Blotting at her eyes she took a deep, shuddery breath. “Oh my God.”
She checked the statement again to make sure she hadn’t imagined it. This was really happening. She could write full time.
Libby ran her hands over the paper. It was real. This was real. She’d achieved her dream.
She was a full-time author.
She wanted to dance, to sing, to scream her news from the top of the building. Libby whirled around.
Who could she tell? She had to tell someone her news or she’d burst.
She checked the time. Piper might still be awake.
She snatched her phone up and dialed.
Piper’s voice answered but it was her answering machine. Damn it. Libby left a slightly garbled excited message and hung up.
Who else could she tell?
There was only one person who would understand exactly what this meant. One person who up until a few weeks ago would have celebrated with her. One person she really wanted to tell but couldn’t.
Adrian.
Her mood deflated with a hiss and she plopped down onto the chair. Her eyes welled with tears and angrily she brushed them away. No, she wasn’t going to let him ruin her mood. She deserved this happiness, this thrill of excitement. She’d earned it.
Libby stood up, snatched her bag from the hook it was hanging on and headed out. She was going to buy herself a cake to celebrate.
She didn’t need anyone else to help her.
She would celebrate on her own.
***
Adrian walked through the house for the third time, checking to make sure it was clean and tidy, and there was nothing that could say to the caseworker that Kate wasn’t being looked after properly. He hovered in the lounge room, wondering whether he should put away the book Kate was reading, and then decided it showed one of her interests.
But could it also say to the social worker that he wasn’t paying Kate enough attention? That she had to find her amusement in a book rather than with Adrian?
Hell, he was second-guessing his second guesses.
He hated these visits. The only thing that made them slightly bearable was the knowledge that Susan was getting them as well.
“Uncle Ade, can I go for a swim?” Kate wandered into the lounge room where he was still debating over the book.
Adrian looked up. “Sure – but don’t forget the caseworker will be here soon.”
Kate screwed up her face. “How many more visits do they have to make?”
Adrian shrugged. “A few more, I guess. They want to make sure they make the right decision.”
Kate squeaked in exasperation. “But I told them I want to stay with you. I even made a list of why you were better than Aunt Susan.”
Adrian smiled at the memory. As soon as Susan had sued for custody and the supervised visits began, Kate had started preparing. She’d made lists and kept her room tidy, and Adrian suspected she had even started misbehaving when she was with Susan. He wasn’t sure where she’d learned this confident, list-making, go get ’em attitude, but he liked it.
Libby’s face suddenly sprung up in front of him. He shoved it away.
But it made sense. Making a list was exactly the kind of thing Libby would have done.
Would there be a time when he could think of her without this tearing ache in his heart? He wasn’t sure.
He’d picked up the phone a dozen times to call her but had put it down again.
He’d falsely accused her, hadn’t even let her explain. She’d never want him back and it was his own fault.
The doorbell rang.
“That will be the caseworker,” he told Kate. “You ready?”
“Yep. We’re gonna show them we’re meant to be together.”
Adrian smiled and went to answer the door.
He wished he felt as confident.
***
Libby woke feeling lighter than she had in weeks. She hadn’t just bought a cake to celebrate but also a new laptop and printer. Then, feeling guilty about the extravagance, she had done her budget.
If she was sensible, her royalty money would last her for a year, and by then she should know whether her sales would continue to support her full time.
Libby adjusted the lamp on her desk so it was in the right place and turned on her computer to start her day of writing. She’d rung the temp agency the day before and told them they would need to find someone else. As her computer came to life she opened her email. There was a message from Kate.
After Libby read it, she reached for the phone and then stopped herself. She couldn’t call Adrian. Not after the way they had parted.
But something had happened, because Kate had to stay with her Aunt Susan until the court case. Kate was devastated and was pleading for Libby to help her.
Checking the time difference, Libby chose to call George. He would know what was going on and she had to find out if there was some way she could help.
Nerves skittered over her skin while the phone rang. She had no idea what reaction she was going to get.
“Hello, Libby.” George’s voice was polite with maybe a hint of surprise.
“I heard that Kate is staying with her aunt,” Libby blurted. “Is there any way I can help?”
“Who told you?” There was definitely surprise there.
Libby hesitated. She didn’t want to get Kate into trouble.
George filled the silence. “It had to be Kate.”
“She sounds worried. Do you want me to write a statement? I could say how well Adrian cares for her.”
“I appreciate the offer, Libby, but I’m not sure that’s a good idea. Susan knows you and Adrian were lovers. Anything you say would be disregarded almost immediately.”
Libby huffed. He was right, of course. “Is there nothing I can do?”
George was silent. “I’m collecting statements from others. Yours might help when viewed alongside them.”
“Fine. When do you need it?”
“We go to court in two days.”
“So soon?”
“Susan knows someone in the department,” George growled.
“How’s Kate holding up?”
