by Kim McMahill
“Papers? What papers?”
“Don’t know. He just said to get the manila envelope labeled ‘Important’ out of the safe and bring it when we come.”
“I don’t think I even remember the combination anymore. I’ve never had a reason to get inside, but I might have written it down somewhere.”
“No worries. He gave me the combo,” Logan replied as he bent down and kissed her gently on the lips. “Just get cleaned up and we’ll go get Moss. I’m sure he’s terrorizing the nursing staff already this morning, itching to get out of there.”
Grace sat for a moment longer and stared at Logan’s retreating form. What could Moss need out of the safe, and why did he ask Logan and not me? She shook herself mentally and bolted from her chair, comforted by the knowledge Moss trusted Logan. If Moss could trust him with something important enough to keep in the safe, surely I can trust him with my heart. She ran out onto the porch in her slippers, hugging herself tightly against the cold.
“Logan.”
Her breath caught as he turned. She couldn’t deny it. She loved him. Just looking at him smiling at her made her pulse race and her knees weaken. She reeled her emotions in, realizing standing outside in sub-freezing temperatures in her pajamas and slippers wasn’t the time or place to confess her feelings, so she grasped onto the first excuse she could think of for racing outside without a coat.
“Give Charlotte a hug for me.”
“For you, anything, even hugging a pig. Now go put some clothes on before you freeze.”
Chapter Forty-Eight
Candace Rogers dropped off her rented car at an off airport rental agency, took a cab to the terminal, and quickly made her way to security at Denver International Airport. The drive from Salt Lake City had gone slower than usual as she avoided breaking any laws, including speed limits, which could get her pulled over by law enforcement. She was cutting it close to her boarding time, but the less time she spent among so much security and hordes of cameras, the better.
The screening line moved slowly but smoothly, and she experienced no problems clearing security. She forced herself to sit casually outside her gate, like a woman without a care in the world, navigating through her new Smartphone like everyone else in the terminal.
When her flight was called, she remained in her seat and waited patiently until it appeared the majority of the passengers had queued up. Candace was in no hurry to enter the long, narrow jetway or board the plane. Not only did flying make her feel claustrophobic, but the two most vulnerable places someone in transition could be in were on the tarmac prior to takeoff and waiting to deplane after landing.
If made, there were few options for escape.
As the line thinned, Candace strolled toward the woman taking boarding passes. She smiled and handed over her pass and inhaled a last deep breath before entering the confining tunnel with its lingering odor of fuel fumes.
Taking a window seat, she ran her fingers through her long auburn hair without thinking. Placing her hand back in her lap, she hoped she hadn’t skewed her wig. Normally, she avoided wigs, but she hadn’t had much choice. When things in Salt Lake started unraveling, she had to move quickly, and dying her hair auburn and getting extensions wasn’t an option. Despite the rapid transformation, she was confident with the results.
A little selective padding here and there had changed her figure from willow-thin to gently-curved in all the right places, making her seem voluptuous and sexy rather than businesslike and rigid. The short, cropped, shiny black hair and pale complexion were replaced by lush, long locks of flaming hair and an amply made-up face. The final step was to replace brown contacts with green.
“Janice Green” had disappeared forever.
“Go to St. Louis often?” the balding businessman in the first class seat next to her asked.
“No,” she stated, hoping to end the conversation with a terse answer.
Candace doubted Missouri was her final destination. Where she would go from there was anyone’s guess, but hopefully she would eventually go home. In St. Louis, she would get additional instructions. She turned her shoulders and stared out the window, effectively avoiding any further conversation with her row mate and allowing her mind to wander.
For the first time in a very long while, the thought of home, transient as it generally was, sounded good. She hoped to have time to be herself for a while before she completely forgot who that was, and have the opportunity to get back involved with her Foundation.
This last assignment had been the longest one yet, and it had been difficult to convince her staff of the necessity of such a lengthy fundraising swing while popping in for a few days here and there in order to stay current on operations.
She thought briefly about Frank. She had never met the man face to face, but even over the phone she had developed an instant dislike for him. He was rude and disrespectful. Apparently, his confidence in his abilities was vastly overstated or she wouldn’t be making such a hasty departure.
She wasn’t surprised. From as far back as she could remember, men were incompetent, unreliable, and concerned only with their own pleasure, yet so often in charge. She had vowed to never allow herself to be in a position where she had to rely on the inferior gender for the basic necessities of life, like her mother had.
“Something to drink while we wait to take off?” the smiling flight attendant asked.
“No, thank you,” Candace replied and resumed focusing on the activity outside the plane and replaying in her mind all that had transpired over the past week.
Details were still a little sketchy, but word had gotten back the accident investigator in Salt Lake had folded under pressure, though he didn’t know enough to be a liability. Dr. Clark had been found and was under FBI protection. The operation in Wyoming was an unmitigated disaster, and Grace Talbot had survived against formidable odds. If so much wasn’t at stake, she would have been impressed with Grace Talbot’s spunk, and even the seemingly naïve Dr. Clark had recognized the danger and did what he had to in order to protect himself, a skill which had served her well over the years.
