by M Brereton
Sam smiled back, “So am I. I’m a Federal Agent and I’m on the Presidential detail with Noah’s help your ex-husband is about to become Sheriff of a paper bag.”
“He is duly elected. You can’t fire him!”
“Once his electors get a good look at you, we can.”
“I never said I was helping you!”
“Good, because I don’t need your help. You’re helping yourself and your kids.”
“I have nowhere to go,” Skylar whispered.
“I have an empty house in DC. You can stay there until you figure something out and I’m sure Eva will help you with whatever you need.”
“I don’t wanna be mooching off people.”
“Then get a job.”
“You make it sound so easy.”
“Well it isn’t at first, but after a while, it gets easier.”
“What about the kids? I’ll be taking them away from their father!”
“Trust me it’s the best thing you can do for them.”
“You don’t have kids. What do you know?”
“I know I was much happier watching my mother smile than watching her get beat up.” Sam informed her softly.
Skylar had no more excuses after that.
* * *
The next morning Eva sat in the rocking chair on the front porch more at peace than she ever felt until her expected guest arrived.
She stood slowly and walked down the steps into the front yard and watched as the man got out of the Sheriff car.
“Declan Boise?”
“Yeah…” The man responded carefully as he appraised Eva. Liking what he saw, he remarked “You look familiar, beautiful, but I can’t recall the name…”
“These are for you. She asks for nothing, but full custody and supervised visits can be negotiated.”
Declan glanced at the document and cursed, “What the fuck is this?”
“Divorce and custody papers” Eva informed him calmly.
“I ain’t signing shit!” Declan declared tossing the documents away then ignoring Eva he shouted. “Sky get your lazy ass out here. Breakfast is late as is.”
“You won’t starve,” Eva remarked with a pointed look at his beer belly.
“Fuck you, bitch!” Declan told her.
“I’m already married, and I don’t think he likes people calling me bitch.” Eva said calmly as Noah stepped onto the porch.
Pointing at Noah, Declan asked, “This is your woman. She don’t know her place.”
“Maybe you should explain to her,” Noah smirked.
“Really?” Declan smiled as he told Noah, “I like you. You alright.” Turning back to Eva he began “Now listen…”
His words died as her fist connected with his throat.
“Forgot to mention,” Noah remarked causally “Two things – she doesn’t like being told what to do and she really hates…” Declan screamed as Eva stepped on his balls. “…being called a bitch.”
“Are you right-handed or left-handed?” Eva asked coldly.
“Wh…at?” Declan groaned.
“You pointed with the right, I’m guessing righty.” Eva muttered as she fractured his left hand. Then strode over to the dumped documents as he screamed in pain and dust them off. She called Noah over to help her sit Declan up as she asked once more, “I need you to sign here, here and here and initial here and here.” After signing where she told him, Eva inspected the documents and smiled. “Thank you for your cooperation Mr Boise, do have a lovely day.” And Noah let him collapse in the dirt once more.
“Sam, go with Skylar and get her kids. If she wants anything from home let her get that too then bring her back here.”
“Yes, ma’am!” Sam saluted as he rushed to do her bidding.
“I’d go myself” Eva muttered aloud, “but I don’t think Mr Boise would survive the trip. You can drive, can’t you?” She asked Declan and he nodded, “Good, then stop whining like a little bitch and get off my family’s land!” Eva turned on her heel and walked back up to the porch and resumed her seat in the rocker.
“This ain’t over!” Declan growled as he made his way to his car. “Next time I see you bitch I’m gonna fuck up you and your man! Hey!” Declan shouted as he was slammed into his car and handcuffs placed on his wrists. “Who are you? I’m the Sheriff! You can’t arrest me!”
“I can,” Hector informed him, “You just threatened the President of the United States. That’s treason.”
“Wait…what?” Declan asked, confused.
“And the shorty that kicked your ass. The First Lady.” Granger informed him.
“You’re all lying!” Declan said, and all the Agents automatically flashed their badges. “Oh fuck!”
“Best part – You get no trial!” Hector informed him.
“Just erased,” Granger added.
25
A New Enemy?
“I think I’m gonna like country living,” Noah remarked as he laid his head on Eva’s lap. The Decker’s were having a cookout to welcome their new niece and Skylar’s recent divorce.
“You would.” Eva remarked dryly, “Getting a beer gut, going fishing, barbecuing. You’d love this life.”
“The little woman, barefoot and pregnant, bringing me beer,” Noah teased, “Good times.”
“Does it bother you that much?” Eva asked, “Not having any more children.”
“No!” Noah assured her, “I was mad because you didn’t ask me, but not why you did it. Besides you’re rich, we could adopt.” Noah jokes.
“You want more babies,” Eva whispered.
“I like having babies with you, that’s all.” Noah clarified, “You’re a great mom, Eva. You should have more babies.”
“We can reverse it. Or have artificial insemination if you want. We can have more.”
“Do you want more?”
Eva was silent for a moment then she whispered, “No. I’m sorry, but I just never envisioned myself with a brood of kids. Three is plenty, but if you want, I can try…”
“Three makes you happy. We stop at three. End of.” Noah declared, “We are about making you happy, no more sacrificing.”
