Penance (Oak Grove Suspense Book 2)

by Reese A. Stephens

  “I fixed this house up for Shannon, it was the only thing that kept me sane for years, but I found out something that changed everything. A while ago, I was given a document stating that the twins were not biologically mine.” My mom gasps, but thankfully doesn’t interrupt. “I tried to get answers, but couldn’t find anything until the other day.” I take a deep breath before continuing. “I wasn’t their father. Shannon was having an affair for years. I don’t know why the infertility treatments we went through never worked, maybe it was me, but on the day of our last treatment she slept with someone else. They were his babies, not mine.”

  “Do you know who, Son?”

  I look up into my father’s eyes. “Grant.”

  Mom gasps again. Dad says nothing for a long while, but then in his ever-calm manner he says, “I’m sorry to hear that. You deserved better than a cheating wife and a lying business partner. He was supposed to be your friend, closer to you than a brother. He should’ve never betrayed you like that.”

  “He shouldn’t have, but it wasn’t just him. Shannon was just as much a part of all this as he was. I’m still so angry at both of them.”

  “You have every right to be. I can’t believe she’d do something like that to you. How heartless.” Mom stands and starts to pace, something we both do when we are trying to process new information, or overwhelmed. “I can’t believe her!”

  “I didn’t believe it either, until Grant confirmed it. There’s not really anything I can do about it now, they’re dead.” I snort at my bluntness. I think about Josie. I’d love to tell them she’s still alive, but I just can’t. There’s too much risk involved in that.

  “I’m really sorry, sweetheart.” Mom wraps her arms around me, hugging me tightly; it’s comforting in a way that only your mother can give.

  Sighing, I pull back. “I’ll be okay.”

  She sits back down beside my father. “You’ve stopped drinking.” My father observes.

  “Yes, after the murder … well, it just really hit me. I was going down a dangerous road. I haven’t had any since that night. I don’t want to be that type of person.”

  “I’m glad you realized what a dangerous situation you were putting yourself in. You look much better than you have in recent years. You look like you’ve put on a little weight too, you were getting so skinny.” Mothers notice everything.

  “I have put on a little, and I feel generally better, though withdrawals are pretty hard at times.”

  My parents look at me sympathetically, which makes me feel worse for my choices, but I will make it right. I won’t let alcohol or any substance control me. I understand I drank too much and though I’ve not been ready to admit that I’m an alcoholic, I have admitted that I have a problem, and I am addressing it the best I can. To me, that’s all that really matters at this point.

  “Do you need anything?”

  “No, Mom. I’m good. Thanks though, and thanks for dinner.”

  “Anytime,” she replies.

  “We should get going so you can get back to your evening,” my father interjects. “Please, let us know if you need anything, anything at all. I’m sorry we haven’t been there for you like you needed, Son.”

  “Dad, no. You did what you could. I pushed everyone away. I don’t want to do that anymore. I … I need you guys.”

  Both my parents wrap me up in a hug and my mom cries softly against me. As much as it pains me, there’s nothing I can do to erase my past, but I’m determined to not hurt my family again. No matter what happens, I will ensure they are a part of my life.

  Mom cups my face after pulling back from our hug. “I love you so much, my miracle baby. Don’t ever forget that.”

  I smile at her term of endearment. She never thought she’d be able to give birth to a child. That’s why they adopted my sisters, but I was their miracle. She reminds me of that often, but never once made my sisters feel any less special. She was the perfect mom and I broke her heart. Tears spring unbidden to my eyes. She wipes my cheeks.

  “I won’t. I’m so sorry.” I pull her to me again, squeezing her as tightly as I dare. “I’m so sorry,” I mutter again.

  “Shh, everything is going to be fine. You’ll see.”

  I nod. “I hope so.”

  My parents leave and I watch them drive off. I feel relieved that they are back in my life and that they forgive me, but at the same time, I feel a deep loneliness, an unrestrained guilt for how I’ve treated Laney. I want nothing more than to make things right with her. I just hope that when this is all over, she can forgive me.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Ryan

  “Are you sure you’re going to be okay?” I stare in the bathroom mirror at my wife as she fixes her hair while I adjust my tie.

