by Dale Mayer
She nodded. “I guess.”
Trevor picked up the bag, waited for her to grab a sweater and a second pair of shoes, ones that had a whole lot more substance than the tiny ballet looking things she currently wore. “Are you sure you don’t want to pack up more in case your father tries to move you out of here.”
She shook her head. “There’s too much. We also don’t have a place to call home yet. So it might as well stay here.”
“Good enough. Let’s go. Brunch is waiting.”
That’s when a shoe scraped on the floor outside her bedroom door.
Instantly Trevor had Hannah tucked behind him, both of them flattened against the wall.
Silence.
He could hear her heavy breathing behind him. He squeezed her hand reassuringly.
And the sound came again. He freed up his hand and waited.
And that moment an old grizzled man peered into the room. He caught sight of them and straightened up, puffing out his shoulders. “Only there won’t be any brunch for you,” he said in a mean voice, letting them know he’d been close enough to listen in on their conversation. “Not yet anyway.”
The man standing in the open bedroom wasn’t anyone Trevor recognized.
And from the shock on Hannah’s face, neither was he anyone she recognized either.
“Who are you and what are you doing in my house?” she snapped, showing Trevor a side he had yet to see. She stepped forward, anger vibrating through her voice. “This is my home and you’re not welcome.”
“This is your father’s house, and I was told to let him know if and when you ever dared to show your face here again,” he sneered.
“My belongings are still here,” she said. “Or is he into stealing too.”
“Not to mention that I’d like your ID so I can make sure to spell your name correctly when I submit my report to the police,” Trevor said. “I’m her husband and a lawyer. And she has a right to her privacy. You, however, are in her bedroom and you entered this house illegally.”
“I did not. I had the owner’s permission,” the guard said in a surly tone. “You aren’t going to pull a fast one on me.”
“We already did,” Hannah snapped, walking past him. “I’ll be contacting the police over this. Even my father has to follow the Landlord Act. And that includes giving me thirty days notice and a reason to evict me – if he has such a thing. Not to mention twenty-four hours warning if he needs to access my house.” She waived a hand in dismissal.
She raced down past him and exited like a regal princess in a pout. “Feel free to tell him I was here.”
“I already did. You’re supposed to stay here until he arrives,” the guard called after her. But she’d almost made it to the car.
“Well, we’re going for brunch so how about he phones me instead.”
Trevor walked quickly to the car, unlocked it and put her bag in the trunk. She was already in the front seat and waiting for him.
Trevor never said anything to the guard. Instead he turned on the engine and backed out of the driveway.
“What will happen to the guard?”
“My father will fire him.”
“Really?”
“Oh yes. On the spot. If he gets here in five minutes and we’re not here, he’ll be fired in the sixth minute. My father is nothing if not consistent.”
Trevor pulled the car down the street and turned onto the first main road. “Good thing we’re leaving then. I know he’s only doing his job but… I didn’t like him.”
She laughed. A wonderfully light pealing sound that put a grin on his face.
“Besides we couldn’t stay,” she said. “You promised me food.”
The place Trevor had in mind was only a few blocks away, but not sure if they’d been followed, he went a convoluted path. By the time they arrived, she’d relaxed and he had as well. That is until he drove into the parking lot and saw three black sedans with smoked windows. Leaving the engine running, he sat and stared at the vehicles beside him. “Can you sense Will close?”
Hannah, in the process of opening her door, fell back into her seat and stared at him. “What?”
“I see three familiar looking vehicles parked beside us. A coincidence?”
She took a deep breath and studied the vehicles. “We used to come here on occasion. It’s not out of line to consider they might be here.”
“Right. Let’s find another place.”
She reached across and laid her hand on his. “How about we don’t. Let’s walk in like the adults we are and have a meal calmly.” Her tone was determined. “I’m not terribly impressed with the idea of a life on the run. He is my father. However, you and I are married.” Her gaze turned on the restaurant. “Is there any reason not to go in?”
“Only to avoid trouble.”
“I’m not sure avoiding them is helping us.”
“If you’re sure.” He was willing if she was up to it. He was all about facing life head on, but he preferred to wear crash helmets on suicide missions.
“I am.” She smiled pensively. “You know, in spite of everything, he is my father and there is a mixed ball of emotions over that relationship.”
He turned off the engine and opened the door. He had no way to know if her father was in here, but like she said, it was a public place and wouldn’t be a bad way to see them again. He was just being overly cautious – the only way to be when dealing with bullies. “Let’s go in.”
She grinned and hopped out. He was happy to see her spirit. Surely this wasn’t the same girl he’d met at the hospital who barely knew her own name. She’d changed and grown so much. In large part he was sure it was due to the blocks coming down and her own memories filling the holes in her head. She had adjusted to her new situation and gained confidence in who she was. That was likely the biggest impetus to this growth. She had come to terms with some of her abilities, maybe not confident in them yet, but she no longer looked at them as something to run from. He was proud of her. He opened the restaurant door for her, his senses on high alert – just in case.