“Making babies with you makes me very happy,” Eva stressed and used her wide brim hat to shield them from prying eyes as she kissed him.
* * *
“He never looked at me like that,” Skylar remarked as she watched them.
Sam glanced in Noah’s and Eva’s direction then sipped his beer saying, “You get used to those two. One minute they’re at each other’s throats, the next you’re praying they keep it PG-13.”
“They fight!” Skylar asked in shock.
“Literally, some days.” Sam answered offhandedly then caught her look and corrected quickly “They play fight. Eva’s trained. It usually ends in the bedroom. You don’t have to worry about that sorta thing with them.”
“Oh,” Skylar responded, relaxing as she watched Eva feed Noah, “They’re so normal.”
“For President and First Lady. Yeah! For ordinary folks, no!” Sam pointed out, “He’s an insane workaholic that never knew or cared about anything other than a case and she’s …well, I haven’t quite pinned down what she is, but she isn’t what she seems to be and like you she had men hit her a couple of times. She just fights back now. Together for some strange reason, they work.”
Skylar watched them for a while and Sam whispered, “You can have that too you know.”
“I’m not letting another man near me!” Skyler declared, turning away, “Knowing my luck, I might just end up with another Declan!”
“Not if you looked in the right places,” Sam pointed out as he watched her intently. Even through her bruises, he could see she was beautiful. With a little TLC, she might even outshine Eva.
Skylar blushed and Sam smiled as Eva remarked to Noah, “In a year, I’m going to be planning Sam’s wedding.”
Looking in Sam’s direction Noah remarked, “Fixing him up with your newly divorced cousin.”
“I don’t have to,” Eva countered, “Just look at them. He’ll be good to her too.”
“Sam’s a good guy.”
“I want to bring the children to meet everybody.” Eva gushed while watching around, “I have so many cousins and an aunt and uncle and a grandmother. She keeps calling me Suzie though…What was my mother thinking? Leaving her family for him?”
“She loved him I guess.”
“He didn’t love her. He wanted her but didn’t love her. If he did, he would’ve left her here where she was safe and married her when he had the chance.”
“I wonder what his real name is.” Noah mused. “Terrance definitely, but what was his last name? He gave you Green and told the Decker’s his last name was Green but used Welker and Fort. I’ll follow Green and see where that leads. Maybe we’ll be able to get some answers.”
“You don’t have to do anything anymore, Noah. This is enough.” Eva said, encompassing her new family.
“Let’s be honest here, Eva,” Noah stated, sitting up. “Your father left more questions than answers. Sooner or later, you’ll want answers.”
“I have some already.” Eva muttered, “Rosalind gave me all my mother’s letters. I haven’t mustered up the courage to read them yet though.”
“Don’t worry I’ll be right there when you do,” Noah promised.
Eva smiled then looked around at her assembled family as Noah resumed his position on her lap. She absently stroked his hair as she took in the scene. Everything was so normal here. Children playing, her uncle barbecuing, couples paired off and the other women chatting and keeping an eye on everybody. Daddy should’ve just brought her here; she would’ve had a nice normal life.
Then she glanced down at Noah with his eyes closed in her lap. If her father had brought her here. She would’ve never met Noah. And knowing her father he would’ve arranged her marriage to Antonio, and she would’ve married him without a murmur. She would’ve been trapped for the rest of her life with no way out. Noah was right, her father had done what was best for her. He gave her the strength to survive in this world and not be naïve like her mother.
Her hand stilled with her next thought - she killed him. Why didn’t she see this earlier? Why was he so against Noah? Noah would never be a puppet, that’s why. And Daddy was all about control. But so was Noah. Even in his alter ego Evan Fort, they rubbed each other the wrong way. Daddy wanted to control him, and Noah quite frankly would’ve told him to go fuck himself. If he was alive, she would’ve been in a constant power battle between them.
Why did he make her choose? Why couldn’t he just let her be happy? Without his input, she would be safe as Noah’s wife. All he had to do was leave them be. But Daddy was always greedy, wanting more, he saw a chance for absolute power and went with it. If he’d just given it all up – he should’ve done something!
“You’re yanking my hair out and we’re not having sex. What is it?”
Eva frowned, “Thinking about my father.”
“That will piss anyone off. What about?”
She shook her head and sighed, “He should’ve just disappeared after my mother died…”
“What did he do after your mother died?”
“What do you mean?”
“I’m trying to piece this together…Simon said, ‘he was a shiftless loser’ when he met your mother. No money. No prospects, but by the time you were three he was wealthy. According to Simon he never married your mother and at some point, she dies alone. Where does all his wealth come from? And why did he leave her alone?”
“Maybe I should read her letters and see what she says.”
“Are you okay with doing that now?” Noah asked as he stood.
Eva shrugged, “It has to be done sometime. And you’re right, my father has more questions than answers.”
“Let’s go then!” Noah said as he helped her up.
