by Jen Talty
Now we’re getting somewhere. Blaine scooted his chair back in front of his desk. “Why did you want to frighten him?”
“Because he was about to ruin everything.” Linda swiped at her eyes. “I only waved his gun under his nose when I realized the bastard didn’t give a damn about my daughter. I put it on the kitchen table and the stupid thing went off.”
“What happened next?” Blaine asked, cocking his head to one side.
“He told me he was going to tell everyone his version of the truth.”
“And what was that?” Blaine asked.
“I don’t know because he kicked me out before we had a chance to finish the conversation.” She glared at Blaine.
“Did you leave right then?”
“I didn’t have much choice; the man literally shoved me out the door. Besides, some guy was in a car in the driveway waiting to see him.”
“Wait, who?” Blaine blinked.
“I don’t know. I don’t care. I just wanted to find a way to stop him from ruining lives.”
“So you went back inside and pushed him down the stairs? Then shot him?”
“No, I left.” She looked at Blaine like he had two heads. “I told him I would go to the press with the story about him and my daughter and how he practically raped her when she was barely of age if he came after my husband.”
“You know that’s not true.”
“Fine, so their relationship was mutual, but I had some pictures of them when she was barely eighteen, and I wanted him to know if he tried to ruin my husband, I could ruin him.”
“And how was he going to ruin your husband?” Blaine asked. “Or was it you he was going to ruin?”
Linda took a deep breath and let it out with a whoosh. “Jack isn’t Rachael’s father.”
“Come again?”
“You heard me.” Linda had turned the tears off.
“Who is?”
Linda laughed. “Hadley Danks.”
“Interesting,” Blaine said as rolled his chair back, clasping his hands behind his head. “Does Hadley know this?”
“He asked me once, but I lied to him. Rachael’s always been stubborn. Since the day she was born. Things were done on her timeline. She was almost three weeks late. However, according to my wedding night, she was right on time.” Linda actually smiled. “Hadley bought it hook, line, and sinker.”
“Let me get this straight.” Blaine shuffled some papers across his desk and then scribbled a few thoughts down. “You had an affair with Hadley before you married Jack, and Jack had an affair with Roberta. Is Jack Kaylee’s father?”
“That’s the million-dollar question, but the answer is most likely a big fat no.”
“Why?”
“I had hoped to have more children, but I never conceived again. I had some tests done, but it wasn’t me with the problem.” She lifted a brow. “Jack’s sterile.”
“Does he know this?” Blaine asked. How did life in a small town turn into a daytime talk show?
“No.”
Another bizarre twist in this tale. “Didn’t he have to go to the doctor? Isn’t it documented?”
“I lied to him. I worked in the doctor’s office part-time. I destroyed the evidence. He thinks I had an infection and was unable to conceive again, and we were just grateful to have Rachael.”
“Does he think he’s Kaylee’s father?”
“I’m not sure. I told him if he ever brought it up after we’d married, I would divorce him. That wouldn’t look too good, so we never talked about it.”
Blaine hit the intercom button. “Stacey, get someone who can sketch a profile for me.”
“Got it, boss,” Stacey said over the loudspeaker.
“Is Hadley Danks Kaylee’s father?” Blaine asked.
“I really don’t know, and honestly, I don’t give a shit. Can I go?”
“Nope. I need you to tell me about the guy sitting in Rutherford’s driveway. Unless you want to confess to killing him and save me some time.”
“I didn’t kill him,” she said.
“Wait here.” Blaine rose and stepped out of the office, where Dave met him in the hallway.
“A lot of weird shit going down,” Dave said.
“Oh, yeah. We need to get DNA samples from Hadley, Kaylee, and Rachael. Then we need to see if Kaylee recognizes the man who Linda saw waiting for Rutherford when she left the house.”
“She didn’t kill him?”
“Nope, but I think she saw who did.”
