Virginia didn’t get up and go back to her computer. The baby just laid there, his arms stretched out over his little head like he had not a care in the world. His little shoes, no bigger than the palm of her hand, were ridiculously adorable, and she found herself checking his little pockets on his pants and wondering why he’d even have them. It wasn’t like he had keys or a wallet to put in them. But then she giggled, just thinking of the tiny little wallet he’d have with miniature little pictures in it.
She couldn’t just leave him there. What if he needed her? Then there was the added problem of him rolling off the couch. She’d hate for him to be hurt while she was with him, so when he seemed about as asleep as he could get, she put him on the floor with his blankets. While that might have been better, it wasn’t foolproof. What if someone stepped on him? Or he got hit by something that fell off her desk?
She spent a good hour just watching him, making sure that he didn’t roll over or have anything fall on him. Virginia looked up the care for infants, and found that not only did they not roll over on their own at his age, but that they pretty much slept all the time when left alone. She wasn’t sure that was right, so she was looking at other websites for babies when Larson joined her.
“Your parents are sneaky.” He laughed and asked her why. Pointing to the baby on the floor, she continued. “They just up and left him here. I don’t know anything about kids, and less about them at this size. He’s really small, isn’t he?”
“No, he’s about normal, I’d say.” She nodded, remembering that he had brothers with kids. “You must be doing something right. Mom said that she has to hold him all the time when he’s sleeping so she can let him rest. I’ve yet to see him just lying down like this.”
Virginia smiled. It felt good to be able to do something better than Bea. The woman was a wizard. She watched the little boy who was related to her, and wondered what sort of man he’d be. Like his father? His mother, perhaps? She knew next to nothing about Norine other than that she was stupid, she thought, for staying with such a man as her cousin. Looking up at Larson, she put the question to him.
“I mean, will he be a drug addict, you suppose? Or perhaps beat his wife or other women?” He leaned back on the couch and asked her what she thought. “I don’t know, honestly. I suppose that he’d only do what he saw, and if he’s adopted by parents that do the same as Axel, then yes, I would think he would.”
“However, he might end up with people that only have him to fulfill a need of some sort. You know, pressured to have a kid. They might not change their lifestyle. It might not be abusive in the physical sense, but it could be just as bad if they have no time for him.” Virginia glanced down at Sam and saw that he was looking at her. “He will be in good hands should you and I adopt him.”
“I didn’t think I’d want a child. Not just not Axel’s, but any child. Then you came into my life, and it’s all I can think about lately. You know, having a child with you.” She looked at Larson. “I would like to make sure that he is loved and cared for. I want him to feel love and know that he’s loved too. But I want children of yours as well. Not that I’d treat Sam any differently, but to carry your baby would be the best feeling, I think.”
“I love you, Virginia.” He leaned down to kiss her just as someone cleared their throat. “Go away, Dad.”
“I can’t do that, son. The police are here.” Larson stood up and she did as well, standing over little Sam to protect him. “They said that they have a few question to put to you about that man’s death. Said that you weren’t in any trouble, but that he just needed questions answered. I don’t know. He looks powerfully upset if you ask me. Your brother is on his way, and he said for you not to say anything.”
“All right. What did they say they were here to do?” His dad said just questions, for now. “Dad, I didn’t have anything to do with their deaths. I liked Tom and Donna.”
“I know that, boy. What you think I’d think? That you’d gone out on their boat and shot them up? No, I don’t think that. Now you’re to sit in the kitchen and wait for Colin. He said that he’s got someone to help you out.”
“Lauren?” His dad said he didn’t know. “She’ll shoot now and never ask questions. I don’t know if you know that or not, but she’s sort of protective of us all.”
“I know that. Boy oh boy, do I know that.”
He was laughing as he left the room. Virginia decided that she loved that old man more than she did anyone she’d met of late. About as much as Larson, but in a different sort of way.
Chapter 5
Larson waited for his brother. He figured that if Lauren showed up, this would be over before it began. She would kick the cop’s ass all over the house then ask him, maybe, why he was there. But as soon as Colin and the president stepped through his back door, he stood up and so did Joe. Virginia came in with the baby in her arms, and he knew that she was going to blast the president again.
Just two days ago, he’d shown up to talk to him, but he’d encountered Virginia first. Lucky for the men with him, Larson had told them to back off or there might have been a major fuck up. Larson would have killed them both. But Virginia had given him the business, and Larson would have thought Jarvis would have learned by now not to show up unannounced.
“I thought we talked about this?” Jarvis told her that he was sorry, but this was an emergency. “Yes, I understand that, but you couldn’t have picked up the phone? Sort of warned me? What would you have done had I been in my nightgown? Or something equally embarrassing?”
“I would have told you how lovely you look, and then kissed you on the cheek. Just as I’m about to do.” He did kiss her, and then fussed over the baby. “He looks like you, Larson. I think he’ll blend well into this family. And Virginia, I am profoundly sorry for your loss.”
She nodded at him and started for the door. He knew that she was working on a deadline, and asked her if he could take Sam. Virginia assured him that she was fine and left them. He looked at Joe when he laughed.
