Love in the Cross Hairs

She walked him to the door, and they kissed good night. For the first time since they'd started dating they wrapped their arms around each other.

All the way home Peter played the radio up all the way; he sang along with every song. Golly was he a happy guy.

Laurie went to bed feeling about the happiest she'd felt in her whole life. She'd held out all her life, and finally her Prince Charming had shown up. Oh she whispered to herself. She was going to get that boy, marry him, and make him the happiest guy on the planet. They'd have kids, go to mass. He'd convert, she knew her Methodists; all they did was sing and eat. She'd make him so happy! Everything would be perfect. The world would be perfect. Nothing could possibly go wrong.

'First Time'

He got back to Laurie's shortly after five the next evening. Armed with crab cakes, crab soup, crackers, French fries covered in Old Bay seasoning, a copy of The Godfather, and dressed in a clean pair of jeans, tennis shoes, and a white Tee-shirt, he tapped on her door.

She was right there, "Come on in."

He stepped in and handed her the bags, "I got the food, and I picked up a copy of an old movie if you'd like."

"Sure, anything as long as it's with you."

Peter's chest swelled, "It's an old movie, pretty violent; you might not like it."

"We'll give it try. Wait on the love seat while I get the food organized."

He slipped over to what had had become his favorite place of all time, sat back, and slipped in the DVD, "I'll move the video forward to the beginning."

She called out from the kitchen, "OK, I'll bring in the food, then I have to stop off at the bathroom for a second." A few seconds later she was back with the food, "I need to see the Lady's Room, be right back."

Laurie had waited till Peter got there before she put on any make up. She wanted everything to be fresh. In the bathroom she dabbed on a tiny bit of pink for her cheeks, a smidgen of slightly darker pink eye shadow, and some clear lip gloss.

She looked in the mirror. She was wearing a white short sleeved blouse, scooped neck and round scalloped collar all with lots of eyelet lace. Under it she had on a chemise and a bra. She was a little scared, but decided to take off the bra. She looked herself over. He wouldn't see anything, but she'd be a little looser. She thought it was pretty brazen, but decided to go with it anyway.

She had on a pair of tennis shoes, white ankle socks, and a loosely fitting pair of shorts with cotton panties underneath. She was still a virgin, but tonight, maybe.

She walked out and slid over next to Peter on the loveseat, "I'm hungry."

He said, "Me too."

They helped themselves to the crab soup and crab cakes. Munching on the cakes, sipping soda, and subtly eying each other they started to watch the video.

Peter started to provide subtitles for the events on the screen. Laurie knew he was nervous. She was terrified, still she made the first move.

Laurie took the index finger of her right hand and softly curled it up and down Peter's neck. She watched him squirm. She rested her head on his shoulder.

He leaned around and, with his right hand, lifted her head from under the chin.

They kissed.

They kissed again.

Peter knew. He reached down; then by the waist and upper thighs he lifted and carried her to the bedroom. He laid her on top of the covers.

Laurie lay quite still, scared, "I've never done this before."

He wasn't sure he believed her. He leaned down; half lying on top, half to the side he kissed her while he started to unbutton her blouse. An hour later, through the tears and the way he could tell how small her body was, he knew she'd been telling the truth.

'Something Had to go Wrong: It Always Does.'

Sally had always been a curious child, and as she grew up that curiosity shaped her into a full time honest to God busy body. So Laurie had a beau. If she did, then that meant only thing, Sally had to find out all about him, meet him, make a judgment, and pass that judgment on to Laurie's parents.

Sally had her doubts about Laurie's ability to make an intelligent decision about a man. Laurie, though pretty in her own little 'wall flower' way, had never really had a boyfriend. Oh there had been a couple boys in high school, and one in college, but Sally had known her nearly all her life, and more than once she'd been able to cut Laurie off before she made a big mistake.

