Rediscovering Love - A Billionaire Romance Novel (Romance, Billionaire Romance, Life After Love Book 5)

by Nancy Adams

  “There doesn’t appear to be anything out of place here,” one of the firemen told Jules. “I think it’s safe to say that your wife isn’t here.”

  “Is there a possibility that…you know?” Jules stuttered from the edge.

  “You know what!?”

  “That she’s been burnt up into ash.”

  The guy shrugged and gave Jules a knowing grin.

  “Fella, do you know how hot a fire’s gotta burn to turn a whole human body into ash?”

  “I don’t know.”

  “Well, a lot more than the puny barbecue you had here earlier. Unless your wife’s an inch tall, she ain’t here among this ash.”

  “Okay, thanks,” Jules said and he walked away to the paramedics to see how the boys were doing, feeling confusion and relief all at the same time.

  As he walked across the road, he glanced up the street and saw the figure of Juliette walking toward them all.

  “Juliette,” he exclaimed, before running toward her.

  When he reached her, she had a confused look all over her face and was holding a shopping bag with some random items in it.

  “What are all these ambulances and fire engines doing here, Jules?” she asked in a frightened voice.

  “Where have you been?” he asked as he took her in his arms.

  “I was at the…but then I…Oh!”

  She went quiet as a flood of thoughts erupted in her brain and she suddenly recalled putting on some bacon so that she could surprise Jules with a sandwich. She had put it on the stove and then found that the lettuce was bad when she had gone to fetch it from the fridge, so she decided to go out to the grocery store to get some, forgetting to turn the stove off in the process. She had walked right past Jules’s feet as they lay under the car and gone wandering off to the store, her mind slightly muddled.

  Now, she stood with him in total realization, a shopping bag dangling from her hand holding the lettuce and a few other items they needed.

  “I did that,” she suddenly muttered from within his grasp.

  “It’s okay,” he replied in a gentle tone. “No one got hurt. The boys are all safe. We’re all safe and that’s all there is about it. Come on, don’t look at it,” he added as he ushered her over to Mrs. Jefferson’s house. “Let’s go to Beau’s and have a nice cup of something warm.”

  As he took her past everyone, they all looked at her with sympathetic eyes. When they reached Mrs. Jefferson, the old woman placed her arm delicately around Juliette’s shoulder and guided her up her porch and into the trailer.

  Sitting in an ambulance a short way from Mrs. Jefferson’s, David saw his mother enter the trailer and jumped down from the gurney.

  “Hey,” the female paramedic cried out as he ran off toward his mother, “we haven’t finished here yet.”

  The boy made it to the couple just as Mrs. Jefferson was opening the door, and flung himself into his mother’s arms. Juliette immediately responded by wrapping her own around the boy.

  “Momma! You’re safe,” he cried out, tears of relief flooding his little eyes.

  She knelt down to take him in her arms and nestled her face into his head.

  “I’m so sorry, David,” she cried. “I’m so sorry.”

  With that, they went inside, the paramedic walking over and asking if she could do a few more tests on David, but the boy refusing to leave his mother’s side. In the end, the paramedic agreed to do them inside Mrs. Jefferson’s lounge, where boy and mother were inseparable, Jules sat across from them and watching his wife with worry creased all over his face.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

  The next morning, Jules awoke alongside Juliette on the futon of Mrs. Jefferson’s fold-out couch. Juliette was fast asleep, so he gently slid himself away from her and stood up at the far end of the room in front of the window. He opened the curtains slightly and looked across at the mess which was once his home. He shuddered to think what would happen next.

  The night before, after the paramedics had okayed the boys, they had told Jules that as part of state law they were obliged to inform child welfare about the danger caused to the boys. This meant that Jill Philips was sure to get hold of it and Juliette was bound to wind up being taken away. Or worse: David would be put into care. The dilemma facing Jules as he gazed at the ruin of their home weighed down upon his very soul and he realized that he had little option if he wanted to keep his family together.

