Masks and Lies

by McKechnie, A C J

“I gave him a deadline. He’d lost you two years ago, a fact that I was not happy about at the time. When you appeared back on the radar two months ago I was eager to come and see you straight away, but Astley told me that you were scared, distrustful, that you’d changed. He thought that you’d need some more time, some convincing. He said that you’d changed, told me to give him time to get you to trust him.

  “I thought you knew who he was. I thought he meant that you were reluctant to see me, to meet me, to let me into your life. He said that he was making progress. I thought that meant that you were softening in your desire to see me. It was taking so long, and I’d already had to wait two years, so I told him that I was coming to see you today, Friday, regardless of what he thought.

  “Then I got a call to say that there was a problem. When I met with him earlier he said that you wanted nothing to do with me, that the exact opposite of what I was aiming for was what you wanted. He said you’d had an argument. He said something about you finding out that he worked for me. I didn’t understand at the time,” he mused quietly to himself in a shocked stupor. “I didn’t realize the significance of the statement. He’d been lying to you and you found out,” he said quietly while he shot a look at Kendra.

  “I promise you,” he averred, “I never told him to lie to you. I would never do that to you.”

  As they sat there, both going over this latest development between them, Kendra thought over everything. Life was incredibly confusing at the moment. What did all this mean? What happened next? If Howard Powers wanted a chance to be her father, what should she do?

  A chance that he’d wanted for over two years now. Could she be selfish enough not to let the man have a relationship that he’d been denied for so long? She didn’t know what the future held, but what she did know was that he seemed to have been as much a victim in all of this as she had.

  “I …,” she started and swallowed nervously, realizing that voicing her decision meant that there’d be no turning back. “I didn’t know any of this,” she said and watched as the man nodded at her.

  “And I’m sorry for that. I shouldn’t have listened. I should have gone with my gut instincts. I never meant for any harm to come to you, Kendra,” he said again, and she nodded at him.

  “I know. But, well, I guess that it’s in the past. And I guess that we should move forward now.”

  “How would you like to do that?” he asked, and Kendra saw the uncertainty back in his eyes again.

  “I don’t know how this will all work out, but it seems to me that we’re being given a chance here,” she started slowly and timidly as she wrapped her arms tightly around herself. “It seems to me that we’ve both been denied something that we deserved a right to all this time. And it seems to me as though it might be considered foolish if we let this opportunity pass us by,” she added softly.

  “I … well, I don’t want to look back and regret something years down the line,” she continued. “I can’t make any promises, but … well, I guess it seems as though the best thing to do would be to try to see how things might work out between us,” she hazarded nervously and watched as he studied her intently.

  “Thank you,” he said solemnly, and Kendra was surprised to note the moisture in his eyes. Not knowing what to say to that, she just nodded at him in response.

  The whole night so far had been draining, had been unexpected, and had changed her life completely. Not knowing what to do next, Kendra looked about herself uneasily. What did she do now? Offer him refreshments? Ask him to leave? Make up some sort of itinerary about how they were supposed to embark on this strange new relationship with each other?

  Apparently Howard Powers’ thoughts weren’t travelling down the same path as hers though because he exhaled heavily, looked around himself uneasily, then pinned her with a fierce look, and Kendra found herself struck still by it. Apparently Howard Powers the billionaire businessman had finally arrived.

  Ever since she’d opened the door to him the man hadn’t appeared like the figure she’d seen in magazines and newspapers. He’d been unsure, he’d been timid, nervous even. He’d been vulnerable. Now though, he wasn’t. Now he was very much the take charge kind of man who’d made a fortune for himself. This was the man that she’d been expecting. Whatever was on his mind was obviously serious enough for him to don his other persona.

  “What did he do?” he asked, and Kendra looked at him in confusion. Who? What? When he noticed her baffled expression he clarified his thoughts. “Astley. I want you to tell me everything that happened between the pair of you,” he said firmly, and Kendra found herself swallowing nervously.