She remembered one time while they were in college; they both attended the same small, private, very exclusive, and ultra-expensive liberal arts college. The place had just become coed the year they started. Laurie met a cute boy in her Freshman English class. Laurie had asked Sally one day what she thought of him. She remembered it well. They were both standing at the back door of the classroom, the boy was seated already, maybe the second or third row from the front. Laurie asked her if he looked good. She'd told Laurie without hesitation the creep was totally unacceptable. Sally was right too. A few days after Laurie had blown him off he had asked her for a date. She, of course, accepted, and they dated off and on all fall. She finally got bored with the guy; he was just too serious about school for her. The guy just hadn't been good enough for either of them. Of course, she never told Laurie she'd dated the boy; she didn't want her to feel inferior.

She'd stepped in a couple more times like that on Laurie's behalf during college. Eventually the boys got the message; no dates with Laurie without going through Sally first. It worked out pretty well. Laurie got good grades, Sally, well she never was much of a student.

Now she had to find this new guy, figure out what his angle was, and nip this foolishness in the bud. She just didn't want Laurie to get hurt, that's all. Of course, it was still good to have her as a readily available babysitter. Later she could be the maiden aunt who would dote on her kids. It had occurred to her some women just weren't cut out for marriage. Yeah, Laurie needed a social secretary, always had, and always would.

'That's What Friends are For.'

Max couldn't get the name off his mind. Stanton, Stanton, where had he heard that name before? There was only one thing to do; he'd check the Internet, run down all the local Stantons he could find. Somewhere out there he'd uncover the family and the girl. Peter had even dropped her name, Laurie. It should be easy to pick around for a few evenings; he'd find her, and then he'd have her family. Maybe she was just right, but then everyone thought the other one had been just right. His buddy Peter was such a fool when it came to girls. He was a train wreck waiting to happen. He'd take care of it. He'd find the girl's family, study it. If it was all right then no harm done, but if it looked fishy, he'd have to find a way to let Pete know, that was let him know without getting blamed himself.

'Big Plans'

Peter got tickets to the city's theater. The city they lived in had a small theater, kind of old and run down. Most of the good shows never made their town; they got stuff either dropping out of sight and leaving New York, or things that were brand new and looking for momentum before hitting the Big Apple.

He had something planned for this date; something he'd been mulling over for a few days. He and Laurie had been hanging out a lot, and their love making had gotten very serious. Summer was long gone; Thanksgiving was just a few days away.

Maybe it was time for him to suggest something big. He wasn't thinking engagement, not yet; he figured that would scare her off. When he'd been in college he'd never joined a fraternity. He'd had his chances; he just never had the time or the money. He hung out with some boys in fraternities, even tended bar at one for a while, but never found a suitable hook up. Heck fraternity pins were just a step away from high school stuff anyway. He needed something, jewelry, some kind of jewelry, and it should be a ring.

He hit the jewelry shops all over town and asked questions and looked, but just couldn't decide. Finally it hit him, the best kind of jewelry was certainly a ring, but maybe it would be better if he matched a ring with something else too. That was it a ring plus!

He checked out the jewelry stores again and settled on the nicest one in his part of town. It was a good facility, well respected, been around for dozens of years.

The rest was easy; Laurie had dark red hair, rubies were red. He searched and searched until he found it; a matching set; a ruby solitaire necklace, a set of ruby studs for her ears, and a ruby ring with just one stone set as if it were a diamond. To his surprise he found out rubies cost more than diamonds. He didn't care. She was worth it, every penny.

Peter bought the rubies and headed for his truck. In the truck he opened the box and looked them over. God they were great! They gave off the darkest brilliant sheen. What a great gift, but something didn't seem quite right. He closed the box.

There was one thing a girl got to do only one time in her whole life. Some girls gave it away like it was nothing. Laurie had held on till she was nearly thirty. She'd given it him; she'd given it to him without any promises, without any guarantees. She'd handed it to him on a silver platter.

Peter looked at the box. He had these rubies. They were really great, really pretty, more expensive than any diamonds, but he knew all these rubies could never match that one true gift she'd given him. No bunch of rubies could ever be as much as one measly diamond. He got out the truck and went back in the jewelry store.

The plan was set; dinner first, then the theater, and afterward a stop for drinks at a quiet, discreet, club where he'd hand her the box containing the ring.

Last, get the tickets, rent a car, get the good suit cleaned. It all had to be just right. It was kind of funny in a way. They'd been dating, hanging out at her apartment night after night, kissing, making love.