  “Yes, I’ll be at work most of the time you’re gone. When I get off, I’ll go over to your mom’s with the kids.” She sets down her curling iron, readjusts my tie, and smooths down my shirt with her hands.

  “I hate being so far away. It was bad enough going to Brantsville, but this isn’t a forty-five minute trip, it’s three hours one way.” I’m meeting Marsh at the FBI headquarters in Northern Tennessee to present my part of the case to Marsh’s Director, Matthew Garrison.

  “You’ll be back tonight and I’ll come home. We’ll be fine, Ryan.”

  “I’ll call you as soon as I get finished.”

  She wraps her arms around my neck and kisses me deeply. “Please, stop worrying. If you promise to concentrate on your case and get home as soon as you can, I’ll leave the kids with your mom overnight so we can have some much needed alone time.”

  She kisses me again. Groaning, I pull her tightly to me. I trail kisses down her neck, pushing her robe off her shoulders, caressing her soft skin as my lips touch that spot just below her ear that drives her crazy.

  “Is that a yes?” she pants heavily.

  “I’ll make sure it is. I’ll be home as soon as I can.” Cupping her face in my hands and looking deeply into her eyes, I tell her what’s never far from my mind. “I love you.”

  “I know you do.” She winks.

  I smack her butt as she steps around me to leave the bathroom. She giggles as she runs off to the closet. I finish up in the bathroom and have a quick breakfast with my family before I’m out the door and headed to the station to pick up Jessica and Grant.

  It takes us every bit of the three hours to arrive. We’ve discussed every aspect of the case that we can in front of Grant and peppered him with more questions. He honestly doesn’t know much, but the FBI has pictures of suspects and other named associates of Lyon’s for Grant to review and hopefully identify; they also want to do their own questioning. In exchange for his cooperation, the FBI is willing to drop all charges against him, but only if he cooperates one-hundred percent, and he may have to pay back everything he’s stolen from Judson and their company. I park the car and turn in my seat to face Grant in the back.

  “If you try to escape, all deals are off and I’ll have probable cause to shoot you.” His eyes widen. “I won’t kill you, but I’ll be sure you walk with a limp the rest of your life.”

  “I won’t run. I want to help. It’s the least I can do for Jud and my family.”

  “Good, let’s go.”

  I help Grant from the car and we walk side by side into the FBI headquarters. We sign in at the front desk and attach our visitor badges, then we sit and wait for Marsh. Five minutes later, he comes around the corner with a big smile on his face.

  “Ryan!” I stand and we shake hands and give each other a slap on the back. “Good to see you.” He turns to the other two. “You must be, Detective Bailey. Please to meet you.” Jessica giggles. Of course Marsh knows her, but he’s not seen her since she was promoted to detective.

  “Assistant Director Marsh, pleasure to meet you as well.” They shake hands and Marsh winks at her.

  “How have you been, Jessica?”

  “Good. Thanks for asking.” She motions beside her. “This is
Grant McMann.” Grant is still seated, but nods his head to acknowledge Marsh.

  “Of course.” The playful mood vanishes as Marsh’s no nonsense professional manner takes over. “Why don’t we get up to the conference room so we can discuss everything privately?”

  Marsh leads us to a large room on the tenth floor of the building. “Take a seat. I’ll be right back.” Marsh leaves, shutting the door behind him.

  “This doesn’t look like what I thought it would.” Grant looks around, seemingly unimpressed.

  I chuckle. “This is real life, not a television show, but not all FBI offices are as low tech as this one, I assure you.”

  “Do you think they’ll make me stay here?”

  “Not in this building, but they do have holding cells and off-sight housing.”

  “Since I’m cooperating, will they let me be in one of the off-sight houses?”

  I shrug. “I have no idea what their plans are.”

