by Amy Reece
When her father called a few minutes later to invite her to lunch, she accepted with alacrity and clicked the television off. She rushed back to her bedroom to change into real clothes and apply a little makeup.
Her dad arrived twenty minutes later. “Let me look at you.” Big Tony pulled back from his giant bear hug and framed her face in his large palms. “You’re still pale.”
“I feel fine, Dad, really. I’m glad to get out of the house for a little while, though. Thanks for springing me. Cabin fever was starting to set in.”
He drove them to Le Peep, one of her favorite lunch spots. He waited until the waitress had delivered their drinks. “How are things with Mac?”
She choked on her tea slightly. Great, Dad. Really great. We made love half the night. “Good.” She couldn’t quite meet his gaze. “He’s been amazing through all this.”
He nodded. “I’m impressed with him, Izzy. He seems like a good man.”
“He is, Dad. He’s so patient with Janey.” She sipped her tea for a long moment. “I’m so sorry about all of this. I know you and Mom must be so disappointed in me.”
He stood and pulled her from her seat into his arms. “Not even a little bit, sweetheart. Don’t ever think that. Your mother and I are extremely proud of you and the life you’ve made for Janey. You’ve given us the best granddaughter in the whole world, you know.”
She wiped her suddenly wet eyes as she returned to her seat. “Thanks.” She wasn’t sure she totally believed him, though. How could they not have been disappointed when she’d told them she was pregnant, unwed, and refused to divulge the identity of the baby’s father?
As if he’d read her mind, he continued. “Your mother and I never worried about you, Izzy. Not really. You were so matter-of-fact when you announced your pregnancy, at a family dinner, no less.” He chuckled as he remembered. “Sure, we were a bit shocked, but never disappointed. I was surprised to find out Brent wasn’t the father; I figured he had refused to step up and take responsibility and you were covering for him.”
She laughed softly and shook her head. “Hugh wouldn’t shut up about it, so I finally agreed to have a paternity test done. He forced Brent to do it.”
“Hugh’s always been so protective of you. Well, Mac doesn’t need a paternity test; Janey looks so much like him it’s scary.” He was silent as the waitress placed their food in front of them. “I’m glad he’s been staying with you, Izzy. Is there any chance the arrangement might become more permanent?”
She shrugged. “It’s awfully soon to be thinking about that yet. Who knows? Once the shiny newness wears off, he might get sick of the whole fatherhood bit. I don’t want him to end up feeling trapped or anything.”
Tony took a bite of his sandwich and chewed thoughtfully. “Hmm. I thought you were a smart woman, Isabelle, but now I’m not so sure.”
Uh oh. He only called her Isabelle when she was in trouble. “I’m sorry? Why—”
“If you could see what I see, you wouldn’t worry about him feeling trapped. I’ve never seen a man so happy with his circumstances as Mac. The way he looks at you and Janey—well, it’s special. And it doesn’t come along every day, so I highly recommend telling your self-doubt or whatever it is to go straight to hell. Then grab on to what’s right in front of your face and never let go.” He patted her hand on the table top. “But that’s just my opinion.”
***
Mac
He was afraid Darius would take one look at him and burst out laughing, then flash him a thumb’s up. He could feel the silly, self-satisfied grin on his face, but couldn’t seem to stop it as he thought about the previous night. God, it was amazing. She was amazing. It had been even better than the last time they’d made love—sobriety was surely a large part of that. But he knew it was mainly due to the fact that he knew and loved the woman in bed with him. Yes, it was the end of a long, celibate period in his life—thank God—but he was finding love made sex even better. And he could hardly wait to see if it kept getting better.
“What are you smiling about—ohhhh.” Darius laughed and punched Mac on the arm. “You dog! Good for you!”
Shit. I’ve got to work on my poker face. “Shut up. I’m not saying anything.”
“You don’t have to.”