It was Thanksgiving Day weekend and a lot of people were off. He got tickets. He had it all planned, the perfect evening. This was the night he'd say the big three, no four words, 'Laurie I love you'. How insipid, he was acting like a high school kid, but that was how she made him feel.

He called her up. He called her every day, Laurie, guess what?"

Laurie answered, "What?" Though he called every day, he always had something neat to say, and she always enjoyed hearing it. Actually he could call and tell her the weather; she just loved the sound of his voice.

"I got two tickets for the theater for this Thursday. What do you think?"

Laurie looked at her calendar. It was only Monday, "Great, I'll stop at a boutique and get something to wear. What will you be wearing?"

"I'm having my suit cleaned."

"You own a suit?"

"One."

"What color?"

"Why?"

"I'll get something to match."

"It's grey, kind of a charcoal grey."

"What time do you want me to be ready?"

"How about five-thirty; the show starts at seven-thirty. I thought we'd eat first, and then hit the theater. Afterwards stop someplace and get a drink."

"Won't that keep us out kind of late?"

"Maybe, but I have my reasons."

"OK, look when you call me tomorrow don't start asking questions about the kind of dress I got or anything."

He laughed, "We'll see."

"I won't tell you."

"I still might ask."

"You won't get me to talk."

"I don't know; you can be pretty glib."

"That does it; you'll get nothing from me."

They continued to chit chat for another half an hour. Like always they talked a lot about nothing. It was just fun to be on the phone with someone you enjoyed talking to. Eventually they hung up the phone, and like they usually did they ended by blowing each other kisses of the telephone line.

Peter had been to the jewelry store and bought Laurie the ring on Sunday; afterward he picked her up, they'd had lunch and gone for a drive. They'd sat in the front seat of his truck and spooned like teenagers. On Monday he'd called her on the phone and invited her to the theater. He spent most of the remainder of Monday night opening and reopening the jewelry box; thinking about how excited she'd be. When he got to work the following Tuesday Max dropped a hydrogen bomb.

++++++++++++

Peter stepped into the work shed intent on the inspection of some blueprints for a second new apartment complex they were planning. If they got this one done, they'd be better equipped to handle some of the longer range plans they hoped to address. The business certainly wasn't out of the woods, but it looked like complete failure was a thing of the past.

Max sort of sidled up to his friend. Peter could tell he had something on his mind, "What's up Max?"

"You know Pete, I'm your friend."

"Yeah I know that. So what's up?"

"Well are you still seeing that girl?"

"You mean Laurie?"

"Yeah, Laurie Stanton."

"What do you know about her?"

Peter wondered where this was going. Max must either know something or he found something out, "Not a lot, I guess I know enough though."

"Yeah, but I mean like what about her family?"

"Not much I guess. Her mom was a maid, used to work for the rich people in the northern part of town."

"You sure?"

"No Max, I'm not sure. You know something?"

"Maybe, I think so."

"Look Max, either you know something or you don't. What is it?"

"Her last name's Stanton right?"

"Yeah, Laurie Stanton."

"You don't know anything else."

"What's on your mind Max."

Max didn't say anything. He handed his friend an envelope.

Peter took the envelope, and opened it. Inside was a picture of Laurie. She was dressed in a long flowing white gown; the caption underneath read, 'Laurie Stanton, This Year's Latest Deb'. Peter looked at the picture again. He looked back at Max, "So what."

"Read the article Pete, the one about the family."

Peter sat down at his desk and started to peruse the content of the envelope. Laurie Stanton, his Laurie Stanton, was the younger child of one of the richest families in the state, old money, real blue bloods. There were pictures of her parents, her brother, and other relatives. They ran the gamut from judges, lawyers, businessmen, foreign diplomats, even an actress who'd changed her name. Most of it didn't bother Peter. He'd never really asked so she wasn't expected to answer. What did bother him was some of the parts about her mother, father, and her brother.

Peter started to squirm. Laurie hadn't said much, but what she'd said hadn't been anything like this. Her mother had obviously never been a maid. In fact it looked like her mother probably never lived without one. Laurie had a brother who was a lawyer, and her father was a banker. What he saw there was a lot worse. The brother was the same guy at the hospital, and the judge at the hospital was an uncle, and the man with the judge had been her businessman father.

