Chapter 23
Jo decided that next evening that she absolutely loved New York. After sending Alex’s parents home in the morning, Jo and Alex visited the Statue of Liberty, Central Park, the Empire State Building, and the 9/11 Memorial. She had never felt as patriotic as she did that day touching the thousands of names on the American Immigrant Wall of Honor. She had discovered that nearly half of all Americans could trace their family history to someone who had entered America at Ellis Island. It was awe-inspiring. She wondered if the Becker family had come through there.
The Statue of Liberty gave her the same sense of awe. She was just one small person in a sea of people. It made her feel insignificant. Then she looked around and saw all six security agents encompassing her, and knew she was no longer “nobody.” They had increased their security today when she had smugly informed Roberts first thing that she would be riding the subway at some point in the day. Roberts showed no expression at all, she remembered, but she was almost certain she saw smoke pouring from his ears.
So after all of their experiences of the day, the girls were back in the penthouse, safe and sound, even after the despicable subway trip. She realized after boarding it that the subway had been a bad idea, but she knew her team would have been watching for people that might have been following her, and Roberts had three limos out. He called the other two ‘decoys.’
Brad was moving into the other penthouse today, and she hadn’t heard from him. She wanted to find out if there was anything he needed for his apartment. She picked up the cell phone Tammy had given her, and handed it to Alex.
“Can you figure out how to add Brad to the front of this thing, and give him an icon so I can call him when I want?”
Alex took the phone and looked at it. “Do you have the manual?”
Jo laughed. “I asked for the manual, Tammy told me I didn’t need it. I think she wanted me dependent on her.”
Alex made a face. “Oh well, we don’t need the manual. That’s what the Internet is for,” and she headed for the study, Jo on her heels.
The two girls entered the room and flipped on the light. They both stared at the empty desk.
“There’s no computer,” Jo stated unnecessarily.
“I see that,” Alex retorted. “This is where I come in. I should be able to find a store that will deliver whatever you want in five minutes or less. That will be part of my job, right?”
Jo shrugged. “I suppose, but who is open after six on a Sunday night?”
“A store that caters to rich, spoiled people, I suppose,” Alex responded. Then her face brightened. “I know; I’ll call Dalton. He will know.”
“Good thinking,” Jo complimented her.
Alex picked up the phone and dialed the concierge desk. She asked her question and received an answer. She thanked him and hung up.
“There’s an electronics store nearby, but they don’t deliver. You have to go in and actually pick out the computer yourself, and pay for it. Can you believe what this world is coming to?” Alex threw her hands up in the air, and Jo collapsed on the sofa in peals of laughter.
“No, we are buying two laptops, one for each of us, then one desktop for the study,” Jo decided. “There has to be wireless in here, it has everything else.”
“Okay, I don’t mind getting a laptop if you insist,” Alex grinned. “I assumed you will buy your Wardrobe Consultant one, too.”
“Yeah, but I want her to pick it out herself, like we are,” Jo told her as she pressed the yellow button and called the security team to go out.
It didn’t take long to pick out three computers. Jo looked at the display of equipment, chose a laptop and desktop that had all the features she wanted, and purchased some desktop publishing and word processing software to go with each one. Alex took a little more time, choosing a laptop with a higher grade of video and audio, and chose several software packages that she felt would help her keep Jo more organized. She also found a computer program that would sync with the phone Jo had, and bought it too. She wouldn’t need a manual since the computer would program the phone.
“All set?” Jo asked her.
“I think so.” Alex responded.
“Just a minute,” Jo stopped. They walked past the audio section, and Jo had remembered that she had lost her MP3 player and all her CDs in the fire. She could easily replace them now; so she decided to look at all the available styles choosing a player that had a display and was easy to use. She also chose ten music CDs to replace some of those she had lost, and two new ones she had been wanting.
“You want any while we are here?” she asked Alex.
“Um, no, but you might want to replace your camera, too. Neither of us had one today when we were going sightseeing. It was sad.”
“You’re right, Alex. I need a camera.”
They headed to the video department and Jo chose a high-end camera that doubled as a video camera as well as took still pictures. She selected several memory cards to go with it, and then finally they were ready to leave.
