Trust Me Today

Monday, 25th Feb,2014

8:00 A.M

He kept looking outside of the window, his mind frantically wandering for solutions. His villa had a good view from every angle and the house he lived in was exquisite in all ways imaginable. Being the CEO of the largest bank did have it’s perks, but along with it came the lifestyle he had to maintain. His status in career had put him on the map and everyone knew who he was.

“You’ve been staring out for quiet sometime, everything okay?”

His wife was the the only one who understood him, probably knew him  better than himself. Eight years after being married to Veronica, Jay Barnes knew that she would sense the slightest bit of tension within him. It was useless concealing things anymore. Even though time passed by, she was still beautiful and she did know how to keep herself  that way.

“I am in trouble Ver…a huge mess I created for myself ”  he said with a heavy heart.

Veronica just looked up and was waiting for words to come out of his mouth. She knew Jay was good at his job and also had a way with solving problems. Being married to him for a long time, she knew love wasn’t the only force that drew him near when they met. She was the daughter of a business tycoon and was the only child. Problems had their way to creep up in their lives now and then.

“Something unsolvable I believe. Will anyone be hurt?” she asked…this was routine for her. She never bothered about money but was sure not to hurt anyone down the road.

“No, no one has got or will be hurt. It’s not even an  unsolvable problem… it’s just to pricey to solve. I believe there is a leak within my staff. Don’t you want to know what it is?”

“No, over the years I have realized that when it comes to business matters with my late father, God bless his soul, and you, it’s best to be in the dark. ”

That was the safest way as well to survive. After all, money does have the power to motivate people to do the unthinkable. She didn’t have any family left and now had no where to go. 

” I would have to access our trust- funds this time” Jay said.

” Well, you might have really gotten in over your head this time to have come so far as to touch the fund. Are sure breaking into our deposits is the only way you can handle this. That is after all our money!”

“Hey Trust me, if there was another way I would have taken care of everything by now. If you could help me this one time, it would be done with without much noise.”

Help me this one time, she had lost track of how many times had she heard that before? I was drunk when I gambled, I need to be on this trip, I need to invest in this project…she was used to his spend thrift ways, but the trust-fund…this was serious. She was tired of looking happy for others while her husband went galavanting around. 

“Do what you have to do.” she sighed, “It’s not like I have a choice. Be home for dinner. Just try  not to break the trust. Of all the days, you chose today? ”

***

Monday, 25th Feb,2014

2:20 P.M

He waited with the bag of cash as discussed with her in the cafe. Afternoons were quieter and pretty slow, there were not many people around and it was easy to talk there. He glanced at his watch…almost 2:30 in the afternoon, she should have been here by now.

He saw her car pull in the driveway and he was prepared. She walked in confidently, removed her stylish glares and sat next to him after ordering a cappuccino.

“Did you get it?”

“Yes, but you have to uphold your end of the deal, Mia. Who told you about this?”

She laughed sarcastically and spat out “Who told me? Who told…. J, do you realize in the past five years how many stories I have written. None on speculation. Everything has concrete proof. People like you make millions out of the middle-man’s pocket.  Do you know how many are broke, people are killing themselves Jay. My source will remain anonymous…sorry.Your company issued funds to the public to invest in when you knew they would never earn a dime out of it ever. And yet, no one can touch you because no  one knows how to fight you.”

“And it will remain that way after today, isn’t it why you are here? so please, spare me on the moral talk now”

She sipped her cappuccino silently. “Someday someone will know, Jay. All business aside, you are also a friend. I know Veronica and you for over a decade , even before you both were married… so please…”

“Oh please, friends don’t black-mail friends….Do you know I had to dip into our trust-fund to satisfy your demands.Now you listen to me carefully, you keep this to yourself and tell your sources to back off. If I come to know that you are pursuing this story…I will tell the press about this arrangement we have. So friend, I hope I never have to speak about this again.” He threw cash on the table and left the bag for her…”Enjoy your coffee.” and stomped off.

Mia Brown, she was the host, and editor of  Truth Untold, the most controversial talk-show of this age where no one was spared. Business tycoons,Wealthy men, Government officials… everyone had dark secrets that came to light on her show. Threats came to her frequently and she knew that she could en-cash the wealthy in need at times. After all information is priceless. But to have to do this to Jay was sad…but hey, life ain’t always fair.

***

Monday, 25th Feb,2014

7:00 P.M

Veronica looked at the banquet she had prepared for this evening. In just a few minutes, guests would arrive to celebrate her birthday. She was mighty pleased with the arrangements and looked around. It was beautiful…just as she had imagined. Her whole life revolved around making things look pretty. No matter how empty they seemed inside. Be it her house, her marriage or even herself. She felt empty…nothing was her own. The money she owned was her fathers and now it was Jay’s…the reputation she had also came along with their names. But she did as she was told…never questioned anything said to her and just made it look pretty. That’s all she could do.

She went to the bedroom for one last look into the mirror before the party started. Jay was getting ready as well.

He looked with widened eyes “My…you look beautiful…as always. How do you pull it off? Hey, I wanted to let you know that everything is okay now. Just trust me, no more hiccups now on wards,okay.” Just then the door-bell rang.

Her face saddened a bit, “Jay, you take care of almost all problems, I have never questioned anything. But to go this far that we had to put in funds personally is quite a stretch. Needless to say the problem you had would have been profound…I just wish you didn’t have to break the trust. Anyways, you know what you have to do… get ready soon and come down, the show has almost started.”

***

Monday, 25th Feb,2014

7:30 P.M

In fifteen minutes the place was bustling with guests. Everyone praising Veronica for her impeccable and unique style. She was the epitome of a perfect wife who was often envied by the ladies. After starters were served, she signaled the staff to prepare for the main course and Jay announced a toast for his lovely wife.