Rumors were even starting to circulate the product might be a complete failure. Candace wasn’t surprised and had tried to buy some time, sensing Dr. Clark and Grace had serious doubts. If the CEO at Uinta Vitamin and Nutrition and the arrogant head of Coterie had listened to her and been more patient, a lot of killing could have been avoided, keeping their organization under the radar. Now, even the FBI would have to start connecting the dots between all the medical and pharmaceutical research and development company incidents.
Moving forward, she and her organization would have to be much more careful.
Candace’s first order of business would be to convince Coterie all the failures were Frank’s fault, which, in her opinion, they were. Luckily, she hadn’t hired Frank or any of his inept goons, so surely she couldn’t be blamed for his incompetent performance.
She had warned them it was too soon to act. The product might not pose the threat they thought it would. They moved ahead anyway, overconfident with their previous successes. She recommended monitoring for a little longer, but it wasn’t wise to argue with the head of the organization, so she stepped back when they sent Frank in to ensure society remained unhealthy and dependent.
This was her first time on the losing side of an operation, so she wasn’t sure exactly what to expect from Coterie. The organization wasn’t known for its compassionate and forgiving nature. They also recognized loyalty, and she was nothing if not loyal. She had joined the organization with an asset which made her far too valuable to lose. She wasn’t above a little blackmail if the results could keep her intellectually stimulated, alive, and wealthy, all while achieving a little revenge for past injustices.
The flight attendant’s voice came over the intercom and rambled off the safety speech. All Candace could think about was getting airborne. Thankfully, the doors were shut, and the plane was backing away from the gangway, making the odd
s of being recognized and detained slimmer by the moment.
After the plane reached altitude, Candace exhaled with relief. She took out her new driver’s license, passport, resume, and bio and studied the documents carefully, memorizing every detail of the woman she had just become. She liked this woman much more than “Janice Green.” “Janice” was frigid and boring.
Candace would be much more enjoyable to be around. Maybe she could even have a little fun, all in the line of duty. When she thought about Janice and Candace, she wondered where her real persona fit in…probably somewhere in the middle.
She stuffed the items in her handbag, closed her eyes, and tried to relax. As exhaustion took over, her mind allowed visions from her childhood to filter through. She had learned to block out the past, but when her strength waned, sometimes pieces slipped through. The lab below UVN forced its way into her mind and slowly morphed into images of darkness, dirt, and concrete.
Only a sliver of light pierced the cramped black space, but voices reached her tiny ears and the words sent fear coursing through her body. They were calling her name, searching for her. She sat, huddled in the darkness with her arms wrapped tightly around her knees, hoping they would just forget she existed. She learned at a very young age she just had to be smarter, and so far she had been. She feared that one day she would get sloppy or her luck would run out.
Her eyes flew open, and Candace sat upright. Struggling to calm her nerves and bring her frantic breathing under control, she glanced over at the man next to her. She was relieved to see he was so absorbed in a business journal he didn’t acknowledge her at all. Reaching up, she pushed the call button, suddenly in desperate need of a very strong cup of coffee.
Chapter Forty-Nine
When Grace walked into Moss’s hospital room, he was sitting in a wheelchair next to his bed, dressed and clearly ready to leave. His physical scars would never go away, but otherwise he looked much better than the last time she had seen him.
“I can’t tell you how good it is to lay eyes on you two and see you’re no worse for wear. After Grace told me the house had been damaged, I couldn’t help but fear it wasn’t the only thing.”
“I promised you I wouldn’t let anything happen to her,” Logan stated as he patted Moss on the shoulder.
“Yes, you did. One of you go get a nurse so I can sign my life away, and we can hit the road. I’ve seen enough of this place to last me a lifetime.”
Logan fished his vibrating cell phone out of his pocket, “I’ll send someone in on my way out. I’ve got to take this,” he said as he handed Moss the manila envelope he’d brought from the ranch.
“So do you want to tell me what happened, or do I have to put the pieces together on my own? So far my imagination isn’t coming up with a very pretty picture,” Moss asked Grace.
“I hope I didn’t alarm you too much. Logan worked like a man possessed, and Red and Harold jumped on the major repairs. Short of a couple of boarded-up windows in the office and living room, the house is almost back to normal. The upstairs was never touched, so you’ll have your own bed tonight.”
“I wasn’t worried about the house. I’m worried about you.”
“I’ll be okay when this is finally over. But there is something I need to tell you, and I want you to focus on the positive part, not the scary part. Don Matthews saved my life.”
“So I’m supposed to forgive Don, but not ask why your life needed saving?”
“For now, yes. We have a long drive home, and I’ll tell you everything. One thing tragedies always remind us of is how important family and friends are, and how they generally come through in a pinch. I can assure you our neighbors really came through, and I think it’s time to bury the hatchet.”