  Marsh comes back in with a tall African-American man; he looks like he’s in his early fifties. “This is Director Matthew Garrison,” he introduces.

  I stand, as does Jessica. I shake his hand and introduce Jessica, Grant, and myself. Grant gives a cursory nod, but still seems unimpressed. The director shakes our hands and then motions towards the chairs. We all take a seat with Director Garrison at the head of the table.

  “It’s a pleasure to meet you all. Marsh has requested to take over this investigation, and since we really don’t have a firm case going at the moment, I’m giving him full control. We’ve been looking into Lyon and his partners for a while now, but we’ve never gotten anything concrete. I have a few people who have been on the case and I have someone undercover who works in the bar. I’ve called her in. She should be here shortly,” Garrison says as he looks at his watch.

  “Right now, what we’d like to do is ask Grant a few questions to see if he can fill in any gaps in our information.” Marsh grabs a binder he’d brought in with him and sets it in front of Grant. “This holds all the photos we’ve been able to compile on the case. Some have names, some don’t. Look through and tell me who you recognize.”

  Grant leans forward and opens the book, the first photo is of Lyon. “Richard Lyon.” Grant says, Marsh just nods and Grant goes back to the book. He flips the page. “Marisa Martin.”

  He taps the page of a blonde woman in her late twenties or early thirties with blue eyes. I immediately recognize the resemblance between her and my wife, which of course leads my thoughts straight to Mathis. He’s totally off the radar and that frightens me exponentially. However, that’s not what I need to be focusing on at the moment.

  “Who is she?” Marsh prompts, I retrain my thoughts to the conversation at hand.

  “I don’t know her proper title, but she was always in the gambling room. She took the money, but sometimes she and Lyon would argue a lot. She pulled a gun on him twice while I was there.”

  “What money did she take?” I ask.

  Grant rubs the back of his neck. I’m not sure if he’s frustrated or if he’s ashamed of himself, possibly both. “When you go in, you pay a playing fee, she’s the one who collects it; she also closes out at the end of the night, if you owe, or to collect your earnings. When I first started gambling, I had no idea it was illegal, they said it was an exclusive club and only certain people could get in, but then, when I lost my head, they came after me. There wasn’t any payment plan, they wanted it right then. I figured it was shady, but I didn’t think there was anything I could do about it.”

  “But you still went back?”

  He nods. “I didn’t have a choice. If I didn’t show up, they came after me.”

  “So they made you gamble again?” Marsh asks skeptically.

  Grant shakes his head. “No, not exactly. I thought I could win back what I’d lost, so I borrowed more. I won some back, but then I lost big. I got too cocky.”

  “Did they keep letting you play after that?”

  He nods, groaning he lowers his head to the table. “I kept getting myself deeper in debt, then they started tacking on interest. The debt is so bad now, I can’t pay anything. I’ve lost my house, as of the end of the month I’ll be homeless, my car, and all my savings … everything imaginable.”

  Marsh shuffles some of the papers in front of him then asks, “Why do you think they had something to do with the fire at Mr. Hardenbergh’s house?”

  Grant sits up and looks across the table at Marsh and Garrison. As Grant begins to tell them the same story he told both Judson and I, I start to see him differently. He didn’t set out to hurt anyone, he had a problem, a sickness, if you will. I couldn’t understand before why Judson, even though he was loathed to forgive him, had. Now, I understand he saw Grant as a man with an illness, he didn’t do this on purpose. He needed help and couldn’t ask for it. Now, he is trying to right those wrongs, even though for some, it’s entirely too late. Judson wanted his friend to get the help he needed, even if that meant he would live out his life in jail. I don’t know that I would feel so kindly towards him if I were Judson. I probably would have pressed as many charges as I possibly could, and been happy if he was sentenced to life in prison. Judson is a far better man than I am at the moment.

  Marsh asks a few more questions and then directs Grant back to the book. He turns several more pages before he says. “Leon Scarsbrough, he’s the muscle. He’s roughed me up plenty of times.”

  “So he’s the collector?” Marsh asks.

