by A. C. Arthur
“What the...,” Parker said and then stopped. “I never checked for a card. We had dinner and drinks with Henry, I mean, Dane that night. It was late when he left. We went straight to bed. In the morning…oh my go—. That bitch!”
“What?” Trent asked.
“In the morning the clock and the box were gone. Jaydon said something about putting it with all the other client gifts in our storage closet in the building’s basement. She saw that card and knew who’d sent it,” Parker said.
“Probably,” Dev replied.
“Roslyn was ready to strike even back then. She’d been in Miami before when she’d set up that money drop with Uncle Reggie and then killed Tony Lucas.”
“What. Did. You. Just. Say?”
The three of them turned immediately to the doorway where Gavin and Regan now stood.
Dev frowned as Trent slipped the picture into his pocket.
Gavin came into the room with Regan close behind him.
“What are you two doing here?” Parker asked.
“I told Adriana we’d stop by to look at the final wedding pictures and that we all could go to dinner afterwards,” Regan said, her voice a little shaky, as she looked from her brother to Trent. “I didn’t know you were here.”
Trent took a step toward his cousin and pulled her in for a hug. “I didn’t tell anyone I was coming. But it’s great to see you.”
“Same here,” Regan said as they pulled away from each other. “I was so glad to hear that Tia’s going to be alright.”
“Thanks,” Trent said.
“Can we just stop with these bullshit formalities!” Gavin yelled. “Tell me what you were talking about when we came in. You know the part about someone killing my father.”
While Dev and Trent had developed a timeline of all the things Roslyn and Jaydon had done in reference to the Donovans in the past thirty-eight years, they had yet to share that information with anyone other than Cade Donovan. And that was only because the FBI profiler and his team had substantial information to add to what Trent and Dev already knew.
“Trent, if you guys know something about Detective Lucas’s murder, you have to tell him,” Parker said.
“Please, Trent,” Regan implored, touching a hand to Trent’s arm. “He has a right to know.”
Dev agreed. He’d wanted to know who had killed his mother and when he’d found out… That didn’t matter now.
“When Roslyn Ausby made her first request for payment to keep her son a secret, the Senior Donovans agreed to pay it,” Dev began.
“We know that,” Regan said. “My dad told us they were sorry they’d ever gave in to her.”
Trent nodded. “Uncle Reggie was sorrier than the others because he was the one who organized the drop off. He went to Detective Lucas after they received the letter to ask how they should go about getting her the money without any of the Seniors being personally involved. Detective Lucas advised against giving in to a blackmailer, but the Seniors were adamant that they’d rather pay her than deal with the scandal.”
“My father answered a domestic violence call.” Gavin spoke slowly. “He was killed in the line of duty.”
Dev could hear the disbelief in his voice.
“Roslyn sent someone else to get the money but she was waiting close by. She’d requested that Uncle Henry come to pick up the money. When he didn’t show she was angry. So after her guy had the money and was away from the scene she called the police and reported a domestic violence incident at an address close to where the drop off had taken place. She figured Detective Lucas would still be the closest officer on call and that he’d show up where she was. He did.”
“Oh my god,” Regan murmured as she moved to Gavin’s side and quickly took his hand. “She killed him.”
“Damn! When is this going to end?” Parker said. “When do we all get our lives back?”
Dev hoped that would be soon.
“Your father knew this all these years,” Gavin said. “He knew and that’s why he was always coming by our house, checking up on me and my sisters in school. When I asked my mother how she’d known the Donovans, she’d said they were friends of my dad’s and that she’d never known them all that well, until after Dad died.”
“You would have to talk to Uncle Reggie about that,” Trent said. “These are all the facts we’ve come up with while working with the FBI. Orin Weatherby filled in some of the gaps. He’d been working with Roslyn for the last eight months and when she had, what Orin described as one of her ‘emotional breakdowns’ she’d talked about what happened with Detective Lucas.”
And Darla Donovan, Dev thought. The woman had been getting away with murder for far too long.
“I don’t believe this,” Gavin was saying. “All this time I thought my father died a hero.”
“He did,” Regan told him. “In the beginning he was helping a friend, and in the end, he was doing his job.”
“But it was a set-up!” Gavin roared. “A set-up by that crazy ass woman who’s obsessed with your family! Your father pulled my father into this.”
“Hold on a minute, Gavin,” Parker began as he moved closer to where his sister stood. “Regan’s not the bad guy here. Turning on her isn’t going to change anything. And I don’t like you yelling at my sister.”
Gavin snatched his hand away from Regan’s. “Fine,” Gavin snapped. “I won’t yell at your sister, but I will tell your father exactly what I think of what he and his brothers put into motion all those years ago.”
He walked out and Regan made an attempt to follow him, but Trent grabbed her arm to stop her.
“He’s gonna need some time to deal with this. Let him do it alone for now,” he said to Regan who now had tears in her eyes.
“If I lose him over this I will never forgive any of them,” Regan said tightly.
“You’re not going to lose him,” Parker told her. “Come on, let’s go find Adriana and talk about how we want to tell Savian and the others because these secrets have got to stop.”
Trent nodded and Dev agreed.