  As he moved his gaze from the burned-down trailer and toward his neighbor, his heart jumped in his chest when he saw Jill Philips walking out of Gwen’s place that very moment. He instinctively hid himself back from the window, not wanting to be seen.

  The night before, when Gwen had returned, she had been shocked to find that her two sons had been involved in a near-death experience, but very understanding of Juliette’s situation. Because Gwen’s sons were in the paramedic’s report, it was clear that the Social Services woman had decided to pay a visit to the Mathiesons in order to speak with the boys about the incident. At the sight of Jill, Jules felt his world crumble.

  The plump woman flashed her gaze at the window and Jules jumped back. When he peeked to look again, he saw that she was strolling across the road straight toward him, coming to Mrs. Jefferson’s trailer, so he jogged back from the window and up to Juliette in bed.

  “Juliette,” he said, rocking her gently with his hand, “get up, honey. That woman from Social Services is coming over. She’s just been to speak to Gwen and her boys.”

  “What?” Juliette murmured as she roused from her sleep. “I don’t get it. Which woman?”

  “It don’t matter. Just get up. She’s gonna wanna talk. I’m not sure what exactly she’s gonna say. But whatever it is, it ain’t gonna be good.”

  Just then there was a knock at the door and Juliette sat up in bed.

  “What time is it anyway?” she asked.

  “Half-past nine. We overslept. I guess Beau don’t get up too early and we was pretty famished last night.”

  Another knock echoed in the lounge.

  “I’ll go see to her, you stay here and get dressed.”

  With that Jules went into the kitchen toward the front door, closing the one to the lounge behind him as he did. Standing in his pajamas and looking a little rough, he answered the door. The moment he did, he was greeted by the annoying smile that lit up on Jill’s chubby cheeks.

  “Hello, Mr. Lee,” she beamed. “Your neighbor, Mrs. Mathieson, told me you’d be here. I’m sorry to find out about your mishap. My condolences.”

  “Mishap!? You mean our home burning down?”

  “Yes.”

  “And how did you find out about our mishap?”

  “My office was contacted yesterday by a city paramedic team. I received their report by e-mail last night and decided the best thing to do would be to come out this morning first thing and see if everyone was okay.”

  “See if everyone is okay,” Jules said gruffly to himself.

  “Can I come in?”

  She held her smile on him.

  “I guess,” he said as he stood out of the way and opened the door.

  Jill came in and Jules sat himself down at the kitchen table, beckoning a seat on the opposite side for the social worker to sit down. As she did, the door to the bedroom corridor opened and in walked David.

  “Hey, Pa,” he said brightly, having been up most of the morning playing in the spare room with Mrs. Jefferson’s small dog, Alfie.

  “Hey, son. This here is Mrs. Philips.”

  “Hey, Mrs. Philips.”

  “Hello, David,” she replied with her customary smile.

  “Me and Mrs. Philips are gonna chat for a moment,” Jules informed the boy, “so can you go into the lounge and see to Mommy. She’s just gotten up. Maybe you and her can watch cartoons. I don't think Mommy wants to hear what we say anyway.”

  “Okay, Pa. Can I get some juice first?”

  “Sure. So long as Mrs. Jefferson is cool with you taking some.
”

  “She said help myself. So I’m helping myself!”

  With that the boy turned around and went to the fridge.

  “You know, David,” Jill began while the boy was getting the bottle out and placing it on the side, before fetching a glass from the sink, “I’d like to talk to you in a moment. Would you be okay to talk with me?”

  David glanced over at his father, unsure how to answer.

  “It’s okay, David,” Jules said.

  “Yeah, sure,” the boy responded, facing Jill as he did, before returning to the pouring of his juice.

  “Okay, well, I’ll finish off here with your father and then I’ll call for you when I need you.”

  “Okay,” the boy said as he finished getting his juice and began taking it into the lounge.