  Grant nods, then shrugs his shoulders. “I guess, I’m not sure. He did ask me to pay up, but I never gave him money. There was this other guy that I gave money to. He was always at the bar. He always sat in a corner and watched people. I don’t know his name.”

  “Look through there and see if you can find him.” Grant flips through the book, not stopping until he gets to the second to last page.

  “This is Adam Riven. He’s Lyon’s son. He isn’t associated with the business as far as I know. I’ve never seen him at any of the clubs or bars. Last I heard he was in college.”

  Marsh nods. “Right. We have him as Adam Lyon. Do you know where the name Riven came from?”

  “His mom’s last name. I only know this because my receptionist, Kate, is dating him. I had no idea he was Lyon’s kid until Kate mentioned it. I asked about the name, and she said his mom left Lyon before he was born and gave him her last name. He’s in med school. I think he’s doing his internship. I don’t see where he’d have time to do anything for his dad. Kate complains all the time about how much time he spends at the hospital, but I guess it’s possible.” Grant starts to ramble, but Marsh stops him.

  “We’re not interested in the son at this point. Do you recognize anyone else?”

  He turns the last page and his face pales. “That’s Hatchet.”

  Marsh nods. “Yes, Greg Norris. He’s been a person of interest for a while. Do you know why he’s called Hatchet?”

  “He’s the one they send in to kill you. He’s the one who is coming after me if I don’t come up with the money I owe. The last time Leon came to me, he told me his boss was done with threats and messing around with the lives of my family. Next time, if I didn’t have what I owed, Hatchet would kill those closest to me and not leave a dead body in the woods.”

  Anger shoots up my spine. I jump up from my chair. “You told me you didn’t know who killed Ralph. You said you had no idea who might be behind all this. You lied.”

  Grant drops his chin to his chest. “I didn’t want to say anything in front of Judson. I didn’t want him to know how far gone I was.”

  “There was plenty of time after that, you could’ve told me today in the car. Do you realize what this could do? Someone might be going for Judson right now!” I scream at him. I pull out my phone and immediately dial the station. “Synder, get two cars over to Judson’s right now. Call me when you have him.”

  “Am I arresting him, sir?”

  “No, there’s a possible death threat on
his life. Get him to the station, now.”

  “Right away, sir.”

  I hang up the phone. “You could have gotten him killed. Is there anything else you’re conveniently not telling us?”

  “I may be in a little more debt than I originally stated.”

  “How much?” Marsh asks. I can tell by his expression that he wants me to settle down.

  Grant takes a deep breath. “Half a million.”

  I shake my head. I do not understand this man at all; he’s nothing but a lying piece of garbage. I turn and walk out of the room. I need to clear my head before I do something I’ll regret. I find a stairwell to my left and walk towards it. It’s quiet so I sit on the step, resting my elbows on my knees, and run my hands through my hair. After several deep breaths and shaking off the anger I feel, I call Shayla. The phone rings so many times that I think it’ll go to voicemail, but she picks up.

  “Hey, you. How’s it going?” she says happily.

  “Could be better. What’re you up to?”

  “Just finished up a surgery, so I’m sitting in my office until they need me for something else. So your day isn’t going well?”

  “It’s okay, I guess. This guy is just more messed up than I thought. He didn’t tell me the whole truth. He thinks he’s protecting Judson, but all he’s doing is causing more harm than good.”

  “I’m sorry. Kind of sounds familiar though.”

  I snort. “Babe, our situation is nothing like this. I kept stuff from you so you wouldn’t worry. You’re life wasn’t in danger.”

  “It could’ve been. It still could be, maybe you should cut him a little slack. He’s not a horrible person. He obviously cares about Judson.”

  “He broke the law, I didn’t.” I blow out a breath. “I don’t want to talk about this, nor do I want to compare myself with someone who slept with his best friend’s wife. I just want to talk to my wife for a few minutes, because I miss her.”

  “You do?”

  “Of course I do, Shay. You’re the most important person in the world to me. You know that.”