The Coach House

by Florence Osmund

  Marie nodded. “And he said if I don’t go back to him, something bad will happen to Jonathan.”

  Her eyes went wide. “No way!”

  Marie nodded again. “He didn’t say what he would do, but you know it can’t be good.”

  Karen stared at her.

  She filled Karen in on the rest of her and Richard’s conversation.

  “What are you going to do?”

  Marie didn’t respond. She stared at the blank wall behind Karen.

  “You’re not thinking about going back to him, are you?”

  Marie remained silent.

  “Marie…tell me you’re not thinking about going back to him!”

  “Well, it would solve one problem,” she murmured.

  Karen stood up and waved her hands in the air. “You’re not thinking straight. Look what he’s done to you. You can’t go back to that!”

  “I need time to think this through.” Marie looked down at her lap. “If he did anything to Jonathan to ruin him, I would never forgive myself.” She looked up at Karen with a new batch of tears. “Karen, I’ve…”

  “You’ve what, hon?”

  Marie shook her head and looked past Karen. “I don’t know. I just need to think this through.”

  * * *

  Marie thought about Richard’s threats well into the early hours of the next morning. She knew she would never go back to him, and she was prepared to face whatever consequences he had in store for her for that. Facing her own fears was one thing, but she wasn’t about to let him hurt Jonathan.

  She called Mr. Feinstein the next day.

  “Who may I tell him is calling?”

  “Marie Costa.”

  “May I tell him the nature of the call?”

  “Please tell him it’s personal. It has to do with Jonathan Brooks.”

  Marie waited less than a minute for him to pick up the phone. “Yes, Miss Costa. How can I help you?”

  “Mr. Feinstein, I am Jonathan Brooks’s daughter.” She paused long enough for that statement to sink in. “And I’m aware you and he are friends.” She gulped. “And that you had a hand in making sure I had college funds available when I needed them. I also know that Jonathan wants to remain anonymous as my father for obvious reasons, and that’s why I’m contacting you instead of him.” The words began to flow easier.

  “Mr. Feinstein, I have reason to believe that my husband Richard Marchetti, who I am not with anymore, also knows that Jonathan is my father, and that he might do something to expose him. Jonathan, that is. Richard is very well connected, and if he were to expose him, well, the consequences could be disastrous.” She took a moment to breathe. “I think Jonathan would want to know this.”

  “Thank you, Miss Costa. Please leave your phone number with my secretary.”

  Startled at his not asking any questions and the abrupt way he ended their conversation, Marie said good-bye and hung up.

  Now what?

  * * *

  “He didn’t say a word, Karen. He just listened to what I had to say.”

  “He didn’t ask any questions?”

  “None.”

  “Didn’t make any comments?”

  “Nope.”

  “So the whole phone call lasted just a few minutes.”

  “If that. He did ask me if I would leave my phone number with his secretary, which I did.”

  “Probably wants to talk with Jonathan first, don’t you think?”

  “Probably.”

  * * *

  Gregory Feinstein called Marie the following day. “Mr. Brooks has a few questions for you, Miss Costa.”

  Her heart leapt. Is Jonathan going to get on the phone? “Okay.”

  It was still Feinstein’s voice. “First of all, he wants to know if you’re okay.” He paused. “Financially and physically.”

  “Yes, I’m okay. Richard pulls pranks occasionally just to let me know he’s still around and knows where I am, but I don’t think I’m in any real danger. At least I hope not.”

  “And financially?”

  “I have my own interior design business and do pretty well for myself.”

  “That’s good.” He paused. “Mr. Brooks wants you to know that he has met Richard. In fact, certain circumstances resulted in Richard having been a guest in Jonathan’s home a few months ago. He knows your past relationship with him, but appreciates your warning just the same.”

  “Okay. That’s good to know.”

  “One more thing.”

  “Yes?”

  “He wants you to know how sorry he is about your mother’s passing.”

  “Please tell him thank you.”

  “I’ll do that.” His voice softened. “I want to tell you something completely off the record, Miss Costa. Mr. Brooks cares very much about you. He always has. And I know he wishes he could be in your life. But he can’t. You know that, don’t you?”

  “Yes. I know that.”

  “That will be all, then. Good-bye.”

  Marie put down the phone. Jonathan Brooks had acknowledged he was her father. She closed her eyes and sobbed. A father she would never meet.

  She told Karen about her phone conversation with Mr. Feinstein that evening.

  “Wow. How did you feel after hearing him say those things?”

  “Relieved. Happy. Sad. Confused. All of the above.”

  “What do you suppose he meant about your father knowing Richard?”

  “I’m not sure, but my guess is that Richard wormed his way into his circle of friends somehow, and Jonathan had to go along with it to avoid a confrontation. It wouldn’t surprise me if Richard is doing to Jonathan the same thing he’s done to me since I left him. Just enough to let us know he’s around and can make trouble if he wants to.”

  “But why?”

  “I don’t know, Karen. It’s just part of his sick personality, I guess. But with Richard, you know his actions always boil down to one of two things—money or love. And my experience with him was that money was number one.”

  “So is the chapter about your father now closed?”