At the checkout, Jo and Alex pushed their shopping cart up to the check stand. As the wide-eyed clerk rang up the thousands of dollars in technology, he eyed the two girls suspiciously then called his manager for assistance.
“What’s the problem,” the manager of the store asked when he arrived.
“These two young ladies are buying over ten thousand dollars worth of stuff. They look rather young and I just wanted you to verify their identification.”
The manager looked at the girls, then at the total of their bill. He snapped his head back to the girls. “Is this a hoax? How are you paying for this?”
Jo stared back at the man, perturbed. “Would you prefer cash, check, or charge?”
Alex quickly tapped Jo on the shoulder. “We don’t have that much cash, Jo, only one-thousand five hundred, remember?”
Jo, deflated slightly, revised her question. “Check or charge?”
The manager stood up straight and asked to see her identification. He carefully examined the credit card and the ID card once they were handed over. The clerk did too. They looked from the picture to the girl, several times. The manager turned both cards over and looked at the backs.
“California, huh? And this credit card is brand new. There are no marks of any kind, no indication that the credit card has ever been swiped before. Both the ID and the credit cards are fakes, and I’m not letting you pull anything over on me in my store. You two con artists stand right there while I call the police.” The man then called over two of his employees to help detain the girls while he reached for a phone.
“Is there a problem, Miss Becker?” Roberts asked, startling Jo and Alex who hadn’t seen him walk up behind them. His words were directed to Jo, but he glared at the men behind the check stand. The two approaching employees stopped short, afraid to get involved with the imposing man standing next to the girls, especially when they saw the gun holster at his side.
“The manager and his employee don’t think I can make good on my purchase, Roberts. They think I’m going to scam them.” She told him angrily.
“Then we will take your business elsewhere.”
Roberts motioned for Diaz to take the girls out to the limo that was waiting at the door. The manager and clerk stared open-mouthed at the limo, realizing their grave error. Roberts turned to the manager. “You will please inform the owner of this store that BeckFord Financial Corporation will no longer be purchasing any of its equipment from your store or any of its franchises.” At their terrified expressions, Roberts continued, “Yes, you just cost your company billions of dollars in sales. Have a good evening,” and he left, smiling.
Alex and Jo, both hearing what Roberts had said, turned to look at the two men. Jo almost felt sorry for the manager. He was white as a sheet and looked like he was going to faint, but she smiled and waved, and Alex laughed as they got into the limo and left the store for good.
Jo sighed as the car began moving. “Am I going to have to deal with this a lot, Roberts?” she asked him.
“In the beginning, yes, Miss Becker. Very few people know about the new head of BeckFord, and some of those don’t even know your age. It will take time for the city to realize there is a new princess in town.”
“Now back to our original problem. We need computers and stuff. Is there another store nearby? It’s past seven now, and Alex and I are starting to get hungry.”
“Yes, I told the driver the location of another store. It is much bigger than the one we just left, and will have an even larger selection.”
Jo sighed. “Great, I get to get grilled again.”
They entered the second electronics store and were able to pick out the two laptops and desktop, get all the same software they had chosen at the other store, and all the same music CDs. There was even an MP3 player that Jo liked better than the one at the previous store.
Once again they found themselves at the check stand. This time, the gal behind the counter just rung everything up and gave her the total. Jo handed over the credit card, and the efficient clerk asked to see her identification. Once the woman was satisfied that the person in the picture was Jo, she ran the card through, had Jo sign the slip, then they were out the door.
“Much better,” she commented to Alex. “Make sure we remember to buy all of our stuff there, Alex and not at the other store.”
Alex nodded. “I will make a note of it,” and realized she had nothing to make a note on. “I need a little PDA like yours,” she sighed. “I didn’t think about it.”
“Well run back in and get one,” Jo told her. She opened up the wallet, and grabbed all the cash. “Here, just go get one like mine, and then we will have the manual.”
Alex laughed. “Jo, you are a genius. We could have done that to start with and skipped the computers tonight.”
“That wouldn’t have been any fun,” Jo laughed as Alex ran back into the store.
Roberts put Jo into the car and as they waited for Alex to return, she filled him in on the families moving to New York, and their positions.