“Having you here today, unharmed, is priceless. I couldn’t be more thrilled. He’s more than paid his debt for stabbing a neighbor in the back during a drought to save his own herd at my herd’s expense.”
Grace rolled her eyes. Moss had to throw in one last jab, but she knew the feud was over. He could hold a grudge with the best of them, but he also had clear priorities. He had worked hard when she was young to convince her family was number one.
“You say you’re happy I’m here, but you look tense and stressed. I know this is all frightening, and I’m so sorry. I don’t want you to worry. I believe it’s almost over, and we can put the pieces back together,” Grace said.
Moss rolled his wheelchair over to the window, clutching the envelope, keeping his back to Grace. She followed but waited patiently, knowing he would speak when ready. After an uncomfortable silence, he turned to face her and took her hand. She knelt in front of him so she could look him in the eye and was afraid of the pain she saw.
“I’m not sure if I was conscious or dreaming, but the first thing I remember thinking after blacking out at the ranch was I was going to die and take a terrible secret to my grave…something you deserved to know the moment I found out, but that I never had the guts to tell you. I guess the more time that passed, the more I feared you would hate me when you learned the truth.”
“I could never hate you, so just spit it out. Obviously this is tearing you up, and the sooner you get it off your chest, the sooner we can add it to the mountain of things we have to learn to live with and get on with our lives,” Grace said in an attempt to comfort the man she loved so much, who had given her a life. She took his hand and gave it a gentle squeeze, offering support. “Whatever it is, you’ve already said too much to turn back now, so you might as well spill it.”
“You’re right. Do you remember when your Mom and John died? You acted like you didn’t care at first.”
“I remember. I was still so angry with them for abandoning me, but thanks to you and our minister, I was able to forgive them. I made peace with my past. If they hadn’t done what they did, I would have never gotten to know you and had the opportunity to experience your unconditional love.”
Moss nodded, and his eyes filled with tears, but they didn’t spill over onto his weathered face.
“As you know, I was the executor of their will, and what little they hadn’t squandered was set aside for your education. I was also responsible for closing out their estate. Most of their personal belongs were sold or donated to charity, and the rest I boxed up and brought back to the ranch.
“The accident happened during calving season, and you know what a busy time that is, so I didn’t get a chance to go through the boxes until the following winter. I found something in one of those boxes I should have showed you, but you were happy then.
“You were always a planner and had your future all mapped out. Even though it was several years out, you had decided which university you would attend and what degree you would pursue, you took the SATs early to get practice, had started a lengthy list of scholarships you planned to apply for, so determined to pay for college as much as possible with no help from anyone.
“Always, my little ‘Miss Independence.’ It was a little frustrating, but your strong spirit made me proud. I just didn’t want to upset your life, since everything was finally flowing so well for you, and you were truly happy.
“But, looking back, if I’m being totally honest, I was scared the knowledge would change things between us.”
“What did you find?” Grace whispered, desperately wanting to know what was causing such deep hurt in Moss’s heart.
Moss handed her the envelope. “Open it.”
Grace took the envelope from his hand and removed the single sheet inside. As she read over the document she was unable to speak. She looked up and locked on Moss’s gaze. Her mind raced. She had seen her birth certificate, but had never really looked at the document. Moss had accompanied her when she got her driver’s license. He had pulled it out of an envelope, handed it to the person behind the counter, returned the paper to the envelope, and placed it back in his pocket.
She had never thought to really look at it, and didn’t remember any other time she had needed to produce t
he document when he wasn’t with her.
Rereading the document over and over in disbelief, she finally looked up into Moss’s misty eyes. Not knowing what questions to ask or what to say, she just stared, silently pleading with him to continue.
“Grace, I’m sorry. I can’t tell you how thrilled I was to learn I was your father, but the knowledge would have thrown a dagger into your carefully ordered world. You were content, knew where you belonged, had plans and dreams, and had come to terms with your mother.
“I feared things might change. I didn’t want you to be disappointed in me. You never knew about your mother and me.”
She pulled her hand from his, stood, and paced to the other side of the room. She was stunned, but couldn’t summon any anger, at least not at Moss. She wasn’t the only victim of her mother’s deceit. Moss had not known until she was a teenager, and then he had to shoulder the burden of truth alone.
The news was shocking, but what did it change?
It would have been nice to call him “Dad” instead of “Uncle Moss,” but she couldn’t have loved him any more than she already did. He was a father to her in every way. Maybe that made it even more special. He didn’t know he was her father, but had raised her like he was because he wanted to, not because some piece of paper or sense of duty required him to.
As she struggled to put the news into perspective along with everything else that had happened in the past week, Logan walked back into the room followed by the doctor and a nurse with a clipboard full of papers. Despite Logan’s questioning looks, she and Moss remained quiet as the doctor gave Moss a quick check, and the nurse explained the forms.
“Any more fainting spells from you?” the doctor asked.