Young Writers Society

Nyssa, who was trapped in an abusive relationship with a corrupt cop, Russel Pierce, is going to run away with Peter "Viggo" Carlsen, the former partner Russ framed for murder. Angela Macdenn, who works in the District Attorney office, was Viggo's fiancée before his arrest.

To know more, read Chapter 17.2.

As she stepped into the crowded mall, Nyssa wished there was something she could buy, anything, that would make her feel less lonely. It was always a bad time of the year. Christmas was in the air. Huge firs stood in the great hall like columns. It smelled of resin, mulled wine and roasted chestnuts. The shoppers moved like automatons dancing to the Christmas carols.

She zigzagged between the angry housewives and the poor morons doing last-minute gift-shopping, the crowd jostled, suffocated her. She definitely didn’t need to be there. She had no family, no friends and there was no way she was buying Russ anything.

Unless…

What if he found out that she had been at the mall? He always seemed to know when she was hiding something from him. Maybe she should buy him a gift. That way, if he asked her where she had been, she would have a cover story ready.

She was still considering that, frowning a little to herself, as she took the elevator to the third level. The moment she stepped out of it, she forgot all about Russ. Angela was holding a table on a terrace. The small tea house was bursting with customers, and the waitresses looked harassed. It was a scene out of another life, where they were still friends, down to the steaming mocha the ADA was drinking.

Of course, Angela Macdenn wasn’t the same woman anymore. In the first few months after Viggo’s arrest, she had gained more weight than was fashionable. Her hair was now jaw-length and she barely wore any makeup anymore. Not so perfect, now. She still dressed expensively, but one or two seasons out of fashion. Her heels were shorter, her necklines were higher, and she favored pants over skirts. Not so perfect anymore – and men seemed to like that.

Even her demeanor had completely changed. She used to be the soul of politeness but, after the storm of shit that had been Viggo’s fall from grace, she had reemerged with a somewhat shorter manner. She got to the point, she did her job, she expected competence in return and she wasn’t afraid to speak up her mind if someone didn’t impress her. Oddly enough, this new-found temper had made her the rising star of the DA’s office. She had always been bright, but there had always been something too soft and sheltered in her. In the words of her boss, she now had what it took.

Nyssa waved at Angela, who smiled – a smile that was more hesitant than before, rarer and dearer for it. “Hi.”

Nyssa sat down, preempting the hug that had been customary greeting between them. She really wasn’t that fond of being touched anymore. The pretty ADA didn’t seem to mind. She sat back down and petted her friend’s hand gently. “It’s great to see you.”

“Yeah,” Nyssa answered truthfully, although she was wary of the complications her old friend could bring into her life. “Well, it’s nice to see you too but I was kind of surprised to get your call.”

Angela’s smile turned nervous. “It’s been a while, hasn’t it?”

“You could say that.”

“I didn’t mean to drop you like that, Nyssa. I just…” Her eyes turned pearl gray with tears. “It was too hard.”

Nyssa hesitantly patted her hand. “I know. I understand. It was…a bad time.”

“You can say that again.”

Tacit understanding, shared pain passed between them. She blurted out, “Do you still miss him?”

Angela’s composure immediately went to pieces, her eyes darkening to the color of storm clouds. “I’d like to tell you that I don’t but…You can’t love someone like that and let them go completely.” She touched two dainty fingers to her chest. “There is still an empty place in my heart that he used to fill, and it won’t ever go away. But I’ve made my peace with that.”

“How?”

The shy, somewhat nervous smile broke out again. “I’ve met someone.”

“Have you?” Poor Viggo. “When? Do I know him?”

Angela blushed. She actually blushed! “No. Nobody does. I met Charles at the big counterfeiting seminar in Boston last Summer.”

“Congrats. He’s an ADA too?”

“FBI agent.” A grin slipped out, probably prompted by Nyssa’s easy acceptance. “Out of the Philadelphia office. He’s a great guy. You’d like him, Nyssa.”

And yet she hadn’t introduced them. Why?

“I’m happy for you. Oh.” Nyssa realized she had missed the obvious – namely, the solitaire sparkling on Angela’s hand. “You got engaged?!”

Her other hand moved quickly, nervously to cover it, but she caught herself mid-gesture. “I…I’m not used to…It’s fairly recent.”

“Well…Congrats. Is that why you invited me out for tea?”

“Sort of…I’m relocating to Philadelphia. They’re offering me the DA position there.”

Her smile faded when Nyssa didn’t answer right away. Truth be told, she was feeling blindsided.

“You are…leaving?” she asked.

“I think it’s for the best.”

A lot passed between them in the long silence that ensued. Angela had stood tall and kept her head up through the ordeal but those last few years hadn’t been easy on her. She couldn’t just wipe the smirch of scandal. Half the people she worked with were still wary of her connection to a dirty cop/cop killer while the other half pitied her. Both those reactions hurt her. Frankly, it had been incredibly brave of her to tough it out for so long.

“When are you leaving?”

“Weber has agreed to let me go without notice. I could leave tonight if I wanted to, but I plan to take my time packing. I only start in Philadelphia next month.”

“That’s great. New job. New town. New man. I wish you all the best, Angie.”

Angela winced. And Nyssa had been trying so hard to sound upbeat and sensitive, too…

“Thank you. Not just for the good wishes. For everything you did along the years. I may not have said anything, but I knew.”