“Never mind. Hey, have you heard from Chris or Finn yet about the suspect APD picked up yesterday?” He figured his best bet was to change the subject.
“Not a thing. Why don’t you give her a call?” Darius stood, mug in hand. “I’m gonna get a refill.”
Mac dialed the number Chris had given him the day before.
“Mac, we’ve got a problem,” she said in greeting. “The suspect, a Donald Maldonado, was found dead this morning at the Bernalillo County Detention Center. He didn’t return to his cell after breakfast and was later found dead in a bathroom stall, his throat cut.”
“Well, fuck. Did they get anything out of him during the initial interview yesterday?”
“Not a thing. He lawyered up almost immediately. Listen, we got the warrant to arrest Lyon and search the premises. It’s going to happen in about an hour. Do you and Darius want to be in on it?”
“Definitely. We’ll meet you at your precinct.”
***
They followed Chris and Finn to the office of Lyon Millwork. They’d brought a small team of state police officers with them to execute the search warrant while they arrested Lyon.
“I don’t expect any excitement today, but we appreciate you lending us the support of Homeland Security,” Chris said as she fastened her body armor.
“No problem. I wanted to be in on this,” Mac said.
“And I go where he goes,” Darius added.
Finn checked his sidearm and holstered it. “Let’s do this.”
They all entered the building together, then Chris sent her team to stand watch in the stairwell until she radioed them. The whole building belonged to Lyon Millwork, with the second floor devoted to offices and the first floor a spacious workshop area that smelled of sawdust. The loud buzz of machinery drowned out any possibility of last minute instructions, but once upstairs with the door closed, it was much quieter. They paused to collect themselves and prep their weapons, then entered the office. The receptionist glanced up and did a double-take as she saw four police officers with body armor enter.
“Good afternoon. I’m Lieutenant DeLuca and this is Lieutenant Hart. We’re with the state police and we need to talk to George Lyon,” Finn stated. They’d called ahead to make sure he was there.
“O-of course,” the receptionist stammered as she picked up the receiver of her desk phone. “May I ask what this is about?”
“Just tell him the police need to speak with him,” Chris said with a tight smile.
Within thirty seconds, George Lyon appeared from his office. He was a large man, casually dressed in jeans and a western-style shirt. He had obviously been muscular and fit in his youth, but now his gut was straining against his buttons and overhanging a large belt buckle. “What’s this about?”
“George Lyon? We have a warrant for your arrest. We also have a warrant to search the premises.” Chris showed him the warrants while Finn recited his Miranda rights.
“What the fuck is this about?” He wadded the warrants into a ball and dropped them. “I want a lawyer! Do you hear me? I demand to call my lawyer! What are the charges?”
“Oh, we’ll get into all of that down at the precinct, Mr. Lyon. You’re welcome to have your lawyer meet us there. I’m sure your secretary can call for you,” Finn said as Chris handcuffed the man.
“Goddammit! Call my lawyer, Gina.”
Mac could still hear him hollering as Chris escorted him out the door and down the hall. He turned to the receptionist with an apologetic smile. “Sorry about all this. You can have Mr. Lyon’s attorney meet him at the state police precinct on Copper Avenue.”
She met his gaze with a sardonic smile. “I’ll be sure to tell him. When I get around to calling him
.”
Mac raised his eyebrows, surprised, then nodded as he ushered the rest of the state police team inside the office. He gestured to the warrant Chris had set on the woman’s desk. “You can read over everything in that warrant they’re allowed to search. You don’t have to help them, but please stay out of their way.”
She smiled as she stood. “Well, I don’t work here anymore, Officer…?”
“MacNeil, ma’am.”
She retrieved her bag from a desk drawer and walked to the door. “Under the circumstances, Officer MacNeil, I don’t think I need to give two weeks’ notice.” She tossed him a set of keys. “Lock up when you’re finished. Or not. I really don’t care.” She turned back with her hand on the knob. “George Lyon is a bigoted asshole. I have no idea what he did, but I hope you put him away for a long time.”
