The Caspian Wine Mystery/Suspense/Thriller Series

by Maggie Thom

  Chapter 18

  “Tarin, what the hell are you doing now? You look like a hillbilly. It’s about time you let your hair grow, though. I didn’t appreciate how messy it was yesterday but I do like that it’s long. More feminine. It will get you further with men. With finding a husband.”

  Tijan froze. The second encounter with her father was much like the first; it sent a cold, dark shiver down her spine. His voice was anything but what she’d thought a dad’s voice should be; it was harsh and authoritative. She turned slightly, realizing that she hadn’t even noticed him when she’d stumbled into the palatial room. All he needed to finish the look were drapes and veiled women. Everything in it dripped money; the office was bigger than her parents’ house and she’d always thought their five-bedroom rancher had been monstrously large. To her it was ridiculous.

  For the first time in thirty years, she was meeting the man she’d only been mildly curious about. Her stepfather Cal had been all that she’d needed as a father and since her mom had told her that her real father was dead, she hadn’t wasted much time thinking about him. All she knew about the man that was supposed to be her father was he’d been evil. Her mom had never told her who he was or why she’d felt that way.

  But he wasn’t six feet under; he was sitting at a desk which she imagined was worth more than her SUV. Arrogance oozed out of him, wrapping him in a bubble. It let her know she wouldn’t be getting close to him, physically or emotionally.

  And he was desperately trying to save his youth. He obviously dyed his hair and she wondered if he had hair plugs put in. Something about it didn’t look natural. His face had too few wrinkles for a man his age, suggesting he was really quite vain but not about to admit that to anyone. Or maybe it was the way he was sitting in his chair, staring at her, making her feel like he was a judge on his high bench about to hand down his sentencing. The only things they had in common were his nicely rounded forehead and the way his eyebrows arched. It was an odd similarity and told her that she favored their mother, and for that, she was grateful.

  “Uh—”

  “Is this another gimmick to piss me off? I’ll have some clothes delivered from your favorite store so you can change out of those god-awful things you have on. Were you at some sort of Halloween Party? Christ, it’s not even October. Or are you dressing like that to embarrass me?”

  Tijan, feeling very stunned, looked down at her normal attire—blue jeans and a blue and red plaid shirt. They were clean and comfortable.

  “Now that you’re here, get over here and sit down.”

  Numbly Tijan, who felt she might know how Alice in Wonderland felt after falling through the rabbit hole, made her way across the expansive floor. It seemed to take forever to reach the far corner where there were two leather couches and two leather chairs, one of which her father was pointing at. As much as she wanted to look at the man responsible for her being in the world, she found that she couldn’t. All she had seen in his eyes had been disgust and a very clear message that she was lacking. Was this how her sister had been raised?

  That thought stopped her cold. She’d done nothing but think about her sister ever since she’d seen that birthmark. Even though she hadn’t been sure until recently that she truly did exist, she had wondered who her sister was and what kind of life she’d had. This man would have been very difficult to live with. If her sister wasn’t a cold bitch, Tijan would be surprised.

  A middle-aged woman entered and set down a tray with a pitcher of water, a tea pot and gold embossed glasses and cups.

  “Tarin. So nice to see you. I’m glad to see you’ve come to visit your father. You should be visiting more often.”

  “Thank you, Mary.”

  It sounded like his voice softened a bit but regardless Tijan felt like a kid who had just been chastised. She smiled weakly at the woman as she turned and walked out. Not sure what to do, Tijan turned her attention to the coffee table. It was incredible. It had to have been handcrafted. Tijan reached out to touch the carved animals only to realize that it wasn’t carved into the top but was the base instead.

  “It is stunning, isn’t it? I had it commissioned last year. The couple that made it took six months to craft it. If you look closely, you’ll see the eagle but within its wings you’ll see a bear, an owl, three wolves and several other animals.” Her father sat in one of the chairs opposite to her.

