by C. A. Rene
“Ew!” He reiterates and Travis chuckles.
I just want to hear the rest of this story so I can decide if it’s okay to relax or plan how to take this woman down.
31
She has their sarcastic dry humour. I keep seeing all the similarities and the look in her eyes each time she stares at one of her grandchildren. It really tells me everything I need to know. We fucked up. We’ve been chasing down the wrong enemy for nearly two years and the thought of all that wasted time is exhausting.
“Vincent looks like maybe he needs a break.” Jenna says with a small smile.
“I feel exhausted but it’s not because of your story.” I shake my head. “I believe you are who you say you are.”
Her eyes widen and a smile ghosts her mouth, “thank you.”
Em is staring up at me and I finally lower my gaze to hers. “Seriously?”
“Yes.” I answer her and kiss her nose. “But I need more explanations for the tragedies that happened and were blamed on you.” I say to Jenna.
“I promise we’re close.” She nods.
“Please, continue.” Travis says.
“Emmanuel set me up in his house and I played mistress for a few months. It was weird and uncomfortable but I was protected. He gave me updates on you Emmett and also on my daughter and Ember. Everything seemed to be fine and I was patiently waiting for my time to get away. I was still a prisoner in every sense.
“His son was young at four years old when I arrived and I took an immediate liking to him. His mother was huge with child and from what I could gather at the time, suffered from depression. She didn’t want to spend too much time with him and I instead took on that role.
“Carlos was a handful but he was extremely intelligent.”
“Hold on,” Em interrupts her. “Carlos wasn’t your biological son? I have a file that states otherwise, right down to the scars on your belly from cesarean sections.”
I watch as Jenna stands up and lifts her shirt. There’s a few scars running vertically over her torso but none that match a cesarean procedure.
“Again, you received a forged document. That file originally belonged to Emmanuel’s wife.”
“Who would forge these documents?” I ask.
“I’m getting there, sorry if it’s slow. I want to make sure you have all the facts.” She pats down her hair. “I guess I can skip a few years at this point.
“Emmanuel’s wife gave birth to her second son Anthony and when he was three years old, she killed herself. Do I know for sure she actually killed herself and wasn’t killed? No. But I was in love with Emmanuel at this point and believed everything he told me, even about you two being completely fine. He told me he was sending anonymous envelopes of cash to Rebecca and that Emmett was receiving the best education and care.
“I knew in the back of my mind that Rebecca wouldn’t rest until she found Emmett but I also let myself believe that if he was well cared for then surely her raising one child was enough. I know I was wrong but it helped me sleep at night.”
“As a mother, you should’ve known that Rebecca was most likely tortured every day she was away from her son.” I say, anger lacing my words.
“Yes, deep down I knew she would never give up. I want to say I agonized about it, that I wanted Rebecca to claim her son back, but I’d be lying. The years of torture and captivity had hardened me. I no longer cared about familial ties and I grew to just look out for myself.”
“I understand it.” Em says. “But I can’t help the resentment I feel for the life Mom and I lived because of it. Or Emmett for that matter, his was even worse.”
“I had no idea and you’re right, I should’ve cared.” She nods her head. “After Emmanuel’s wife died, he wanted to be married but I convinced him that our connection would be noticed and I couldn’t further my career to benefit us both. It was his idea for me to join congress.
“I quickly moved up in ranks and held a lot of power. I amassed money and slowly hired people to work for me. I wanted information on people who made my life hell. I began to plant spies everywhere. Here in Whitsborough and also New York. I had people infiltrate the Rampage and kept older affiliates under my thumb, like Trent and a few others.
“I moved out of Emmanuel’s home and took his sons with me. There wasn’t much he could do because I became too powerful, even for him. I let his sons believe their father and I were married but we were separated. Anthony has always been close with me but Carlos was tougher to convince. He grew apart from me and his father. He began running in the wrong crowds and doing things I couldn’t control without attracting the media’s eye.
“I know you searched him out Ember and I was surprised to learn you let him live. Surprised and relieved. I will always believe Carlos had the potential to be great but his resentment for his father and I caused him to do things he thought would hurt us. I became cocky in my new persona and thought my cover was infallible. But I was wrong. Someone figured out who I was and my connection to Whitsborough. Someone who knew what I did here and wanted revenge.
“But they didn’t just want revenge on me, they wanted it on the girl who was causing ripples all the way from Canada to New York. This girl they figured out to be my granddaughter. They got to Carlos and convinced him I was corrupt, I killed his real mother, and eventually I would kill him, too. They asked him to grab Vincent and try to get information out of him about how much Ember knew.”
“Who’s ‘they’?” Ember asks, now leaning forward.
“At the time I had my suspicions but I wasn’t sure. I only just recently found out with the help of your brother Carmelo. I promise I’m getting to that but first, I want to explain all the events that had you convinced it was me.
“The retaliation for Carlos’ death, the guard who was murdered and had the message carved into him was not by my hand. It was set up to look like me to get you off their case. You were closing in on them and they needed you to change your trajectory.