That's when it all hit home, and when it hit home, it hit like a ton of rocks. Her father and her brother had been the primary engines of his businesses near destruction. In fact, her brother had gone out of his way to clean out as many of his holdings as he could. Now most of those holdings were safely stowed away in one of Laurie's brother's friend's companies.

Peter sat back a moment. He told himself that it meant nothing. He'd met her as a result of someone trying to rob her, someone who tried to rob her outside a Wal-Mart, a Wal-Mart where he regularly bought his food. Hold it, the Wal-Mart where she'd been robbed was a cool ten miles from where she lived. There must be two maybe three Wal-Marts, Targets, and K-Marts closer to her apartment, and why was her little apartment right in one of the complexes he'd built. Sure it wasn't the one he was living in, but wait a minute. He'd been living in it till a few weeks before she was robbed.

He couldn't believe it. Had someone set the whole thing up? And if they had why would they? These people didn't know him from Adam. There was no reason for it. Wait a minute. The brother's friend, their family friend, he knew him. He'd beaten him out of several contracts; out-bid and then built a better product. Was this about business, or was it personal too?

This couldn't be real. Laurie, not his Laurie? She couldn't have been in on some kind of deal to get what little was left of his business. Then again, he still held some pretty valuable properties, and some of those properties abutted properties these people would have now. Did he control easements or something?

Peter looked over at Max, "Do you mind if I take the rest of the morning off?"

Max was heartbroken. He knew Pete had fallen for the girl, "No go ahead. I'll handle things here."

He took the rest of the day. He pulled out all their old lost properties, he checked the clearances, the easements, everything. Sure enough he had a few properties, but those he had were critical to the development of some the ones the Stanton people and their friends had acquired.

He still couldn't believe it. Laurie couldn't have been a part of anything so insidious. It just wasn't her. He went back to her personal records; the schools she attended, the colleges, the classes she took, the sports she played. None of it connected with any of what the other stuff pointed to, none except two thing: for one she'd only been working for that law firm a few weeks, long enough to establish a record, but not long really at all, the second thing didn't look like much either, at least not at first. While she was in high school and college she'd been a martial arts student. Laurie was an accomplished martial artist; maybe not a black belt, but still pretty good. It didn't make sense. If she was skilled at all, then how was it possible for a common thief, a back alley scum, to grab her, get her purse, and take off without some kind of retaliation?

Peter had served in the army. He'd had some training; not up to the level the paper said Laurie had, but enough to know that if one were attacked, the response was virtually instinctive. She hadn't done anything that night. She just stood there completely immobile.

This was ugly. Why did the guy attack her at the bottom of the parking lot? Why not wait till she was farther from the front of the store, and in the dark? Why did he attack her there? Was it because he was waiting for Peter, the real target? Had he been set up to deliberately wait for the right time? Peter wondered how many other nights they might have been waiting for him to be at just the right place at the right time to break bold on the plan.

He still couldn't believe it. He'd known Laurie for several weeks now. God they'd been dating. They'd made love. She'd given him her cherry! She was either the nicest the sweetest girl in six states, or she was the damnedest actress he'd ever met.

Damn, he remembered his last girl. He'd thought the same thing; that she'd never betray him, but betray him she did. He wilted; these were Laurie's people, her family. Who was he; some guy who'd chased a guy on a parking lot.

He looked over at Max, "Max I'm not staying. I have to take the rest of the day off, maybe tomorrow too."

"It's OK buddy, and hey, I'm sorry."

"It's all right."

Peter packed up his briefcase and left the shed. What was he going to do? This couldn't be true. This couldn't be Laurie.

++++++++++++

To Laurie's amazement on Tuesday evening, after a long hard day's work, she answered a knock on the door only to find her sister in-law law Sally.

Without waiting to be asked Sally pushed right in, "Hi sis, bet you're surprised to see me?"

"Well, yes. I..."

"Well, have I got some dope for you. Sit down. I've found out all about your new boyfriend, and believe me, once you see what I've found you'll look at him in a new way."