  Tijan kept her focus on the coffee table. She loved it. The craftsmen were brilliant. They’d taken an old tree, carved a number of animals into it and then put a glass over top of them. It all looked so real. It was the only thing in the office that she could relate to.

  Wouldn’t her sister know all this?

  “Alright. I know you’re mad but that’s too bad. I needed to see you and I’m tired of making requests.”

  “Oh?”

  “Something is different about you Tarin. I’m not sure I like it.”

  “You mean like growing my hair out?”

  “Actually, that might work to your benefit. You only kept it short to annoy me. Glad to see you’re coming around.”

  Tijan finally looked him in the eye, realizing she’d been avoiding it because she hadn’t wanted him to discover that she wasn’t who he thought she was. It didn’t matter, however, as she realized he wasn’t really seeing her. He was looking at her but saw the child that he was hell-bent on controlling and bending to do his bidding. He had no clue that she wasn’t the well-trained daughter he’d been expecting. This whole thing was making her itch with curiosity but she knew she had to play this game carefully. Her mom had always told her that her father was a bad man—though, admittedly, she’d also said he’d died. Tijan was pretty sure she understood why her mom had said that and had wanted nothing to do with him. He was cold and calculating by her estimation and she’d known him all of two minutes. But why had her mom left Tarin to grow up with him? And why didn’t he know about her?

  Chapter 19

  Tijan tried to sit patiently but she’d had enough. She jumped to her feet but that was enough for the two bodyguards to puff out their chests and stand as though ready to tackle her. Smiling sickly, she sank back onto the chair. It was just as well. The office was beautiful and well-built and as far as she could see, only had two exits. And her father’s friends were standing in front of each of them.

  Her father who had just up and left without an explanation, returned. The two men each exited the doors they’d been standing in front of, although Tijan was sure they hadn’t gone far.

  “What do you want, Dad?”

  “Don’t be smart with me. We agreed on Father. That will do. And of course, in public, I’m Mr. Madsen. I really shouldn’t have to remind you, Tarin. Your games of rebellion can stop now. You showed me how independent you could be. Marrying a rich playboy and having his child was one thing but then to be a single mom... If that wasn’t bad enough, then shacking up with a computer geek. I really don’t know where I went wrong with you. I sent you to the best schools. That boarding school should have straightened you out but that was obviously money not well spent. And I know you’re still upset about my not telling you about your half-sister but I didn’t think it was any of your business. And if your best friend Bobby had kept her mouth shut you’d have never known.”

  What?

  Tijan thought her head was going to explode. Not only did she have a twin she hadn’t thought was alive but she now had a niece or nephew and a half-sister? Were there more relatives she didn’t know about?

  “Yeah. Well, you have to admit it’s all pretty crazy. I mean how do you hide a half-sister from me.”

  “I really don’t have to explain myself to you. You so wanted Bobby to go away to boarding school with you and the only way she could afford to go was if I paid. So her mom and I came to an agreement but then I met Bobby’s sister. She seduced me. And really only wanted money. She got pregnant, her mom got the kid, she died, so really there was nothing to tell.”

  Tijan wasn’t sure if th
e horror showed in her eyes but she quickly looked away. She reached for the pitcher and poured herself a glass of water. She took a sip, trying to still her shaky nerves. Since she’d been brought to see her father she was sure that she’d be safe, but now she wasn’t so sure. She’d never heard anyone talk so crazy or so matter-of-factly about treating others so heinously.

  Was it her half-sister who had died? Or her half-sister’s mom?

  “So you brought me here because?” Her question was met with silence. He didn’t even give her the courtesy to look at her or even acknowledge she’d said something. If he was thinking she’d already have answers about the winery, he had more faith in her than she did.

  Her mind filled with all kinds of questions but none that she could ask. Her father cleared his throat. When she looked at him, he was staring pointedly at her and then the coffee table. She realized he’d been expecting her to pour him a glass of water. Since she’d already filled hers, her first instinct was to toss hers onto his very expensive silk suit.

