LITMIR.BIZ

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it. Despite his injuries, make no mistake, Harrison Marshall was in fine form. We spoke at length about Marshall International, his family, his hopes for the future.”

      Mariella, her mouth open wide, looked from the screen to the bed where her husband was lying comatose.

      “Elana Marshall’s wedding is just around the corner, and Harrison was full of determination to be there for her special day.”

      A woman Mariella vaguely recognized from another prime-time news show leaned forward, her beautiful face made up to within an inch of its life. “And what of his injuries?”

      Jim Avon didn’t miss a beat. This was his show and, aware of the audience they’d pulled in, he was going to milk it. “Oh, substantial,” he said, nodding.

      Beside her, Gabe stiffened, and Mariella put a hand down for his. She couldn’t have said if she was seeking or giving comfort, but only that their sense of outrage and indignation matched.

      “But Harrison Marshall is no ordinary man. Though his body is broken, I have no doubt he’ll be back to his old self soon.”

      The woman’s smile was like a red scarf blowing in the breeze. “I imagine his family is very worried?”

      “Of course!” Jim was really warming to the subject now. “Who wouldn’t be? But if you could have seen him, he was a picture of determination. He’s running Marshall International from bed, still combing over the minutiae of his business with the kind of precision he’s renowned for. He’s a remarkable man, Shauna. Remarkable.”

      “Turn it off,” Mariella said quietly. When no one responded, she said, more loudly, “Turn the damned thing off.” Joe reached for the remote control at the same time as Rafe and then dropped his hand to allow Mariella’s son to silence the buffoon.

      “This is ridiculous,” Mariella said with barely contained fury. “Get me that network’s number. I am not going to take this lying down!”

      “Mom,” Elana said, reaching across and putting a hand on Mariella’s shoulder. She was shivering from shock, and Elana moved closer. All of a sudden, Luc was speaking, and Rafe, too. Joe tried to grab Mariella’s attention, but she was standing in the room surrounded by noise and hearing none of it.

      She shook her head from side to side. How was this possible? She moved closer to Harrison. His chest was moving up and down. He was alive. Was he hearing this commotion?

      Luc made a whistling sound and lifted his hands in the air. Silence fell, save for the buzzing of Harrison’s machines.

      “Has it occurred to anyone that this guy has actually done us a favor?”

      “What are you talking about?” Elana spat, shaking her head, and Rafe joined in, denying the assertion outright. Gabe was quiet, watching the siblings, rubbing his jaw as though Humpty Dumpty was tumbling off the wall in front of him and he didn’t have a clue how to stop the eventual damage.

      “At the very least,” Luc continued, raising his voice above everyone else’s, “he’s bought us some time to figure out what to do.”

      “That’s irrelevant,” Mariella said with quiet insistence. “Though you may be right.” She looked into Joe’s eyes, then Gabe’s, then Elana’s, and finally at her two sons. “Has this man been here? And if so, how? Why? How could he possibly go on air with such a blatantly false story, knowing we could easily refute it?”

      The room absorbed this for a moment. It was Rafe who spoke first. “Obviously he knew it wouldn’t be refuted.”

      “But how?” Elana said. “Why would he think that? I’m tempted to call CNN right now...”

      “No,” Gabe said with a sigh. “Rafe’s right. This guy can say what he wants because we want everyone to believe it.”

      “For the business,” Mariella said, the taste of acid in her mouth.

      Luc nodded. “Yes, exactly what I was saying. This buys us time. This guy is making shit up out of thin air, but it’s not a bad thing for us.”

      “Fine,” Mariella said, moving past this unpalatable idea. “But he doesn’t know that. This Jim Avon...he has no idea what our business is and what we need at this precise moment...”

      “Unless he does,” Joe said, moving deeper into the family huddle. “Unless someone told him. Asked him to do the story.”

      “Asked him?” Mariella was incensed. “Who would do such a thing?”

      And the words seemed to whisper through their group, as though a mysterious other had said them, rather than what actually happened: a realization that swept through them simultaneously. Comprehension dawned as though a light had flashed.

      “The Fixer,” Mariella whispered, looking at Joe. She saw recognition in his features. A tightening of his mask, and an understanding lodged between them.

      “You mean the Fixer did this?” Elana murmured, staring at her family in confusion.

      “Who else?” Mariella didn’t look away from Joe. “Isn’t that what you told us this person does? Orchestrate circumstances to benefit his clients?”

      Joe dipped his head forward in silent acknowledgment.

      “I see.” She took a small step backward, putting some space between herself and the rest of them. She looked from one to the other, waiting for her sense of shock to subside.

      “Well?” she asked after a charged moment had passed. “Does anyone have anything to say?”

      The people she was closest to in the world continued to stare at her. They were doing an excellent job of looking confused, but she didn’t buy it. Mariella had been trusting for too long.

      “Do you think I am stupid?” she asked, her eyebrows knitting together with angry disbelief. “Do you think I was born yesterday?”

      Only Joe was capable of speech. “Mariella? What are you talking about?”

      “I’ve figured it out, Joe, that’s what.”

      “Figured what out?” Luc prompted, looking from Joe to his mother.

      “I know.” She looked at them all, her eyes laced with hurt. “I know who it is. The Fixer is here in the room with us right now.”

      * * * * *

       Secrets of the A-List (Episode 3 of 12)

      Donna Hill

      Most. Revealing. Coma. Ever.

      With Harrison still out of commission in a coma, his wife, Mariella, is discovering there are oh so many things she never knew about the man she married. To distract herself, she focuses on Elana’s wedding to Thom, which is still on—for now. But is either of them in it for the right reasons? If only it were just their eyes that were wandering. Just who can they turn to—when there’s betrayal threatening the heart of the family?

      Super Rich. Super Sexy. Super Addictive.

      Secrets of the A-List

       About the Author

      DONNA HILL published her first novel in 1990. She now has more than eighty titles in print. Three of her novels have been adapted for television. She has received numerous awards and recognition for her wide body of work. In her other life, Donna is an assistant professor of English at Medgar Evers College in Brooklyn, New York, and an adjunct professor at Baruch College and Essex County College. She has an MFA in creative writing from Goddard College. Donna lives in Brooklyn with her family. Visit her website at Donnahill.wordpress.com.

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