  Could she divulge everything to this man? Could she tell him it all? If she opened up this can of worms, then there was a very real chance that she was about to make him only the third person she’d trusted with a part of her life that she was ashamed of. Because for everything to make sense to the man across from her she’d have to tell him about her five months’ worth of travelling from bar to bar.

  She’d have to tell him it all. She’d have to tell him how gullible she was. She’d have to tell him how naïve she’d been. She’d have to tell him why the man that he’d sent to her had hurt her so much. She wasn’t sure that she wanted her newfound father to see all of her flaws and inadequacies.

  Not only that, but could she do it to Nick? Could she tell the man opposite, his boss, about his behavior? It seemed to Kendra that Nick hadn’t acted in a manner that had been approved of, which meant that there were bound to be consequences heaped upon him. Could she do that to him? Could she punish him that way?

  That same hurt lanced through her at thoughts of everything that he’d put her through, and Kendra realized that she was vindictive and selfish enough to do it. Nick had hurt her, and here was her chance to hurt him back. So she made her decision: full disclosure.

  Howard Powers might find himself disliking qualities in his daughter, but if it meant that Nick would get his comeuppance, she was mean enough to do it.

  “You might want to get yourself settled,” she said to the man opposite who was still staring at her, waiting for an answer. “This is going to take a while,” she warned. When the man nodded she said, “It all started two years ago after Mom told me about you …”

  Chapter Seventeen

  The persistent and incredibly forceful knocking on Mitchell’s hotel room door had him rubbing the sleep from his eyes and heading towards the portal. It had taken almost all night before he’d finally drifted off to sleep. His thoughts had been so busy whirring away that sleep had been elusive. The one time he’d wanted to drop off early and he hadn’t been able to. Somebody up there didn’t like him.

  Apparently somebody down here didn’t either, judging by the banging occurring on his door as well.

  Slowly making his way to the portal, Mitchell rubbed his hands over his face before peering through the spyhole and closing his eyes again. Howard Powers. It was the man himself who was knocking so forcefully on the other side.

  Mitchell cringed. By the look on the man’s face things hadn’t gone well with Kendra. He knew that she was stubborn, knew that she was a force to be reckoned with, but he’d held out hope for the pair. In all honesty Mitchell thought that the best thing for all involved would be for Kendra to embrace this new relationship.

  It might be what his boss wanted, but that wasn’t why Mitchell wanted it for her. Kendra deserved to have the man in her life. He’d be good for her. Mitchell had thought that she’d be able to recognize that once the two got talking, but obviously she was sticking to her previous course of action and maintaining her stance on the matter.

  Stifling a groan, he tentatively opened up the door and stood back to let the other man in. Taking in the man’s appearance, Mitchell flinched again. He looked like he hadn’t had an awful lot of sleep the night before either. Although well turned out, and clearly showered and changed, Mitchell could see the evidence of a sleepless night.

  “Mr Powers,” he gree
ted and cleared his throat. The greeting had the man’s eyes snapping Mitchell’s way and he took him in with a sweeping disapproving glance.

  “Go get yourself dressed, Astley. We have a discussion ahead of us, and I don’t wish to have it with you in your current attire,” he said briskly, gesturing towards Mitchell’s boxer shorts.

  “Of course, sir,” he said then found himself surprised that the man didn’t leave, but instead headed over to the comfortable settee in the room with them. As Howard Powers got himself settled Mitchell looked about himself before realizing that he’d have to get himself dressed and ready while the man waited for him.

  Gathering up his clothing, his suit that he hadn’t worn in almost two months, Mitchell headed to the bathroom and readied himself for the day. They obviously had some more planning to do between themselves. On the plus side, Mitchell knew Kendra well, probably as well as he knew himself. It might be difficult but he was sure that they’d find a way to break down her defenses and get her to accept the other man in her life.

