Danger Deception Devotion The Firsts

by Lorhainne Eckhart

  Byrd patted his shoulder, “Come on friend, I”ve got a bottle of whiskey with your name on it.”

  “Yeah.” That got his attention. But he swayed when he stood, so Byrd helped him out to his car, and hoped to hell the man didn’t get sick.

  * * * *

  Brad was running late the next morning, but understandably so, as he was shorthanded with Cliff gone. Keith was speaking with an older, balding guy he introduced as Byrd when he hurried in Keith’s office.

  “So what do you have?”

  Keith gestured toward the ex-cop. “Byrd, fill Brad in.”

  “Well, your friend was pretty drunk by the time I found him. I checked him into a cheap motel by the ocean; he puked in my car by the way. You owe me for the cleaning.”

  “Okay, okay.” Brad shrugged. “What else?”

  “That guy was twisted so tight around your wife’s finger, I kind of feel sorry for him. He started working for you ten years ago, apparently he and Crystal were friends before that. She got him the job with you.” Byrd had the most crooked teeth Brad had ever seen.

  “I guess that’s right. I think he kind of puppy-dogged after her through school.”

  “Yeah well, apparently, while he worked for you, Crystal used him as her friendly ear. Whenever she needed someone to back up her side of a story, she went to him. He’d been in love with her for years, fantasizing one day she’d leave you and come looking for him. After she left, she’d call him every month or so to talk. He told Crystal when Emily moved in. He said, after that, she phoned every day. And it was then that she told Cliff that you’d thrown her out, but she had been too ashamed to tell him. Told him she was terrified of you and your temper, and you gave her no choice, and, at the time, she didn’t believe she legally had any rights. Crystal told him how worried she was about her little boy. Cliff said he had wanted to confront you. But she’d played the terrified, scared-helpless-female-card, and said you would hurt her in retaliation.

  He believed her, the sap. So he searched your office when you and Emily were in town. He’d called Crystal from your office, and she told him which papers to dig out. Your business records, land proposals, development permits, bank records, and what kind of income you’re pulling in.

  When Cliff saw Emily in your arms one night on the porch, with your lips locked together, he phoned Crystal and told her. That’s when Crystal came home.”

  * * * *

  Brad drove through town and down the highway, before eventually pulling in at the Oceanview Motel. He paid the desk clerk a hundred dollars to give up Cliff’s room number. Of course, it was listed under Byrd. He pounded on the dingy blue door. “Cliff, its Brad. I need to talk to you; open up.”

  Glass and bottles rattled and clanked on the other side of the door. It cracked open enough for Brad to wince from the pungent, raunchy odor of day old booze seeping from the pores of a drunk. Cliff slunk back to bed and held his head in his hands. “You got one hell of a hangover by the looks of things, Cliff.”

  He whispered roughly, “Look, Brad, I’m done. Just go away and leave me alone.”

  “First, I want to apologize.”

  Cliff bolted into the bathroom. Brad closed the outside door and listened to the putrid retching and gagging as the poor guy vomited into the toilet. The odor seeped into the room when Cliff reappeared; the stale alcohol and the bitter rotgut lingering in the sweat that glazed Cliff’s damp shirt and face. He shuffled like an old man to the bed. Brad cracked a window.

  “Rough night?”

  “Yeah.” He didn’t bother to look up. Just held his head as he sat slouched on the bed.

  “Do you want your job back?”

  He looked up and winced at the effort. “What? Now why would you give me my job back after what I did?”

  “Look, Cliff. Let me ask you something and give me an honest answer. She still got you fooled?”

  His bloodshot eyes narrowed. “She’s conniving, and she threw me to the wolves. Let me ask you this, did you throw her out after the baby?”

  “Cliff, you were there. You really have to ask? She disappeared. Don’t you remember the day Mary came, and Crystal had left Trevor alone for hours. She just took off.”

  Cliff clasped his hands in front of himself while he looked at Brad. His head hung. “I guess I do.”

  “She lied to you, didn’t she?”

  “Yeah, she did. More than you know.”

  It’s hard to say which gave Brad more enjoyment, hearing that, or, an hour later, watching Crystal spark in a fit of rage when she saw Cliff, in his beat-up truck, driving in.