She gave him a beaming smile, then reached up and kissed him in full view of the restaurant patrons. He laughed and wrapped an arm around her shoulders.
A waitress walked toward them, a bright smile on her face. Right behind her was Will.
Chapter 33
Hannah smiled at the waitress. There was no way to miss Will’s looming scowl barreling down behind the hapless woman. Hannah upped the wattage in her smile and directed it at him. “Hello, Will. Did you get hungry after pulling the B&E at my husband’s office?”
Shocked silence filled the restaurant.
Gazes turned to watch.
She heard Trevor suck in a breath.
Hannah wasn’t scared, and she’d had quite enough of Will’s particular brand of terrorism.
The waitress, as if understanding the explosiveness of the situation, stepped in front and said hurriedly, “I have the perfect table for you.” She motioned to the left. “Please, if you’d like to come in this direction.”
“Sure, I will, thank you.” Hannah ignored Will’s stone-faced look and deliberately turned her back on him. She knew Trevor would protect her. She also realized she’d snugged her energy up tighter against her body – if that was even possible.
Whereas Will’s energy waffled in place, bright red and flaring with sparks. He had no idea what to do and was so damn angry. She threw her head back and laughed. Lord, it felt good. All she’d had to do was stand up to the man. He was a bully. A boogieman in the dark. He preferred to torment his victims when they were more vulnerable, and in a public face-to-face confrontation, he had no idea what to do.
The waitress who’d thought she’d avoided a problem took them past another table – where her father sat, Wanda at his side.
Hannah stopped and glared at him. Trevor’s heavy sigh whispered past her. She realized he wished she wouldn’t antagonize everyone in the vicinity, but it appeared she had no way to contr
ol the impulse. She needed to stand up to these people. Now that the gate had opened she couldn’t seem to stop.
She wasn’t trying to cause trouble, but she was damn sure she wasn’t going to lie down and take it either.
“Hello, Father. I was just at home getting some clothes. We had an altercation with a new guard who didn’t seem to understand his place.”
Anger lit her father’s gaze. “I’d say you were the one who didn’t understand your place,” he said in a low hard voice.
She raised her eyebrows. “Oh, am I being evicted then?”
There right out in the open, she gave him a slow smile. “It will be odd to live anywhere but at Mom’s house, that’s for sure. She lived in it even when she was married to you, didn’t she?” She studied her father’s gaze intently and watched it flicker. She cast a disparaging glance at Wanda, catching her smirk.
She turned her attention back to her father. “It wasn’t your house, it was her house. And I was her heir. So I guess my lawyer,” she reached out a hand and caught Trevor’s hand in hers, “will need to take a look at that as well.”
She nodded at her father, “I’d hoped to have lunch with you today, but I can see we’re not welcome. Have a good day.” She turned to leave then twisted back and deliberately hardening her voice, she added, “And call your henchman off. That he broke into Trevor’s office and caused the damage he did is already pretty disgusting and quite low for even you, Father, but to know he’s coming after me…well the police are very interested in his whereabouts already. I’ll be more than happy to let them know he was seen here at the restaurant right now and is still in your employment – and thereby acting on your orders.” Having delivered that final coup, she turned and walked way.
The entire restaurant had stilled to listen. She knew there’d been a dozen cell phone images flashing and likely a video of the meeting as well. How nice that the new age of social media was everywhere.
She smiled nicely at the waitress who led them to a table at the far end of the room. “It’s a nice table, thank you.”
The waitress bolted.
Trevor took the chair on the opposite side of the table where he could watch her family. “They are leaving.”
“Good. Let them run this time.”
His lips curled upwards. “Feeling cheeky after that, aren’t you?”
She grinned. “I am. It feels good to dump the victim mentality – at least for a few minutes.”
“Just remember they aren’t schoolboys, and you will pay for this rebellion.”
She waved her hand around. “It’s a minor blip on my father’s radar. He might want to squash me for my short lived insurgency, but he’s seen them before, so will assume I’m going through another stage…”
He laughed. “Well, enjoy it because I highly doubt this will go unpunished.”
She closed her eyes so she could sense Will better. She lived for the day when she could see his energy as strongly as she could sense it. She saw it now but it was faint and in this light – barely visible.
“He’s leaving,” Trevor said quietly. He reached across and covered her hands with his own. “Are you sensing something?”
“Anger – no make that rage,” she said quietly, squeezing his hand. The stuffing seemed to go out of her. “I probably shouldn’t have done that, should I?”
“No, probably not, but it’s done now.”
“Right.” She twisted her features. “And now what, we wait?”
“No, I’ve already contacted Drew. I had my phone taping that scenario. Should have some interesting video to look at on the monitor. Maybe someone somewhere gave something away.”
“Not likely. They are all professionals.”
“Who was the man sitting beside your father?”
“Oh that’s George, the other henchman. He doesn’t like to get his hands dirty. Whereas Will thrives on it.”
He stared out the window.
“What are you thinking?”
“The men present an interesting wall of dark energy.”
