Faux (CHAPTER 1)

*beep, beep*

*beep, beep*

*beep, beep*

I let out an exhausted groan and then rolled over to hit snooze one last time on my alarm clock. I had been up late the night before tossing and turning due to the nerves about the meeting I had scheduled this morning with the governor of Indiana, Rich Pearson. Although it was two hours away, I had never had a meeting this big and I just wanted everything to go well. I took a moment to stretch before I finally pulled the covers back and stepped out of bed. Before I reached the bathroom, I took the time to switch on the Bluetooth speaker that I had on my vanity and put my R & B playlist on shuffle. As I waited for my shower to heat up, I took a look at the outfit that I had laid out the night before. I had spent almost an hour trying on suits and dresses before finally deciding on a navy blue pantsuit with a light pink shirt underneath. Deciding against changing the outfit again, I walked back into the bathroom and stepped into the shower. After washing up, I spent a few minutes just standing there and thinking about different things to say, best and worst case scenarios and anything else that could possibly go wrong. Alright Fallon, chill out. You’ve worked hard for this. You’re more than ready to make this happen, I said to myself. After stepping out of the shower and drying off, I slathered myself down in body butter and began to get dressed. I decided on a sensible heel because I wasn’t too sure how much walking I would have to do. As I was putting the finishing touches on my hair, the alarm from the intercom next to my front door began to buzz.

“Yes Archie?”

“Good morning Ms. Scott, I was calling to let you know that the car you requested is down here.”

“Thank you so much. I’ll be right down.”

I put my shoes on and then pushed a button under my mattress that revealed a hidden compartment underneath the bed. I put the four-digit code in and a drawer slowly slid out. I grabbed my briefcase from the compartment and then pushed the mattress button again to lock everything back up. I grabbed my keys and my purse and then headed out of the door. As I made it down to the lobby of my apartment building my doorman, Archie, greeted me.

“Ms. Scott, Ms. Scott…you look beautiful as always. Why, if I were 30 years younger and didn’t have the misses at home, I would…”

“You would what, Archie? You turn beet red every time I see you.”

“You’re right, you’re right. I’m convinced my wife has a couple of screws loose because I don’t know what would possess her to settle down with an old fool like me.”

“Archie quit lying. You know you used to sweep the ladies off of their feet back in the day.”

“Yeah well…I can’t do too much sweeping these days. I just got this hip!”

Archie and I both erupted in laughter and then I told him to have a great day. I had been living in my apartment for over five years and Archie had been my doorman the entire time. He was such a sweet older man; he was about 6 feet tall and very stocky in build. You could tell that he used to be in the military but he honestly wouldn’t hurt a fly. I walked out of the revolving doors to see that a Lincoln Town Car from the car service that I hired was waiting outside. The driver was standing next to the back passenger door smoking a cigarette but quickly flicked it away and opened the door once he noticed me walking towards him.

“Good morning Ms. Scott. Did you need to put any of your belongings in the trunk?”

“Good morning to you as well sir. No thank you, I just have my purse and this briefcase. I’ll keep them in the backseat with me,” I said as I gripped the handles of the briefcase even tighter. The driver waited until I was all the way in the car until he shut my door and then jogged around the back of the car back to the driver’s side. As we maneuvered our way into the busy morning traffic, I pulled out my phone to answer emails and texts on the way to the governor’s mansion. I opened my most recent text.

Hey Thing 1, good luck at the meeting today! I know you’ll have no problem sealing the deal. 7:32 AM

I smiled while reading the text from my best friend and business partner, Taylor Smith. Taylor and I had been best friends since our freshman year of college and after graduating, we went into business together and started Smith & Scott Consulting. My parents died when I was a toddler and after bouncing around from relative to relative, after I graduated from high school, contact with my family was pretty nonexistent. Taylor had become the sister I never had. She was just as nervous about this meeting as I was but she had opted to stay at our downtown office instead of accompanying me to the meeting. Out of the both of us, I was the better talker and negotiator. Taylor was an expert with numbers. We balanced each other out perfectly. Just as I was about to reply to her text, the driver informed me that we were a couple of minutes away from the governor’s mansion. I took a deep breath and tried to gather my thoughts and erase the nerves that were causing my palms to sweat. The driver pulled up to the gate and I rolled the window down and pushed the button on the intercom.

“Yes, how may I help you?”

“Fallon Scott for Governor Pearson.”

“Can you please place your ID onto the scanner?”