“The Allens are taking the other penthouse, and the Turners will take the condo on the beach. Alex is being hired as my Personal Assistant, Charlie will be my Wardrobe Consultant, Brad Allen is my lawyer of course, and Kendra Turner will do payroll and bookkeeping for me. Alex’s dad, Sam, will be moving his travel agency here to New York.”
“It is good that you have such supportive friends, Miss Becker. I am truly sorry that your mother isn’t here to enjoy this with you.”
“I am too, Roberts. She would be terrified of all the changes, though, and of the city itself. I’m not sure she would have come with me, if she even allowed me to come myself.”
“Your mother was a strong woman, Miss Becker. I believe you may be underestimating her.”
Jo considered what Roberts was saying. “Maybe you’re right.”
Alex returned to the limo and hopped in beside Jo, victoriously waving the fancy computer phone in her hand. “Now I can add Brad and Charlie and me and everyone else to your phone, Jo, just like you asked.”
They returned to the apartment building, and decided to eat in the downstairs restaurant instead of ordering it sent to their room. The menu was similar, but there were many more choices. Jo was quite hungry, she declared, and ordered a steak. Alex chose a gourmet salad with grilled chicken.
It was nearing nine o’clock when they finally finished their meal. Roberts had left for the night, leaving Davis and Michaels to escort the girls back upstairs. Once they had exited the elevator at the top Davis headed for the security apartment leaving Michaels to unlock the door for the girls and turn off the alarm. She pushed back the door and ushered them in, then went to the alarm box, stopping short.
“Hmm. that’s odd,” she said aloud.
Jo looked up from where she had set down one of the laptop boxes. “What is it, Michaels?”
“The alarm is off. Did Roberts set it when you left tonight?”
Jo looked at Alex, who shrugged.
“I’m sorry, I don’t remember,” Jo responded.
“Me neither. Sorry,” Alex too replied.
Michaels herself shrugged. “Maybe Roberts thought you wouldn’t be gone long enough. Well, have a good evening, girls.” Michaels shut the door behind her as she left.
Jo and Alex excitedly unboxed their purchases. Alex went right for the phone, finding a twenty-four hour hotline to activate new service. She plugged the phone in to let it receive its first charge while she was on hold.
Jo was working through the hour-long initial set up that you must endure with a new computer purchase. She had passed the name and registration phase, and was working on the company’s extended warranty plans by the time Alex was off the phone.
“I have a new phone number, and I’m going to put it in right next to Tammy’s name on your phone, Jo. Then when you feel I’m ready to go it alone, we can delete Tammy and I will be top of the list. I will put Charlie next to me, then your lawyer next to her.”
“Sounds great, Alex. Can you do all of that from your computer?”
“Yep,” Alex replied, “as soon as I get it set up.”
The girls quickly found a wireless signal and connected to the World Wide Web. Jo opened a web search page and, just for fun, put her name in. She was shocked when the computer came back with hundreds of hits.
“Alex, I’m all over the Internet!” Jo was a little worried. She read a few of the headlines, as Alex looked over her shoulder.
“This one says ‘child heir inherits billions’,” she read on one. “So people actually do know about me, don’t they?”
“Well, I’m sure some do. After all, Mr. Hartford’s estate went through the court system.”
“Yeah, I suppose.” She read on. “This one says ‘alien lovechild to serve as New York executive’ and it has my name as the executive.” Jo was stunned. “Where do people come up with this stuff?”
Alex laughed. “Don’t worry about it. You are famous now; people will be saying all sorts of things about you.”
Jo sighed. “I know. That’s one of the parts I’m dreading. I like the ‘being rich’ part really well so far,” Jo grinned.
Alex smiled back. “And I like that you haven’t changed, Jo. Granted, it’s only been a few days since you found out you were the wealthiest eighteen-year-old in America,” Alex paused. “But you haven’t turned into a snob, and you better not if you know what’s good for you,” she finished, shaking a pen at Jo.
Jo laughed. “I know, I know, and I’m sure that you will keep me on the straight and narrow, Alex.”
The girls continued tinkering with their gadgets until almost eleven o’clock. Finally, Jo declared she needed a good rest to be able to face the next day, since it was her first official day on the job. Alex rose from the couch with her and, hugging her thanked Jo for all the cool gadgets, then headed for her room.