  Cliff cleaned up before dinner and he stumbled behind Mac when he walked in. Crystal stiffened and paled. After Cliff and Mac left, Crystal cornered Brad at the back door.

  “What the hell is that man doing back here?”

  “I rehired him. In fact, he’s now my foreman.”

  “After what he did, you’d bring him back? He’ll steal from you; he ransacked your personal records, for God’s sake.”

  “How’d you know he went through my records?” Brad asked. She looked away.

  Crystal was starting to slip, too many lies to keep track of. “Well, you must have told me, or maybe it was him.”

  “Mmm, mmm, I never told you. And, Crystal, don’t even think about going out to him and starting trouble. You stay away from him.”

  She tossed her long mane over her shoulder, flicked back a stray hair with her long painted nail, and then stormed through the kitchen.

  Brad tied his boots, when he heard the front door slam and her SUV speed down the driveway. Brad laughed. “Scored.”

  Chapter Forty-Two

  Brad was on his second cup of coffee when the phone rang. “Brad here.”

  “Hey, it’s Keith. We got us a court date for next Tuesday. The judge has finally agreed to expedite for the benefit of Trevor. Oh, and I got a really friendly call, as soon as I walked in the office this morning, from Crystal’s lawyer. He’s furious and has filed a motion to delay this hearing.”

  “Can he get it?” Brad stepped out of the house to make sure Crystal couldn’t hear him.

  “I’ll do my best to make sure he doesn’t. And I wanted to let you know, I’ve got several affidavits about Crystal and the defaming comments she’s made around town against Emily. Along with Cliff’s statement, and thank you for that, her story is beginning to appear shaky.”

  “Well, you’re the best. That’s why I hired you.” He could hear tapping in the background.

  “Brad, could you come to the office right now?” Keith’s tone took on a seriousness Brad recognized well.

  “What’s going on, Keith? I’ve got cattle to feed, a ranch to run.” But his stomach tightened a little more when he heard the sigh on the other end.

  “Get your men to look after the ranch. You need to come in, Brad. This can’t wait.”

  Brad stared up at the house as he walked, in the chilly air, around to the front. “I’ll be there in twenty minutes.”

  * * * *

  Brad was waved into Keith’s office. The secretary pulled the door closed behind him. Keith smiled, but not in a confident way. It was his way when he had to say something, to someone, that he didn’t want to.

  “Spill it, Keith. You’re making me nervous with all this prancing around.”

  “Crystal’s lawyer has thrown a monkey wrench into the middle of things.”

  Brad took a deep breath, and leaned back in the plain brown chair. “And what would that be?”

  Keith leaned forward and clasped his hands on the desk in front of him. His eyes dimmed. “Crystal’s claiming Trevor’s not yours. The father is some guy she met in Miami.” The room narrowed and Keith appeared to be talking in slow motion. The ringing in his ears buzzed, long and loud, as the ache in his heart swelled, until he’d swear it’d shatter into a million tiny pieces. He launched himself out of the chair “I’ll kill her. I swear to God, she’s dead!” Keith in turn jumped out of his chair, and pinned Brad a
gainst the wall.

  “Shut up, Brad. Listen to me.” If Keith hadn’t kept himself in such good shape, there’d be no way he’d be able to keep Brad in that room. Even so, Keith was sweating as he forced Brad back down into his chair.

  “Brad, get a hold of yourself.” He stood over Brad, breathing hard as he held his arms loosely at his side, obviously prepared to grab Brad if he bolted again.

  “We’ll order a paternity test today. Brad, I got to warn you, if it turns out he’s not yours, it’ll make the custody battle a little tougher. Not impossible, don’t forget that, on the birth certificate, she named you as the father. You still want him if he’s not yours?”

  Brad shoved Keith as he jumped out of the chair. “God dammit, he’s my boy. I don’t care what comes back; that’s my little boy. Do you hear me?” The pain consuming him thickened his words.

  Keith reached out and squeezed his shoulder. “Hey, I’m on your side. I’ll make the arrangements to confirm paternity, but heed me well, Brad. Until this is over, move out. Unless you can guarantee that you can cool that temper of yours, and not do anything stupid, you stay away from her. Pack your bags and move out. Move to one of those cottages on your property. And you make sure you’re never alone with her. I don’t care how, but you find a way. We’re too close, this is the final battle, my friend. Don’t blow it.”

