Beth

"Can I speak to you for a moment?" Heidi asks as she links arms with me at Solaire the next morning.

"Of course," I answer, wondering what this could possibly be about.  

"In my office. We need privacy."

I follow her into her office and she firmly shuts the door. Her office is spacious and painted in a warm taupe. Her desk and shelves are bright white and are immaculate except for a sleek computer screen and several of Heidi's favorite business books: Influence, How to Win Friends & Influence People, Purple Cow, Built to Last, The Effective Executive.  A cushy shag rug lies underfoot, and a series of black and white nature prints line the wall.

Heidi smiles at me with a knowing grin.

"What?" I say warily.

"So, you and Isaac sitting in a tree, huh?"

"David told you?"

"Yes, though I can't say I was terribly surprised. I had my suspicions about you two back when we were going to school. What I don't understand is why you aren't dating him now."

"One word. Sophie."

"True. Still, it's hard to imagine those two together. It seems to me that Sophie's just having fun with him. Isaac's at a different stage of his life. I think he's ready for more."

I really don't want to talk about this right now.

"What about you?" I say, turning the subject in hopes she'll let my love life drop. "Are you looking for more?"

"Me? Not really. I'm not sure if I will ever marry anyone. It's not like I need a man to make me happy. I have plenty of money and I love my freedom too much. I don't think I could be with someone that would tell me what and what not to do. But my love life isn't the point of me bringing you in here. And actually, neither is yours."

"Then why are we here?" I ask.

I hear a knock at the door. Heidi opens the door, lets Walter (aka Boob Boy) and Mike in, scans the hallway, then closes it behind them.

"Walter came to me a few days ago and told me that he felt like his product had been tampered with," Heidi says.

"That's a serious accusation. Do you have any proof?" I ask.

"No, unfortunately, other than right before the round when I was eliminated, something suspicious happened," Walter says. "I left my bra and the charger on the table. I was only gone a few minutes, and when I returned, Selena was walking away from my table looking all smug, like she knew something I didn't."

It's hard to keep a straight face when Walter says "my bra."

"It's not enough evidence to prove anything in and of itself, I'll admit," Heidi says. "But I overheard something last night that makes me wonder. I was in my office late, trying to wrap up some paperwork for an acquisition in New Mexico. I had my office lights turned off, and no one knew I was there. I heard voices in the hallway. It was Peter and Selena."

"What?" I frown.

"He was accusing her of tampering with your app. He caught her in the IT lab in the act. Peter told her he was going to tell you. Selena said if he did, she would tell you about the deal his father was making with Lee Kingsley."

"My neighbor? What does he have to do with any of this?"

"He wants to buy your house, right?" Heidi presses.

"Yes, but we told him no. He wants to tear it down and build a new house there. Of course we wouldn't agree to that."

"Well apparently, Lee Kingsley, Peter's father and Selena's father all belong to the same country club. Selena's father was with them when Lee and Peter's father worked out a deal. Peter's company buys your home, then turns around and sells it to Lee. In exchange, Lee will sell one of his properties to Peter's father that he's been wanting to buy for years."

I stagger back and sink in a chair, trying to digest the revelation. Could Peter really be betraying my family like that? Could he possibly be working with my neighbor to destroy our home?

The more I think through it, the more the pieces start to fit together. Visiting my family on Nantucket, sending me roses, taking me out to dinner, buying me Coldplay tickets. I have to wonder, has everything just been an elaborate act to gain my trust? No wonder Peter encouraged me to drop out of the contest. With all the Malcolms in Nantucket, there would be no one to block his deal or see what was happening to the home before it was too late. After he flipped Malcolm Estate, I can imagine Peter would probably claim that he didn't know Lee Kingsley was going to tear it down.

I feel sick imagining a bulldozer destroying our beautiful home. The thought of Malcolm Estate being reduced to broken wood and rubble makes me furious.

"Unfortunately there's no way to prove Selena sabotaged the Boobinator," Walter says. "My gut says she did, though, and she can't get away with it."

"Here's what I think we should do," Mike says. "I'm going to install a security camera in the IT room so if Selena does try to mess with my code again, we'll have evidence. I'll also keep the latest version of BrainRetain on my laptop so she can't touch it. That way no matter what she does, you'll have a glitch-free app for the final round."

"Good plan," I say.

"This is important, Beth," Heidi says. "I know it will be hard to pretend like everything's normal with Peter considering the way he betrayed you, but you can't let him suspect a thing! You can't tell anyone, especially not Isaac. You can't tip Peter off. You have to prove to him that he can trust you, or we'll never get the evidence we need to prove Selena sabotaged you."

I nod, feeling queasy. I don't want to believe Peter's involved in something like this, but my gut tells me Heidi is right.  

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Please show this chapter some love by hitting that star!

So how are we feeling about these new revelations? The crazy thing is, there's a big problem right now, particularly in the south in areas like Atlanta and Dallas with historic homes getting torn down, even in protected areas. Many of the homeowners in these areas are understandably upset by it, especially when the neighbors build giant houses that don't fit into the neighborhoods.

For those who are curious what Heidi's office looks like, here it is:

And here's another picture of Heidi (Scarlett Johansson).

Dedication today goes out to SmileyFacesRock! Thank you so much for your support and comments on RESTLESS HOPE. I appreciate you :)