  She bit the inside of her cheek. “I wish it wasn’t, but I guess it looks that way.”

  “At least now you know he really cares about you. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have had Mr. Feinstein say all that to you.”

  Marie nodded. “I guess.”

  What Gregory Feinstein relayed to Marie played over and over in her head, sometimes when she least expected it. She tried to think of it in a positive way, closure of some kind. But every time she thought it through, the outcome was always the same. The only way Jonathan Brooks could infuse something positive in her life would be to be in it. She wanted more than anything for him to look at her face-to-face and talk to her, cultivate a relationship with her, console and guide her. But in her heart she knew the odds were highly stacked against her as far as that went.

  She kept going back to a conversation she had had with Karen when Marie told her how she longed for a relationship with him. She had said, “Well, he snuck around with your mother. Maybe he could do the same with you.”

  At first, Marie had been offended by Karen’s comment, but the more she thought about it, the more she thought maybe that wasn’t so farfetched. And somehow, clinging on to even the most unlikely scenario gave Marie a ray of hope.

  Her more tangible ray of hope came the next day when Mr. Feinstein called her. She called Karen immediately afterward.

  “Jonathan wants to meet with me.”

  “What?! He wants to meet with you?”

  “Yep. That’s what he said.”

  “When?”

  “Tomorrow.”

  “Tomorrow?”

  “Tomorrow.”

  “Where?”

  “At the Union State Bank.”

  “So he’s coming here?”

  “Mm-hm.”

  “Holy cow. What time?”

  “They’re going to call me when he gets here. Probably close to noon.”

  “A
re you okay?”

  “I don’t know.” She paused. “Karen, I’m going to meet my father tomorrow.”

  “I know, hon.”

  “Do you know what that means?”

  “Yeah. Well, no maybe not. What’s going through your head right now?”

  “A million things.” She looked up toward the ceiling and closed her eyes. “I’m picturing myself calmly talking to him about the threats Richard made, but on the inside I’m shouting, You’re my father, damn it all! You are my father!’” The tears started rolling.

  “Where are you going to be when they call tomorrow?”

  “At my studio. Why?”

  “I was just thinking you might want some moral support before…and afterwards.”

  “That would be great, but what about your shop?”

  “I’ll just put a sign on the door. Thursdays usually aren’t very busy anyway.”

  The morning dragged. Marie tried to busy herself with work, but her mind was already at Union State Bank. What would be his first words? Would he hug her, or would he be all business? Would he ask about her mother? How would she react? Would she break down in tears? Karen had told her to suck on peppermints to keep her stomach calm, but after the tenth one, her stomach still fluttered.

  Karen came over at eleven. They sat in Marie’s office with the door closed.

  “Right before you enter the bank, take in a few deep breaths through your nose and then exhale slowly through your mouth. That will help calm you,” Karen advised.

  “I’ll try that, but I think it will take a lot more than that to calm these nerves.”

  “Well, if it makes any difference, you look calm.”

  “I wish you could come with me, but I have to do this alone.”

  “I know.”

  The phone rang at twelve fifteen. They were ready for her.

  She walked the ostensibly long block to the bank. The receptionist asked her to take a seat. Five minutes later, a tall thin man approached her.

  He held out his hand. “Hello, Miss Costa. I’m Gregory Feinstein.”

  She stood up and shook his hand. “It’s nice to meet you.”

  He led her to a small conference room. “How are you?” he asked.

  She smiled a weak smile. “Nervous.”

  “Don’t be. Jonathan is a dear friend of mine, and one of the nicest men I know.” He smiled. “I think you’re going to like him. Wait here. He’ll be in shortly.”

  She stood in front of the window looking at her reflection in the glass, taking in slow steady breaths. She twisted a strand of her hair. I’m going to meet my father.

  When she looked away from her own reflection, she saw him standing in the doorway. She surveyed his image on the glass for several seconds before turning around.

  “Hello, Marie.”

  She felt as though she was living the moment in slow motion.

  “Hello, Jonathan.” With clear light brown skin and soft features, he was more handsome than she remembered from when she saw him from afar on his porch. He wore a crisp pale blue dress shirt, striped tie, and black suit. His eyes were almost black, but warm.

  “Please sit down.” He pulled out a chair from one side of the conference table. He took the chair across from her. He fixated on her eyes until she had to look away. Then he held out his hand, palm side up.

  She put her hand in his, and he squeezed it. It was all Marie could do to keep the tears from spilling down her cheeks.

  “I hope you understand, Marie, why I’ve stayed away all these years.” He waited for a response, still squeezing her hand.

  Unable to speak, she nodded.

  “I want you to know I loved your mother…and while this may be hard for you to believe, I loved you, too. In my heart, I always have.”

  She didn’t know how she was supposed to react to that. She held his gaze as long as she could.

  “That was you in the car that day, wasn’t it?” His voice held a smile.

  She felt comforted by him and was relieved at his attempt to lighten the moment. She gave him a faint smile. “Yes, it was.”

  “I knew it right away, big hat and all.”

  That was enough to prompt a wider smile to her face.

  “You’ve got your mother’s smile.”