Kaylee paced in the hallway of the police station. Dave and a bunch of State Police occupied Blaine’s office. Everything was happening too fast, and she didn’t understand most of it.
Tomorrow she’d be heading back to Chicago. She felt good about testifying against Nino, and even spoke with the FBI agent this morning after church. He promised they’d make sure she was safe and no charges would be filed against her. He all but promised that Nino would never be able to hurt her again.
They couldn’t promise, however, how long it would take or if it would ever end. Blaine wouldn’t wait for her long, if at all. It was too much to ask even if she knew and believed he loved her. And she did believe that. But he deserved a woman who could love him now and didn’t come with baggage.
She padded down the hallway toward the window next to Blaine’s office. The sun was warm, and the snow had started to melt. Small patches of green grass were trying to be seen in a sea of brown from the dead of winter. Closure. If nothing else, she’d get closure on this part of her life. She’d get to sprinkle her father’s ashes over the lake, with Blaine at her side. She might even ask Toby and Emma to join them. She felt like she was at home with them.
Then she and Blaine could go visit their son, together. Grieve for him together, like they should have done years ago.
The house. What would she do with the house? She loved that house, in spite of some bad childhood memories, and wanted to make it a bed and breakfast. She wondered if Blaine would even consider living there until she could return, like she’d asked. Hoping that he would take care of it for her.
She felt guilty asking him, like it was a way to tie him to her forever.
“What are you deep in thought over?” Blaine whispered.
She jumped, dropping her purse. “Your ability to sneak up on me is making me crazy.”
He bent over, picked up her purse, and handed it to her. “Everyone is willing to take the DNA tests, and I’m sure I can pull a few strings to put a rush on it.” He stood next to her, gazing out the window.
“Nino sent someone to kill my father, didn’t he?”
“Sit down.” Blaine motioned toward the chair.
“I think I’d rather stand.” The grave look on his face sent her stomach on a roll.
“Mrs. Hicks has been very diligent regarding making this sketch.” He tapped the pad of paper he held in his hands.
“You expect me to recognize him?”
“I’m hoping.” He ran his fingers through her hair. “Are you ready?”
She nodded and followed him into his office.
Linda glanced her way and then let her gaze fall to her lap. “I hope this helps,” she said softly.
Blaine opened the pad, showing the sketch.
“Oh…my…God.” She leaned back against Blaine’s firm frame. “That’s the guy.”
“What guy?” Dave asked.
She closed her eyes, letting out a long breath. “The man who stabbed me,” she said before opening her eyes again. “He goes by the name of Hector Marange. I’ve never actually seen him with Nino, but I’ve heard Nino talk about him, and I know he’s the one who attacked me.”
“He’s in custody,” one of the State Troopers in Blaine’s office said. “The FBI picked him up last night on three counts of murder. I guess we can add attempted murder to the long list of charges.”
“I need to sit down.” Kaylee gripped Blaine’s arm.
Linda gave up her seat and then followed the State Troopers out
into the hallway.
Kaylee heard muffled voices, but she couldn’t focus on the words. Her father was dead because of her. “Is this over?” she asked once the office had been cleared.
“Pretty much.” Blaine knelt beside her. “I have some things I have to do. Will you be okay here for a few minutes?”
She nodded, unable to form words or feel anything but numbness. She waited for Blaine to leave before she dropped her head into her hands and cried. So many mistakes. Too many lies. Her father had died because of those lies.
“How are you doing?” Hadley asked as he walked into the office with two cups of coffee. “Blaine thought you might want this.” He handed her a cup.
“I’ve seen better days.” The black liquid mirrored her feelings, dark and dismal. “Thank you.” She blew into the mug. “Blaine told me you’d give a DNA sample.”
She heard him take a deep breath and let it out in a huff. “I’ll be honest. I’m scared.”
She turned to look at him. True admiration filtered from his pale-blue eyes. He looked like the kind of man that even if he’d never found his one true love, he loved many people, on many levels. “You’re not a bad guy, Hadley.”
