money to mess this up. Forty percent, Russo. You up charge your client."

***

Trevor and his team watched the villa. As soon as they believed that Ethan would not be returning to the house they moved in and cleared the attic of the files. They set up an assembly line to remove the files, carrying them to their waiting truck. Then they replaced the files with reams of blank paper. By the time that Ethan suspected anything, they'd be long gone.

"How are you holding up?" said Trevor, giving Zara a hug. She looked sleep-deprived, and he felt awful about it. He couldn't wait for this all to be over. She rested her head against his shoulder and sighed.

"As well as you might expect. Knowing that you all are here, and watching over things is keeping me going."

"You're doing a damn good job."

"Thanks so much. You've shifted your whole life around for me."

"That's what friends do."

A team member walked past them, carrying a huge bundle in his arms. "This is the last set of files, Trevor. We better go."

"All right. Just give me a moment with Zara. You all pack everything in the van."

Zara felt a shiver go down her spine. She and Trevor had talked amongst the group all morning. If he had something to say in private it must not be good. "Is everything all right?"

He nodded for her to go outside on the back porch. Trevor knew that he'd not set an audio/video feed on the back porch. They ran out of time on the day that they wired the house. Zara felt her hand begin to shake.

"Listen, I don't want you alarmed, but we have no idea what will happen the day of the gathering," he said. "I think that you need some personal protection." He opened a pouch attached to his belt. It contained a small handgun.

Zara's knees buckled as she held onto the railing. She shook her head, widening her eyes. "No, I don't know anything about using a gun. You really think that I might need a gun?"

"Do what I say. Unlock this," Trevor said, holding her hand. Zara's shaky hand pulled the lock back. Trevor lifted her hand and aimed towards the ground. His voice was firm. "Pull the trigger."