  Brad listened but he wanted her gone, whatever it took. Crystal knew exactly what buttons to push. The more Keith talked, the less he heard. “I can’t stay here. I need to clear my head.”

  “You promise me, Brad, before you walk out that door, that you’ll pull it together and not do anything stupid.”

  He knew what Keith was saying and he didn’t know if he could do it. “I’ll try, Keith, that’s all you’re going to get.” Then he left feeling numb.

  He didn’t know how long he sat in his truck, or how he got here, but he climbed out of the truck and Emily was there; her hands in the dirt with Katy beside her.

  Chapter Forty-Three

  Emily froze, just looking at the sadness that appeared to weigh on him when he leaned against the truck made her go to him. She took his hand. She led him to the house. “Katy, time to come in the house.”

  She let go of Brad’s hand and watched as he walked, like a man who’d lost everything, into the kitchen and stood before the sink, staring out her small, square window.

  Emily popped in a movie for Katy, tucking her blanket around her on the sofa. She grabbed the phone. Gina answered on the first ring.

  “Hey, sugar, what’s cooking?.”

  “Gina, something’s happened. I need a big favor. Can you come and get Katy?”

  “Can you talk about it?”

  “Not now, Gina. I realize this is short notice… and I promise, I’ll tell you later.”

  “I’ll be right there, Em.”

  Emily hung up the telephone. She came up behind Brad and slipped her arm around his waist. “Gina’s coming to get Katy. Brad, you’re scaring me. What’s happened?”

  He turned around and stared down at her with a face like granite. He didn’t touch her. His arms hung at his side, as he gazed down, his eyes glistened with tears. He touched her face, right before his jaw trembled.

  She wiped away the tear that fell just as a car pulled up. “Gina’s here. I’m going to throw some stuff in a bag for Katy so she can spend the night. I’ll be right back.”

  Emily had a quick chat with Gina, packed Katy’s bag and had her out the door in less than five minutes. When she walked back into the kitchen, Brad had put on a pot of coffee. His jacket was tossed over the back of her cheap wooden chair. He’d regained his dignity.

  She took his hand and pulled him into the living room, sitting beside him on the sofa. “What’s happened?”

  He looked away for just a moment. “Crystal said Trevor’s not my kid.”

  Emily felt the fire burn inside, and for the first time ever, she considered and understood how one spouse could kill another.

  “Emily, I haven’t told Keith this, but Crystal went away several times that year, before she knew she was pregnant. Shopping trips she called them.”

  Emily was furious and couldn’t contain the words that spewed forth, “Oh, that bitch. Oh, Brad, how could she do that to you and that precious little boy?”

  Brad pulled her against him. Wrapped his arms around her and comforted her. “Do you know how beautiful you are to me, especially when you’re angry?”

  He kissed the top of her head, as she rested her cheek against his dark blue shirt. “What are we going to do, Brad?”

  Just the fact that she automatically assumed it was the two of them in this made the pain lessen a little.

  They talked for hours, trying to come up with a viable plan of attack. It was after nine o’clock and neither had eaten. He pulled away from her and stood up. “I have to go, Em.”

  “Brad, please stay.”

  “I can’t; not tonight. I have to get my head together and I can’t do it here.”

  Her face must have betrayed her hurt.

  “Em, don’t look like that. You’re my rock and I feel things for you I’ve never felt for any woman, not this deep. But I have to take care of something.”

  She was reluctant to let him leave, but he was firm. “Em, I promise I’ll come back tomorrow morning.” He touched her cheek and she leaned into his hand. Then he left, before she managed to talk him into staying. From his darkened truck he watched her. She pressed her hand to the window as he pulled away.

  Chapter Forty-Four

  He called his daddy from the truck. He answered on the first ring, of course he sounded groggy because they were asleep. Brad explained Crystal’s latest stunt, and arranged for the paternity test. His father offered up all his resources, and his lawyers, to ensure this came out in Brad’s favor. In the end, Brad agreed and gave his daddy permission to go ahead and contact Keith, to extend all pertinent resources to him.

  He kept his word with Emily. After he fed the stock in the morning, got the men organized; he stopped in to see her. Maybe to reassure her he wasn’t about to do anything stupid.

