Fate Interrupted: A Paranormal Women's Fiction Novel (Moonstone Cove Book 3)

by Elizabeth Hunter

A thread of sadness tugged at Megan’s heart. Unlike her own parents or Evelyn Carver’s folks, she would never have a golden anniversary. She’d spent nearly thirty years trying to make one marriage work, and that hadn’t lasted. Even if she got married tomorrow, she’d have to live to nearly a hundred to make a golden anniversary happen.

  Not likely.

  Damn you, Rodney! She didn’t often dwell in the past, but that morning she was tired, she was worried, and she was at the end of her rope.

  It was just her luck that her next phone call was interrupted by Rodney. She sent him to voice mail and continued her conversation with one of her June brides.

  Cami came into the living room a few minutes later. She waited for Megan to get off the phone, then asked, “Hey, Dad wants us to come over to his house to have dinner with him and Angela. Is that all right?”

  “No!” Shit. That wasn’t cool. “I mean, I need to check on what’s going on tonight. I think…” What did she have? What could she count on? “Um, I told Toni that we’d take dinner out to her and Henry tonight, and she was so excited. You know, she’s almost ready to have the baby, so it’s hard for her to go places, and she loves the company.”

  Which was literally the opposite of reality since Toni had been snarling at nearly everyone who intruded at her house for the past few days.

  Cami perked up. “Toni and Henry’s house?”

  “Yes. So you can’t possibly go to your dad’s. Not tonight. I’m so sorry.”

  “Oh, no problem.” Cami bounced back down the hall. “I’ll tell him.”

  Adam wandered out a few minutes later. “We’re not going to Dad’s?”

  Megan shook her head and kept her voice low. “Detective Bisset wanted to do a little digging first. He told us to lie low.”

  Adam nodded. “You don’t think Dad—”

  “There’s no reason to think he’s involved in any of this, buddy.” Even though there was. “I’m just being cautious.”

  “Okay.”

  Megan quickly got on the phone to text Toni.

  What?

  The kids and I are bringing you dinner tonight. What do you want?

  Atlanta, I know you mean well, but I really don’t feel like company.

  I had to give Cami an excuse why she couldn’t go to Asshole’s house.

  Shit.

  The phone was quiet for a long time before she texted again.

  Will you bring the Patti LaBelle mac and cheese?

  Megan let out a breath. Yes. I will bring the Patti LaBelle mac and cheese. With extra cheese.

  Fine, you can come.

  Megan sighed in relief. At least that was sorted. She just had to run to the store to get all the cheese.

  Her phone buzzed again. It was Nico.

  Toni said you’re bringing the mac and cheese to her house tonight.

  Megan’s eyebrows went up. If you think you’re getting any of that mac and cheese from your cousin, you better be prepared to lose a finger or three.

  You’re only bringing one pan?

  Megan rolled her eyes. I have work to do. Partner.

  I’ll bring tri-tip if you make another pan of mac and cheese.

  She took a deep breath and considered her options. If Nico brought tri-tip, she’d really only have to bring a green salad and dinner would be sorted.

  Done, she texted back. See you at six thirty.

  Bringing Ethan and Beth.

  So this would be extra awkward. Which reminded her that while Adam knew about her and Nico, and Trina had pretty much guessed, Megan had not told her youngest that she and Nico had… a thing.

  Great.

  Bracing herself with a fresh can of Diet Coke, she called, “Hey, Cami! Can you come to the kitchen a minute?”

  Cami was bouncing all over the car. “So if you’re dating Mr. Dusi, do you call him your boyfriend?” She giggled. “He’s not really a boy.”

  The car smelled so much like cheese her mouth was watering. “Um, we’re just starting to… date. But if we get serious, I’d probably call him my… partner or something.”

  “But isn’t he your work partner too?” Adam asked. “That could get kind of confusing.”

  You’re telling me. “That is true.”

  “Well, I think ‘partner’ sounds really modern,” Trina said. “Very European.”

  Adam turned around. “Dude, they’re not European.”

  “Do I look like a dude, Adam?” Trina’s accent got stronger. “I swear, can you sound any more like a surfer?”

