“I like Renee. I want her for my new mommy,” he pouted.
“Tell you what, Son. I like Renee too. Why don’t we pray and see if she’s the one God has picked to be your new mommy?”
“Really? We can ask God?” Renewed excitement filled his dark brown eyes.
“Yeah, we can ask God.” The thought wasn’t an unhappy prospect. Day by day he’d been falling helplessly in love with her. If only the police would stop hinting that she was involved with the corporate espionage. Logically, he understood their line of reasoning. She had started to work for him shortly before his troubles began, she did have the expertise to set up access to his private files to be shared with others, and she had apparently called in the change of passwords. Something he hadn’t asked her about. Partly because he didn’t believe she did it, and he wanted her to know that he trusted her.
Detective Diaz made a point of saying he now believed Renee, but the man didn’t see how Benny Gamaldi could have played a part in the break-in. He hadn’t been released from prison then.
Who was it? Aaron rubbed the back of his neck.
His cell phone rang.
“Hello.”
“Mr. Chapin?”
“Yes.”
“This is Sergeant White from the North Miami Police Department. Are you familiar with a Renee Austin?”
“Yes, she works for me.”
“Ah, well, she asked us to notify you.”
“What’s happened? Spit it out, Man.” Aaron’s voice rose.
“She’s been in an accident. She’s at the emergency room at Aventura Hospital.”
Aaron clung to the steering wheel. His stomach lurched. “Is she okay?”
“Yes, she’ll be fine.”
He glanced in the various mirrors and sped up. “Tell her I’m on my way.”
“Sure. Mr. Chapin?”
“Yes?”
“She’ll need a lawyer. A good one.”
❧
“DОjИ vu,” Renee mumbled. Benny had come at her waving a knife. She’d reacted. Pure instinct had taken over. She’d slammed her car door into him, leaped out of the car, and jump-kicked him in the jaw with her foot. Apparently the self-defense class had paid off.
Silently, Renee prayed, hearing Benny ranting and raving with his claims that she had attacked him. She leaned her head back against the pillow of the emergency-room bed.
“It’s her knife,” Benny whined.
Her eyes popped open, then she closed them again and tried to remember what the knife looked like. It was possible, even highly likely. After all, he had been in her apartment. He could have stolen it then. Has he been planning this setup all along?
The restraining order, she thought. Perhaps that would protect her rights against his lies. Memories of the past, her previous arrest, the trial caused her stomach to tighten. “God, no, I can’t go through that again,” she cried into her pillow.
A sharp pain caused her to groan. “Ugh.” She eased out the constrained breath. She hadn’t come away from the incident unharmed. The wound to the back of her shoulder now throbbed. The small nicks and cuts to her hands burned.
“How are you?” a young doctor dressed in a white lab coat asked, holding her chart in his hand.
“Alive,” she quipped.
“Sit up and let me have a look.”
She sat up, and he undid the hospital gown at the base of her neck. A nurse stood silently watching.
“It’s not too bad. I’m going to order a CT scan. Are you pregnant?”
“No.”
“Any chance of it?”
“No.” She knew it was a rational question, but her anger simmered on the surface, wanting to lash out. Thankfully, logic ruled, and she held her tongue.
“The CT scan will tell me if there’s damage to the bone and the extent of the tissue damage. Let’s check your range of motion.”
He put her through a small battery of tests, most of which she could easily perform. Tears hovered on the edge of her lids as the pain increased. The doctor gave his orders to the nurse, who led her down the hallway for the CT scan.
On and on the tests and treatments droned. The officer at the scene now came into her area. “I’ve called your employer, and he told me to tell you he’s on his way. Can you please go over the incident once again?”
Renee nodded her head. She knew the routine. Lord, help me. Renee recited her account of the “incident,” as he’d termed the traumatic event.
The officer lifted his head and looked at her. “I’m sorry, but—”
“Renee, are you all right?” Aaron rushed into her cubicle with Adam on his hip.
