Justice For Juniper (Tatienne Richard) novel Chapter 42

unshine – Part II

17 min left

Beni put both Juniper and Suki under his arms and escorted them out of the gas station and towards his car. He held their doors open, and Juniper heard Suki’s giggle when Denise came out to follow them and Beni flipped her off.

He revved the engine quite loudly before peeling out onto the street leaving Denise there with people staring at her.

“I think the clerk was chasing her for taking that bottle of wine,” Suki said as she was turned to look out the back window and giggling.

Beni reached across the seat and took Juniper’s hand, are you okay?”

“No. I’m not.” She used her other hand to swipe a tear off her cheek. “The nerve of her!”

“Yeah, she’s something else.” Beni sighed. “I’m sorry she’s ruining our night.”

“She’s not going to,” Suki insisted. “We won’t let her.”

“Beni, how did you know all that stuff about me and how I worked three jobs and stuff?”

“Adil. He put together a hell of a file on you when he investigated Kyst. The only thing we didn’t have was your

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Sunshine – Part II

17 min left

medical history which he didn’t feel was necessary. It was what we needed to make sure I did the divorce papers correctly.”

“He’s that good?”

“He’s better than good. As you heard in there though, she knew us from growing up, not that we ever exchanged a single conversation with her. She was a brat as a child, so we avoided her. In her teen years she was more refined, polished like her mother demanded at events but there was always something lurking under the skin the three of us avoided but Phineas was not so lucky. His grandfather and hers were the best of friends. He was definitely in her line of sight far more than we were. I can be honest and tell you there were years of my life where I never even crossed paths with her, but he did. Anyway, she knows our faces if not us personally. If Adil was seen i building you lived in, following her onto the floor with such limited entrances and exits, there is no way she wouldn’t have known the jig was up. She would have known. He couldn’t get to your floor without risking it when she was in the building. It’s one elevator and one set of stairs.”

“That’s why you needed her to put in the cameras,” Suki said quietly.

came

“Yes but there was also the matter of consent to put videography equipment in her home as well.”

“You used her.”

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Sunshine – Part II

16 min left

The accusation from Suki was sharp, a rebuke and it hung heavy in the following silence.

Beni nodded once, his fingers squeezing Juniper’s as if seeking his own reassurances, “we did use her. It is something we acknowledged from the get–go Suki. You met Denise now. You can understand why Phineas was growing increasingly desperate to get out of his marriage. If they made it to the one–year mark, she was guaranteed an extra fifty million. We were just shy by three weeks. Their one–year anniversary is a week after Phineas‘ grandfather’s birthday.”

“Holy shit, that’s a lot of money.” Suki whispered mostly to herself.

“Yeah. It’s a lot. He would have paid it to get out of the but we were pretty sure she was cheating on him before Kyat could never get the evidence. She’s really smart when it comes doing things she actually wants to do, like marry rich.”

Juniper exhaled a shaky breath, “how is it possible she was there at that gas station?”

“I don’t have a clue.”

“When she was on the phone screeching away, she told the person she was speaking to she was grabbing a bottle of wine and would be right there. I think the friend she is staying with lives nearby.” Suki huffed, “I know Juni was trying to tune her

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Sunshine – Part II

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out, but I heard every single word like it was impaling my hear with a pitchfork.”

“Well, that’s too close to our neighborhood, sunshine,” Beni grinned. “We’ll have to get Adil to find out where she is staying and then make sure she is forced to leave. I can’t have her anywhere near you.”

“Why do you call her sunshine?” Suki asked.

“Roughly three weeks ago now, Adil gave us the information packet he had on Kyst, and it included Juniper’s details. I was furious with the pair of them, and I went for a walk and there is a park about ten minutes from the Phineas‘ building.”

“Yes. I go there sometimes to eat my lunch in the park. nodded.

“Well, I got to the park, and I was pissed off about what they were planning to ask you to do and then there you were. Sitting on a small blanket no bigger than a towel, under a tree with a book and there was this sliver of sunshine,” he cleared his throat, “breaking through the trees overhead and it was landing right on you. Hit me right here,” he released the wheel for a second and tapped his chest, “and I was even angrier at the pair of them for it. You were literally sitting in sunshine, and we were about to cover you in the volcanic ash of Phineas‘ marriage. I started taking my lunch around the same time each day to see if I could catch you there again. I was able to see you multiple times, and for some reason, the sun always seems to find you.”

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Sunshine – Part II

16 min left

She giggled in spite of herself, “um, it’s not the sun finds me. I actively seek it out. I’m cold all the time. I could be in a sauna and shiver. I literally chase the sunshine in the summer to feel warm.”

He threw his head back and laughed, “well then, sunshine, is an even more apt name to describe you.” The car idled at a stop light, and he shot her a look, “we’ll have to make sure you’re plenty warm tonight then, sunshine. Let’s get to the club and raise your body temp.”

At the fire in his eyes, Juniper wondered if she might never feel the cold again.

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