  “Yeah, dude, I can.” He smirked. “Righteous.”

  Cami said, “I surf, and I don’t say righteous. I do say dude. Mom, when do surf lessons start again?”

  “Not until next month, and that reminds me, you probably need a new wet suit.”

  “You should ask Mr. Dusi where to get secondhand ones,” Trina said. “I think most of the Dusi kids pass them around.”

  Megan made a face. “Don’t surfers pee in those things?”

  “Ew, Mom!” Cami burst into laughter. “I don’t pee in my wet suit.”

  “Guys do,” Adam said. “They all pee in their wet suits. That’s how they keep warm.”

  “That’s so grooooss!” Cami yelled, almost directly in Megan’s ear. “Boys are so gross!”

  “Cami, honey.” Megan covered her ear. “You’re not going to have to wear a boy’s suit anyway, so chill.”

  “But they pee?”

  “So do fish, goofy.” Trina tweaked Cami’s ear. “The ocean is all a bunch of fish pee.”

  “And whale sperm,” Adam said. “Still want to surf?”

  “Mo-om!”

  “You guys.” Megan shook her head. “Don’t torment your sister.”

  “But it’s so fun,” Trina said.

  “And so easy.”

  “You know, Henry and Toni are having their first kid,” Megan said. “Can you at least try to be civilized mini-adults?”

  Adam shrugged. “Better that they know what they’re getting into.”

  Chapter 24

  Toni was exactly halfway through her second serving of Patti LaBelle’s famous Over the Rainbow mac and cheese when Megan realized that her friend’s contractions were not playing around. She took one look at Toni’s face, dropped her fork, walked around the table, and put an arm around her belly, which was hard as a rock and only getting tighter.

  “Hey, girl.” Megan took a deep breath. “Copy me. Do that.”

  Toni took a shaky breath in and a smoother one out.

  “How long have they been like this?”

  “All afternoon.” Toni’s voice was low and quiet. “I didn’t know if they were the real deal or the Braxton-Hicks thing.”

  “I think these are the real deal.” Megan forced herself to be calm. She remembered exactly how long this was going to take. She felt Toni’s belly finally relax. “Henry, mark the time, and Toni, tell him when you get another one like that.”

  Nico’s eyes were wide, as were Beth’s, Cami’s, and Trina’s.

  “What’s going on?” Trina asked.

  “This lady is gonna have a baby pretty soon,” Megan said. “So I need you girls to get your brothers from the basketball hoop and make sure all this food is put away and all these dishes get clean.”

  “Oh my God, Auntie Toni!” Beth’s face was alight with excitement. “I’ll get the guys. Can I call Grandma Rose?”

  “Not yet.” Toni looked at Henry. “When we go to the hospital, right?”

  “It’s up to you,” he said. “Maybe ask the doctor how long they think it’s going to be.”

  “Once Dusis show up for a baby, they won’t leave until they see the little squishy face,” Nico said. “The hospital staff dread us taking over the waiting room.”

  Henry stood up and started to pace. “When should we go?”

  Nico stood and joined him. “Chill out, man. It’ll probably be a while. Why don’t we take a walk? Let’s make sure the truck has gas, okay?”

  “I think it
does.” Henry followed Nico away from the table and toward the barn.

  “Okay,” Megan said. “How far apart would you say they are?”

  “Maybe ten minutes?”

  “Well, that’s news to me.” Megan smiled a little. “You’ve been acting cool all night, joking with the kids and teasing me and Nico.”

  “Let it never be said that Toni Dusi let an opportunity go by to give her cousin and her best friend shit.” Toni took a deep breath and closed her eyes. “There’s no getting out of this now, is there?”

  “Nope.” Megan leaned over and pressed her cheek to Toni’s. “It’s both more wonderful and boring than you think. I can almost guarantee though that you’ll only remember the good stuff.”

  “Pregnancy brain?”

  “Major pregnancy brain.”

  “Tell me what Drew said about Angela Calvo,” Toni said. “Does he think she’s a suspect?”