“Maybe not, but look what I’ve created by my selfishness.” He took a seat across from Blaine’s desk.
Kaylee sipped her coffee, glancing at Hadley. “It wasn’t your selfishness, but other people’s cruelty.”
“I’m not so sure about that.” He ran his long fingers across his chin. “Looking back, I should’ve seen it all.”
Long moments of silence followed as the minutes ticked by. She stared out at the parking lot, watching people come and go, including Rachael.
“Rachael’s here,” Kaylee said.
Hadley sat up straighter, and they both eyed the door as if it had all the answers.
Rachael glanced between Kaylee and Hadley then looked down at the floor. “Please don’t hate me,” Rachael whispered.
“Hate you for what? Sleeping with my father?” Kaylee looked at Rachael, who was dressed in a pair of designer slacks and a warm sweater. She had perfect hair to complement the clothing. The woman looked like she belonged in Stepford, except for one thing—she had real emotions behind her eyes.
“Your fath…Rutherford and I had a relationship. At first I wanted to use him, to get back at everyone. You know, shock value, but over the years, I started to care for him.”
“Did he care about you?” Kaylee asked
“I think he did, but he wouldn’t marry me. He made that perfectly clear. Said he’d never marry again, and I wanted that more than anything. To have a family. Children. Everything.” Rachael sat down next to Kaylee. “I never meant to hurt you.”
“You haven’t hurt me,” Kaylee took her hand.
“Yes, I did. I hurt both of you.” She glanced toward Hadley. “I knew my father couldn’t have kids.”
“How?” Kaylee asked.
“When your son died,” Rachael said. “My mother thought for sure everything was going to come out. She got drunk one night and rambled about this and that. I didn’t understand most of it, but she made it very clear that my father wasn’t my father. Even told me who my real father was.”
“You knew we could be sisters?” Kaylee’s voice rose up.
“I suspected,” Rachael said. “Based on everything my mother said that night.”
“Why didn’t you say anything?” Kaylee asked.
“You left,” Rachael said.
“I can understand that,” Kaylee said.
“Also,” Rachael looked toward Hadley. “I wasn’t sure you’d want me as a daughter, and frankly, I didn’t want to deal with it. The rumors, the gossip. What it would do to my family. I saw what Kaylee’s mother’s disease did to hers. Everything got so screwed up.”
“You spoke to Daddy the night he died. It looked like you’d argued. Why?” Kaylee asked.
“He confided in me that you were coming home, and he was going to tell you what he’d found out.”
“He knew?” Hadley asked. “And he didn’t tell me?”
“He wanted to talk with me and Kaylee first, then you.”
Hadley shook his head. “Then destroy your parents.”
Rachael wiped the tears falling down her cheeks. “He loved Roberta, really, he did. He blamed my father for keeping her sick all those years.”
“Your father says she got him drunk and seduced him, tempted him like the devil,” Blaine said, leaning against the doorjamb. “I’m sorry, Rachael, but your father has some real issues.”
“Don’t be sorry. I’ve made my share of mistakes in all of this. I hope some day we can all move past this and be friends.”
“After we get the DNA samples, Rachael and Hadley, you’re free to leave, but don’t go too far, in case I need to talk to you some more,” Dave said.
“I’m always here for you.” Rachael rose, bending to give Kaylee a kiss on the cheek. “Day or night.”
“Ditto.” Kaylee smiled when Rachael’s eyes twinkled like when they were kids. “More than friends.”
“Soul sisters,” Rachael whispered and turned toward Hadley. “As for you, don’t expect me to call you ‘Daddy,’ but I’d like to have dinner with you sometime.”
“I’d like that.” Hadley sniffled. “How about we start with a cup of coffee?”
“No time like the present.”
Kaylee listened to their footsteps fade in the distance, and then rolled her neck at the tender touch of Blaine’s fingers.
