Dead Presidents (An Aria Raymond Thriller Book 3) by Thomas Ransom (that summer book txt) 📕

the added responsibility he had now. She hesitated, but then decided to leave. Tanya had a long day and she was planning to give Aria a call too. She would be amused when she finds out Wayne, of all people, was asking about her.

Wayne turned and went back to the same position he was in as if he was never interrupted. He was hoping Aria would rejoin, but he understood why she didn’t want to. The place … this office seemed jinxed after Coons’ murder. No one was able to stick around. He gulped. He thought becoming the head of the department – an acting head of the department – would thrill him to no end. However, this job and the way he got it would put a toll on anyone. It had been barely a month, and Wayne felt like he was already sinking.

There was something wrong; he could feel it in his gut. Everything that happened, happened for a reason. There were people behind it all… powerful people who weren’t afraid to get rid of anyone who came in their way. They first got rid of Coons and placed Aria in his position. He wasn’t sure why she got framed for his murder, but he guessed it could be because she either refused to do what they told her to do or found out something about what was actually happening. When Aria had finally won her trial, and the blame was about to fall on Whitney, they had conveniently murdered her as well to protect themselves. Unfortunately, he was asked to cover the position of Whitney until they found a replacement.

He was reluctant, but the board members insisted. They assured him they have already shortlisted the candidates for the job and would be making the final decision soon. Wayne was told that he would only be responsible for this post for a month. The month was almost up, and there were no signs of a replacement. He had tried setting up a meeting with the board, but they all seemed to be busy all the time.

Wayne signed and pressed his temples with his fingers. He knew he was stuck. He knew that soon enough they would try to get him to do things for them too. Coons was found to be stealing money. Wayne knew Coons, and he couldn’t believe this accusation. He was sure the higher ups had set him up too, and since he was already dead, he couldn’t even defend himself. Wayne had started having nightmares that he would be murdered in an alley himself someday. He shivered.

The news of other murders wasn’t helping either. He had a hunch that this thing was bigger than he would even imagine. These people are everywhere. How else would they so smoothly have Coons murdered and place the blame on Aria? It was David’s confession that got her out, he was her boyfriend! They even placed one of their people near her – how well-thought-out was this plan?! He probably actually fell for Aria, which is why he confessed; otherwise, it would have been more difficult for her lawyer to get her out of there.

Wherever Wayne went, he would flinch every time someone would talk to him. He was slowly starting to get paranoid. He met this beautiful woman at a bar and was about to go home with her, when he suddenly got anxious about it. He kept thinking, what if she was sent by someone to get close to him?! He practically ran out of the place, leaving behind that astonished woman.

Wayne knew he needed to get a grip on himself. Nothing had happened, and he hadn’t found out anything. They would probably find the right replacement soon, and he would be back to his previous job, he assured himself. It wasn’t easy to find the right replacement, especially a position which was previously held by two people who are now dead and one who was wrongfully convicted. He gulped. He knew his anxieties were reaching an all-time high. He took a few deep breaths to calm himself down.

There was no point making himself crazy over nothing. He was fine, and he would be fine. Wayne thought to himself. He just needed to be on high alert. He had started applying to other places, though, as a backup. It was best to keep his options open. Get away before they could reel him in. He had thought about talking to Aria. It seemed like a good idea at first, but then he figured these people already knew everything about everyone. They might start suspecting him if he contacted Aria. Everyone knew that he and Aria didn’t exactly get along, and they had been competing with one another from the time they had joined the company, which was a few weeks apart. Suddenly contacting her out of the blue would probably raise some flags, and he was sure he was being closely monitored now. Heck, even Tanya looked startled when he asked her about Aria. He admitted that it was out of character, but he just wanted to know how Aria was doing. She was lucky, considering they could have easily killed her too. However, he knew for a fact that Tanya was one of the good people. She stood by Aria, and he knew she wouldn’t harm him. But he should be careful from now on. He can’t talk to Aria and can’t talk about her. No. He can’t make a mistake… he can’t make another mistake.

He was hoping no one knew what he did. He only wanted to help. He had figured it was the right thing to do at that time. That was, of course, before Whitney got herself murdered, and he had to take her place. Had he known, he never would have done that. He would have just left everything as it was. But now he had to do the right thing. Idiot!