âThank you, but that wonât be necessary.â
When they got off the phone, Natalie thought about calling Troy again. What would she say? That she was calling to end his clandestine meeting with his mistress? She didnât feel like hearing him try to lie his way out of this. This was the end of her marriage, she was sure. What she wasnât sure about is what life would look like without Troy.
Chapter 8: A Heartbeatâs Moment
T roy was in the parking lot of the FBI office by seven as he waited until it opened at 8:15. He felt bad about leaving Natalie to take the babies with her when she took Nate to school. He knew it was more convenient for her when he stayed until she got back, but he wanted to be the first one through the FBI doors this morning. Cherylâs harassment was about to end, even if it meant temporarily inconveniencing his wife.
Being that this was Troyâs first time coming to the federal office, he was a little taken aback by how secluded it was. It sat on the far west side of Nationwide Boulevard in a brick building that, in his mind, looked mysteriously important. Visitor parking wasnât free. There were a couple of pay-to-park meters that civilians used to purchase tickets for the spaces that were unassigned. Troy paid for his ticket and waited.
At first Troy got nervous as he watched agents pull into the lot and go inside. Maybe it wasnât such a good idea to sit out here. What if he saw Cheryl? Or worse, what if she saw him? Who knew what kind of story she would concoct in rebuttal to his accusations. He really had no proof because heâd deleted all the text messages sheâd sent prior to the weekend to prevent Natalie from ever seeing them. Her most recent ones werenât incriminating in the least bit.
The closer it got to 8:15, the more uncomfortable the thought of Cheryl spotting him made Troy feel. He was on her turf and had to ensure that she would be nowhere around, so he decided to send her a text.
âSorry 4 such l8 notice. Need 2 c u. Can u meet at the Dublin Entre preneurial Center?â
Her response didnât come until several minutes later. âY there??? Letâs meet at my house instead. Iâm on my way home now.â
For good measure, she sent her address again, which he already had from the message sheâd sent over the weekend. His plan for sending her to the northwestern suburb had been to make sure she was as far away from this office as possible. He knew sheâd likely jump at the chance to meet him and heâd been banking on the flexibility of her job to allow her to do so. Apparently, his manipulative tactics had been in vain because Cheryl gave no indication that she was coming into work this morning. Had he known that, he would have left well enough alone. He didnât bother to reply. Instead, he felt a little more at ease, believing that after this visit to her place of employment, Cherylâs harassment of him would be nipped in the bud for good. Ignoring a call from Natalie, he got out of his car and went inside the building.
Having never been to this office or any FBI office, for that matter, Troy had a reality check when he walked in to find the lobby void of a receptionist or other personnel to greet him. There where two glass stairwells on either side, but it was clear that one could not access them without proper ID. He went to the elevator and made his way up to the third floor as indicated on the wall placard. He walked out the elevator and again, there was no one to greet himânothing but plain painted walls and a door to the left with an intercom button and built-in camera.
âHow can I help you?â came the voice after Troy pushed the button.
This was not the scenario heâd planned and he quickly used his law enforcement status so that he didnât seem like just another civilian. Heâd even worn a suit this morning to appear more professional. âIâm