“Renee,” Adam squealed and reached out to her.
The officer stepped back and closed his notepad.
“I’ll be okay,” she said meekly as another man walked into her cubicle, dressed in a business suit and carrying a briefcase. She pulled the covers up to her chin.
“Renee, I’ve secured Mr. Stein as your attorney,” Aaron announced.
She shifted her glance from the stranger to Aaron, back to the police officer, and then back to Mr. Stein. “What’s going on here? Am I being arrested? And how do you know about it before I do?” She glared back at the officer.
❧
Aaron paced the waiting room while Adam sat on a seat and watched the television bolted to the ceiling. He’d never seen Renee this angry before. He couldn’t blame her. He’d charged into the hospital with lawyer in tow. Thankfully she hadn’t fired the guy on the spot. Why the police officer hadn’t informed her and had informed him, he’d probably never know.
He found himself looking at every male coming in and out, wondering if he was Benny Gamaldi. Figuring the man to be a middle-aged Italian, he eliminated half the suspects.
“Daddy?”
“Yes, Adam?”
“I’m hungry. Can we bring Renee home now?”
“Soon, Son. She should be released soon.” The question was, would she still be angry with him?
Harvey Stein strolled over to him. “Aaron, Renee asked me to give you a message. She’s going to be tied up for awhile and suggested you take Adam home.”
“What’s the deal, Harvey? She has a restraining order out on this guy.”
“True, but he’s claiming she attacked him first.”
“No way, not Renee,” Aaron protested. If I could just get my hands on this creep, he thought.
“Look, I think it’s highly unlikely too, but let me do my job, okay? Take the kid home. I’ll make sure she gets home safe and sound.”
Aaron glanced over to Adam. He sat there hugging his knees. The poor little guy was just as concerned as he was for Renee. “All right, but tell her I love her and that Adam and I will be waiting for her call.”
“Sure. And Aaron, concerning the other parties who are interested in Renee Austin, let them know I’ll give them a full report.”
Aaron nodded his head. He’d met Harvey during the investigation being performed by the FBI. Harvey’s specialty was white-collar crime. He’d earned Aaron’s confidence over the past few months, having given him very helpful and useful information concerning his rights and his company’s liabilities if a lawsuit should be pursued. Aaron extended his hand. “Thanks.”
“You’re welcome. Take the boy home and try to relax. I’ll try and smooth things over with Renee.”
Aaron stifled a half-hearted chuckle.
“Can we say good-bye to Renee?” Adam asked.
Aaron looked toward Harvey, who nodded. “Sure, Buddy.”
Adam jumped up and ran down the hall. Aaron tried to catch up. Somehow yelling in a hospital emergency room seemed inappropriate. He found Adam on Renee’s bed and in her arms.
“Call me,” Aaron pleaded. She glanced up at him in the doorway. He wanted to go to her, but her eyes warned him to stay back.
“I love you, Renee.” Adam hugged her again.
She winced with pain.
Aaron stepped forward. She held up a hand.
“Bye, Buddy. I love you too. Don’t ever forget that.”
Lord, please, don’t take her from us. Aaron fought his anger and smiled, reaching his hand out for Adam.
Leaving Renee in someone else’s care didn’t set well with him. But caring for his son was his first priority. Adam didn’t need to be in the hospital, and he certainly didn’t need to be there if they dragged Renee off to the police station in handcuffs.
His cell phone rang. “Hello?”
“Aaron, help me.”
“Marie, where are you? Are you okay? Has Manuel beat you again?” Today would not be the best day for him to confront his brother-in-law. His Christian witness would go down the drain faster than a palm tree could sway in the breeze.
“He’s bad, Aaron, real bad. I’ve never seen him like this before.”
“Where are you?”
“At the mall. He won’t find me here, and the kids think we’re shopping,” Marie answered.
“Okay, I’ll be there as soon as possible. Meet me in the food court, and I’ll buy you and the children dinner.”
“All right,” she sniffed. “And Aaron, thanks.”