  Once the door was closed behind David, Jules turned to the woman and inquired, “Okay, what’s this all about?”

  “As you can expect, Mr. Lee, yesterday’s events have made their way to the ears of child welfare.”

  “Yeah. That paramedic told me that it was procedure when kids are involved.”

  “Yes. When the lives of three minors are endangered because of neglect, the matter is immediately handed to them.”

  “Neglect!? There weren’t no one being neglected. Just an accident.”

  “Whatever the reasons, their lives were endangered.”

  “Neglect,” he muttered under his breath to himself, before adding, “So what brings you in on this? I didn’t know you were child welfare.”

  “I’m not directly. However, we work for the same people, so to speak. And as I was already dealing with your family’s case, the matter has been given to me. Having spoken to your neighbor’s sons who were there yesterday, it is my understanding that Juliette caused the fire and then left the premises. Several of your other neighbors also reported seeing her return after the fire was extinguished by the fire department. Is that correct?”

  “Yes it is.”

  “I’m afraid this isn’t good for your wife’s case. It is my solemn duty to inform you, Mr. Lee, that the state of California takes these kinds of things very seriously and a hearing has been arranged for the subject of your wife’s continued presence around your son’s life, as well as to discuss your abilities as her custodian. Now I—”

  “Come on!” Jules burst out. “It was my fault. I was laid out underneath the car fixing the brake line. I should’ve waited until I got someone to keep an eye on her. I learned a valuable lesson.”

  “One which could have led to the deaths of three children, Mr. Lee.”

  “Look, I messed up, okay. I apologize. I’ve learned my lesson. I will keep both eyes peeled constantly on my wife from now on. She won’t get to fart without my knowing about it. We already spoke and she knows not to use the stove anymore. Simple.”

  “Yes, but for how long will she remember that?”

  “I’ll write a note above the thing. Put it on the wall. Juliette can’t use the stove.”

  “But for how long will she be able to read your messages? You saw Dr. Smith again two days ago, didn’t you?”

  “Yes.”

  “Well, he sent the report of your visit to my office, Mr. Lee, and it isn't good. It says that there’s minimal to no response to her medication and she’s getting worse almost on a daily basis.”

  “She’s still good on some tests.”

  “But much worse on others,” she immediately put back to him. “Mr. Lee, you have to face facts. Your wife can’t stay around your son—they are both too vulnerable. Now if it was just you and her, then everything would be manageable and you’d probably keep custody of her for the foreseeable future. But with a minor mixed into things, the state just can’t stand by and allow a potentially dangerous situation to unfold.”

  “Then the state can go fuck itself,” he snapped at her.

  “Mr. Lee, you’re getting hostile,” she said in an emotionless voice. “I wouldn’t recommend that, otherwise I may have to take you into account when reviewing the boy’s legal guardianship.”

  Jules looked her dead in the eyes and the steely social worker looked him straight back. An inner fury was egging him on to attack this smirking, gray government drone, but he knew he had to hold off. To lunge would be to play her game.

  As the standoff continued around the table, the door to the lounge opened and there stood Juliette, David behind her on the couch watching cartoons.

  “I’m sorry, but I couldn’t help overhearing you from the lounge,” Juliette said, addressing Jill. “You were talking about taking me away from my family as though I were an old horse being taken out to a field to be shot. People like you who smile so much always have the most to hide. Don’t you think?”

  “I don’t know…mmm,” the social worker stuttered.

  “Of course you don’t. You merely stick to your paperwork and concentrate on procedure and numbers, without looking at the human aspect of it all.”

  Jill Philips was dumbfounded.

  “My father was killed in the holocaust, do you know?” Juliette went on.