  “Sure. I’d love to be your maid.” Curiosity was all that was keeping her sitting there. Well, that and the two men she was sure weren’t far beyond the closed door.

  “Really Tarin, do you have to turn everything into a fight? I thought that since your ordeal with that rich gentleman, who I heard through the grapevine and not from my own daughter, took you from that wedding, then tried to kill you and take your son, might have curbed your sharp tongue. I was rather surprised that you were invited to Dorothea Lindell’s granddaughter’s wedding and didn’t tell me.”

  He said your son, not my grandson. Tijan knew that Dorothea Lindell was the owner of Caspian Winery and a very wealthy woman. Yet her father was offended because Tarin attended and didn’t tell him, but not that she or her son had been taken and almost killed? Who was this self-centered maniacal man? Tijan had dealt with a lot of ornery, miserable guys but no one even came close to this man, whom she was supposed to call dad. Or rather father.

  It was all very puzzling to Tijan. Her mind kept going to her sister and what living with this person must have been like. She couldn’t even imagine it. She just prayed her sister wasn’t anything like him, though the odds of that probably weren’t very good. Her hopes of having a normal sibling that she could be close to were slowly being flushed down the toilet. She didn’t want to dislike her sister before even meeting her but it really wasn’t looking good.

  But then there was the bright side. She was an aunt. She’d always loved kids even though she really hadn’t had much to do with any. But now she had her very own little relative she could spoil. She hoped.

  She’d been so focused on all that she’d learned that she hadn’t been paying attention to what she was doing. Water ran freely across the coffee table and dripped off the side. The glass she’d been pouring water into was overflowing. This time when she looked at her father, it was with trepidation. Without a word, his expression let her know that he was disgusted by her clumsiness and told her she’d done something very stupid. But that didn’t stop him from also telling her.

  His heavy sigh couldn’t have been filled with more disappointment if he’d tried. “What have you done with all of those lessons you were taught? Can you please watch what you’re doing?” He pulled out his cell and pressed a button. A few seconds later the same woman entered and quickly and efficiently cleaned the mess. With only a cursory but very telling disbelief look at Tijan, she left.

  The more Tijan experienced, the more she realized that her sister might be a robot.

  “Let’s forget all the niceties. This is a waste of time. I’m sure you haven’t found out much information for me about the winery. That’s not really what this is about. I still want you to look into that. I expect information, Tarin. You’ve done your rebelling. Now that you have a son who is my heir, it’s time for you to start acting like that matters. I’d hate to have to claim that you’re an unfit mother.” He stared hard at her before saying, “I’ve found you a husband.”

  In a moment of defiance that she had no idea where it came from, she reached in her pocket and pulled out an elastic band she always carried and pulled her hair back into a tight bun at the back. His lips thinned as he stared at her but then he got up and went to his desk. He sat down and turned his attention to his computer. She felt as though she’d been scolded and dismissed. Her two bodyguards appeared and escorted her to the car.

  “Lower the window please, it’s not like I’m going anywhere.” Tijan stuck her head out the window, needing the fresh air, even if smog filled, to wake her up. All that she’d just learned couldn’t be true. That couldn’t be her father. He could not be the man who sired her. It made her almost panic to think what her sister must be like. She had to talk to her. She had to tell her that her father was nuts.

  Chapter 20

  August’s head whipped around and if a car hadn’t honked, he might have driven right into another one. What was Tarin doing in the back of a limo, leaving C-Lite Hotels? And just before he was going there for an interview?

  Everything about being hired at Caspian had been odd but now his gut was telling him that something was really off. Was he a pawn in some game they were playing?

  Curious as to what he could find out, he headed to the top floor.

  “I have an interview for head mechanic.” He approached the glass partitioned area behind which a receptionist sat. No one was getting through to the offices without some heavy artillery; the elegant lobby dripped money but the large heavily plated window was out of place. It gave him the feeling that not many people ever ventured up there.