George laughed. “She’s a real trooper. She’s made lists and written her own statement, she’s even got her cousins fighting against their mother. We’ve nicknamed her Lilly Lionheart.”
Libby’s heart swelled. The name of Kate’s superhero in her story. “She’ll love that.” Libby paused and then asked the question. “How’s Adrian?”
The silence was so long Libby didn’t think George was going to answer. “He swings between fighting for her and convincing himself Susan can give her a more stable home life.”
“That’s ridiculous.” Kate and Adrian belonged together.
“You and I both know that. The whole situation with his father really set him back.”
George was telling her more than he probably should, considering how her relationship with Adrian ended.
Her head swirled with thoughts. She loved Kate and she loved Adrian. He might not reciprocate that love, but she couldn’t stand by and watch him lose Kate without doing something. Would a reference be enough?
Her stomach twitched with nerves. “I’ll send you the character reference as soon as I can. If you think of anything else I can do, let me know.”
“Will do.”
Libby hung up. It was probably the last time she’d hear from George.
Chapter 20
Adrian was preparing lunch in the kitchen, though he wasn’t hungry. Kate had been living with Susan for a couple of days now, and while he’d been allowed to speak to Kate on the phone, he hadn’t been allowed to visit.
He missed her.
The court case was tomorrow and strangers would decide whether he’d get Kate back.
“How do you think it will go?” he asked George.
George’s phone beeped, signaling a message. Adrian searched for his own cell and saw it lying on the bench. Picking it up, he n
oticed it was turned off. The battery must have run out. He’d not checked it in days, as he hadn’t been in the mood to talk to anyone. He plugged it in to charge.
“I honestly don’t know how it’ll go,” George said. “We’ve got statements from everyone who knows you and Kate, Emily’s video confession and the supervised visit reports. The only thing we haven’t responded to is your father’s accusations.”
They’d had the discussion multiple times, but Adrian had never worked up the courage to face his father. He kept convincing himself that it wouldn’t help.
But what if it did? What if something his father said could make the difference between winning custody of Kate and losing it? Would not knowing eat away at him?
Adrian turned his phone on and noted a missed call. He dialed to listen to the message.
Libby’s voice washed over him like someone had thrown a bucket of cold water at him. He was so startled that her words didn’t sink in until the last sentence – “I don’t need you in my life.”
He boosted himself on to the kitchen bench as he replayed the message. The only other time he’d heard Libby use that tone was the day after Kate’s nightmare when she’d come to his defense against Susan. It was her somebody-needs-their-head-examined tone and this time it was directed at him. He couldn’t prevent the smile that covered his face. He loved that tone, could picture her indignation and the way her eyes flashed fire when she spoke.
He loved her.
Adrian froze. He loved Libby.
How could it have taken him so long to realize it?
“You all right?” George’s voice waded through the shock.
Adrian nodded as he listened to the message a third time. Libby was right. He was trapped by his childhood and she did deserve better than that. But the fact that she had called to tell him gave him hope. She had to care for him. Maybe he hadn’t completely ruined things with her.
“Do you want to go through our statements again?” George asked.
The question brought him back to the now. He couldn’t think of Libby at the moment, he had to focus on winning the court case. There was still one more thing he could do.
Fear shivered unwelcome down his spine. Adrian fisted his hands. It was time he freed himself from this fear. Time he freed himself from his past. Adrian braced himself and then said, “I’m going to visit my father.”
George’s eyes widened briefly. “Are you sure?”
Adrian nodded, not as certain as he’d like to be.
“Do you want me to come with you?”
“No.” He could do this. He had to do this himself.
Before he could change his mind, he stood up and walked out of the house, feeling like he was walking into a minefield.
But the thought of Kate – and Libby – gave him courage.
***
Adrian drove through his old neighborhood, the stress building the further in he drove. He hadn’t been back since the day he and Daniel had run away, but it had hardly changed. The school he’d attended was to his left and on the right he drove past the supermarket where he and Daniel had bought their microwave dinners.
Then he turned into his old street and his heart beat heavily in his chest. He pulled into the drive and turned off the engine. He stared at the house, not ready to go in.
The paint was peeling away from the timber cladding and the grass in the front was long and unkempt. The porch sagged and the wood was a silver gray color from neglect.
He gripped the steering wheel and focused on his breathing as the memories tried to overwhelm him.
He could do this. He had to, for Kate and for himself.
He thrust the car door open and climbed out, forcing his feet to keep moving toward the house.
The steps groaned as he climbed onto the porch. The front door was open and through the flyscreen Adrian could see into the house. The hallway was lined with empty bourbon bottles.
The twelve-year-old inside him shuddered. Adrian took a deep breath and knocked, the sound like a gunshot to his ears.
In another room he heard someone getting to their feet and walking toward the door. He fought the urge to run.
“If you’re here to sell something, I’m not buying.” It was his father’s voice, the deep Texan accent slightly slurred as it preceded him into the hallway.