  She felt the blood rise up her neck. “Thank you.”

  He let go of her hand when Mr. Feinstein entered the room. “Gregory. Come on in.”

  Gregory sat down next to Marie. “I filled in Jonathan on what you told me about Richard, Miss Costa.” He cleared his throat. “Obviously, we’re concerned. Can you tell us any more about what he said to you? Do you know what he intends to do to him?”

  “Well, I think I told you everything.” Marie paused while she collected the right words. “Richard is used to getting what he wants, and it doesn’t matter how. I wouldn’t put anything past him.”

  It was Jonathan’s turn to speak. “Let me get this straight. What he really wants is you. He wants you to come back to him. And then everything is good?”

  Marie nodded.

  Jonathan leaned forward and planted his fist on the table. His jaw was tight. “Well, that’s preposterous. It’s blackmail. It’s…”

  “Calm down, Jon. We need to think this through with level heads.”

  Jonathan drew back. “I know. I know.”

  “Marie, do you have any inclination to go back to him?” Greg asked.

  Marie looked down at the table and let out a sigh. “No, but it would solve a few…”

  “No. We’re not going to let you do that. End of discussion.” Jonathan’s facial expression affirmed the certainty of his words.

  “I really don’t want to think about the worst that could happen,” Gregory offered, “but I am interested in what you, Marie, think he is likely to do.”

  “I think he’ll start by exposing Jonathan. That he had an affair with my mother and a secret child as a result of it.” She turned to Jonathan. “I think he’s thinking that would destroy you personally and maybe even professionally. I don’t know. Like I said, I would put nothing past him.”

  “Marie, has he ever harmed you physically?” Jonathan asked.

  Marie told them of the incidents when Richard had grabbed her by the arm pretty hard after she had interrupted his so-called business meetings. When she told them about the basement stair episode, she half defended him. “He said he didn’t intend to hurt me and didn’t even know at the time I fell down the stairs.”

  Both men looked at her with dropped jaws.

  “What I think is important to know about Richard, and this is something that took me a while to figure out, is that he’s a master at playing into my emotions. Twice after I left him, he told me he never stopped loving me and pleaded for me to come back to him. And when I didn’t give in, he got frustrated and he didn’t really threaten me, but he tried to scare me, thinking I guess that when charm failed, fear might work. He told me at one point that he would protect me, implying I needed protection I guess.”

  “He’s a bully then,” Gregory said.

  “Maybe. The thing is…I really don’t think he’d hurt someone physically. He’s had that opportunity with me, and he hasn’t gone there.”

  “Can you give us some examples of his scare tactics?” Gregory asked.

  Marie relayed accounts of the few more memorable incidents, like the crumpled up business card she found on the hood of her car, the time he showed up at the airport where she was about to pick up her suitcase, only to find it missing, and suspicious sightings of the short fat man with the cigar.

  “Let me ask you this, Marie,” Gregory said. “We know what he has on Jon and what he could do to make his life difficult. Is there anything similar he has hanging over your head that has you concerned?”

  Marie’s hands fell to her lap. The Lillian Strauss break-in. She hoped her hesitation wasn’t noticeable. “The obvious thing would be my ethnicity.”

  “Jon?”

  Jonathan’s attention
was focused on Marie. “Hmm?”

  “This is your call, Jon. What do you want to do?”

  He sat back in his chair and rubbed his forehead. “Look, I’ve been married for nearly forty years, and with the exception of Sophia, I’ve never given Claire any reason not to trust me. And that was over twenty years ago. I think the first thing I have to do is tell her.”

  Marie’s heart raced while she listened to their conversation.

  “Are you sure?”

  There were no signs of worry on his face. “Yes, I’m sure.” He cocked his head and let out a sigh that said it all. “I should have done it long ago.”

  Marie tried to hold back the smile. And the tears.

  “Then what?” Gregory asked.

  “Then let the chips fall where they may. My wife and children will know, and if that destroys my family, then I’ll have to face the consequences. At least they won’t find out through the likes of Richard Marchetti.”

  “What about your business?”

  “Well, that’s tougher in some ways. I could tell my constituents that there’s someone out there who’s threatened to destroy me and ask them to not hold whatever they hear against me.” He paused while he thought. “And if what they hear is that I have a child from another relationship, well, that’s true.” He looked at Marie. “What do you think about that?”

  “I think that’s up to you.” She looked down at the table before she met his eyes again. She let out an audible sigh. “But to be truthful, it would be such a relief for me to have it out in the open. You have no idea.” Her mind traveled someplace far away for an instant. “I just thought of something. If you expose yourself before Richard can, that will foil his plan, and then he might do something even worse. He’s not one to ever let someone pull something over on him. Not Richard.”

  The two men looked at each other.

  “He doesn’t give up easily, gentlemen. He’s like a dog digging up a bone. He won’t stop until he has it in his mouth.”

  “Then I’m just going to have to cross that bridge when I get to it. Look, I can’t have a plan for every scenario.” Jonathan leaned back in his chair. “I’m willing to take the risk and go ahead with alerting the people who matter to me the most. Then as things happen, I’ll decide on how to deal with them.”