I took my driver’s license and placed it in front of what looked like a small television screen. A few seconds later, a faint green light could be seen scanning my ID. After a few more seconds there was a loud buzzing noise and the enormous iron gates in front of us began to open. The driver slowly crept forward and began driving up the narrow driveway that led us up to the house. When we got to the front there were two men that I assumed were security guards standing by the two columns in front of the door. They both had on black business suits and dark sunglasses covered their eyes. One of them came to my door and opened it.

“Good morning Ms. Scott, Governor Pearson has been expecting you. Sir…if you could please pull the car over by the fountain while you wait, I’d appreciate it.”

The guard then helped me out of the car and then led me up the walkway to the front door. Once inside of the home I was asked to sit my things down and to put my arms up. The other security guard then took a magnetic wand and thoroughly scanned my body. He then directed his attention to my briefcase on the ground.

“Do you mind opening your briefcase and purse for me? I know you probably don’t have anything to hide but its procedure.”

“Sure. No problem.”

I held my breath the entire time. Luckily, he didn’t find anything and both guards led me back to the governors’ office. As we walked down the hall I took in the décor of the home. There was a huge chandelier in the foyer and the entire home was paved with marble floors. As we walked by different rooms I could see housekeepers dusting, straightening furniture and cleaning the windows. As we made it outside of the governors’ office door, one of the guards knocked three times and then waited for a moment and then knocked an additional four times. The door swung open and there stood Governor Pearson wearing a huge smile.

“Ms. Scott, it is truly a pleasure to meet you!”

“Likewise, Governor Pearson.”

Rich Pearson was a jolly older man with salt and pepper hair and a dazzling white smile. Everything about him said ‘politician’. He nodded towards both of the guards and they both pivoted on one foot and walked away leaving me alone with the governor.

“Please…come in and have a seat.”

I walked towards the seat in front of the mahogany desk that was in the corner of the room and sat down.

“I’m very excited that you were interested in our services, Governor.”

“Please call me Rich. We don’t have to be so formal.”

“Okay but only if you call me Fallon.”

“Fallon…what a lovely name. I’m very excited about your services as well. I’ve heard a lot of good things and I said to myself, I have to bring them on board before I lose out on quality. Before we move forward, would you like anything to drink?”

“No thank you. I’m just fine.”

Rich got up from the desk and walked over to the corner of the room where there was a tray full of assorted spirits. Pouring himself a glass of what I assumed to be straight Scotch, he walked back to his seat.

“So Fallon, how long have you been in the consulting business?”

“I’ve been consulting for about six years now. My partner and I decided to launch our company after college and so far, we’ve been extremely successful.”

“So where would you say you see yourself and the company in say…5 years?”

“Honestly sir, in 5 years I would want to be settling down with a family and a dog or two in a house like this.”

“Nonsense! You’re great at what you do. I see bigger things in your future. And trust me, family is overrated.”

We both shared a chuckle and it was then that I noticed his bare ring finger.

“I’m glad you’ve got a good sense of humor but it’s time to get down to business. Your partner informed me that you all have drawn up some paperwork for me to look at discussing our pending partnership?”

“Yes sir we did,” I said reaching down and grabbing my briefcase. “We have outlined our services for you for one calendar year, including where and how to send payment without it being traced back to this office. Please keep in mind that this is only a mock outline so the dates and prices can always be changed to accommodate your needs.”

Rich took a few moments to read over the paperwork and I tried to read his expression but his poker face was remarkable. Once he got to the last page a smile slowly formed on his face.

“Everything looks great to me. You guys have really left no stone unturned. So do you guys offer the option of a free trial of services or am I asking for too much?”

“Yes sir we do. I was hoping you would ask that so I came fully prepared.”

I stood up and put my briefcase on the desk. I then removed all of the contracts and folders that I had in there and placed them to the side. I carefully removed the lining at the bottom of the briefcase. I took the pair of latex gloves that were in there and then carefully removed the kilo of cocaine that I had taped to the side of the briefcase. When I placed the white brick on the desk, Rich’s eyes lit up like a kid at Christmas. He took a letter opener from the top drawer of the desk and slid the tip across the corner of the brick and eased his pinky finger in the opening and dug out a little cocaine under his nail. He then took his finger and rubbed it against his top and bottom gums and then all of a sudden he just froze. I stared at him, half intrigued and half completely terrified.

“Rich is there something wrong?”

He looked at me and smiled. “No ma’am. Everything is right. Everything is right. Everything is right!” he yelled and then slammed his hand on the top of the desk, causing me to jump.

“As far as I’m concerned we have nothing further to discuss. Where do I sign, Fallon?”