  Over the next few days, Brad did his best to avoid Crystal. Although she made it difficult, placing herself directly in his path at every opportunity. She goaded him. And on the second day, after the paternity test was in, she followed him to town, and tried to corner him outside his lawyer’s office.

  “Get out of my way.”

  “I want to talk to you, please, Brad.” He struggled to suppress his fiery temper and walked around her.

  He walked right into Keith’s office and sat down.

  “She followed me to town, cornered me out front.”

  Keith got up and looked out the window. “That woman’s got balls or is just plain stupid. Don’t see her; she must have gone.”

  “So what’s the news?”

  Keith tossed him the envelope with the results. Brad reached out and held the envelope. For the first time in his life, he wanted to run; not face it. How could one piece of paper have the power to change his life forever? He closed his eyes. His throat tightened and he felt tentacles squeeze his heart. He forced himself to rip it open, pull out the sheet of white paper. He opened his eyes and gazed at the results and couldn’t hold back the sting of tears. His lip trembled as he looked up at his longtime friend, who, for the first time since this started, had tears in his eyes. Brad shut his eyes, and wept.

  Chapter Forty-Five

  Brad waited in the kitchen until he was ready. Then he strode to the stairs and shouted, “Crystal, get down here.” He watched as she started down the stairs. Her heels clicked on each step. He wandered back in the kitchen and leaned against the stove. When she stepped into the kitchen, he stood like a general leading his troops.

  “Sit down, now.” His voice was quite controlled, considering the circumstances.

  She appeared to consider her options as she glanced at the door, and then him.

  Then with a toss of her
long blonde hair and a subtle sway in her hips, she walked over to the chair pulled away from the table, and sat down.

  Brad felt physically ill, for the wasted years of chasing her. He stepped behind her and she squirmed in the chair, crossing and uncrossing her legs. She started to get up, “Sit your ass back in that chair.” He walked in front of her and leaned in her face as he said it.

  He pointed to the envelope in front of her on the table. “That’s for you and it’s my final offer. You either sign it now, and get the fuck out of my house, or you get nothing.” He wandered over to the counter.

  She gazed at the tan manila envelope.

  “Open it.” His words were void of any emotion, steely and hard, which caused a shadow of fear and confusion to flicker across her face. Her hand trembled when she picked it up and slit it open with a carefully manicured nail.

  He watched as she read it; watched the range of emotions that flickered across her face, and finally as she tossed the papers aside, shaking her head with a spark of fury registering in her cold blue eyes. “I’m not signing this and there is no way Trevor—”

  He cut her off as he uncrossed his arms, gripping the side of the counter in an attempt to steady himself from his rising temper. “Don’t you say one word about Trevor.”

  Her mouth snapped shut, and, for the first time ever, he saw fear on her face.

  “My lawyer’s preparing, right now, at this moment, to file a motion, terminating all your rights as a parent. Of course, it’s a crapshoot, but a very real possibility; especially after the stunt you just pulled.

  Included in this motion will be not one single dime for you, and that, my dear, is a very real possibility. You see, after your wonderful little bit of acting, imagine our surprise to, once again, see you spin another web of your lies. The paternity test came back. You’ll be happy to note, Trevor’s mine. But then, you already knew that didn’t you?”

  He didn’t allow her to answer. Instead he walked toward her, clasping his hands behind his back as he steadied himself. He then began pacing back and forth as her face paled. “So you have two choices. You need to pick up the pen and sign the agreement right now, giving me sole custody and guardianship of Trevor, and do not contest the divorce decree, which is before a judge as we speak, and then you may keep the very generous settlement I’m offering. As you can see in black and white in front of you, it’s a lot of money. Then I want you to leave and never show your face here again—ever. If you choose to fight this, get up and walk away without signing it, I’ll have an injunction to have you removed from the premises right now and you will not get a dime. I’ve already cut you off financially. Any bills I get on your behalf, will be returned unpaid. I’m no longer responsible for you. You’ll have to get a job and support yourself. Especially once the judge sees all the evidence against you. The abandonment of Trevor, when you left him alone, the slander against Emily, which we have the statements for, and very willing people to testify against you, but, the last bit, lying about Trevor’s paternity, tsk, tsk.” Brad shook his head, feeling steady control as he watched her hesitate as she bit the side of her lip.