The Strathmore
New York City
His stomach roiled and only because he was lying on his bed, on the black silk sheets that he favored, did Dane slow down his breathing and focus his mind on not becoming sick. He didn’t really want to be here and he didn’t want to be with her. Yet, here he was in his New York apartment where he’d opted to stay after his long day of meetings instead of going all the way back to his house.
“J'aime ta peau, papa. Tellement doux et si dur aussi. Tu es magnifique!” she said in her smoky voice.
She’d been lying with one leg draped over his, her hand moving down his chest, past his abs, to wrap around his partially aroused length. When he didn’t respond to her compliment she climbed on top of him, her legs on either side of his hips, as she leaned down to kiss his chest. Long, auburn curls whispered over the skin of his bare chest as she mumbled more salacious words in her native French lingo.
Dane remained perfectly still and deathly quiet. His hands were folded behind his head and he stared up at the ceiling. There was definitely something physical going on here and he would not deny he needed the release. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have called for company in the first place. But try as he might to get totally into it, there was just too much on his mind.
He’d met one sister two months ago. Weeks before then, he’d lost another sister. It was funny how life worked. Well, his at least. Keysa Donovan Sanchez was a kind woman with a keen mind. Her husband Ian was protective, but friendly. Her daughter, his niece, Madison Lee was adorable and had effectively wrapped Dane right around her little finger. Since seeing her in the hospital Dane had brought his niece more clothes than her small body could wear at the moment. Which was why Keysa had called to tell him she was exchanging some of the outfits for bigger sizes so that Madison would have time to wear everything at least once. He’d also bought stuffed animals and toys, some of which he’d decided to keep at his house becau
se he didn’t really want his next call from Keysa to be one with her warning him again about going overboard.
She’d done so the last time they spoke with a chuckle in her voice and a sincere thank you. Then she’d asked how he was doing. Dane couldn’t remember the last time someone had bothered to ask how he was and he thought that when Keysa did, she actually cared what his answer was going to be. That had been the bright side of the last two months. The rest, he let out a sigh and then a little groan as the lovely French girl he’d paid good money to visit him this evening, covered the tip of his length with her hot little mouth.
“Get dressed and get out!”
The French girl jumped up and off him and Dane sat up in his bed.
“I’ve told you time and time again about paying for these trifling tramps to come and do your bidding. Go!” Roslyn yelled.
The girl who Dane was a little ashamed to admit he didn’t know her name, looked over at him in question. He gave her a nod and she hurried off the other side of his platform bed. She didn’t bother to cover her body—a lovely body it was—but moved hastily to the custom made couch on the other side of his room where she’d left her clothes. Grabbing them and holding them up to her chest she walked out of the room, pushing right past Roslyn. Poor girl had spunk even if she was clueless about who she’d just bumped up against. Dane, on the other hand, knew exactly who was standing across the room leering at him.
A mother probably shouldn’t see her adult son in the midst of receiving a blowjob from a prostitute, but then, there were so many things off kilter about Dane and Roslyn. Who cared if they added this unfortunate situation to the mix?
Dane pulled the sheet off the bed as he moved, holding it around his waist. He walked into his bathroom and took his time slipping on lounge pants and a t-shirt that were hanging in the small closest next to his dual vanity. He turned the water on and watched it circle and go down the drain of the first frosted glass vessel sink. After a few seconds he leaned in and splashed water on his face. Then he reached for a thick dark purple hand towel that he used to wipe his face and hands.
When he entered his room again it was to find Roslyn sitting on the couch where the French girl’s clothes had been only minutes before.
“You’re too good for hookers,” she said as he walked past her.
Dane did not respond. Instead he sat in the leather recliner across from the couch and looked at her. She was a killer. A kidnapper. A liar.
She was a woman who was struggling with a mental health disease.
She was also his mother.
And try as he might to stop, Dane loved her.
“Where have you been?” he asked. “I tried calling you on the private line. I sent messengers to your apartment. I even placed a man at that hotel you love visiting in SoHo.”
“I was busy,” she replied in a cool tone.
Dane knew exactly how busy she’d been.
“But you got my message about Jaydon. You’ve been to the cemetery,” he said. “I saw the lilies you left there for her.”
Lilies were Jaydon’s favorite flower. Dane was certain that only he and his mother knew that.
“You like having people try to follow me around and keep tabs on me. I’m the parent, I should know all your comings and goings. Not the other way around.”
“I’m not the one who needs to be watched,” he replied and instantly regretted his tone.
It was kneejerk. His sister was dead because of a plan that Roslyn had no doubt devised. Other people were dead because of things she’d decided to do. It had to stop. Because at some point Dane would have no other choice but to go to the cops. He couldn’t simply sit back and let these things continue to happen, no matter how much this woman meant to him.
She propped an elbow up on the arm of the couch and tilted her head as she smiled at him. His mother was a very attractive woman, who didn’t seem to age a bit. Her mocha hued skin was still smooth and tight, her body slim and toned. She kept her hair in the most current styles, her make-up on point at all times. Tonight she was wearing a dove gray pantsuit with a vibrant pink blouse beneath the jacket. Her purse was huge, designer and in a darker shade of gray that matched her four-inch heel shoes. She looked like she was about to head into a business meeting, not walk in on her son in the midst of a sexual act.
