Accept Me As I Am

Chapter 20

At Shanelle's harsh words, Gia and the others came walking into the room.

"Is everything alright in here?" Gia asked but frowned when she saw the woman standing in her home. "Exactly why are you here? Shouldn't you be with Roderick?"

Jaylin looked from Shanelle to the attractive young woman and back again wondering what was going on.

"Baby, what's with the language? Do you know this woman?"

The young woman cleared her throat. "If you would allow me to explain myself, my presence in your home would make a lot more sense."

Shanelle went to say something sideways but Jaylin stopped her. "Shan, let her explain herself. Hear her out."

Shanelle made a face but didn't attempt to say anything further.

"First off my name is not Jacklyn Nova. It's Giovani Tremble. This is my partner Yancy Brown. We're undercover agents for the FBI's department of investigations."

To make sure no one doubted them, Giovani and Yancy pulled their government issued badges out to show everyone that they were indeed telling the truth.

"We need to ask you a few questions and to fill you in on a few things. Do you think we can speak privately?"

Shanelle looked at Jaylin with worry written all over her face. Jaylin wrapped his arm around Shanelle and pulled her close to his chest.
"If you'd like, your gentleman friend may stay but the others need to leave the room."

Christy shook her head as she grabbed Gabrielle and Gia's hands. "Come on guys. Let's give them some privacy. Shanelle, we'll be in the front, okay?"

Shanelle looked over at Christy
and nodded her head.  Once everyone had left the room except Jaylin and Shanelle, Giovani continued with her explanation.

"Ms. McGee, please take a seat. You're not in any trouble with the government, we only came to speak with you and ask a few questions."

Jaylin helped Shanelle to an open seat and took a seat next to her. "With all due respect, why are you two here?" he wanted to know.

"We've been on this case for more than six months an-"

"Am I being investigated?" Shanelle asked with a hint of fear in her voice. 

Giovani shook her head. "No. At the beginning of the investigation you were, but now we know otherwise. Now, the reason we're here tonight is because we wanted to ask you a few questions about your ex-boyfriend Roderick Sharpe."

Shanelle frowned. "What about him?"

"He was being investigated for embezzlement. Do you know anything about that?"

Shanelle shook her head no. "Roderick just recently got a promotion not too long ago. Before that he was working as an assistant in the payroll department of the company. He never really talked about work with me. Am I missing something here?"

"To explain that, I have to explain how we came across this case," Giovani said as she folded her hands on top of the table. "Before Mr. Sharpe began working at Credential Corp, he worked in the financial department of a place called Stratosphere Evolutions in Phoenix, Arizona about nine years ago. The company was robbed blind before they knew what hit them. We were called in to investigate, but unfortunately we had no proof that Mr. Sharpe was involved. Here we are a few years later, a Mrs. Samantha Tate of Credential Corp and Associates contacted us about the possibility of someone stealing from her company. After viewing a few financial mishaps, we wrote it off as just a clerical error and were ready to close the investigation. That's until Mr. Sharpe and another employee were hired. Just weeks after their employment, things began to magically disappear and quite frequently. It's the exact same occurrences as before except in different states."