  Well, he thinks she might have insinuated herself into my ex-husband’s life so she could target the three women who thwarted her fiancé’s attempts to steal Nico’s wine caves. Namely us. She could be after us. “He wanted to check out her movements the past few weeks, so he told us to just hang back and chill.”

  “I realized the other day who she reminds me of,” Toni said. “Remember way back when we first met?”

  “At the gym?”

  “Yeah, the weird case with Katherine’s students?”

  “What about it?”

  Toni took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Another one’s coming.”

  Megan looked at her watch. “Okay, so that’s seven minutes since the last one. That’s closer than what you thought.” She nudged Toni’s back. “Let’s try to walk, honey.”

  “Walk?”

  “Yep. It helps. Trust me.”

  Toni grumbled as she hoisted herself to her feet and took one step forward. She held her stomach when it started to tense.

  Megan quickly texted Katherine what was going on, then reached for Toni’s hand. “Did you know that if you hum and sing ‘Closer’ by the Chainsmokers, it’s almost exactly four minutes?”

  “Oh yeah? I don’t know that song.”

  Megan was watching her phone. “Sure you do. With Halsey? You know the remix at least.”

  “On what planet do I know the words to anything that’s not sung by middle-aged mechanics on the classic-rock station?”

  “So… Nirvana?”

  Toni gritted her teeth. “Nirvana is not classic rock!”

  “According to my son it is.” Megan muttered, “The little punk.”

  She checked her phone when Toni started relaxing the death grip on her hand. “Okay, so that contraction lasted just over a minute. We’re gonna keep walking and see how long it takes for the next one, okay?”

  Katherine texted her back, letting Megan know that she and Baxter were home and ready if Toni needed anything.

  Toni blinked away tears. “Megan, I can’t do this.”

  “Yeah, you can.” She quickly wiped away Toni’s tears with the sleeve of her shirt. “You can. You’re the toughest woman I know.”

  “Don’t let Henry see me crying, okay?” Her face was pleading. “He gets upset when I cry, and he’s already worried.”

  “I’ll get you some tissues, okay?” She ran to the table and grabbed a paper napkin, then hurried back. “Try to relax. Try to focus on the baby, okay? What do you feel from the baby?”

  “She’s been so annoyed the past few days.” Toni dabbed the damp from her eyes and started walking again. “Now she just feels pissed.”

  They walked up and down the path through the oaks, watching the sun filter through the trees as it set. Toni held Megan’s hand, walking steadily as her body prepared itself for the work ahead. Megan felt the burgeoning energy around Toni, expanding and contracting in waves. She pushed her energy under Toni’s belly just to lessen the load.

  “Oh, that feels fucking great.” Toni laughed. “That’s what I needed the past month. Just to have you follow me around and lift my belly for me.”

  “Damn, why didn’t we think of that hack before now?”

  They kept walking, timing another contraction as they walked back toward the house.

  “Six minutes now. Still about a minute,” Megan said.

  Toni stared at the wooded patch. “Nothing is ever gonna be the same.”

  “Nope.” Megan glanced to the side. “It’ll be better. And worse. And everything between. That’s life.”

  “I was thinking about when we first met.” Toni shook her head. “I had no idea how much I needed you and Katherine. I thought my life was fine and dandy.”

  “It was fine. You were successful, had a great family. You had already bought this place, right?”

  Toni was shaking her head. “I would never have made it through this whole baby thing without you guys. I’d have panicked. Probably ended up messing things up with Henry because I was scared.”

  “You? Scared?”

  Toni let out a laugh that was halfway crazed and halfway exhausted. “I’m so fucking scared, Megan.”

  “Hey.” She paused and looked her friend right in the eye. “You’re going to do great. Remember every mother who came before you. All over the world. All through history. All the mothers at the hospital you’re going to. The doctor moms and the nurse moms. Your body made an entirely new human being, and now you’re going to bring it into the world. How fucking amazing is that?”

  “Yeah.” She stood up straighter. “I’m like… Superwoman or something.”

  “Hell yeah.” Megan walked with her, checking her watch again when another contraction hit. “Hey, Toni?”