“You’re welcome.” He closed his cell phone. Lord, help me. I can’t be caught up in anger when I address Marie. I need to bring her to a shelter, Lord. A place where she’ll get real help. Please prepare her heart that this is the right thing to do.
“Daddy?”
“Yes, Adam?”
“Is Tia Marie hurt like Renee?”
Seventeen
Semi-dressed in street clothes, Renee tried to figure out how to keep her arm bound to her body and manage to put on her blouse. The doctor’s treatment was to bind the arm to her body for a couple days to let the torn muscles begin to heal. There had been no damage done to the bones.
“Here ya go, Honey.” The thin, middle-aged black nurse named Jessie smiled. She’d been with Renee all evening. In her hand she held up a large T-shirt.
“Thanks.” Renee returned the smile.
“Your lawyer said he’ll be waiting for you.”
Renee nodded. Whoever this Harvey Stein was, she owed Aaron a huge favor. The lawyer pointed out the obvious marks on her body that showed she was in a defensive posture, therefore not the aggressor. Stein had even spoken with Benny and told him if he didn’t want to return to prison, he’d best leave town. Renee could have pressed charges. She wanted to, but another part of her wanted to leave the past buried. Duly warned, Benjamin Gamaldi left the hospital knowing that if he so much as passed Renee’s line of vision, she would have him arrested.
The police officer informed her that he’d been the one to advise Aaron to get a lawyer because he sensed Benny would press charges against her. His word against her word would have left the officer little choice in the matter, and he would have had to arrest her.
“Thanks again, Jessie,” Renee said as the nurse helped her into the T-shirt. She wouldn’t be going out for a few days.
“You’re welcome. You’ve got quite a son, looks like his daddy.”
She smiled. “He’s his daddy’s son. We’re not married.”
“Sorry, my mistake. If you don’t mind me saying so, they were pretty worried about you. I swear that man was going to bore a hole right through the floor tiles. He sure can pace.”
Renee chuckled and winced from the pain. “Yeah, he gets that way.”
He did love her, and she did love him. She shouldn’t have been angry with him. It was Benny she was angry with. But he hadn’t been handy; Aaron was. She definitely needed to apologize.
Renee stepped out of the area that had been her station for the past three hours. She glanced up at the clock. Four hours, she amended.
“Ready?” Harvey Stein asked, his suit coat opened, his tie hanging loosely.
“Yes. Thank you for taking me home.”
“Not a problem. Aaron wouldn’t have gone home otherwise. Besides, I need to see the area of the crime just in case Mr. Gamaldi has second thoughts and presses charges.”
Would she be stuck with this man the rest of her life? No, I can’t think like that, she resolved.
“Aaron called earlier and asked me to give you a message. He’s gone to meet his sister, Marie, and probably won’t be home until late.”
“Is she all right?” She didn’t know what Mr. Stein knew of Marie’s situation, but he should be able to answer that question.
“Don’t know. He didn’t say.”
What happened to Marie? The message she’d left earlier on the answering machine. . . Renee had forgotten all about Aaron’s sister when she met up with Benny. Benny, she sighed. Lord, please keep him out of my life.
Harvey opened the passenger door to his Ford Explorer. Aren’t lawyers supposed to drive Cadillacs or Mercedes? “Can you tell me how it is you know Aaron?”
“He’s a client.”
A criminal attorney? Something isn’t adding up. “What does Aaron need a criminal attorney for?” Does he have a past I’m not aware of?
“A safeguard. He needed to know his rights with the investigation into the corporate espionage. You are aware of that investigation?”
“Yes, but. . .I didn’t know he secured an attorney.”
“For advice, primarily. And yes, I was aware of you and your past, which is why he asked me to come. He figured I’d be your best defense. Which, if I do say so myself, I was.” He grinned.
Renee chuckled. “You were, no question. I saw visions of my arrest. Do you really think Benny’s gone for good?”
