She turned her head slightly and he squatted to be at eye level with her. Her pale eyes stared blankly at him, as they always did, but he no longer felt the pain at her lack of recognition.
“I’m Chase,” he said. “How are you today, Mother?”
“I’m fine,” she murmured. “How are you?”
“Good. I’ve brought you a couple of visitors. Would you like to meet them?”
Her face remained impassive, though when he mentioned visitors, she glanced over his shoulder. He turned to see Sam close behind him, Danny ambling slowly in their direction.
Chase stood up. “This is my friend Samantha.”
“Hello, Mrs. Sullivan,” Sam said as she moved closer. She extended her right hand, but Martha ignored it, as Chase knew she would.
“Hello,” said Martha.
She looked back at Chase and for a second, he thought he saw recognition in her eyes.
“Are you the man who brings the peppermint patties?” she asked.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t bring you any this time.”
Chase pursed his lips. Just then, his mother’s eyes widened and an expression of absolute delight filled her face as she looked beyond him.
“Chase!” she cried, raising her arms in greeting.
Chase turned to see Danny, who was only two feet away. The boy stared at Martha.
“Come here, son,” said Martha.
Chase caught Sam’s expression and moved aside, gesturing at Danny to come forward. And when his son did so and stood before Martha, Chase couldn’t tell if what he felt was pride that Danny didn’t hesitate or pain that the first time he’d heard his mother say his name in two years had not been for him. All he knew for sure was that he couldn’t speak over the lump in his throat.
He watched Martha reach out and stroke Danny’s arm. He couldn’t recall the last time he’d seen his mother smile like that. After a couple of minutes, he managed to say, huskily, “We can’t stay long, Mother. Danny, er, Chase, has to get to school.”
Danny looked at him, then back at Martha.
“Are you going, Chase?” asked Martha, beaming at Danny.
“Yes, I have to go to school,” he said, “but I’ll come back another day.”
“Please do,” she said, then looking at Chase, said in a sterner voice, “Don’t forget my peppermints the next time.”
He caught the glint of amusement in Sam’s eyes, but nodded soberly. “I won’t,” he said, and leaned over to kiss her on the cheek.
As he ushered Danny and Sam out the door, he took one last glance at his mother. She was staring blankly out the solarium windows. We’re already forgotten, he thought.
When they reached the foyer, Chase made a decision. “Danny, would you mind going on ahead for a couple of minutes? I’d like to have a word with Sam.”
Danny’s gaze flicked from Chase to Sam and back again. His expression shifted, too, from neutral to suspicious. “I’ll wait outside, by the front door.”
“Thanks, buddy,” Chase said. “We won’t be long.”
As he headed for the entrance, Chase turned to Sam. “I don’t mean to be mysterious,” he said at the question in her face. “I just want to fill you in on some background about my mother, and I feel uncomfortable talking about it in front of Danny.”
Sam touched his arm. “Okay, but maybe you should explain to Danny when we get outside. He hates being left out.”
Chase nodded, but he kept seeing the look in his mother’s face when she spotted Danny. “I left Seattle after my father died, but I kept in touch with my mother,” he began. “She begged me to come home, but I’d promised Uncle Bryant I’d stay away from Seattle. He’d convinced me everyone was better off and that if anything happened to the business, my mother’s livelihood would suffer as much as his own—her main source of income after my father’s death was his share in the business. So I kept my word until about two years ago. I’d begun to think something was wrong with her while talking to her on the phone. She seemed more forgetful than usual. The letters she sent me became almost nonsensical. Finally I contacted Uncle Bryant and asked him to check up on her. A couple of weeks later he called to say she’d been found wandering the street outside our family home and had been hospitalized. I was living in Alaska at the time, but I left as soon as I got the call.”
“Is that when she was admitted here?”
“Yes. To his credit, my uncle didn’t leave her. He got her in here right away and she was already settled by the time I arrived. She didn’t know me, of course—the disease had reached that point—but she was obviously content. My uncle wasn’t happy about my intention to stay in Seattle. He made it clear that he was happy to pay for my mother’s accommodation and care as long as I refrained from making any claim on the family business. I had no choice but to agree. So if he cuts the purse strings, she’ll have to be moved to a state hospital.” He paused. “I couldn’t bear that.”
“Chase, you have to do something about this situation.”
He looked at her, unsure what she was referring to.
“With your uncle and the company. If there was something illegal going on, it’ll come back to haunt you.”
“Are you telling me this because of your sister’s interest in the case?”
“No. But if it wasn’t her asking questions, it’d be someone else.”
He felt a rush of annoyance. “Why can’t people just let it be?”
“Do you want to spend the rest of your life with this hanging over you?”
She was right, of course. There were days when he could forget all about it and others when he was filled with anger—at his father and uncle and especially, himself. He’d been prepared to carry the burden to protect his mother and perhaps, after she was gone, then he’d put things right. But now he felt differently. Things had changed.
