Breaking Conviction by Greer Rivers

Chapter Thirty-Eight

“Ms. Ward? Can you come to my office?”

Ms. Ward?

Unease prickled the fine hair on the back of Naomi’s neck as she stood from her desk. Her boss, Gail, rarely used that tone for their meetings. She was Gail’s right-hand woman and they were certainly on a first name basis by this point. Something was wrong.

No, I’m just bein’ dramatic. I’ve got way too much on my mind.

Thirty-six hours ago, she’d stabbed her ex-fiancé. Twenty-four hours ago, she’d gone to a bond hearing with Wes to request that Dean be given no bond. It should’ve been an easy request and according to the prosecutor, Assistant District Attorney Britta Thoms, if they’d had Judge Powell it would’ve been a slam dunk.

Dean was charged with domestic violence of a high and aggravated nature, a serious and violent felony that could catch Dean twenty years in prison. He could’ve been denied bond, meaning he’d have had to stay in jail until a trial. But no, the judge had granted him a measly twenty thousand dollar surety bond, of which he only had to pay ten percent, with barely any conditions other than no contact with the ‘victim.’

Fuck, was she starting to hate that word. She was getting why Nora corrected her so much in the beginning.

All of it was bullshit. Complete and utter bullshit. She stood up in front of the judge with bruises healing all over her. Now they’d stain her body for possibly longer than Dean would even stay in jail. It was no wonder survivors never came forward when the justice system screwed them over.

ADA Thoms assured her the State would go hard in the case, but she also said that Naomi should still be emotionally and mentally prepared to go to war. Thankfully, the prosecutor had at least been able to help secure a temporary restraining order. If Dean attempted to contact her, he could get arrested just for a simple text. Considering the texts Dean had sent her in the past, it’d sounded great in theory.

But a piece of paper can’t stop a bullet.

She shuddered as she busied herself, setting her desk straight in an attempt to calm her nerves before going to Gail’s office.

At least she had Wes by her side now. Even if you never need him, having a white knight at your back is always better than fighting a battle by yourself.

“Naomi?”

“Comin’!” She’d officially stalled for long enough. Damn, why was she so edgy? Was it knowing that Dean was out of jail already? Was it just being on constant alert for the past five years? She didn’t know, but she hoped it was all in her head.

Trust your instincts.

“Shit,” she muttered under her breath before she entered the office and pasted a bright smile for Gail.

“Naomi, please sit.”

Not a blonde hair was out of place in Gail’s severely coiffed French twist bun. Her bow tie silk white blouse was steamed and she sat with her blunt, manicured red nails folded on her desk. But her normally warm smile was more brittle than Naomi’s, stealing any reassurance Naomi could gain from her boss’s appearance.

Naomi sat in the high-backed seat Gail used for clients and visitors across from her desk. She smoothed her black pencil skirt, even though she knew she’d ironed the life out of every possible crease.

After a moment of intolerable silence, Naomi cleared her throat. “What can I do for you, Gail?”

Her boss closed her eyes and swallowed. “Naomi, my dear, you’ve been with me for a while and I’ve appreciated your dedication to the job—”

“Yes ma’am. I love working here. You’ve taught me so—”

“—However...”

Naomi’s chest deflated and Gail must’ve seen because she squirmed in her seat.

“However.. it seems as though you’ve been rather preoccupied as of late. Unfortunately, today is the first day you’ve been back in weeks—”

“Gail—”

“Ms. Haynesworth will do, thank you.”

Naomi jerked back like she’d been slapped. Never in her years of being there had she called Ms. Haynesworth anything other than by her first name. Schooling her face, she made sure Gail wouldn’t see how much her slight had affected her.

“Ms. Haynesworth... I know it was last minute, but I took company-allotted personal days—”

“Yes, well… those days shouldn’t have been taken so closely together.”

“But… you authorized them?” Naomi couldn’t help but argue back. “I’m sorry, Ms. Haynesworth, I’m not sure where this conversation is comin’ from.”

“I understand your fiancé, someone CTI contracts for security, was just arrested for domestic violence?”