  As the warm water sluiced over him, he started to think of what strategies would be best to use on her. The woman was fierce. He’d always known that about Kendra, that she’d be a tough opponent to get onside, it was why he’d always made sure to stay on her good side, until that last meeting between them.

  What could they do to undo that damage though? She viewed them as the enemy. What they needed to do was change her view of them. What they needed to do was get out of the enemy camp and back on her side. They needed to make sure that Kendra saw them as allies, not foes.

  How to do that though when he’d lied to her? The only thing he could think to do was take time to prove that she could trust them. That she could trust him again. Howard wouldn’t like it, but it would be the only way to get her to listen to them. It was going to take time, but if they stuck around and proved to her that she didn’t need to battle them, well, then they could finally get themselves back into her good books.

  Like he’d done at the start with her. She’d been wary after their initial meeting in Granville, but he’d stuck around and turned up day after day in an attempt to earn her trust and get past her barricades. And it had worked. He’d just need to do it again.

  Howard would either have to run his business from here, if he wanted to be a part of their attempt as well, or he’d need to head back and leave Mitchell to it. Leave him to clear up the mess that he’d made. Mitchell would start fresh with Kendra, start with a clean slate. No lies this time. And he’d work on her until she finally broke down and listened to him.

  Perhaps things weren’t as dire as he’d believed the previous night. Perhaps there was hope. For both Howard, and him. Perhaps if he just proved himself to Kendra, she’d let him back in again and they could work on whatever it was that they’d had. What he’d thrown away so carelessly.

  With a plan in mind, an uncomfortable and restrictive suit covering his frame, and an encouraging smile spreading on his face, Mitchell left the bathroom to face his boss and get started on the plan that he’d managed to concoct.

  “Sit down, Astley,” Howard said firmly with a piercing look at him and a frown on his face as he gestured to the other chair.

  “Mr Powers,” Mitchell started, “I know that things haven’t gone quite as we’d liked, but I think, given a little more time, that we can turn this around.”

  “You do, do you?” Howard asked as he sat back with his arms folded across his chest and pinned Mitchell with a look, a look that Mitchell hadn’t ever seen on the man’s face, and consequently left him with no idea what it meant. Ignoring it, he instead decided to get on with the task at hand.

  “Yes, sir. I know Kendra. I’ve spent enough time in her company to understand her well. I think, given her resistance, that it’s going to be tough to get her to let you in, to let her guard down enough to welcome you. But I also know that over time that can change. In fact, it’s very likely to change. If we persist in the endeavor, then your daughter will eventually see that we’re not the enemy and be open to the idea of building a relationship with you.”

  “That’s your opinion on the matter, is it? That if we just hang around, she’ll eventually break down and give in to our wishes?” he asked tightly, and Mitchell found himself shifting uncomfortably at the man’s mood.

  “Yes, sir,” he said then shook off his strange uncertainty to advise the man on the matter at hand. “Right now she’s feeling hurt. And angry. And Kendra’s a formidable force when she’s angry, Mr Powers. She’ll have thrown up her barricades and be firmly entrenched behind them. Slowly but surely if we keep coming back and chipping away at them, we can eventually wear her down and get her to listen to your proposal.”

  “So you suggest that I just wait around again? That I go against my daughter’s explicit wishes and hang around regardless of her desires right now?” he asked, and Mitchell took a mental step back. Something was going on here.

  “I just think that the best thing would be for you two to connect with each other, sir. I honestly think it’s the best thing for the both of you.”

  “Why exactly do you think that I should listen to your advice, Astley?” he asked with narrowed eyes. “Two years ago you and my other trusted advisors informed me that I should leave her be, that I shouldn’t go straight to her. Two years ago I listened to your advice and lost my opportunity when you lost track of her.”

  “It was best at the time, sir. She wasn’t ready to let you in then. We all knew that. I more than the others. I saw her. I knew that she wouldn’t have let you in,” Mitchell defended.

