The Other Daniel - A Camille Grisham Novella by John Hardy Bell Page B

words
'tortured FBI agent equals guaranteed bestseller' next to her
family doodle, and knew that in the world she operated in, it
absolutely did. The look of borderline horror that colored Jacob's
face let her know just how far in she would have to dig her heels
in order to convince him. Fortunately for Meredith, nobody dug
deeper.
    "If we can assure the
publisher that this is possible, The Other
Daniel immediately becomes their top
priority. That means a faster pub date, comprehensive marketing,
and an author whose value suddenly becomes
immeasurable."
    The expression on Jacob's face softened as
the wheels in his mind started turning again. Meredith knew exactly
which buttons to push and how hard to push them. In Jacob's case,
the celebrity-author button worked every time.
    "Granted it will be tough
getting to her,” she continued. “But if you do, if The Other Daniel hits
shelves with Camille Grisham front and center, you can spend the
rest of your career writing your own ticket. Doesn't that make the
effort worthwhile?"
    Without saying a word, Jacob pulled out his
cell phone. He punched the keypad for several minutes before
Meredith finally decided he wasn't going to let her in on his
query.
    "May I ask?" she said, offended by his
absence of consideration.
    "You know her best friend was murdered two
days after she left the FBI, right?" he said without looking up
from the phone.
    Meredith's eyes dropped to the Pilot pen
that she had been twirling in her hand. "I'm aware of that."
    Jacob continued scrolling. "Then you’re also
aware of the crazy claim she's making about who is involved."
    "According to some people, the claim isn't
so crazy. Still, it sounds like she's going to have a hard time
proving it, no matter how determined she is to do so."
    "Knowing all of that, do you honestly think
I'd have an iota of a chance with her? Daniel Sykes is something of
a sore subject to begin with. I don't think she's going to
appreciate someone showing up at her doorstep attempting to reopen
that wound when she's still dealing with a fresh one."
    "Like I said, Camille is determined to tell
her story. The problem is no one is hearing that story. You have
the opportunity to give her a voice."
    Jacob smirked. "I’m a regular patron
saint."
    "I'm being serious. Make her believe that
she's getting just as much out of this as you are and you won't
have any problem getting her to open up."
    "How exactly does talking about Daniel Sykes
benefit her current situation?"
    "You write your sympathy piece, only instead
of focusing on Sykes, focus on Camille. The world deserves to know
what really happened during that confrontation, and what happened
to her as a result. Get people to understand Camille's back story
and they might be more apt to listen to her regarding her friend's
murder. Win for her, win for you. Actually, Pulitzer Prize for
you." The gleam in Meredith's soft brown eyes was trumped by the
wide smile that had spread across her angular face. She was pushing
all the right buttons again.
    With a gleam of his own, Jacob returned to
his phone - same silent scrolling routine as before.
    "What are you looking at now?" Meredith
asked, feeling slighted for a second time.
    "The next flight to Denver."
    Suddenly she didn't feel the least bit
slighted. "So Camille is our girl?"
    Jacob tucked his phone into his pocket as he
stood up. The white Oxford shirt he wore was wrinkled and at least
two sizes too big. Meredith made a note to recommend a stylist
befitting the world's next great true-crime author. And if she had
anything to say about it, that is exactly what Jacob Deaver was
going to be.
    "Camille is our girl," he said with
confidence.
    "The only problem is that she hasn't been
seen much in public lately. How will you even know where to find
her?"
    "Promise me that Pulitzer and I'll go to the
ends of the earth if I have to."
    For the sake of their bestseller, Meredith
hoped like hell that he meant it.

CHAPTER ONE
    THE SHARK
     

    The