Harvey Stein looked to the left, to the right, and left again as he exited the parking garage. “That I can’t be sure of. I wager he’ll hang around for a bit. See if there’s a way he might be able to get to you without doing it personally. But after awhile he’ll lose interest, and his organization won’t give him too much time away. How aware are you of his previous activities before he was arrested?”
“I don’t know much. I do know he was a small-time hood for some mob.”
“Small-time is right, but in prison he did some favors. You are personal. I hope I convinced him you were just a kid who had paid long enough with no family, your arrest, and your captivity. However, reason doesn’t always work with these guys. But the threat of arrest does. And he knows that if he so much as looks at you, I’ll have him hauled off faster than he can sneeze. That’s a threat he’ll take seriously. He’s just gotten out and regained his freedom. He won’t want to lose that.”
“I hope you’re right. Tell me, if you can, who besides me are suspects for the espionage?”
❧
The next couple weeks were a blur. Marie was safe in a shelter. Renee was recovering from her wounds, the proposal was intact, and soon Aaron would be addressing the man or woman who was stealing his work.
“Hello,” he said, answering the ringing phone.
“Mr. Chapin, this is Detective Diaz. We’ve located your office equipment.”
“Where? When? Do you know who stole it?”
“Hang on.” Diaz chuckled. “We’ve located it, but we haven’t caught the man who brought your belongings to the storage area. It appears as if everything is here, but we’re leaving it undisturbed and hoping to catch the man who’s been coming almost daily.”
“How’d you find it, if you don’t mind me asking?”
“The manager of the place called in a suspicious activity report. Actually, he was concerned it was a storage center for narcotics.”
A genuine tip. So they do happen in real life, not just in the movies, Aaron mused.
“Hi, Honey.” Renee’s gentle voice brought a smile to his face. He certainly loved this woman. It’s been so hard to be close with all the secrets lately.
He cupped the phone. “Hi. Detective Diaz is on the phone. They found the office equipment.”
“You’re kidding. Where? Did they catch the thief?” She beamed.
“But that’s not the only reason I called you.” The detective’s words brought Aaron’s attention back to
the phone.
He held up his index finger, asking Renee to give him a minute. “What else?”
“I have reason to believe we might be looking at your brother-in-law.”
“Manuel?”
“Yeah, he fits the description of the man who’s been coming around. Do you know why he would steal from you? And why he would hold on to it rather than sell it off?”
So, Manuel had taken to stealing from his family. How much lower could this man go before he saw the truth of his sin? How many more people would have to suffer? “I don’t know,” Aaron responded, then prayed the police were wrong. What would Marie say if she knew Manuel had been stealing from her own brother? Aaron kneaded the back of his neck.
Renee placed her loving hands on Aaron’s shoulders and started to massage them.
He closed his eyes. He could get very used to this.
“We’ll keep a lookout on the storage unit,” the detective continued, “and I’ll notify you as soon as our man turns up. After that I’ll need you to come down and identify your belongings.”
“No problem.” Aaron spoke for a moment longer, then hung up. He turned and captured Renee in his arms. “Thank you. That felt wonderful. How’d your shopping go?”
“Adam and I had a good time. He’s quite proud of your presents.”
“Oh, should I be doing some snooping?”
“Ha, you’d never find them.”
“Oh, is that a challenge?”
“Possibly.” She winked.
The question was, did he dare give her the ring for Christmas? Would she accept it? Was it too soon?
“What’s the matter?” She brushed his hair from his forehead.
“I have a meeting this afternoon.”
“With Innovative Trust, I know. What’s the matter?”
“Oh nothing.” How could he explain to her what was happening?
She placed her hands upon her hips. “Aaron, when is this going to be over? Just when I think our relationship is deepening, these walls come up. I know it has to do with the investigation, and I’m trying to be patient but. . .”
He kissed her to silence her and whispered in her ear, “Come with me.”
He led her to the car. “Honey, trust me, one more day, and I’ll tell you everything.”
Cords Of Love Page 14