  “Yes. You saw her that first night that she found out, didn’t you? You were supposed to be there to take care of her. You didn’t do a very good job at the time, did you, Astley? I mean, she disappeared for two years, and you still don’t know entirely where she went, do you?” he asked tightly, and Mitchell tensed at the tone the conversation was taking.

  “She was travelling, Mr Powers.”

  “Yes. Around Europe, and before that around the States. What was she doing while travelling, Astley? What happened to my daughter in all of that time? Do you know? Did you find that out? Where exactly did she go for all of those months?” he asked even more tightly, and Mitchell finally recognized the look in the man’s eyes. He couldn’t believe that he hadn’t recognized it before. It was the same look that Kendra had had two nights ago. That same searing rage that had consumed her.

  Swallowing nervously, Mitchell just held the man’s gaze and replied honestly, “I don’t know, sir.”

  “No. You don’t,” he said, and Mitchell flinched as those flames in his eyes flared again. “You never did tell me what happened two years ago. What had her running from you.”

  “I don’t know, sir,” he said nervously. “She took a phone call, then when I returned with some food for her she’d disappeared.”

  “What happened before that? Maybe there’s a clue in there.”

  “Uh …”

  “I never pried before, Astley. I trusted you, after all, to be my representative, to care for my daughter and keep her protected, so I never thought that the details would matter. I want to know now though. Having seen my daughter finally, I’m beginning to think that maybe I should have required more detailed reports from you.

  “You said yesterday that she found out that you worked for me. That was what the argument was about, wasn’t it? I didn’t think much of it at the time when you said that, but I realized last night that the only reason that that would make her so mad was if she hadn’t known that fact to start with. Which meant that you lied to her, Astley. You lied to and deceived my daughter about your role in her life. I never told you to do that. Which now makes me wonder what else you decided to do outside of your remit. What else did you do that I didn’t tell you to?” he asked, and Mitchell struggled to think of what to do now. How much did the man know?

  If Kendra hadn’t let him in, then he wouldn’t know about the extent of Mitchell’s behavior. Coul
d he preempt Howard learning that information by telling him enough that it wouldn’t matter when Kendra finally told him? Should he? He had no idea what to do. Especially with the man staring so angrily at him.

  “What happened two years ago?” Howard asked again, and Mitchell swallowed nervously. “How did you manage to cross her path?”

  “In a bar,” he answered truthfully and noticed that the man’s face didn’t change. Either the admission wasn’t news to him, or he was just too angry to let any other emotions in.

  “And what exactly happened in this bar?” Howard asked.

  “She got drunk, sir.”

  “How drunk?”

  “As drunk as I’d ever seen anybody,” he confessed.

  “And then?” he prodded as his fists clenched even more tightly.

  “I thought it prudent to step in and keep her safe.”

  “From?”

  “Men, sir.”

  “At least you did something right that night then,” he murmured at him. “Why exactly did you let my daughter get into such a state that you had to interfere for that reason, Astley?”

  “I …,” he started but didn’t know how to answer. He wasn’t sure why. He couldn’t really remember it all that well. All he could remember was watching her come into the bar and being amazed at how the photos that they’d had didn’t do her justice. He’d watched her that night, hoping to get a glimpse into who she was by observing her behavior, then he’d found himself having to step in.

  “What else happened that night?” the man asked, and Mitchell flushed. “What else did you do?” he gritted out, obviously noticing Mitchell’s reaction.

  “Nothing untoward, Mr Powers.”

  “Meaning?”

  “She kissed me. That was all. She was drunk and doesn’t remember a thing.”

  “No. She doesn’t. She remembers waking up to a stranger and panicking. That’s what she remembers. She remembers trusting you. She remembers opening up to a man who she didn’t know but felt comfortable with. She remembers baring her soul to a liar and deceiver!” the man finally yelled, and Mitchell found his eyes widening.