She must have been trying really hard because I could still sense a tone of disapproval in her voice.
“I saw a change in you. I saw something I hadn’t seen in your eyes in a long time. I didn’t know what plans you had with Olivia, but I never intended to interfere. I figured, if she made you happy, even if it was just a little, you deserved it and I didn’t want to take that away from you. I didn’t want anyone to take that away from you.”
“What did you do?” I asked.
“What any mother would do to protect their child. I made sure no one would get in the way of your happiness.”
“So you had Eric get rid of Greg because you saw him as a threat to my happiness?”
She watched me in silence then a moment later, she turned around and went to pour herself another glass of scotch.
“I protected you,” she said, her back to me.
“You had someone killed, and it wasn’t just anyone.”
She faced me at that moment then slowly walked up to me. She stretched out her hand and touched my face. This time, I didn’t know why, but I let her gently trail the back of her fingers over my cheek. “I didn’t realize until it was too late just how much I had failed you.” She slightly smiled as she withdrew and took a step back.
“Mom, you didn’t have to kill him. He had nothing substantial on me.”
She looked at me and I saw her features soften. “You called me mom.” I’d never seen her get emotional, and I didn’t notice I’d addressed her differently until she pointed it out.
“Because of what you did, Eric saw a window of opportunity and he’s now blackmailing me.” I brushed her off.
She pursed her lips together and sadly looked away. “I didn’t kill him.”
“Eric did, following your orders.”
“No one can prove that.”
Maybe no one could, and Eric’s word against hers meant nothing, but she’d failed in whatever she’d been trying to do. “I knew from the very beginning that whatever Olivia and I shared never had a chance. I was prepared for it to end. You see, I have lived my life, it may not necessarily be the way I would have wanted, but I’ve lived. I don’t get to go back and correct my mistakes or reshape my life. I don’t get to put everything I’ve known aside to start anew.
“But Olivia, her life is just beginning. Her dreams are just starting to come true. It was wrong for you to take someone she loved away from her. You caused her and her family unimaginable pain, and whatever your reasons are, deep down you know taking Greg’s life was the wrong way to go. What you did, it was all for nothing.”
“She loves you,” she said.
“That doesn’t matter anymore because you took it away from me when you had her brother killed. There is no way she could ever forgive me for this.” Now there was a sentence I never thought I’d use.
“She doesn’t have to know. You could still…”
“Nothing!” I didn’t mean to raise my voice, but I was upset and she kept on going, almost as if she didn’t know when to stop. “There’s nothing anymore. The police will find out. It may not come from me, but the truth will come to light.”
“Why not go tell them yourself?”
I looked at her, wondering the same question as I took a deep breath and started to leave.
“Amelia.”
I stopped. “Because of you,” I said as I took a breath and headed out.
“So you do care about me.” I heard her say.
“You don’t make it easy,” I said to myself as I left her house.
I couldn’t believe she’d had someone killed because she’d thought she was trying to make me happy. Why couldn’t she have been a normal parent? And what was I supposed to do with this information?
I couldn’t go to the police with it. Kathy may have been a lot of horrible things, but she was still my mother and though it was hard to believe, I thought she was being honest when she said she was trying to help make things up for me.
Every single part of our conversation was disturbing and it was hard to believe that after years of being so manipulative and distant, she’d ended up being so oddly supportive. Granted her support had been offered in the wrong way, but she’d tried.
I wanted to stay mad at her and hate her for it, but I’d seen something in her I’d never seen before; care and well, her royally screwed up interpretation of love which shockingly was for me. But what kind of poisonous care was that, it drove her to kill someone? And how could she possibly believe she’d done it to safeguard my happiness?
And after all she’d done over the years, how was I still willing to protect her? I could have James drive me straight to the police station and report her and Eric. So what was stopping me? What was wrong with me? How had I gotten so weak?
She was my mother, so there was a part of me that would always have a soft spot for her no matter what she’d done, but still. She’d gone a bit too far this time. It didn’t matter what her reasons were.
How much was Olivia going to resent me once she found out? When I’d asked her if she thought I had anything to do with her brother’s death, she’d said no. What would she say now when she found out that in fact I did? I wasn’t directly involved, but I was still tied to it. God, I couldn’t think about that right now.
I needed to figure out a way to be one step ahead of Eric. I couldn’t report him to the police without implicating my mother, so that was out of the question and while I could give him a powerful position in our New York branch of Winston Enterprises, I couldn’t meet his other two demands.
Winston Enterprises was a family owned business. It was meant to go down to Jonah and Adrianna and their children thereafter. Not to Eric and unfortunately, not to any of his children, which made his second demand impossible. When it came to his third demand, merging Price Healthcare to Winston Enterprises was never going to happen and there was no room for negotiation.
I groaned as I looked out the window. I couldn’t believe I was actually thinking about this. How much damage could a video really do? Why not just let him leak it? Because of Olivia, a little voice said in my head.
