Chapter 2

"Harper, when I say I'll do something, I do it! If you're worried, we can sign a contract!"

Lewis pulled an agreement out of his bag.

"See, I already had it drawn up. I'm not just talking. I mean it."

I picked it up and read through it. "You're giving me sixty percent of the company?"

"That's right, Harper. Without you there'd be no company. This is what you've earned."

"You're really willing to give up that much?"

"What's there to give up? We're getting married sooner or later. What's mine is yours. Doesn't matter whose name the shares are under."

The commentary was scrolling so fast it made my head spin.

"Don't fall for his sweet talk. Right now he acts like he can't live without you, but the second he runs into his first love again, he'll turn on you cold."

"Signing that contract won't help you. The moment he sees Susannah Jennings, he'll regret it. He'll want the shares back but won't want to pay you what he owes, so he'll decide to kill you outright."

"Once you're dead, the shares are his again, and the money he owes you just disappears."

Lewis brought out a second contract, one for selling the house. "I've already found a buyer for the house. The price is very good."

He handed me the pen. "Sign these two and you'll be the biggest shareholder in my company!"

"Don't sign! Sign that and you're finished!"

"If you don't sign, maybe Lewis won't go through with killing you. But if you sign, you die for sure!"

"He'll burn you alive, leave you a charred corpse. Then he'll grind your body into powder and scatter it over some barren hillside to bake in the sun day after day!"

"Even in death you'll be tortured, until there's nothing left of your soul!"

Every word of the commentary jabbed at my nerves, and my temple kept throbbing.

"Harper, what are you still hesitating for? Sign it!"

Lewis's eyes went dark, and his voice dropped several notches. "You don't not want to help me, do you?"

I gave him a small smile. "How could that be? I'm just too touched. I never imagined you'd give me this many shares."

I picked up the pen and signed both contracts without a moment's hesitation.

The commentary broke into a wail.

"It's over, it's over. Harper really has been swindled out of everything she's got."

"This lovesick idiot. She deserves to be murdered by a man!"

"How can a woman be this stupid? Can't she see Lewis is only after her money?"

Contracts in hand, Lewis was delighted and kissed me on the forehead.

"Harper, I've got a class reunion in a couple of days, and I don't even have anything decent to wear."

"You just got paid, didn't you? Could you take me to the mall to pick out a couple of outfits? I'm a boss now, more or less. I can't show up looking shabby and embarrass you too."

The commentary sped up again.

"This is the reunion where Lewis runs into his first love, Susannah. The two of them hook up that very night!"

"And this is the day Lewis regrets giving Harper the company shares and decides to kill her."

"If you can keep Lewis from going to this reunion, you can stop him and Susannah from ever crossing paths again!"

"Harper, this is your one and only chance to change your fate!"