  “Yeah?” Her voice was tight, but she was still walking.

  Megan tried to distract her. “You were going to say something about that weird case with Katherine’s students before.”

  “Yeah!” She took a deep breath. “Remember that professor? The one who was having the affair with the man who attacked Katherine?”

  “Yeah. She’s the one giving the college headaches because she’s trying to clean her record right now.”

  “Yeah, but doesn’t Angela Calvo remind you of that chick? Maybe it’s just me, but there’s something about her that reminded me of that professor.”

  Megan stopped dead in her tracks. “Oh my God.”

  “Not just me, right?”

  Their body types were similar, but Megan’s memory of Alice Kraft might have been fuzzy. “She had red hair.”

  “Yeah. Of course, people dye their hair, so who knows if that was natural?”

  Megan got her phone out. “You’re still six minutes apart, so you’ve got time, okay?”

  “Cool.” Toni stood up as straight as she could and arched her back. “You calling Katherine?”

  “I want to see if she has any pictures of Alice Kraft from the college website.”

  “Wasn’t she in the paper?”

  “Maybe.”

  Toni got her phone out and started to look. “I’ll search her name. Katherine said she’s working in Silicon Valley now.”

  Nico and Henry walked up the path as both Toni and Megan were on their phones.

  “Yeah,” Megan said to Katherine. “Toni’s the one who thought of the connection. She said there’s something similar about the women.”

  “I’d have to look at Alice Kraft’s picture,” Katherine said. “I haven’t seen her in some time, but if they are similar, that could be why I had the feeling we’d met before.”

  “Right! I remember you saying that.”

  “What are you doing?” Henry asked.

  Toni was taking deep breaths and stretching as she looked at her phone. “We’re trying to find pictures of Alice Kraft, that professor who was fired from the university from our first case together.”

  “Now?” Henry said. “You’re in labor and you’re doing that now?”

  “It’s a good distraction. Here!” She waved Megan over. “Holy shit, there’s definitely a resemblan
ce. I am not imagining that.”

  Megan looked at the picture of Alice Kraft from the Coastal Gazette a few years before. Though the woman in the picture was wearing sunglasses, there was an unmistakable resemblance around the jaw and the mouth to Angela Calvo, the owner of Fairfield Family Wines and her ex-husband’s current paramour.

  “Katherine, I’m sending you this link.” She hung up the phone and searched for the article. “Nico, look at this.” She waved him over and shoved the phone in his face just as Toni gripped her hand again.

  “Okay, this one was faster,” the laboring woman said.

  Megan glanced at the clock on her phone. “Yeah, that was five minutes between contractions. You’re speeding up.”

  “I think they look kind of the same, but I can’t be sure,” Nico said. “Henry, what do you—?”

  “My girlfriend is having a baby, dude. I do not care!” Henry was done with the distractions. “Toni, no more hunting criminals for a little while, okay? Put your phone away; you’re having a baby.”

  “It could take a while though.” Nevertheless, she handed him her phone and took his hand. “Can you make sure we bring the charger? Is that in the bag you packed?”

  “The extra one is.” He put his arm around her and rubbed her back. “How are you feeling?”

  “Well, it doesn’t feel great, but that’s kind of how this goes.”

  “I love you so much.” He kissed the top of her head. “You’re doing amazing.”

  “Remember to tell the doctor I have no problem with drugs, okay?”

  “Anything that’s even borderline legal as long as it doesn’t hurt the baby, right?”

  “Exactly.”

  Megan watched them slowly move toward the house and the bevy of teenagers waiting on the front porch. She turned to Nico. “I think there’s something here. Alice Kraft. Angela Calvo. Could Kraft have changed her last name? Maybe she’s a cousin or something?”

  “Look up their mother.”

  “She’s a congresswoman,” Megan said. “Right.” She searched for Anamarie Calvo online and found a detail on Wikipedia. “It says she has three children here. Two daughters and a son.” She looked up at Nico. “The daughters are Angela and Alicia.”

  “Alicia?” Nico cocked his head. “Alice?”