Chapter 6 - Walter Hartman Calls.
Before the call from Walter, Ramos asked me to review Gregory's notebook again.
This time, she wanted me to identify which details he could have learned naturally and which required access he should never have had.
Favorite wine.
Natural.
Coffee order.
Natural.
Dress size.
Possible through normal intimacy.
Corporate voting thresholds.
Not natural.
Trust adviser succession.
Not natural.
My mother's travel habits.
Not natural.
The notebook became uglier the longer we looked.
Gregory had color-coded entries.
Blue for personal preferences.
Black for business information.
Red for what he called resistance points.
One red entry read: Hates public embarrassment more than private pressure.
I stared at it.
"He really believed that."
Ramos looked up.
"Was he right?"
"Sometimes."
"Enough for him to use it?"
"Yes."
That admission mattered.
Gregory had not invented every weakness.
He had simply decided that knowing something vulnerable about me created permission to use it.
Another entry read: Mother will panic if Ash disappears for more than six hours.
I felt my stomach twist.
"He timed family calls," I said.
"What do you mean?"
"On work trips, he'd ask when I planned to call my mother. I thought he was being thoughtful."
Ramos closed the notebook.
"Predatory planning often looks ordinary in pieces."
I looked at her.
"You say that from experience?"
"From cases."
"Same difference."
"Not to the people in them."
She was right.
The notebook was sealed again.
I watched the evidence label go on and felt something unexpected.
Relief.
For a year, Gregory's attentiveness had made me feel chosen.
Now the notebook showed how much of it had been data collection.
That hurt.
But pain with evidence was easier to carry than confusion without it.
At 2:14 in the morning, Walter Hartman called the bridge.
He did not ask to speak to his son.
He asked for me.
Captain Morgan stared at the blinking line on the console.
"How did he get this number?"
Nobody answered.
It was not a public number.
It was not even listed in passenger materials.
Ramos looked toward me.
"You do not have to take the call."
"I know."
"He may be recording."
"So are we."
The captain nodded toward the bridge recording system.
"Every external line is logged."
I thought about Miriam's warning.
Walter chose you.
Not as a wife.
As a target.
"Put him on speaker."
The captain pressed a button.
Walter's voice filled the bridge.
Smooth.
Calm.
Almost paternal.
"Ashlynn. Thank God."
I said nothing.
"Are you all right?"
Still nothing.
"Gregory called me in a panic. He said there was some kind of misunderstanding."
Ramos wrote something on a pad and turned it toward me.
HE SHOULD NOT HAVE PHONE ACCESS.
I nodded slightly.
"Which phone did he call you from?" I asked.
Walter paused.
Tiny pause.
But enough.
"I don't know."
"You answered it."
"I have several numbers saved for him."
"Which one?"
"Ashlynn, this isn't important."
"Then why did you mention the call?"
Another pause.
"Because my son is frightened."
"He should be embarrassed."
The bridge went quiet.
Walter's voice cooled.
"I understand emotions are high."
"Mine are fine."
"That's not what I'm hearing."
"From who?"
He did not answer directly.
"This can still be handled privately."
There it was.
Not concern.
Negotiation.
"Handled how?"
"You and Gregory had a marital argument. Nobody needs lawyers or authorities turning it into something ugly."
Ramos wrote another note.
LET HIM TALK.
I leaned back against the console.
"What about the camera?"
Silence.
Walter recovered quickly.
"What camera?"
"The one hidden in our suite."
"I have no idea what you're talking about."
"Gregory's phone had the live feed."
"Then ask Gregory."
"I did."
"And?"
"He said your name several times."
That was not exactly true.
Gregory had referred to his father, but I wanted to hear Walter react.
He did not.
"My son says many things when he's upset."
"He also kept notes."
That got him.
A breath.
Then nothing.
"What notes?"
"You tell me."
Walter's voice changed completely.
The warm father disappeared.
What replaced him was quieter and far more dangerous.
"Ashlynn, I think you should be very careful about confusing family matters with business matters."
"Why?"
"Because business has consequences."
Ramos stared at the speaker.
The captain's face hardened.
Walter continued.
"Mercer Strategy Group has clients who value stability."
"Yes."
"Government clients. Financial clients. People who do not enjoy scandal."
"Are you threatening my company?"
"I'm reminding you that headlines have costs."
"What headline?"
He paused.
"Decorated Marine attacks husband with baseball bat on honeymoon."
My stomach tightened.
He had rehearsed it.
Maybe written it.
"That's specific."
"It's obvious."
"Is it?"
"A camera shows you holding the weapon."
The bridge became perfectly still.
Walter had just confirmed knowledge of the camera.
He realized it too late.
I almost smiled.
"I thought you didn't know what camera I was talking about."
Silence.
Then Walter laughed softly.
"You're clever."