  The middle-aged woman behind the desk smiled at him. “August, right?”

  “Yes.”

  She clicked a button and opened a door to the left of her desk. “Follow me.” She took him down a short hallway and into a large boardroom. There was no one there.

  “He’ll be just a minute. There’s water and glasses on the sideboard. Help yourself,” she added as she left.

  He sat at the far side of the table so he could see who came in. After a good five minutes, he was about to get up when a middle-aged man entered.

  “You’ve been a mechanic for several years. You owned a business. Why did you sell?”

  August felt like loosening the tie he was wearing but refrained. He hadn’t expected such a formal interview to be a mechanic but Tarin had insisted he dress up. What really surprised him though was that it was James Madsen himself who was interviewing him. The man hadn’t even sat down and was already firing questions and insults at him.

  “I sold because my mom became very ill. I wanted to spend as much time with her as possible.”

  “Did she die?” The man asked as though he was wondering if the sun was shining.

  “She did.”

  “And then you had nothing. That was a big mistake. You never let life get in the way of business. I hope you’re a better mechanic than that.”

  August nodded, working hard to keep his face from twisting into disgust.

  James stared at August for several moments before sitting at the opposite end of the table, leaving over twenty feet between them. It was so ridiculous that August was sure it was another intimidation tactic. The real question was where Tarin played into all this.

  “I’m very good in business and as a mechanic. I also know how to supervise. So, let’s cut the bull, what do you really want? There’s no way this interview is just for a head mechanic. Or YOU wouldn’t be interviewing me.”

  The guy never changed his blank facial expression. He just watched closely. It was one of those moments that August almost wished there had been an old clock on the wall that was ticking loudly for it would have been preferable to the harsh silence. August stared back at him.

  The man coughed a harsh short bark. August winced as it sounded painful. But other than pressing his fist against his chest for a moment, he seemed to ignore it.

  “The position, for your information, is for Manager of my Transpo
rtation Department, not head mechanic. So, it would be me interviewing you. I make the decisions here as to who goes into any position of importance. I’m in charge, which means you’d answer to me. I know that Dale Winters is very happy with the business you sold him. He said you had built a well-respected and well-run business. The staff spoke highly of you as a boss and as a mechanic. I’ve talked with six references and they all say the same. I’m always suspicious if someone doesn’t have any dark horses in their pasture.”

  “I’m sure I have a few but they are none of your business. Your job was posted as looking for Head Mechanic. And that’s what I applied for. I’m assuming this position would be overseeing all the transportation at all ten of your hotels, from mechanics to drivers to purchasing of vehicles. I haven’t done all of that but I do know how to run a good business, which you’ve already learned. I find it interesting that you’ve already checked up on me. Doesn’t that happen after you’re sure you want to hire someone? Or am I the only sucker who applied?”

  James’ face had turned a bit ashen, which left August feeling even worse. Had he said something he shouldn’t have or was the man unwell? Without a word James got up, put his hand on his chair for a moment as though to steady himself and then left.

  August sat there a bit stunned and feeling a bit guilty as he knew that Guy and Graham were counting on him as well as Tarin. But what had she been doing there? Everything about his life was off kilter and this was just adding to it. He had so many questions; ones he needed to get some straight answers to. He’d had enough of this game.

  Had Tarin been the one to tell her father all about him? Why would she have done that? A pressure settled in the middle of his chest.

  He poured himself a glass of water while he loosened his tie. The view from the window caught his attention. Twenty stories up gave an amazing view of the city, but his mind was so busy with questions, he barely noticed. Knowing it was time to leave, he walked out the way he’d come in. When he reached the hallway though, it was empty except for a closed door that he assumed led to offices. Curious and wanting to see if he could find something, he opened it. There was a long hallway with doors on either side. He walked a few feet but stopped when he heard loud voices.