Naomi stilled, unsure of what direction she should navigate her next sentence. But every avenue felt an awful lot like crashing into a ditch.

“Yes ma’am. But… he’s no longer my fiancé. Hasn’t been for a while.”

“That’s unfortunate, Naomi. I’m sorry you’re going through that, but we can’t have homelife issues affect the company—”

“Gail, they were earned paid time off—”

“And CTI can’t afford to have negative press tied to it.”

Naomi stopped, registering exactly what she’d said. She didn’t care how much she admired Gail Haynesworth. No way in hell would she let yet another person make her feel shame for what Dean had done to her. She’d done that enough on her own for way too damn long.

Steel resolve straightened her backbone and sharpened her voice, destroying her accent.

“Are you saying that because I have been physically assaulted by someone whom I trusted, and have since separated myself from, that I should be held accountable for his criminal actions against me?” She narrowed her eyes at her boss, who at least had the ability to look contrite. “I’ve heard of landlords and some jobs punishing the survivor for the sake of removing the drama, but are you really telling me that this global tech company is afraid of press about my little ol’ relationship?”

Gail shifted in her chair, refusing to look Naomi in the eye and a thought entered her mind.

“What is this really about Gail?” After a moment of silence, Naomi tried again. “Could this possibly be about the pressure the company is receiving over being involved with several known human traffickers? And even helped fund an annual party for these men where the trafficking occurred?”

“A party about which you leaked important information in violation of a nondisclosure agreement you signed.”

Understanding washed over her, burning inside like acid. She collapsed back against the high back, crossing her arms and shaking her head in pure disbelief.

“So it is about them.” Her former boss and friend was still refusing to meet her eyes, instead writing something on what was no doubt Naomi’s termination papers. “I never pegged you for a coward, Gail.”

Gail finally lifted her head and narrowed her eyes. “There are many things at stake here. You’re punching above your weight, Naomi.”

She leaned forward, pressing her hands against the desk, zero fucks given at this point. “Is that so? Well, I think you’re rolling with pigs, Gail. What’re you doing? Why are you letting these men run over you? Especially since they’re steadily getting picked off by whoever is pulling their strings?”

Gail tilted her head in suspicion and Naomi slammed her lips shut.

“What do you know? You’re talking about things that haven’t been, nor will ever be, given to the press. Who are you getting your information from?”

Naomi briefly thought about trying to get out what she could from Gail, but there was no way she’d leave this conversation better than she started. Shaking her head, she leaned back against the chair.

“Does it matter?”

Gail’s lips tightened and she stabbed her pen at the bottom of the paper.

“I suppose it doesn’t. Here. You’ve been provided a severance for your termination. Feel free to use me as a reference in your future endeavors. I won’t let your recent job performance or this particular conversation taint my recommendation.”

At that dismissal, Naomi took the paperwork and slowly stood up, her mind racing. Just as she was about to cross the threshold to the office, she paused and turned back to her ex-boss.

“You know... what I did helped save eight lives from human trafficking. I won’t apologize for that, nor will I allow myself to feel guilty. But what hurts right now... what I do feel shitty about... is placing so much faith and respect in a woman I thought was a pioneer in her field. It’s devastating to find out she’s been a pawn all along.”

Gail’s eyes grew glossy before she swallowed away her emotion. Naomi wanted to feel good about hitting her target, but disappointment was all she could muster. She pivoted to leave, but Gail’s voice caught her attention.

“Be careful out there, Naomi. There are much bigger threatsin this game. Players whom I have absolutely no power to control. Ones who have the political backing to wipe not just my company, but my life off the map.” She shook her head and Naomi’s chest thundered at what she was saying. “It sounds like you know just enough to be dangerous to yourself as well as to others. Make sure you’re on the side that wins.”

Naomi narrowed her eyes. “Since when did justice become the losing side? Whatever side that saves lives and takes down trafficking is the side that wins.”

“You’ve seen the world, Naomi. Don’t be naïve. Lady Justice is greedy and blind. She doesn’t see, nor does she care, whose hand stuffs her pockets.” She gave her a small, sad smile. “True justice is a fairy tale, Naomi. But I hope, for all our sakes, that yours has a happy ending.”