“Oh, Chase,” Sam murmured. He felt her hand touch his. Instinctively he clasped her hand and held tight. For the first time in a long time, he sensed a connection with another adult. He liked the feeling and didn’t move away until he saw Danny looking at them from the other side of the glass front door.
“You have to do it for Danny, Chase,” Sam said. “He’s in your life now.”
He watched Danny—his son—gesture impatiently. I owe this boy something, Chase thought. Most of all, I have to start being a father.
SKYE WAS BEGINNING to regret coming home. The fact was, she was bored. And as always, when boredom struck, her mind wandered to other tasks she’d rather do or other places she’d rather be. She’d been waiting two days for Sam to get back to her about the Trade Winds file and refused to call her.
Surely Sam had found what she’d noted in the file thirteen years ago. That the documents had been signed by Chase Sullivan, who had been little more than a file clerk at the time. And although she had no new evidence to warrant a request to reopen the case, she was still intrigued by Sullivan’s role.
Skye sighed heavily, blowing out all her pent-up frustration. She leaned back in the swivel chair at her old desk and stared at the notes on her laptop screen. The conundrum was that if she stirred things up at the field office and the case was reopened, her own neglect of it would be all too obvious. If she hadn’t been in such a rush to leave Seattle for her transfer to Washington, she would have followed up with Chase Sullivan on his return. Instead she’d left the task and the file to her replacement, who apparently had screwed up, too.
Now she was left with the same question she’d asked herself years ago. Why had Chase’s signature been on those reports and invoices, as innocuous as they seemed, if he had not been in management? She wanted the answer to that question but knew it would inevitably lead to trouble.
In spite of her sister’s vehement denial that she had no interest in Chase Sullivan beyond his role in his son’s life. Skye had seen the color in her cheeks. No one knew her sister better than she did. And no way was she going to be blamed for another ruined relationship. Although, did she want her twin l
inked to someone who might be a cheat? She thought about last Christmas. Maybe responding to Todd’s kiss had been a regrettable impulse, but underlying the impulse was a desire to reveal him as the consummate womanizer she sensed he was.
When the phone rang later that day, Nina called Skye to pick up. It was Samantha.
“We need to talk,” she said. “You, me and Chase Sullivan.”
“Okay. When and where?”
“My place, tonight at seven.”
“Okey-dokey,” Skye said. She hung up with a satisfied smile. The decision had been taken right out of her hands. Good.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
“WHAT, NO WINE?”
Sam hid her grin from her sister. “This is a business meeting, not a social one.” She switched on the coffeemaker and began pulling mugs from a cupboard.
“You aren’t dressed for a business meeting,” Skye pointed out. “That top is a tad sheer, isn’t it? And those jeans very tight, I must say.”
“Cut it out. Here, put some of these cookies on a plate.” Sam handed her a box.
“Store bought? Couldn’t you at least have baked?”
“Ha ha.” It was a family joke—no one in their family baked. Sam hoped the light mood would last, but had her doubts. She’d invited Skye to come earlier than Chase—she wanted to fill her in on what she’d learned from him yesterday.
Chase had dropped Danny at the school, but called Sam from his cell phone to continue their discussion about Trade Winds. Eventually Sam had persuaded him to talk to Skye, informally and off the record. Now she had to convince her sister likewise.
“He seems to be a bit late,” Skye said, checking her watch.
“No, I asked you to come earlier.”
“Oh, yeah?”
Sam saw the instant wariness in her sister’s eyes. “Come and sit down,” she said, leading the way into the living room.
Skye perched on the edge of the couch. “What have you cooked up, Sam?”
“Come on, Skye. Surely when I said we were meeting with Chase, you figured out what it was going to be about.”
“So I gather the two of you are going to try to persuade me to drop the inquiry.” Her expression suggested she was up for the challenge.
“Not really. I was hoping you’d agree to work with us to find out the truth.”
Skye’s eyes narrowed. “The truth? Are you prepared for that?”
“Why wouldn’t I be?”
“Just that—you know—you seem a bit attached to this guy and his kid.”
Sam held up a hand. “Hey. They have names and I want you to use them. Okay?”
Surprise flickered across Skye’s face. Then she shrugged and said, “Fine.”
“Good. Now let me tell you Chase’s story. I’d like you to think about it before he gets here. If you’re not into helping us, there’s no point wasting everyone’s time.”
Skye leaned back into the couch, crossed her legs and said, “Go ahead.”
Sam wasn’t fooled by her nonchalance. She’d caught the flash of anger in her twin’s eyes. But she gave a condensed version of the story, because she wanted to finish before Chase arrived. To her surprise, Skye didn’t interrupt once, and she managed to relate the gist of what happened years ago, ending with the visit to Martha Sullivan.
When she finished, Skye didn’t speak for a long time, obviously digesting everything she’d heard. “So you’re telling me Chase had no idea what was going on in his own family’s business?”
“It seems unbelievable, but he was younger—twenty-three then—and he had no interest in the company. He didn’t even want to work there and was just biding his time until he’d had enough saved to travel again.”
“The woman who went to Chase with her concerns—what was her name again?”