They made their excuses and went inside into the guest bedroom. Eva pulled out a hand-decorated box from the drawer and took out the ribbon-wrapped contents.
“The letters stopped when I was a year and ten months old,” Eva informed him then handed him the final letter to read.
Noah scanned the contents and said, “They had a fight. She asked him to run with her, but he refused.”
“Run? Run from what?” Eva asked, peering over his shoulder.
“It doesn’t say.” Noah said, “but it was bad because she mentioned he looked afraid. And I don’t think he was rich at this point because she said, ‘he thinks I need him to have money to love him’.”
“What was my mother running from then?”
“Who killed her?” Noah asked, “Records say home invasion, but I think it’s more than that if she was running.”
“And it wasn’t from Daddy because she asked him to run too.”
“Who was your father working for at that point?”
Eva shrugged, “I don’t know. He never said. He just promised the people that killed my mother were dead. He said it a lot.”
“Most likely he killed them if he was so sure they’re dead,” Noah stated as he began to pace. “He was a nobody when he did it too and was rich and powerful after. That could only mean whoever he killed was rich and powerful. Powerful enough to scare him into leaving the woman he loved and his kid. Come to think of it, Cooper’s Dad did the same thing, and he was running from the mafia.”
“That means Daddy killed a mafia boss and took over his business.”
“I don’t think he meant for that to happen…” Noah began as he pulled out his cell. “Alex, I need a favor. Yeah, I know I still owe for the last favor, just put it on my tab…I need you to go to the archives and find out who were the mafia bosses that were killed thirty-five years ago. I’m just following up on something…I know it’s not my job anymore, Alex! Just do this for me okay! Alright, thanks.”
“So, we find out who the boss is. What does that do?”
“It will give us a home base he started from. We can follow the trail, learn about his life…Find out where he hid his money and transactions.”
“I don’t want his money!”
“Neither do I, but it went somewhere, and someone has his territory and it’s not the Marchesi,” Noah informed her.
“A new player?”
“From what Alex told me, I don’t think he’s new and whoever he is he’s keeping low key.”
“Maybe I should…”
“No!” Noah ordered. “This one doesn’t look like he’s doing business anyway, but the bureau is keeping an eye out.”
“Why didn’t you tell me this before?”
“In the interest of keeping you out of that life, I didn’t think it was necessary.”
“Necessary! I should decide what’s necessary! Suppose this person knows about me!”
“Then the world would’ve…”
“Not with these people. There is always another purpose to their movements. I have to know who this player is.” Eva decided.
“Eva just leave it be…”
Eva shook her head “Just observation I promise.”
26
Self Restraint
It never ends, it seems, Eva thought, as she met with Patricia. She was now attached to Eva’s detail upon her return and Patricia wasn’t pleased with the downgrade either, but kept her peace in Eva’s presence. She seemed to think getting in Eva’s good graces would get her a place in Noah’s entourage, but why would she put a woman who practically drools when he was around, near him? The girl obviously thought she was stupid.
Eva listened to her drone on about her achievements, complaining about losing her position just because her aunt was in remission. She asked for more duties besides setting places and making coffee, but Eva explained it was all she had since Kate did everything else. Then she slyly suggested maybe there was more to do on the President’s detail. This girl must really think she’s a moron.
Noah strode in - without knocking – a habit that was seriously beginning to
piss her off and made a wide berth around Patricia to approach her with a kiss.
Eva leaned away saying, “When are you going to learn to knock?”
“When are you going to take that stick out your ass?” Noah rebutted automatically, snatching a grape from the fruit bowl on her desk.
Patricia laughed, and Eva glared her into silence as she responded in Italian, “Since the stick is up there, you know you will never be.”
“Damn it, Eva! Why do you have to go there?” Noah griped, responding in kind.
“Why did you?”
“I’m sorry, okay.”
“No, you’re not, not yet anyway.” She muttered.
“I am an ass who says stupid things. Forgive me, Baby.” Noah smirked then kissed the top of her head. “I’m all for being punished, you know that don’t you?” he teased as he kissed her cheek. “You can take a break now, Patricia, thank you,” Noah said, returning to English, dismissing her.
“Is there anything else you need Ma…” Patricia.
“Does it look like she needs anything?” Noah interrupted between kisses.
“I’m just trying to ensure I’ve met all her needs.”
“Trust me, this is one need you can’t fulfill.”
“Noah!” Eva chastised swatting him away and he grinned in that way she knew he wasn’t done with her. Then turned his Agent gaze on Patricia. Before he could say something that Wayland would probably have to fix, Eva told her, “That will be all Patricia.”
“Have a good day, ma’am,” Patricia replied then gave Noah a pleading look of adoration, but he had already returned his focus to Eva who saw the way Patricia was looking at her husband.
“Is there something else you need, Patricia?” Eva asked as she shoved away Noah’s busy hands.
“No, Ma’am.” Patricia blushed as she realized she was caught staring.
“Then have a good day.” Eva intoned, staring her down until she got the message.
Patricia practically ran out the door after that. Once the door closed behind her Eva said dryly, “You can stop now she’s gone.”