"You chose me. Remember?"
This time, the silence lasted longer.
I knew I had reached him.
"Miriam called you," he said.
Not a question.
The words hit harder than I expected.
"Why would you think that?"
"Because my wife has always confused disobedience with courage."
I looked at Ramos.
Her pen moved quickly.
"Where is she?" I asked.
"Home."
"Put her on the phone."
"She's sleeping."
"Wake her up."
"No."
"Then I don't believe she's home."
Walter exhaled.
"You don't need to worry about Miriam."
That sentence frightened me more than if he had shouted.
"I am worried about her."
"Don't be."
"Let me speak to her."
"No."
"Why?"
He stopped pretending.
"Because this conversation is between you and me."
I heard the truth in that sentence.
Gregory had been the delivery system.
Walter was the architect.
"What do you want?"
"Finally."
He sounded relieved.
"What do you want, Walter?"
"I want everyone to stop making this more complicated than it needs to be."
"Be specific."
"Tomorrow morning, you disembark in Nassau with Gregory."
Ramos shook her head once.
I ignored her for the moment.
"Then what?"
"A car will meet you."
"Where does it take us?"
"To a private office."
"The notary?"
Another pause.
"So you have seen the documents."
"Some of them."
"Good. Then you understand the solution."
"You want me to give Gregory control of my company."
"Temporarily."
"Why?"
"Because your company is stronger with access to Hartman Maritime's assets and relationships."
I nearly laughed.
"Your company can't make its debt payment."
This time Walter said nothing for several seconds.
"Who told you that?"
"Does it matter?"
"Ava."
He said her name like a diagnosis.
I felt cold.
"Leave her out of this."
"Then stop involving her."
Ramos wrote one word in large letters.
THREAT.
I nodded.
Walter continued.
"You sign the temporary proxy. Gregory helps stabilize both companies. The embarrassing misunderstanding onboard disappears. Everyone goes home."
"And if I don't?"
"Then the misunderstanding becomes public."
"Meaning?"
"Video. Statements. Medical concerns. Questions about your fitness to lead a company with sensitive contracts."
"You planned that before the wedding."
"I planned for possibilities."
I looked at the captain.
His face showed controlled disbelief.
Walter was so used to power that he did not hear how much he was admitting.
"Did you tell Gregory to bring the bat?"
"Gregory makes his own decisions."
"Did you give it to him?"
"I gave my son a wedding gift."
I almost laughed again.
"An aluminum baseball bat."
"Sentimental value."
"Of course."
Walter's patience snapped.
"Do not mistake the fact that you embarrassed my son for victory."
His voice became low.
"You are on a ship in the middle of the ocean."
Ramos's expression changed.
"You have no idea how many people depend on the Hartman family."
The captain leaned toward the microphone.
"Mr. Hartman."
Walter stopped.
"This is Captain Elias Morgan."
"Captain."
"Any attempt to intimidate or interfere with a passenger or crew member aboard this vessel will be documented and referred to the appropriate authorities."
Walter laughed.
"Captain, I appreciate your enthusiasm."
"This is not enthusiasm."
"Then I suggest you focus on navigation and let adults handle private family matters."
Morgan's face went still.
"This call is over."
I held up a hand.
"One question first."
The captain hesitated, then nodded.
"Walter."
"Yes?"
"Where is Miriam?"
He took too long to answer.
"At home."
"I don't believe you."
"That sounds like your problem."
Then he hung up.
The bridge line went dead.
Nobody spoke for several seconds.
Finally, Ramos said, "He confirmed knowledge of the camera."
"And Nassau," I said.
"And the documents."
The captain looked toward his communications officer.
"Save three copies of the recording. One offline."
"Already doing it."
I picked up my phone.
No new message from Miriam.
I sent one anyway.
ARE YOU SAFE? DO NOT ANSWER IF IT PUTS YOU AT RISK. SEND A SINGLE PERIOD IF YOU CAN.
Nothing happened.
A minute passed.
Then two.
Then five.
No reply.
Ramos came to stand beside me.
"We can ask local authorities to check the residence."
"Please."
The ship attorney was already coordinating.
Thirty minutes later, a law enforcement contact in Florida reached the Hartman estate.
The gates were locked.
No one answered.
A house manager eventually came to the intercom.
He said Walter had left several hours earlier.
He said Miriam was not home.
Nobody knew where she had gone.
I looked at the dark ocean beyond the bridge windows.
"Walter lied."
Ramos nodded.
"Yes."
My phone vibrated.
A message appeared from Miriam's number.
Just one character.
A period.
Relief hit me so hard I had to sit down.
Then a second message appeared.
It was not from Miriam.
May you like
It came from an unknown number.
SHE'S SAFE FOR NOW. COME TO NASSAU ALONE IF YOU WANT THAT TO STAY TRUE.