Fear pricked Adrian. Was his father drunk?
The man entered the hallway, walking slowly, and finally looked up. He met Adrian’s gaze and his jaw dropped, his expression first shock, then perhaps fear.
“Hello, Pa.” Adrian was pleased his voice was steady.
His father closed his mouth and grunted. “Didn’t think I’d see you again.”
Adrian didn’t know what he’d expected his father to say, but it was more than that. Pushing past the surprise, he focused on his purpose. “I want to talk about the lies you’ve been spreading.”
“Those suckers will believe anything,” his father said, not the least bit apologetic.
Anger began to dissolve Adrian’s fear. “Don’t you care how those lies might have affected me?”
“Why should I? You and your no-good brother left and never looked back. I suppose he’s got some hifalutin job as well.”
The grief hit him. “Daniel’s dead.”
“How?” There was shock in the old man’s eyes and sorrow in his voice.
Adrian was so surprised he answered immediately. “A car crash a year ago. It killed Daniel and his wife. Kate was the only survivor.”
His father squinted at him. “Kate’s the red-haired girl?”
“Yes,” Adrian said. “Your granddaughter.”
His father unlatched the flyscreen door and pushed it open. “You want to come in?”
Adrian didn’t. The thought of crossing the threshold into the house that was his prison throughout his whole childhood filled him with dread, but there was a vulnerability in his father’s eyes that he had never seen before.
Adrian walked in through to the living room.
It hadn’t changed in the eighteen years since Adrian had been inside. The brown couch he’d raced around so many times to evade his father, the coffee table that had been chipped when he’d tripped and his father had pushed him into it, the dirty, threadbare beige carpet. The whole room had an odor of stale cigarettes and bourbon.
His father hovered near the doorway, uncertain. “You gonna sit?”
“No.” He couldn’t. There was no way he could relax in this room.
His father walked over to the sideboard and poured himself a drink.
“Don’t.” Adrian’s tone was sharp.
The old man’s hand shook but he put the glass down. “You tryin’ to order me around in my own home?”
“Someone needs to.” Adrian didn’t want to hang around here. The fear he’d felt for all these years had evaporated and been replaced by pity. The man’s life revolved around the bottle.
“I came here to talk to you about Kate.”
“My granddaughter?” His father seemed stunned.
Adrian nodded. “Daniel named me guardian of Kate if anything happened to them. Because of what you’ve been saying, Penny’s sister believes I can’t care for Kate and is trying to take her from me.”
“The bitch.” Adrian’s father was outraged. “You can’t let her do that.” He didn’t seem to comprehend his part in all of this.
“It would help if you withdrew your accusations about me.”
His father’s outrage was replaced with calculation. “How much is it worth to you?”
Adrian blinked in surprise. His father had gone from grieving to outraged to calculating in a space of seconds. This was the man Adrian remembered. “Kate is priceless.” His voice was cold. “But you won’t get a cent out of me. If you have any shred of decency left in that alcohol-pickled brain of yours, you’ll do what’s right. You’ll retract your accusations and tell the truth.” Adrian walked toward the door and then stopped. “You never cared for your own children, but t
his is your chance to do something for your grandchild.”
Disgusted, he brushed past his father and headed to the entrance. Once outside he took a deep breath of fresh air.
He was relieved to be out of there. He stalked over to his car and climbed in. Glancing toward the house, he saw the silhouette of his father in the window. The anger dissipated. The man wasn’t worth it.
Adrian knew his visit wouldn’t make any difference. His father didn’t give a damn.
But as he backed out of the drive, the chains that had bound him to this place for so long gave way.
He was no longer fearful of this man.
He was no longer a prisoner of his childhood.
He was free.
***
The next morning dawned sunny and bright. Adrian was up early and spent an hour pounding out his nerves on the treadmill.
Today would decide his and Kate’s fate.
After facing his father, he felt more optimistic than he had since the whole saga began. The visit had proven to him that he was nothing like his father.
Afterward he’d called Hank and Marla to see if they had any record of Hank’s meeting with Adrian’s father. Hank had recorded the whole event meticulously and Adrian read the information with interest. It showed him how easily his father had given them up, which was bound to help the case.
Adrian made breakfast and ate it with gusto. He was going to win this.
As he was struggling to do up his tie, the phone rang. It was Kate.
“Uncle Ade, it’s going to be all right, isn’t it?” Her voice was small and scared.
Adrian wished he could tell her it would be. “No matter what happens, we’ll still see each other.” He paused. “I love you, kiddo. Nothing is going to change that.”
Kate sniffed and Adrian’s heart ached. “I love you too, Uncle Ade,” she said.
Adrian checked the time. “I’ll see you soon.” He hung up.
***
George met him outside the courthouse and they walked in together. Susan and her parents were on one side of the room with Kate. Adrian acknowledged them with a nod of his head as Kate ran over and threw her arms around him.
“I’ve missed you,” she told him.
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