Darius whistled as she sauntered away. “That is one pissed-off secretary.”
Mac chuckled. “I kinda like her. Let’s see what goodies we can find in Lyon’s files.” They had told Chris and Finn they would oversee the search and meet them back at the precinct to catch up on what, if anything, Lyon said. Two hours later, the uniformed officers had finished and loaded at least ten boxes into their van. Mac locked the office with the keys Gina had given him and followed Darius downstairs to the workshop area to find the mill supervisor.
Back at the precinct, Mac and Darius watched through the one-way mirror into the interview room as Chris and Finn questioned Lyon. Darius reached to press the speaker button so they could hear.
“Nothing, Mr. Lyon? Your company has donated over two hundred thousand dollars this year alone to a known domestic terror organization and you have nothing to say?” Chris asked.
“Those were tax deductible donations made to a 403b charitable organization. I think you’ll find my company was well within the law, Detective.” He had replaced his earlier anger and bluster with a cool, calculated expression, complete with an irritating smirk.
“Homeland Security disagrees, Mr. Lyon,” Finn added. “They seem to think you’re supporting terrorism here in New Mexico.”
“Well, I think I’ll wait until my lawyer arrives to say anything else.” He crossed his arms and smiled coldly at the detectives.
Finn and Chris asked a few more questions, but Lyon remained silent, so they had him taken to a cell while they stepped out of the interview room.
“He’s not talking,” Finn said.
“We noticed. Hopefully you’ll get enough evidence from the boxes we brought back from his office to charge him. You guys will check to see if there’s any evidence he hired the driver of the car that hit Izzy, won’t you?” Mac asked.
“Of course.” Chris smiled sympathetically and led them to the break room. “How’s she feeling today?”
“I heard she’s feeling really good,” Darius said with a chuckle.
Mac punched him—hard—on the upper arm as Finn narrowed his eyes at both of them.
“That’s my sister you’re talking about. I gotta tell you, MacNeil, I’m not crazy about the thought of you bragging to your partner about sleeping with her.” Finn stepped close to Mac, threat oozing out of every pore.
“I didn’t—”
“Whoa! Dial it down!” Darius slid between the two angry men. “My fault! Sorry! I was way out of line. Mac didn’t brag or say anything.”
“Then how’d you know? What was with your stupid-ass comment about her ‘feeling really good’?” Finn’s jaw flexed as he stared Darius down.
“Uh, well, he just had a…well, kind of a shit-eating grin when he came to work this morning…” His words faded as he realized he wasn’t making it any better.
Finn rounded again on Mac. “She has a concussion, you ass!”
Mac scrubbed his hands over his face, unsure how to deal with an angry brother.
Chris pulled her partner away. “Calm down! Jesus, Finn! Izzy is a grown woman and can sleep with her boyfriend if she wants. She certainly wouldn’t appreciate your interference.”
He ignored her and pushed his way back to Mac. “If you hurt her—or Janey—I will bury you, MacNeil.”
“I wouldn’t expect anything less,” Mac said. “I’m in love with your sister, and Janey is my daughter. I would never knowingly hurt either one of them. You have my word on it.”
Finn crossed his arms and frowned. “And?”
“And what?”
“Are you going to stick around this time? Are you going to marry her?”
“Finn!” Chris exploded. “That’s none of your business!”
“Yes, it is.” Finn didn’t take his eyes off Mac.
“If she’ll have me. But I haven’t asked her yet, so I’d appreciate if you kept this to yourself. For now, at least. The one thing I can tell you is: I’m staying.”
Finn stared for a long moment before finally nodding. “Good. Don’t wait too long.”
“I won’t.”
He and Darius took their leave, correctly judging that the former easy camaraderie with the detectives was at an end, at least for the time being.
Darius waited until they were seated in their car. “Dude, I’m really sorry. That was a shitty thing to say. I was way out of line.”