“Your aunt and uncle-my sweet daughter Debra-being murdered was not by me. It was also this person, again you were getting too close to the secrets here in Whitsborough and they set the whole thing up. I mourned my daughter and tried my best not to blame my granddaughter in the process. I knew what you were doing was for the greater good and anything that extreme will always have collateral damage.
“They sucked your brother into believing I was his mother for the longest time to cause a rift between you and foster the intent for distrust. You were becoming impenetrable and it was nearly impossible to stop you. When you three went to Spain following on my coattails, Carm had done everything to keep you one step behind me. Don’t hate him for that, he truly believed I was his mother.”
“Did you ever speak to Carm face to face?” Emmett asks her.
“Yes,” she nods, “for the first time last month, just before he came here to help you, Ember. I told him everything I could without telling him everything. Mostly, I told him about what I finally discovered and he was all of a sudden in a rush to get here.”
“He wrote me a letter, apologizing for everything he did wrong. There were a few pages he left me that I didn’t understand but now I do. You moved a few kids around with your Love the Tots agency and he highlighted a note that said you took a child from Whitsborough. Who?”
“Almost there, first let’s talk about your fight with Wade. Did you believe he planted that knife?” She asks Em.
“I had my doubts.” She rubs her forehead. “But I couldn’t see any other way.”
“Without implicating someone close.” Jenna finishes the thought.
“Right.” Em nods.
“Carm gave the man the knife.” Jenna says and we all tense with the shock. All of us but Em.
“I thought he did.” Her shoulders slump.
“What?” Emmett asks her, his voice filled with shock.
“When I questioned Wade and even when I fought him in the cage, he was genu
ine about not planting the knife. I continued to fight him because he wasn’t a good person.” Em replies.
“Ember,” Emmett says, his voice low. “He was our brother.”
“I know Emmett and I still love him regardless. If it wasn’t for him, Vin and I could’ve died.”
“He admitted to me in a tearful confession about planting the knife. He was going to confess to you he did but then the town hall debacle happened. He did it because he was given an order by me, or who he thought was me. This person threatened to kill Emmett if he didn’t. He said he knew you would still come out the victor.” Jenna says and smiles at Em.
“Think that covers everything.” Em says. “I’m ready to learn who my opponent is.”
“Opponents.” Jenna corrects.
32
“Opponents.” Talia corrects me.
“Spit it out.” I growl at her.
“It all started with Constance and Jack.” She starts.
“Another story?” Emmett huffs and I feel his fucking pain.
“A short interconnecting one.” She nods and carries on, “Constance and Jack did something and if it were made known, would ruin us all. They fell pregnant.”
“My nana had another baby?” Vin asks. “But my mother would’ve known.”
“It was soon after your grandfather was killed and they did well in hiding it from everyone. When the child was born, he was five years younger than your mother.” Talia explains to Vin.
“Obviously, he’s dead right? Or else I would know my uncle.” Vin argues.
“You know him very well, Vincent.” Talia’s eyes widen. “The child was born and we of course could not keep it around. We couldn’t pass him off as Constance’s because her husband was dead and looking at the child, you couldn’t mistake his uncanny likeness to Jack. They gave him up to an orphanage and he spent many years in group homes and foster homes until finally a nice family adopted him when he was twelve.
“You see, Mary-Beth and Gregory Moore couldn’t have children, so they turned to adoption.”
My heart fucking stops before it begins to ricochet off my ribs. “Chief Moore?”
“Yes, William Moore, named after Constance’s deceased husband. Strange but true.” Talia nods.
“I thought his name was Bill?” Emmett asks and I’m too fucking shocked to make fun of him right now.
“Bill is short for William.” Adri tells him.
The room is just buzzing around us, we’re all so quiet I can hear the hum of the fridge and the whirl of the ceiling fan above our heads. Even Vin under me is tense with shock.
“He’s my uncle.” He finally says something.
“Yes,” Talia answers him. “But no one else knows that in this town but us here and himself. He became chief and got his hands on his closed adoption papers. He’s known this whole time who you were,” she says to me and then looks to Vin. “And what he was to you.”
“He’s our uncle, too.” I say to Emmett and his face turns a weird shade of green.
“You and Vin?” He’s trying to find a connection in his head.
“No.” I shake my head. “We’re not related.”
“You said ‘opponents’.” Travis reminds her.
“I did.” Talia looks at me. “This may be a hard pill to swallow.”
“None of it has been easy. I can handle it.” I assure her.
“I recently found more on William and knew I needed you out of prison and safely at home. So, I found surveillance that was deleted by William in his computer’s trash bin at work. It showed him shooting Andrew point blank and then he deleted another video of a house that gave a perfect view of Andrew Cox’s brain splattered head resting against the glass before you even got to his car. I’ve kept the shooting one to myself but used the latter to have you acquitted.
“I will give it to you if you want his justice served in a courtroom. But, I think I know you well in that you would want to serve your own particular brand of justice. Am I right?”