Jo flipped the light switch in the living room and padded to her bedroom door in the dark. She turned the handle and, feeling on the wall just inside the door, flipped the bedroom light switch. As light flooded the room, Jo felt a hand cover her mouth and pull her head back toward something solid. Panicked, she tried to scream, but the sound came out muffled against the hand. Suddenly out of the corner of her eye, Jo saw the black barrel of a gun pointed at her face. Lack of oxygen mixed with paralyzing fear took over Jo’s body and she slumped to the ground.
When Jo awoke, she was propped up against the headboard of her bed, hands and feet tied with rope. She felt something dry in her mouth and realized she was gagged. Only a lamp on a nightstand next to the bed lit the room. Jo discovered that Alex was sitting next to her, also bound and gagged. Her eyes were open, though, and Jo could tell she’d been crying. That thought made Jo angry as she looked around for their captor.
Sensing movement from the bed, a well-dressed woman stepped out of the shadow so Jo could see her. Jo saw the gun, steadily aimed at her head.
“Hello, Miss Becker,” the sultry voice greeted her. “I am Tatiana Petrova, and you are in my house. This apartment was purchased for me by Mr. Hartford, and belongs to me. You are an intruder, Miss Becker, and so is your friend. All of the furnishings,” the woman waved her free hand around the room, “were hand selected by him for me, not for you. He chose each item with utmost care, knowing my likes and dislikes. The evening before he died, he gave me a set of keys and the code for the alarm system. The alarm code is my birth date, you sniveling witch. This apartment was customized for me! I was supposed to move in the next morning, but my Cliff died that day. Of all the homes you stole from him upon his death, why you chose this one to live in is obvious. You wanted to rub it in my face,” the woman sneered. “But that will not happen. You killed Cliff, and now you must die,” the woman calmly announced.
Jo’s gasp was heard even through the gag, and the woman turned to look at her. “Which part surprises you, you vixen? Is it the part where I’m going to kill you?” Jo shook her head indicating no, so the woman continued. “That doesn’t surprise you, eh? Then it is the part where you killed Cliff.” The woman waited for a response from Jo, and Jo dutifully nodded her head.
“Let me explain it to you then.” The woman began slowly pacing across the room, but the gun never wavered from its target. “For the four months before his death, Cliff Hartford told me all about you. Over and over and over I heard the story of you and your pitiful mother, wasting away in some god-forsaken town out on the West Coast. He told me about killing your father, then your grandparents, knowing full well that both you and your mother were in line to take any inheritance from the Beckers. He told me how he had planned to kill you and your mother if she had come to claim what he had stolen and was rightfully hers, but she never came. He waited. For eighteen years he waited. It ate at him, constantly, that he could be exposed as a murderer and a thief at any moment. He became a recluse at the end, never leaving his apartment. He even let his despicable lawyer handle the business, knowing full well that his lawyer was robbing him blind.”
The woman stopped pacing and looked at Jo full in the face, glaring menacingly. “It was your fault he died. He worried himself sick over the day you would show up and expose him for the coward he was. Every time his phone rang, he jumped. Each time someone tried to enter his apartment, he sent them away. I was his only solace. I was the only one he allowed near him. Yet all he talked about day in and day out was you. ‘Joe Becker’s kid’ he called you. He said you were haunting him in his dreams. He would wake up from a nightmare, pleading for mercy. ‘I’m sorry, Miss Becker, please don’t hurt me. I’m sorry for killing your father, Miss Becker. Please leave me alone’ he would cry out for hours. I got so sick of hearing about you,” the woman sneered. Jo thought she saw her bedroom door opening, but she wasn’t sure. It was too dark, and she was terrified. The woman stopped at the end of the bed and aimed the gun at Jo. “I wanted you dead. I hired someone to do it for me when the company finally uncovered your whereabouts, but he was obviously an incompetent fool. Because here you are, in my house, using my furniture, eating at my table, and sleeping in my bed. It is mine, mine, mine!” Jo heard the hammer of the pistol being cocked. “And if I can’t have it, neither can you,” the woman said, and she pulled the trigger.