“Toby will take you home. I’ve got some loose ends to tie up.”
“Okay.” She sighed. “Thanks.”
“You’re welcome. I’ll see you tonight.”
She closed her eyes and waited until she knew he was gone before letting herself take a breath. One more night. She’d cherish it for the rest of her life.
Blaine drove up Route Eight heading down the lake toward the Mead mansion on the hill. So much had happened and in just a few short days. He felt like he could sleep for a week, but that would have to wait, although he would enjoy his last night with Kaylee.
Loving Kaylee had always been easy for him. Keeping her was a whole other story, and he was about to say goodbye. At least this time he’d have the chance, even if it was as small as a bit of closure on their past.
Toby’s old Jeep was in the Mead mansion driveway.
The back door opened, and Kaylee stepped out onto the porch. She held one of the posts and leaned her face against the wood. Her mouth formed a slight smile as he took a few small steps toward her.
Her hair was pulled back in a loose ponytail at the nape of her neck. She wore a pair of faded jeans that hugged her body, and one of his old shirts. She couldn’t look more beautiful if she were decked out to the nines.
When he stood at the bottom of the steps, he could smell her strawberry shampoo and her vanilla lotion. Those two smells were intoxicating. He climbed the stairs and pulled her into his arms. “Hi, babe,” he whispered in her ear.
She raised her shoulder, batting his lips from her ear. “What’s going to happen to Linda?”
“Most likely she’ll face a short jail term followed by community service for obstruction of justice.”
“What about Jack?”
“Technically, he didn’t do anything wrong.” He stared into her beautiful, blue eyes and searched, looking for any hint of what could be.
“I spoke with Agent Thompson again. He’ll meet us here tomorrow at four.”
“When do you want to take care of your father’s ashes and visit Deslin?”
“I’ve asked Hadley to come with us when I put Dad’s ashes in the lake.” She dropped her head to his chest. “Rutherford will always be my dad, but if Hadley really is my biological father, I want him to be a part of my life.”
“He’s always been a part of your life. So has Rachael.”
He felt her chest rise high, and a slow sigh followed. “I suppose we’ve always had a bizarre connection. I just hope
she can accept Hadley.”
“What about me?” he asked.
She squeezed him tight and then lifted her head. Her eyes glistened with tears. “I can’t expect you to wait for me, but I want to come back here. Start a new life here.”
He fanned his thumb across her tear-stricken face. He was humbled by her resolve and determination to do the right thing and start her life over.
“I love you,” she whispered.
“I love you too.”
“Will you watch over my house?” she asked.
“Yes,” he said, not knowing what else to say.
“I’ve jotted down some ideas for remodeling so I can turn it into a bed and breakfast. Would you be interested in doing some of the work?”
“I’d love to.”
“You could live here, if you wanted to.”
He’d like nothing more, as long as it meant she’d be living here with him. “That would make it easier for me to do what you want.”
“I’m sorry, Blaine, so sorry.” She buried her face in his chest, and her body rocked up and down.
“Shhh, babe, don’t cry.” He lifted her into his arms and kicked open the door.
“Take me upstairs and make love to me. Please, Blaine.”
“That was the plan.” He planted a tender kiss on her forehead. “We’ll take care of everything else tomorrow. Tonight is for us.”
She cupped his face and looked deep into his eyes. “Just us. No talk of the past and no promises for the future. Just right now.”
Tears fought to break free from behind his eyes, but he kept them from forming. He’d have time to cry when she was gone. He needed to cherish the moment. To cherish the woman he loved.
17
Six moths later…
“Damn it,” Blaine stared into the mirror as he tried to tie the bow tie to his tux once again.
“Here, let me.” Toby laughed, yanking the tie from Blaine’s hands.
“Isn’t that my line?”
“You’re freaking useless as a best man,” Toby said, then got the tie done on the first try.