Mac sighed and started the engine. “It was and you were. We’ve known each other a long time, Dar, so don’t take this the wrong way, but if you ever say anything like that about Izzy again, I’ll have to kick your ass.”
Darius simply nodded. “Man, your future brother-in-law is pretty intense. Holy shit!”
“He’s actually the easy-going one. Wait ’til you meet Hugh.”
“Is he the one who tried to punch you?”
“No. That was Tony, her little brother.”
Darius shook his head. “Better you than me, bro. Kendra’s an only, thank God.”
They drove in silence, Darius no doubt relieved he’d gotten off so easy and Mac contemplating what he’d told Finn he intended to do with regard to Izzy and Janey. I’m going to marry her, if she’ll have me. Then we’ll be a family: Izzy, me, and Janey. Of course, he needed to run these ideas past Izzy and, oh, yeah, actually propose to her at some point. It was probably way too soon in their relationship to be thinking about marriage, but he thought this might count as extenuating circumstances. He wondered if he should be operating a motor vehicle with the crazy swirl of thoughts running through his head. Mac’s phone buzzed as he pulled into a parking spot at their office building. The name and picture on the screen brought a smile to his face. “Hey, Dad. What’s up?”
“Well, I know I said I couldn’t come for a visit right now because of this contract I’ve been working on, but there’s been a delay. Long story short, I packed a bag and managed to luck into a stand-by flight. I’ll be landing in Albuquerque around five this evening.”
Uh…Mac’s brain had a hard time processing what his father was saying. “That’s, um, that’s great, Dad. I’ll, uh, I’ll take off a few minutes early and be there to pick you up.” He was thrilled at the thought of a visit from his dad, but the timing was…not ideal.
“No need for that. I’ll rent a car and meet you at your place. Text me the address.”
“Sure.” He gave himself a mental shake. “Dad, this is great. I can hardly wait to see you. I’ll send you my address as soon as I hang up. I’m really glad you’re coming.” He’d called him within hours of finding out about Janey and his dad was every bit as excited as Mac thought he’d be, but was in the middle of a contract job and couldn’t get away for a few weeks.
“Will I be able to meet her tonight?”
Mac smiled. “Yeah, of course. I’ll call Izzy and let her know. Ah, Dad, you’re going to love Janey; Izzy too. I can’t wait for you to meet them.”
“Me, neither. Listen, I’ve got to run or I’ll miss my plane. See you soon, son.”
Chapter Nine
Izzy
She took a short nap after her dad dropped her off and woke feeling refreshed and almost back to normal. The headach
e was finally gone and she decided to head to the grocery store, then swing by the daycare to pick Janey up. Her phone rang as she was about to lock up.
“Hey, hon. How are you feeling?”
She smiled as he spoke, realizing the sound of his voice made her happy. “Great. I went to lunch with my dad and took a nap. My headache is gone, so I’m going to make a quick trip to the grocery store, and then I’m going to pick Janey up so you can just come straight home. Anything specific that sounds good for dinner?”
“Listen, Izzy, I’m glad you’re able to pick her up because my dad is flying in this afternoon. I’m supposed to meet him at my place.”
“Oh. Wow, Mac. That’s great. I didn’t know he was coming.”
Mac laughed. “Yeah, me neither. I invited him when I first learned about Janey, but he couldn’t come right then. He called a few minutes ago and said he was unexpectedly available and found a last-minute stand-by flight. Listen, I know the timing’s not great, but he really wants to meet Janey. Tonight, if possible.”
“Of course. I can hardly wait to meet him. Bring him for dinner. Is there anything he’s allergic to or hates?” She fished in her purse for the list she’d created earlier.
“Why don’t I take everyone out for dinner? I don’t want you to have to cook.”
“I don’t mind. Besides, I think it would be nice to be relaxed at home when Janey meets her grandfather for the first time. You’ve seen how shy she gets around new people.”