“I would hate to be on her bad side. She has a way about her that just screams ‘Don’t fuck with me.’” Dad hit Joe on the back of the head and then laughed. “Yes sir, she’s a tricky one, that woman is. But as to why I’m here. I wanted to make you aware of a few things, and to let you know that you’re no longer a suspect in the murders of Tom and Donna.”
“I was one?” Joe said only in the sense that he’d made a great deal of money from the sale of the shares. “Yes, but I told him that he should wait. And I have no idea what he did with the money either. I did it just like I do for every client I have.”
“Harley Wells ask you about it?” Larson told him what had happened, and then told him that he had turned over all the records to Lauren. “I know that. Christ, this man is so guilty that it’s looking like he might have had a hand in the murders of the two men we’ve been looking for too.”
“What men?” Joe told Jarvis who they were. “You think that he killed the men who were actually responsible for the murders? Why would he do that, other than he’s a murderer? I mean, you must have a theory, correct? If so, I’d like to hear it, young man. I’ve not had a good day as yet, and you might just be the one to take me out of the crapper.”
“I do…I did, I mean. I thought that they were to kill the couple and let the ship blow around them. Or, and this one is my wife’s theory, that the men were to kill them and the bomb was put in there to take care of the killers too. It was put there by Wells to get rid of any witnesses and to clean up the deaths. I’m beginning to think she’s right on hers.” Larson thought so too, but waited on Joe to continue. “We know that the men were paid by someone, and we’re reasonably sure it was Harley. But what he doesn’t know, and few do other than a trusted couple of people, is that the killers left a note on Tom. In his wallet. It was detailed into what they were told to do, how much they were paid, as well as that they thought they were to die too. But, and this is the real kicker, they didn’t mention name
s. I don’t know if that’s because they didn’t know who paid them, or they were afraid of him finding out they’d let the cat out of the bag.”
“So what is it you need from me?” Joe handed Larson a little device. “I don’t know what this is. I’m sure I should know, but I can’t think beyond the fact that Harley has killed several people, and has no qualms about continuing what he’s done for money. Because sure as I’m sitting here, that’s what it was for. All he talked about was the shares and the money that he said belonged to him. And—this one scared me more than the other things he said—that he was going to be in the will. Christ, the man has balls, I’ll say that for him.”
“It was. The money that you sent to Tom, how did you send it?” Larson told him that he had the money deposited into an account, then had a cashier’s check written to Tom from that account. After that a courier sent it to him. All in one day. “That money, how much was it?”
“Just over seventy-three million, minus my cut of ten percent.” He nodded. “I don’t understand what you’re getting at here, and I’m sure you are getting at something, but right now, I can’t think.”
“The money is gone…or I guess, unaccounted for. It never showed up in his personal or business account. As far as we can tell, the money didn’t go anywhere after he signed for the courier receipt the day before he left.” Larson asked why that was important. “That’s what this is going to tell us. We bugged Harley’s office. And I need your help to tell me the voices that you hear. We know his, but not anyone else that might be coming and going there.”
“I might not either.” Joe said he was aware of that, but any help he could give him would be more than they had before. “You think he has a partner in this?”
“I do. Even if he did all the killings himself, which I’m not saying that he has, there has to be someone that he trusts more than he does anyone else. He’d need someone to cover for him if there are questions. To find him guns and to help him get the bomb on the boat. We know that the men who killed the Simmonses didn’t go up with the boat, but they have been killed by someone. Also, there are people going in and out of the building now that while we might know them, we don’t know what sort of ties they might have with Harley. Too, someone has tried to get into Tom’s work computer and it shut them out. We have a few people working on that now.” He looked over at Jarvis. “Lauren is good, by the way.”
“She is at that. And if she can’t figure it out, then no one can.” Larson believed that too. Jarvis laughed as he continued. “She’s already broken the lock, hasn’t she?”
“Yes, just this morning, and you’d not believe some of the crap we’ve found on it. Tom was suspicious of Harley for a while now. I don’t think he thought he was going to kill them, but there is money missing from some of the business accounts, as well as some unexplained money being moved around. I think Tom found Harley’s stash, and took it to put back into the accounts that Wells took it from. Not legally, but he was only returning it to the accounts so as not to have a red column in his business. Tom was a very smart businessman.”
“Wells is claiming that I took the money, and that I had the Simmonses killed just to get all of it. I don’t work like that.” Joe said he knew that. “None of this makes any sense, you know that, don’t you? I mean, why would he think that ruining my business and calling me a thief is going to get him anything?”
“Because if he focuses all this onto your plate, he’s cleared of anything else. Or so he thinks. He has gone about his business like nothing is out of the ordinary. He can look for the money and when he finds it, if he does, then he’ll skip town. Or more than likely the country. But there isn’t any money for him to fall back on right now. By this afternoon, he’s going to be notified that not just all the accounts for the company are closed up, but so are his personal ones. Just to keep him in town. And we’ve also had someone put a hold on his passport, just in case he gets something from someone and tries to leave without us knowing.”