“I don’t need anybody watching me. I’ve been taking care of myself for a very long time,” Roslyn told him. “And I’ve done a damn good job of it, if I may say so myself.”
“I’m not arguing that you can take care of yourself. But I am going to ask if that includes taking the medicine Dr. Dunham prescribed for you.”
She narrowed her eyes and shook her head. “Don’t talk to me like that. And don’t think you can dig into my history and throw questions in my face like you know what it feels like to be me.”
“I didn’t say that I did. I’m asking out of concern.”
“You’re asking because those high-minded Donovans have been whispering in your ear.”
Dane did not respond.
“You see, son. You’re not the only one who can have someone followed. Like I said, I’ve been taking care of myself for a long time now.”
“Where are you getting the money to take care of yourself these days?” Dane asked her. “The account I set up for you hasn’t been touched.”
“I don’t need your money.”
“Why? Who do you have giving you money now?”
His mother had never worked. She’d never had to because there was always some man eager to take care of a woman like her. At least until they found out that a woman like her was not one to be kept.
“Don’t you worry yourself about that. All you need to know is that I’m fine, so you can stop having your people follow me.”
“You’re not fine,” he said. “You kidnapped Bailey. Jaydon was killed. That guy you hired to help you, he’s been arrested and is now being detained by the FBI. He’s probably telling them everything you ever said in his presence. Things that could probably secure you a nice comfy spot on death row.”
She laughed, her head falling back with the action.
“Yeah, you’re one of them alright. At least you seem to be trying your hardest to be a Donovan.” Roslyn pushed a heavy curl back behind her shoulder and crossed her legs.
“Look at you sitting over there all smug and arrogant like you were born that way. As if you were born with all this,” she said waving her arms around to the things in his room. “But you need to remember who took care of you. Who loved you and held you when you cried because the other boys had a daddy and you didn’t. I’m all you’ve really got, Dane. Don’t let those fake ass, selfish Donovans fool you.”
“I’m not in the business of letting anyone fool me, mother. I haven’t been for a very long time,” he told her. “And all this that I have, I worked my butt off for it. Every single bit of it. I never asked you or any of those men that sponsored you for a dime.”
“Oh so we self-righteous now? Ain’t that cute,” she said with a flick of her wrist.
Dane let out a sigh. “Look, I don’t want to fight with you. I’m actually very glad to see you. I just want to make sure that you are taking really good care of yourself. Dr. Dunham said she hasn’t seen you in about six months.”
“I don’t give a damn what that quack told you. She just wants my money.”
“She wants to keep you and everyone around you safe.”
“Her pills didn’t keep my baby safe, Dane,” she spat. “Jaydon is gone.”
“Because you put her in a situation that got her killed.”
Roslyn jumped up off the couch. “No!” she yelled. “They shot her. Those Donovan boys shot my little girl.”
Dane didn’t bother telling her that it was Devlin Bonner and one of his sidekicks named York that had actually shot his sister. It didn’t matter. If Roslyn had not planned the kidnapping then none of this would have ever happened. Which is the main reason Dane was not trying to press ch
arges against Devlin and his sidekick.
“Okay,” he said. “We both know that story. Let’s just move on from here. Stay with me tonight and I’ll go with you to visit Dr. Dunham. Remember you were seeing her when you stayed at my house in San Francisco. I talked to her last week and she thinks it’s a good idea to resume your treatment. We’ll get you a new prescription and then maybe we can take a trip to Chicago to see Uncle Elder and the family.”
“To hell with them!” Roslyn continued to yell. She was pacing back and forth now, moving in those heels as if she were born in them.
“I don’t want to see them and they definitely don’t want to see me. They’ve been taken in by those Donovans too. You see your cousin even got herself a baby by one.”
Yes, Dane knew that Amber had a little girl and planned to marry Brandon Donovan. He was happy for her. Actually, Dane was happy for anyone who could make the most out of this thing called life. He’d been born into a situation that cemented the fact that nothing was promised to anyone. He realized early on that he had to work for the things he wanted, and whatever he couldn’t use his mind and keen business skills to ascertain, wasn’t meant for him. That meant love, relationships, children, all of that stuff. None of it was in the cards for a man like Dane.
“Then if you don’t want to go to Dr. Dunham, maybe we should consider some other type of facility. Somewhere where you can go to get some rest,” he suggested.
The moment he said the words Dane knew he shouldn’t have. He’d entertained the idea of having her declared legally incompetent, but he hadn’t wanted to go that route because then there would be a public paper trail. He didn’t want that type of humiliation for his mother. Or himself, if he were being absolutely honest.
“Hell no! I’m not crazy and I’m not checking into some asylum just to make you and your newfound family happy,” she told him. “You need to get yourself together and remember all I’ve done for you. They would have never told you who your father was if I didn’t threaten their lying asses! Never! You hear me? You wouldn’t have known and you wouldn’t be flying all over the world to see these ungrateful bastards that didn’t even know you existed a year ago.”