“Will yes, but who else?” she asked.
He laughed. “Do you really think your father isn’t a man of energy?”
She stared at him. “I think we said before that he was but with a business bent. As in that’s how he’s managed to become so successful.”
“He’s that all right, but I think his skills are so much more. I’m just not sure in what way.”
“I remember seeing him years ago and thinking that inside he was a really lonely man.” She laughed, humor overlaid with bitterness. “But then he’d do something mean again, and I’d forget about those times.”
“I’m certainly not going to excuse his behavior, but you might want to remember there would have been times when life was very difficult.”
“Maybe. And maybe they were only difficult while he tried to figure out how to get rid of his families.”
“What?” Her father’s voice boomed. He stood beside them alone. Hannah could see the rest of his party standing outside by the vehicles. He’d approached quietly when she and Trevor were deep in conversation and neither had noticed. Her father collapsed on the chair beside her. “What did you just say?”
“Nothing.”
He shook his head slowly. “No. You did say it. I’m just struggling with the concept. You actually think I killed my first wife? My kids? Your mother?” His voice rose in shocked horror at the end.
She didn’t know if he was a damn good actor or what, but he gave the appearance of being in pain. She glanced over at Trevor. He sat back and surveyed her father as if he didn’t know what to make of this sudden turn of events but was willing to see it through.
“Did you?”
There. She’d asked. Clear and concise so there was no misunderstanding. And she waited.
For the first time in all these years she’d known him, words appeared to fail him. “No,” he finally managed to get out, his face stark white with shock. “No, I didn’t.” He rested his face on his hands on the table. “Jesus, how long have you thought that?”
“I don’t know. I only just found out about your first family,” she admitted, not sorry to be here having this conversation now. “I’m sorry for them…and you.”
A strangled sound escaped his mouth. But he shook his head wildly. “I never did anything to your mother.” He held out a hand. “I wouldn’t. I couldn’t.”
“And your first wife and two kids?” She didn’t know where she was getting the courage for this but it was obvious this was the right time to have this discussion. She glanced around at the restaurant. Most of the patrons were focusing on their own lives, but a few still stole glances in her direction.
Her father, however, looked shattered. A good word considering what happened to her all the time. But she felt sorry. For misjudging him. For what he’d lost.
“I gather you didn’t?” Not that a murderer would confess.
“No, I never did. I loved her. Them,” he said in a soft voice. “They were my life.”
“And yet…”
“Yet what? They were hit in a head-on collision by a semi on bad winter roads,” he said, his skin a pale wan color. “I was at work. And in one moment they were gone. As in all gone.” He turned to stare at the full restaurant, but she knew he was looking down the long line of his memories. Maybe he blocked them so he didn’t feel the pain. Like someone had done for her. Now she could deal with the remaining blocks. Maybe tonight.
No, she glanced over at her husband and realized there was something else she planned to do tonight. But they needed to go to a drugstore first.
“I’d have done anything to have died with them,” he whispered.
A sheen of moisture clung to his eyes. She closed her eyes, hating the pain she’d brought up. She hadn’t planned on it. She hadn’t wanted to hurt him. She’d wanted her own nightmare to stop.
“I’m sorry,” she said. “That must have been tough.”
“It was the worst day of my
life.”
She couldn’t imagine. To lose everyone all at once. “Then why marry her sister?”
He glanced down at the empty table and said, “Because she reminded me of my first wife. They looked alike, and I was so damn lonely for what I’d lost.”
“But it wasn’t the same, was it?” she said smoothly, remembering her mother’s loneliness.
“No, not at all. It was a mistake. I couldn’t give her what she needed, and obviously she couldn’t give me what I needed.” He gave a broken laugh. “I thought I’d healed, was whole going into it, but knew immediately I hadn’t. And she knew too. I’m so sorry she was unhappy. I tried hard to make her happy, but it wasn’t to be. We’d have divorced if she’d lived. We’d talked about it but hadn’t gotten to that point. And yes, that house was hers. I gave it to her. It returned to me upon her death. However, it was intended as your birthday gift, which is tomorrow. Once I set up the paperwork so your new husband can’t get his hands on it, it will be yours.”
“Really?” She gasped. “Thank you,” she said warmly. “I really love that place. Why the guard though?”
“Because it was empty and needed looking after.” He narrowed his gaze at her. “You never understood that, but assets require care too.”
“I do understand.” She glanced over at Trevor to see him paying attention but not showing any reaction. She didn’t know if he believed her father or not. She did. Yet she had no real reason to do so. But it was hard to fake that kind of loss and unfortunately, she could see him marrying her mother for the reason he stated. He was an indomitable force, and if he thought he could get his old life back – albeit slightly different – then he’d do whatever he could to make that happen.
She sighed. It was hard to find acceptance and forgiveness for all he’d done, but she knew it would be much easier now.
As if having shoved the heavy memories back into place and ready to move on once again, her father stood up. “I’m late for a meeting. We’ll talk again tomorrow.”