Jarvis stayed after Joe left him the device and instructions on how to use it. He was going to be notified by someone in the station when there was activity at the offices. All he had to do was listen to it and call them back if he knew who a person was. The station was also recording everything in the event that he might miss something.
“I’ve come to talk to you as well. After talking things over with Lauren, I’ve decided that I need you for a couple of personal things.” Larson said he’d do anything for him. “I need someone to invest my own personal money. I have a lot, for me anyway, but I’d like to have enough that I don’t have to live where the government tells me to when I’m no longer president.”
“You think anyone is going to let you not take the next term?” They both laughed, but Larson was serious. He was a good president and the people knew it. “I can do that for you, but as I’m pretty sure you know, I don’t charge family my cut…and you are family, by the way.”
“I have to insist that you do for me, just so that there is no one coming back on either of us. If it gets out that you didn’t take your cut, which I believe to be too small, then there will be hell to pay for both of us. As I think Lauren has mentioned to you, people do like a scandal, and that would be ripe with it for them.” Larson guessed he was right, but he didn’t like it. “Also, I’m to understand that you have a realtor’s license. I’d like for you to purchase me two homes. I have the details on them, and then leave them in your name for the time being. I don’t want people to speculate where I might be going when I leave office.”
“I can do that. I’ve done it before when a company or person wants to purchase a few acres or a business, but doesn’t want anyone to know who the buyer is until they start construction. But you’ll be responsible for any taxes or liens.” Jarvis said he could do that. “All right then, you just tell me where they are and I’ll do that for you. Anything else?”
“Yes, it’s about your wife. I’d very much like it if the two of you were to come to the White House and be my guests. Nothing going on, just a dinner where we can have a nice meal.”
“At the White House? Like it’s nothing but a few people having a beer and a pizza?” Jarvis said they could have pizza if he wanted, but he was thinking something more substantial. “You know that Virginia is going to have a kitten, don’t you?”
“Yes, that’s the fun in this. Also, when will she be having a kitten? I’m sure that you’ve talked about it. And you are going to raise young Samuel, correct?” He said he didn’t know at this point, but he thought so. “Good. Also, and this is just between the two of us, and your mate, I suppose, I’m not running for next term. I’ve decided that I’d like to be my own man for a while. And the things that went on with my predecessor made me realize that I don’t much care for politics. They’re too much. Of everything.”
“I’m sorry to hear that.” Jarvis stood up and said he had to get back. “It will be nice to have you around more, I suppose, without all the guards and such. I know that you’ll still have the security with you, but you wouldn’t have to sneak around like you do.”
“Yes, there is that as well. I want to travel. On my own time. I would like to read a book that has nothing to do with politics and such. It doesn’t mean that I’m going to bow out of it completely, but I would like a sort of rest, you might call it.” He laughed a little, and Larson thought it sounded so sad. “I want a life like the rest of you have. I don’t get that much where I am now.”
After he left, Larson went in search of Virginia. He just needed to be with her, to hold her too if he could. The writing cave, as she called it, wasn’t nearly finished, but she was working away when he went in. The baby was asleep on her chest and snoring a little. She turned to smile at him.
“I love this. I could do this, I think. I’m not naive enough to think that he’s going to be this easy all the time, but I’d like to adopt him.” Larson said he wanted to as well. “Also, please get my room done soon. I really need my own space, and this is
n’t it.”
He laughed when he sat down on the couch that had been brought in, and looked around. It was a mess. Whenever they had to bring something into the house, be it wire or tile, it had been put in this room. Larson told her that if she could work for a couple of days in another part of the house, he’d put it on the priority list.
“Yes, I can work that way for now. But I need my own space. And my things from home too. Also, I wanted to talk to you about my mom. I need her here too.” He said that he thought that she was going to live with them. “You’d not mind? I mean, she isn’t any trouble. I know that she’s been staying at the hotel and all, and I’m afraid that she’ll think I don’t want her here, but I need her.”
“Of course you do. Why don’t you have her come by sometime today, and then we’ll let her pick out what room she wants. We might as well have it done the way she wants, don’t you think? Or, and I just thought of this, there is an entire living space in the basement. It also has its own entrance, so she doesn’t have to come through the house to go to her space.” Virginia nodded, and he could see tears in her eyes. “Don’t cry, love. I can’t stand to see a woman cry, and your tears would be the hardest to deal with.”
“You’re the very best. Did you know that?” He said that she had to say that around his mom. “I will. By the way, she called here a few minutes ago, telling me that they’d had nothing to do but wanted me to see Sam. I told her that I could forgive her if she would be his grandma and not his sitter. She seemed to think that was a good trade off.”
“Great. Now, I must get to working on a few things in the other part of the house. If you need me, you know how to get in touch with me.” She said that she did. “Also, Dad told me that he was bringing us over some of Sam’s things, and a baby bed for him. I think we’ll put him in our room today, and have his room done over the next few days as well.”
Larson: McCullough’s Jamboree – Erotic Jaguar Shapeshifter Romance Page 6