  “I’m sorry…but I don’t see how that…mmm…”

  “I was conceived in a Nazi death camp, if you can believe that. There were people there like you. People who didn’t kill directly. Didn’t even ever see the bodies. They stayed all the way on the other side of the camp so that they couldn’t see the smoke that rose out of the chimneys night and day. They all worked with papers and folders, sat at desks going over orders and filing it all away where it should go, ordering things in, studying the economic efficiency of the camp, making sure there were enough pencils, ink and paper to sign the millions of death warrants.”

  “I don’t understand. Are you comparing me with a Nazi? Because I’m only looking out for the welfare of your child, Mrs. Lee.”

  “No, I wasn’t. Not exactly. Well, not directly. I couldn’t ever accuse a person of that, and I’m not accusing you. I was just saying that you should look up from your desk every now and again; or you might not realize exactly what your work contributes to.”

  This left the social worker wide eyed and gaping mouthed, and she merely sat there with her stupefied look on her face gazing up at Juliette who stood before her.

  “Now if you’re quite finished,” Juliette then announced, “I’d like to ask you to be so kind as to leave my family in peace so that I can prepare my husband and son their breakfasts.”

  “I’d like to speak to David first.”

  “Well, I wouldn’t like that. So can you please leave?”

  Jill let out a slight groan, stood up and made her way to the door.

  When she reached it, she turned to them and said, “You’ll receive a letter from the state social service department within the next few days to inform you of the date of your hearing. I strongly suggest that if you are considering attempting to appeal against any decision the state makes, then you should provide yourself with good council. Good day.”

  With that final declaration, she opened the door and left.

  “Well, that’s settled,” Jules said when she’d gone.

  “What’s settled?” Juliette asked, watching Jill through the window as she waddled across the road to her car.

  “We’re going to Mexico.”

  Juliette turned away from the window and faced him with unhappy eyes. Letting out a withered sigh, she came to the table and took Jill’s former position opposite her love. When she was sat, she struck her hand across the table and he immediately took it within his tender grasp.

  “You can’t risk losing everything just for me,” she said gazing lovingly into his old eyes.

  “You are everything,” he returned softly, making her instantly smile.

  “David is your everything now. You have to think about him and what you owe him. If you run off to Mexico with me, the state will say that you’ve kidnapped a child and a vulnerable adult. Plus, they’ll bring everything up about Robert Barrymore’s death and you serving time for h
is manslaughter. It was hard enough to get you named as a custodian for David because of that. If we run, you’ll risk losing it all.”

  “But if I run, I risk keeping everything. You and David.”

  “But what happens when I get worse? It’s bad enough with me burning houses down now. What when I’m a complete mess? You remember what the doctor said about complete breakdown within three to five years? I could end up in a vegetative state. Then what?”

  Jules looked into her eyes with every ounce of sincerity in his heart and said, “Juliette, I will look after you forever. I will stay by your side, tending to your every need, all the way until you enter the pearly gates of heaven. I can’t bear the thought of you being looked after by some state employee working minimum wage and treating you like shit because he’s pissed off with his lot in life. I can’t bear the thought of you being all alone, scared and frightened in some strange place. No one deserves to live their final days like that. I can’t bear the thought of it all and if I risk losing everything in one final hand to prevent that from happening, then so be it. I’m willing to risk it all.”

  “But where do we go?”

  “I’ve already thought through and planned everything out. Jose has family in the northwest part of the country. I spoke with him last night. He has a cousin with a house which is empty. It’s dilapidated and needs renovating. The cousin said that if I renovate it slowly as I live there, he’ll let us stay there for as long as we want rent free. As for money, we still have four grand in savings and Jose says that he’ll send me a hundred dollars a week from the business, his way of paying for his half, which he offered to do.”

  “Are you sure he’ll keep sending the money?”

  “I trust the kid with my life.”

  “But will it be enough? A hundred dollars a week?”

  “More than enough for groceries and stuff. It’s Mexico.”

  “But what about school for David?”

  “I checked and there’s an English-speaking school about a half-hour drive from the house. It costs about fifty dollars a week to send him there and they teach the American curriculum.”