16
Tom smiled with satisfaction as he looked at the series of photographs
spread out on his desk. "Beautiful," he murmured. "I knew it would work. She
always was a greedy bitch."
"You went to a lot of trouble, Daddy," Jeannine said. "I hope it was
worth it."
"It will be," Tom said. "I'm going to enjoy the hell out of this." He
gathered up the photographs and put them into a drawer. Then he picked up his
telephone and asked for Deborah to be sent to his office.
Deborah came in with her steno pad. As usual, she stood just inside the
door, waiting expressionlessly.
"Sit down, Deborah," Tom said.
She moved to the chair at the side of his desk and sat in it. Her skirt
rode up over her knees as she did so, and Tom's gaze lingered on her shapely
bare legs. His eyes rose to her breasts, which pushed out boldly against her
light-colored sweater, and then to her face. He smiled at her.
"Deborah," he said, "there's something I'd like you to do."
Deborah waited.
"I'd like you to fuck Stanley Banks," Tom said.
Deborah's face did not change. She looked at him silently for a long
time. Then she said, "Ten thousand dollars."
Tom raised his eyebrows. "That's a lot of money," he said. "A lot of
money for just one fuck."
"It's a bargain," Deborah said. "He's disgusting."
"I suppose he is," Tom admitted. He leaned back in his chair, savoring
what was to come. His eyes moved briefly to Jeannine, sharing the moment, then
back to the dark-haired girl.
"Deborah," he said, "what would you say if I told you that I would like
you to fuck Stanley Banks for nothing?"
Deborah said, "I would probably laugh."
"I see," Tom said. He paused again. Then he said, "Well, Deborah, that
is exactly what I want you to do."
Deborah did not laugh. Her expression did not change at all. She simply
got up and started to walk out of the office.
"Wait, Deborah," Tom said.
Something in his voice made her stop and turn around. Tom opened his
drawer and took out the photographs. "Sit down, Deborah," he said. "I have
something to show you."
She came back and sat down. He handed her the pictures, one by one.
They had been taken with a hidden camera, without special lighting, but
they were clear enough. They had all been taken within a span of two minutes,
and they showed Deborah in the act of taking an envelope full of money from an
open safe in Tom's office, putting it into her purse, and walking out.
Deborah looked at each photograph, saying nothing, showing no reaction.
When he had handed her the last one, she looked up at him.
"You set that up," she said flatly.
"Of course," Tom said. "I knew you wouldn't be able to resist that kind
of temptation. As I was telling Jeannine here, you always were a greedy little
bitch."
"Why?" Deborah said.
"Blackmail, of course--of a kind. I'm really tired of paying your
exorbitant fees, Deborah. And even more tired of your arrogance and your haughty
manner. I found them intriguing at first, but now I'm beginning to find them
merely irritating. I wish to put a stop to all that."
"It won't work," Deborah said. "You can't accuse me of anything. You
trapped me into it, and you're trying to blackmail me."
"No one will believe that," Tom said. "You're the one making false
accusations, Deborah. I have witnesses who will back me up. Jeannine. And
others. While my evidence"--he nodded at the pictures--"is conclusive."
"What do you want?" Deborah said.
"Ah. Two things--to start with. First, I want you to return the money.
All of it. Tomorrow. And second, I want you to fuck Stanley Banks. And not just
fuck him; I want you to fuck him well and thoroughly. I want it to be the best
fuck he's ever had in his life. I want him to be completely satisfied. Fuck him
as much as he wants. Suck his cock. Whatever it takes. I want you to give him
everything you've got, Deborah. And I want to watch it all."
"No," Deborah said.
"You realize, Deborah, that the amount of money you stole from this
office constitutes grand larceny," Tom said. "Do you know what the penalty for
grand larceny is in this state? You would be in jail for a long time, Deborah.
In jail," he repeated. "For a very long time."
There was a pause. Deborah said, "No."
Tom shrugged. "As you wish," he said. He picked up his telephone and
pushed a button. "Get me the police," he said.
While he waited for the connection, he watched Deborah. She met his eyes
squarely, her face blank.
"Hello," he said into the phone. "This is Thomas Garson, of Garson
Industries. That's right. I'd like to report a theft at my office."
"All right," Deborah said.
"Never mind, officer," Tom said. "There seems to have been a mistake.
Sorry to have troubled you." He hung up. His gaze was still on Deborah's face,
and now he watched her with renewed interest. He had never seen tears in her
eyes before.