After obsessively thinking about the matter, I called Jonah and Adrianna and informed them we were going to have dinner together. Jonah had an apartment in the city where he spent most of his time because it was convenient for work, and when Adrianna wasn’t busy traveling and picking up every new skill she came across, she spent most of her time with friends or in the five-star presidential suite hotel the Gallagher family owned in the city.
We all had our own individual lives and no one seemed bothered by it. After talking to Kathy, I decided I didn’t want to be the kind of mother she had been. I wanted my kids to know me, the real me, because they deserved to know the truth. However they were going to take it, in the end, I knew they’d come to appreciate the fact that they’d heard it from me first.
When they showed up and we were all seated during the second course of the meal, Anna asked, “Where’s dad? I thought he’d be joining us too.”
I should have invited him, but I only had the energy to deal with Jonah and Anna. After we’d decided to divorce, it didn’t feel like I owed him much of anything.
“I thought it could be just us, tonight,” I said.
“Mom, that’s pretty much how it’s been in the past,” Jonah said.
I laughed nervously and tried to think about how I’d start. “There is something I need to tell you both and I didn’t think it involved your father.”
They were both indulging in the meal, but stopped when I spoke.
“What is it, Mom?” Jonah asked in concern.
“You know that your grandmother and I have never had an easy relationship,” I started and they both nodded. “We were never really close because we thought the business demanded a lot from us individually... But I’d like to think we’re different. I’ve tried my best to have a transparent relationship with both of you so that you feel you can always trust me and know that no matter what, I�
��m always here for you.”
“We know that,” Anna said.
I took a breath, wondering where I should start. “I lost someone when I was young; someone I deeply cared about.” I looked at them both, not in an attempt to gauge their reaction, but in order to meet them straight in the eye when I told them the truth. “I married your father afterwards, who was kind, loving and patient and we had you both, which was the greatest gift life could have ever given us.”
They had stopped eating and were both watching me now, listening intently. “My life was set, that was it for me, or at least that was what I thought. So I wholly dedicated myself to you and to my work. I didn’t think there would ever be more to my life other than that,” I said, wondering if they understood.
“What about dad? Didn’t he make you happy?” Anna asked.
“For a time yes, and I did everything I could to make him equally happy, but there was always something missing.”
“Did it have to do with the person you lost?” Jonah asked.
I didn’t know whether to say yes or no.
“Mom, you and dad are getting a divorce. We’re old enough to understand what that means,” Anna said. “You’ve grown apart, things are different now. We know that.”
God, I wished it was that easy. “The person I lost… her name was Isabel.”
I could see the confusion in their faces.
“What are you saying?” Jonah asked.
“Mom?” Anna asked after her brother.
“She was the only other person I’d ever been with before your father,” I said.
“Why are you telling us this now?” Jonah asked.
“Because there has been someone else.” They both silently watched me, not waiting for further explanation, but seeking deeper understanding from what I’d just said.
“So someone discovered this and wants to expose it and that’s why you’re telling us,” Jonah said, with a little more hostility than I expected. He’d always been smart so I wasn’t surprised his first guess was so accurate.
“The reason why I’m telling you is because I love and respect you both and I want you to hear it from me first,” I said.
“What? That you’re a lesbian?” he said in rage as he got to his feet.
I didn’t know how to respond to him. It was an ironic situation because the way he looked at me and spoke to me was the same way I’d spoken to my mother on several occasions.
“Jonah, let me explain” I said.
“This is the real reason why you’re getting a divorce, isn’t it?”
I got to my feet at that point but I wasn’t sure if it was to defend myself or to submit to his accusations. He was my flesh and blood, what could I possibly do or say?
“You’re a disgrace,” he said.
His words delivered a hurtful blow. How could he say that to me? Why wasn’t he more willing to understand the situation?
“I’m not going to be part of this,” he said as he left the room.
I wanted to stop him, but I didn’t know what I’d say. I turned to face Anna, who was still seated. “I’m sorry,” I said.
She got up, walked over to me and surprised me when she wrapped her arms around me. After a few moments, she pulled away and met my gaze. “Was Jonah right? Did someone discover this and is threatening to expose it?” she asked.
I didn’t want her to worry or concern herself with problems I could easily handle. My only intention of coming clean with them was to make sure the truth came from me. “Don’t worry about that. I’d never let anyone hurt this family.”
She smiled faintly. “I know,” she said. “When you’re ready to tell me more about this other person, I’ll be right here.”
I watched her leave the room, confused by the turn of events. I’d had no expectations from telling them the truth, but I’d thought Anna would have the same reaction as Jonah. If she was willing to be patient and understanding with me, I had some hope Jonah would come around as well. He just needed a little bit of time.