Nyssa shrugged off the other woman’s gratefulness. Siding with the pariah had been a no-brainer when she was faced with the same ostracism.

A waitress finally had the spare time to come over and take her order. Nyssa asked for, “Black tea, sugar and milk, please.”

Angela tried to find common ground again, “Same as usual?”

“Yeah. I’m not a big fan of change.”

At the moment, she positively loathed it. How was that fair? The pretty doll Viggo used to date was thriving under pressure while she, a born and bred survivor, was wilting away. There was the trouble with change: it always, always, always played favorites.

“I hope from the bottom of my heart that it’s not true.”

“Hm?” she mumbled questioningly, tilting her head to the side.

“Here is the thing.” Angela put her mocha down on the table and her serious face on. “I told Charles a great deal about you. I even showed him the work you did on the Brummen case, last year.”

The Brummen case. Fun one. Nyssa sat a little straighter, remembering. It had been one of those puzzles she loved, and she knew she had done a great job.

“Yeah?”

“He was really impressed. He said you showed promise. Well, actually, he said the FBI should poach you for their cyber division.”

Nyssa’s facial muscles ached with the strain of grinning. It had been an extremely long time since she had last smiled. “It would be fun. Lots of new toys.”

“That’s what I thought,” Angela replied, relaxing herself. “The FBI might come knocking one day but, in the meantime, I thought…Well, the District Attorney office is short one cyber investigator, over in Philadelphia. You wouldn’t get to do lots of hacking, but I could use you. And it would be nice to have a friendly face around.”

Oh, God…Angela was offering her an out. And what an offer! Nyssa could see herself in Philadelphia. Free. Russ was lots of things, but he wasn’t stupid, he wouldn’t risk the wrath of a DA and an FBI agent just to get back at an ex-girlfriend. If she could place herself under their protection…There would be no more yielding to him, no more disgusting demands, no more hating herself in the morning, no more painful, soul-crushing sex, no more withstanding his rage and fearing for her life…

God…Oh, God…

And if it had come six months before, three months, two months even, she would have grabbed onto that offer with both hands. But now, she had the memory of Viggo in that prison, hurting, and angry, and mean. She remembered the feral light in his eyes, she carried it everywhere with her. He hadn’t been asking, but she had offered hope. If she were to take it away now…It would be beyond cruel.

Wouldn’t she hate herself anyway if she left him behind? Damn…She had heard that doing the right thing could be hard but this…This was torture. How could she subject herself to being Russ’s freaking possession one minute longer than necessary?! Viggo’s blue eyes flashed in her mind. She had to demean herself for just a little while longer.

“I’m sorry, Angie. I can’t.”

The words were like needles in her mouth. She hurt so much she should have bled with them. Her answer seemed to upset Angela as well. “Oh, Nyssa…It’s one of those situations where a change would be good for you.”

“I know, believe me. I know.”

“You…”

“I know, Angela. My life here is crap. My professional reputation is ruined. Once you’re gone, I won’t have a friend left in this town. And Russ…Well…”

Angela’s face twisted in disgust. “He is a dog. He is…repulsive.” She shivered. “He scares me sometimes. The way he looks at me…”

Alarm bells went off in Nyssa’s mind. “The way he looks at you? Did he…?”

Her friend looked away. “I know you are…I don’t want to…”

“Forget about that. Did he proposition you, Angie? Please, tell me.”

Angela pressed her lips together and nodded, at last. “Yes. A few times immediately after…Well…And then again, earlier this week, he came over to my place, acting like…” She made a grossed-out face. “He left in a towering rage. I was…less than polite, I’m afraid.”

She attempted a small smile, but it died all on its own. Nyssa had gone pale. Russ had come back home furious earlier that week, but it had been the cold fury she had grown familiar with, the one she knew heralded dead bodies.

“You need to leave, Angie. Do you still have that nine millimeters?”

“Why?!”

“Please, Angie, just trust me on this. You need to get out of town now. How soon can you be packed-up and ready to go?”

“Tomorrow evening at the earliest. Why?”

“Listen. You remember how we used to be friends? Do as I say. Trust me. Please!”

Angela hesitated, but nodded.

“Good. You need to go home right now. Make sure your gun is ready to be fired, keep it loaded and on you at all times, including when you sleep. Pack up your stuff as quickly as possible, even if you’ve got to stay up all night to be done with it by tomorrow. And trust me, please, be on a plane tomorrow night at the latest. You need to get out of town before Russ hears you’re leaving.”

“But…”

Time to get her ace on the table.

“Remember what Viggo said, the night they arrested him?” Angela’s eyes went wide. Her face blanched. She gave another shaky nod. It wasn’t easy for Nyssa. She would bear the brunt of Russ’s anger when he learned of this, but she managed to grit between her teeth, “Run like hell.”

The ADA took that literally. She jumped to her feet, sending her chair clattering to the floor, and she weaved her way through the throng of people. Long after she had vanished, Nyssa remained at their table, sipping black tea, staring blankly at nothing in particular.

Interesting reaction, she thought. So, Angela knew…How long had she known, exactly? Why hadn’t she done anything about it? Now, wasn’t the world full of riveting questions?

Cooler than she had a right to be, she pulled her computer out of her bag. She had a hidden bank-account to track down. Now was as good a time as any.

To know what Russ is up to in the present, read Chapter 18.