“Yes.” I answer her.
“William’s life hasn’t been a walk in the park. His foster parents died when he was seventeen in a tragic robbery gone wrong and that’s what encouraged William to join the force. The real story is he killed them to inherit their riches. He was soon to be a father and the mother was a pitiful woman, a prostitute by the name of Tonya.”
“Marlana’s mother?” I quickly look up at Vin. “Did you know Marlana had a brother?”
Before he can answer, Talia cuts in. “No one knew, his good friend Robert put him in touch with me and I took the child once he was born and placed him in foster care. A good place in New York city. They were a little crowded but I didn’t have a family who wanted a baby boy at the time.
“He continued to flourish in the home and stayed there even when he was past the legal age to leave. He helped with his foster siblings and took to one in particular. A troubled boy who reminded him of himself, Jason.”
“Jason?” My mind is running on high speed as it tries to connect every fucking dot.
“Thomas Williams. I gave him that last name so his father would forever know who he actually belonged to.”
“Tommy?” His name is heavy on my tongue and the grief I’ve been tampering down, threatens to surge.
“Yes.” Talia looks at me sadly. “It’s actually amazing you guys found each other.”
“He’s not my opponent.” I tell her. “Tommy is dead and buried in my mausoleum.”
“Is he?” She asks.
“I saw Carm shoot a bullet into his skull, I saw the blood on the mat.” I growl.
“Yes, all that did happen. Carmelo grazed his skull right here.” She points to her right temple and drags her finger to the back of her head. “Carm thought he was dead and asked one of his men to drop his body off at the foster home to be found. The man he asked was actually one of my men and he called me immediately because he knew who Tommy was in relation to me.
“He told me that Tommy was actually still alive and would recover from the wound, although it did look bad. I asked him to bring me the boy and I called the foster home to tell them that I found Tommy a job overseas. I housed him and called doctors in to assess him and make sure he was healing fine.”
“I don’t believe it.” I stand up from Vin’s lap, anger making my limbs vibrate. “Tommy would’ve come to me, we were best friends from children. He wouldn’t stay away from me.”
“He would if he knew his family story, he would if he knew you were trying to kill his father, and he would if he knew that your family wanted him dead.” Talia counters.
“I have his ashes in my crypt!” I yell. “The foster home is the one who told us where he was buried.”
“That woman works for me, I asked her to tell everyone that he was dead to give him a fresh shot at a new life overseas. I provided a fake funeral for his foster home siblings and even buried ashes.”
“Whose fucking ashes are in my crypt?!” I scream and Vin clasps my hand.
“Anthony’s dog died of cancer that year and we had him cremated.” She looks remorseful but also not at the same time.
“That’s fucking messed up.” I say as I drop Vin’s hand and begin to pace the kitchen. “So where is he then?”
“Trent has him held at the Rampage compound. Ember, he’s not the same man he was before. He knows who his father is, he knows where his family is from, and he knows you want his father dead. If I let him go, you can be assured he will find his father and they will both try to kill you.” Talia really believes what she’s saying but I know Tommy.
My mind is shifting between believing her and wanting to knock her out. Actually, I just want to knock her out. So many things were kept from me and now my fists want so badly to sink into flesh and watch it bleed.
“I can’t believe that Tommy would want to harm me. He tried to save me from my own father, he put my life before his! He told me to kill him to save my own life, th
at's not someone that would kill me.”
“Em,” Vin cuts in. “Maybe the injury to the head changed him somehow. We can’t be sure of anything.”
“I agree, E.” Travis cuts in. “I’m not risking your life like that. Head injuries are very unpredictable.”
“He saved me from a burning building. My number was up that night and if not for him, I wouldn’t be here, I wouldn’t know you, any of you.” I look at each of them, willing them to understand. “He tried to get to me when he found out my psycho father was coming. They captured him, tortured him, and then killed him because of it. He accepted it knowing he was protecting me.”
“I’m with Ember.” Adri stands up. “Us girls have an intuition that boys don’t. If he’s pissed then only she can fix it. He’s her family, she needs to go to him.”
“I love you.” I tell her as tears cloud my vision.
“I love you.” Her response is immediate. “I’m staying here to help Sharla with the restaurant, one of you needs to stay to keep an eye on Moore.” She looks at the boys. “And then the rest of you get to New York and find out what you can about Tommy. He’s family and he deserves to be with us.”
I rush to her and wrap my arms around her. Adri sees what I do in the importance of family and trusts me wholeheartedly.
“Just please be careful.” She whispers in my ear.
“I will.” I whisper back.
“I will stay here with my men and keep a close watch on William. I will also make sure your family is safe. I can assume you received the intel I sent for where William is being kept?” Talia cuts in.
“Yes, I received it.” It’s hard to trust someone you’ve hated for so long.
“I will stay too.” Travis stands and I am instantly relieved. I wanted him to but I didn’t want to have to ask. He is someone I can trust to look after everyone and make the most logical decisions in my absence.
"Thank you." I nod to him.