When I was up in my room preparing for bed, I wondered how I’d face Olivia. She deserved to know the truth, but I didn’t know how I’d tell her. How did you tell someone you cared about that your own mother ordered their loved one’s death? How did one even start such a conversation?
Olivia was going to resent me, there was no doubt about it but she needed to know the truth. She was an innocent party to all of this and my world had sucked her in and destroyed her family.
I still couldn’t believe my mother had played such a big role in this. I’d blamed her for so many things in my life. I couldn’t believe it took something so dangerous and reckless for her to show me that she cared.
The thoughts went on and on in my head, forcing me to stay up all night. In the morning, I prepared myself and headed to Price Healthcare. I told myself I was prepared for however Olivia was going to handle the news.
When I stepped into Price Healthcare, Isabel’s face came to mind. I wondered if she’d be proud to see how much her empire had grown. When I got to Olivia’s office floor, I was met by two receptionists who immediately recognized me.
One of them led me to Olivia’s office and quickly announced my visit before she walked out and left us alone. I hadn’t told her I was coming, so the surprise registered on her face was expected.
Her office was spacious and elegantly furnished and she looked great behind that large desk. She seemed to fit in perfectly with her surroundings.
“Hello Olivia,” I said.
“Ame—. Mrs. Gallagher.” She got up, stepped away from her desk and approached me. When she stopped in front of me, she leaned close and a warm sensation traveled through me when she lightly pecked my cheek.
“I wasn’t expecting you,” she said.
“I know. I’m sorry for showing up unannounced.”
“No, it’s fine. Would you like to take a seat?”
I shook my head, telling myself that what I needed to tell her wouldn’t take long. If only I knew how to start.
“Would you like some refreshment?” she asked.
“No, Olivia. But thank you. I need to talk to you about something.”
“Okay.”
I walked away from her and took a deep breath as everything I needed to say scrambled through my brain. “I told Jonah and Anna about Isabel.”
“You did?” The surprise in her voice was evident. “How did that go?”
“It could have been worse. Jonah didn’t take it too well, but Anna was understanding. I told them there had been someone else after Isabel and their father and Jonah assumed that was why we’re getting a divorce.”
“You’re getting a divorce?”
I turned to face her, recalling I’d never told her about it.
“What do you mean you told them there had been someone else?” she asked.
I walked over to the large window behind her desk exposing the magnificent view of the city and said, “I didn’t tell them it was you, Olivia but they’re aware of your existence.”
“That’s a start,” Olivia said as she came to stand beside me.
“It’s not,” I said.
“You’re getting a divorce, you told them about me, why isn’t that a start?” she asked, turning me to face her.
“Because there are a lot of other things at play, Olivia. Things we can’t control.” I wanted to touch her soft lovely features, but pushed away the urge when I reminded myself about all the other things she needed to know.
“I don’t understand.”
She was looking at me with such earnestness, I didn’t know if I had it in me to destroy what she felt for me. “I’m responsible for what happened to your brother.”
She looked momentarily confused. “What are you talking about?”
“My cousin, Eric, he was the one who tampered with the brakes of the car.”
She shook her head as though she couldn’t fathom the information. “Why?”
I wondered if I’d be putting her in danger
if I told her everything. “Look, I know this is a lot to take in but right now, that is all I can tell you. Eric followed us that night we went out on a date and took pictures of us. He wants something from me.”
“Why would he kill Greg if it was you he was after?”
“It’s complicated, Olivia. I can’t tell you everything right now because I can’t give you information that might put you in danger. All you need to know is that he’s going to pay for this.”
I was disgusted with myself for protecting Kathy, but I didn’t know what she was capable of and if she was willing to hurt Olivia. Another part of me I wanted to deny was, Olivia not knowing about my mother’s involvement kept her from hating me.
She looked frightened, which made me wonder if I should have told her anything at all. The news were unsettling but I didn’t want her to live in fear. “Livvy, I’m not going to let anyone hurt you. If it’ll make you feel safer, I’ll hire you a bodyguard.”
“I just don’t—, I don’t understand. How could he have known about us? About Greg?” she said.
“I’ll explain it all in detail when this is all over.”
“Have you told the police? Have you told them he killed Greg?”
I took a breath. “No,” I said.
“Why not?”
I could tell she was agitated and I knew she wanted justice, but there was a better way of dealing with the situation. “Do you trust me?” I asked as I moved closer to her.
I could see the terror and confusion in her eyes as she nodded. “Yes.”
“Eric will pay for this. I’ll make sure he does.”
“What are you going to do?”
“That’s not important. I just want you to know that everything is going to be okay. I’m not going to let anything happen to you.” I reached out and touched her cheek and she moved closer and slowly wrapped her arms around me.
I closed my arms around her in an attempt to reassure her, inwardly resenting Kathy for interfering because I knew Olivia would never look at me the same way again.
Chapter Fifty-Two
Cougar Boss Page 46