Sam scanned the notes she’d made. “Uh…Nancy Wicks.”
“Okay, so she couldn’t find any record of a company that had been contracted by Trade Winds for these government commissions.”
“Right, and when Chase confronted his uncle with the invoices, he was told everything was aboveboard.”
“Huh. Sort of, butt out and don’t worry your pretty little head about all this.”
Sam smiled. “In this case, your handsome little head.”
Skye arched a brow. “Like that, is it?”
Sam regretted the remark instantly. “Just joking. Back to business.”
Skye stared at her a long moment before saying, “All right. Was there any mention of Nancy in my notes?”
“No, she’d already been let go by the time you went there.”
Skye frowned. “So they could have purposely left me in the dark about other employees to interview. It does make sense if she was there when the scamming was going on.”
“Scamming?”
Skye leaned forward. “This is what I think was happening. Trade Winds had received a lot of lucrative government contracts, right?”
“Right. Apparently Chase’s cousins had government connections.”
“Whatever. The point is, a company like Trade Winds simply contracts jobs and goods. They’d get some other business to provide the stuff they’ve been hired to obtain, pay them and then collect from the state or the federal government.”
“Chase said it was similar to what I do.”
“Yeah, it is. But suppose the company that provides the service doesn’t exist? Suppose it’s a company on paper only and is actually ‘owned’ by Trade Winds.”
“But they have to provide something, don’t they, in order to get the government to pay them?”
“I hate to tell you how easy it is to cheat the government, Sam. People do it all the time. Think about it—governments are huge bureaucracies with a lot of people working in them. Half the time, one department has no idea what another is doing. You wouldn’t believe the stories I’ve heard or the scenarios I’ve seen.”
“Are you saying that one department could be paying off an invoice without actually checking to see if the job was done?”
“Exactly. Or if the goods were provided in full. Perhaps only half of what was requested was received, but full payment was made.” Skye reached out a hand. “Let me see my file for a sec.”
Sam handed her the file and waited while Skye rifled through it.
“Here’s something,” she said, retrieving a slip of paper. “This invoice is for something called ‘inventory consultation’ by a business called H. J. Weiner and Company.”
“What is that? Inventory consultation?”
“Who knows? My guess is that it’s something to do with business investing. Maybe checking out business markets somewhere.” Skye flipped through the file again. “Here’s a report connected with that particular invoice. H. J. Weiner was contracted by Trade Winds to study import-export markets in China. You know, like the kinds of goods that would sell well over there and vice versa. And,” she added, skimming the report, “it’s been signed by none other than Chase Sullivan.”
“Because his uncle, or maybe one of his cousins, got him to.”
Skye shot her a withering look. “So he says.”
“I believe him. He signed things without bothering to read them. He didn’t care.”
“Relax, Sam. I’m just reminding you there is another perspective here. In spite of what Chase told you, there’s no proof that he’s telling the truth.”
“And there’s no proof that he defrauded the government.”
Skye waggled the invoice and report at her. “His name is on both of these documents. If it could be proved that there is no such business as H. J. Weiner and Company, then he’s in big trouble.”
“But…” Sam stopped, overwhelmed by the implications.
“There may be a way out of this for Chase,” Skye said. “If we could persuade the local FBI office to reopen the case, new evidence may turn up.”
“How?”
“Presuming the uncle and sons were cheating the government twelve years ago, they may still be doing so. And obviou
sly Chase won’t be connected to those new cases.”
“Well, you’ve more or less been doing that, haven’t you? Reopening the case?”
“More or less.”
Sam waited. “Well, which is it?”
“I’ve been researching the file on my own time, Sam. I don’t work in Seattle anymore. I don’t have official sanction to review the case.”
“But you could get it, couldn’t you?”
“Not without new evidence or information turning up to warrant a review.”
“Then why have you been checking this out on your own?”
Skye looked away. “I’m not clear on that.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
Skye’s gaze shifted back to Sam. “Well…for one thing, I knew I’d need something to do while I was in town. Also, I was curious. Your phone call brought it all back and I wondered if I could find anything new. Plus…” Her voice trailed off.
“What?”
“Just that I knew I hadn’t done a great job with the inquiry the first time around. I was a rookie and tended to believe what was staring me in the face and not question what I didn’t see.”
Sam was surprised at this admission of weakness from Skye. She didn’t know how to respond, but was saved from doing so by the front-door buzzer.
“That must be Chase,” she said, getting up to ring him in. “Help yourself to coffee while I get the door,” she said over her shoulder. She thought she heard Skye mutter “Whoopee” on the way.
Sam didn’t expect the sudden flutter in her midsection when she saw Chase standing in the doorway. He held out a bottle of wine and said, smiling, “Hello again.”
“Hello, to you. Come in. Skye’s already here. And thank you for this,” she said, taking the wine and closing the door behind him. “How’d it go with Danny?”
“Okay, I guess. I was hoping he’d open up a bit about his mother but maybe I’m expecting too much too soon. But I did tell him more about my mother and gave him an edited version of my falling-out with my father.”
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