“Friends, let us raise our glass to the hostess who made our evening memorable. Wish you many happy returns of the day, darling and I sincerely hope that may all your dreams come true. To trust, love and long life filled with memories to come… Happy Birthday!”

“Happy Birthday” the hall echoed as all the guests wished in unison.  A three- tier cake, lit with candles was wheeled in and lights were dimmed as everyone started singing together  

Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday to Veronica…happy birthday to you…From good friends…..

Just then the door-bell rang again and the happy song died down slowly. One of her staff members frantically called in for Jay ” Sir, we need you for just a moment please.”

Veronica and Jay looked at each other and Jay proceeded to greet whoever was at the door. Meanwhile Veronica regained her composure and said “Thank you so much.. why don’t we all gather for the main- course. Dinner is served, please help yourselves. ” and she also walked down the stairs to the main entrance to see what was happening.

As she got to the door, she saw blue-red lights flashing in front, chaotic chatter while one officer was reading Jay’s rights to him. She froze and started screaming “What are you doing?”

“Mam, please calm down.” The lead inspector said. ” I am Inspector Stiles… there is a warrant for Mr. Barnes on the account of fraud. You can come to the station with us and we can brief you there. You have a large gathering in, so I would prefer to do this quietly or we can do it your way if you wish to keep screaming.”

She quietened down but was crying and shivering… some of their close friends had gathered around and told her to keep her cool. They escorted her in while the police wheeled off with her husband.

Simultaneously, the broad cast aired the show – Truth Untold . 

Good Evening, today in yet another shocking report we are about to show  the truth behind the fraud committed by the largest and most trusted financing companies,we all know as Barnes Global Financing Ltd. For almost two years now this company has been promoting financial schemes to the masses encouraging them to invest in projects with companies that do not exist. An insider source also revealed that the CEO, Mr Jay Barnes was not only aware of these projects but also had a team in place to execute this plan. Tonight, stay tuned to learn more about shocking secrets revealed on how this company systematically planned to rob our hard-working men and women….We will be back after this short-break.

***

Monday, 25th Feb,2014

10:30 P.M

Veronica was finally allowed to meet Jay in the interrogation room. It had been a long night and Jay had given his statements. The charge-sheet was lengthy and from the looks of it, he wasn’t getting out soon. She was exhausted and tired, drained out completely. Somehow she gathered the strength to speak.

“Is it true?”

” I thought I had taken care of it, Ver. She deceived me…I gave into all her demands and she violated our agreement. Veronica, you need to know that I did all I could.”

“It still doesn’t answer my question. Did you do it?” She demanded an answer from Jay. For the first time she questioned him.

He looked up defeated, ” You know me better than I do myself. You always have.”

She looked at him, ” You know, I actually don’t. I know you to be a man with a flair who goes around flaunting money he never earned. I never questioned you when you were out partying with your so called friends or gambling our future away. I knew you never married me for my love, it was rather the love for my money. I never expected you to be there for me either, but to swindle from the home of tens of thousands of families- you are the lowest of low!”

“I did what I had to do for our future, Veronica. I did it for us.”

“No, no, don’t you dare put this on me. It was never about money for me Jay and I had asked you if anyone would get hurt? I always told you, don’t break the trust.”  And Jay looked at her, then understanding what her conversations meant.

She continued ” I am tired and done now. You emptied our funds, your robbed innocent people who trusted you and you made a mockery of yourself. Look at you, you are nothing now.”

“We are nothing now…Veronica. I won’t be going down this road alone. Our trust-fund is empty and as far as you are concerned, you are nothing without me. You don’t have anything if I stay in here, so stop this blame game and help me out…trust me just this one time” He yelled back.

She drew closer to him and said “Trust you? Trust you? I have been helping you out all this time Jay, you tugged on the last straw. I am no dumb housewife living under false pretenses. ”

She leaned to his ear and whispered ” I knew you were doing something huge that would impact others and you will drag me and take whatever little is left for me…Mia doesn’t need money, why do you think she demanded a hefty bribe to keep her mouth shut. She didn’t break any deal. You asked her not to host the show and she didn’t, her assistant editor did that tonight. And by the way, who did you think tipped Mia off in the first-place. All those documents were at our place,remember ?  I warned you, don’t break the trust”

Jay glared at her stumped. She, Veronica, she did it. She was the source for Mia.

“Well, at least you were right about one thing tonight – all my dreams will come true now. Trust me now, love and long life filled with memories to come is something I am looking forward to. Good luck working your way out of here with an empty trust-fund.”

He kept starting at her dumbstruck as she got up and walked out.He heard her heels click on ground to fade as he slowly slumped his fore-head in to his palms.

***

Monday, 25th Feb,2014

11:45 P.M

She was just entering her house when she saw a familiar face holding a cup-cake with a candle lit for her singing

From good friends and true, from old ones and new, may good luck go with you and happiness too...”happy birthday darling….still couple of minutes left”

“Oh, Mia. You are the best, thanks.”

“Hmm, do you know how many threats I would receive after today’s show. But it’s nothing  compared to the thank-you notes I will also get….all because you were brave enough to do this. And as far as my expertise goes, the court will order the bank to pay off all their customers, so Ver you really are no dumb house-wife…you are a hero. Hey, before I forget, here…”

She handed the bag of cash she had got at the coffee-shop. “This is your’s.”

“Thanks” Veronica looked at it ” it’s a long way from here but life will be finally full of my choices. Mia, thanks alot.”

They both looked at each other and smiled. ” Okay, I heard you have loads of food in there and I am starving, lets grab something to eat and talk away the night…what say?”

Veronica opened the door and let Mia in filling the house with laughter as they both chatted away.