Double Take

by Brenda Joyce

  “Is that what you think?” She gasped. Kait stepped forward. This was a subject that she could not let slip by. “Every child needs a mother,” she said hoarsely, aghast. “What do you mean—she’d be better off without me?”

  “Only in functional circumstances with a functional mother,” he said dryly. “I wouldn’t exactly call you functional, my dear. Marni stays with me.”

  Kait cried out.

  He leapt up. “What the hell is this? What the hell is this innocent act? You know you’d be hobbled by having her—you’re too busy to be a mother. You’ve always been too busy to be a mother!”

  An image of the beautiful child seared Kait’s mind. If Trev thought he was taking Marni away from Lana, he was wrong! “She’s her...my daughter,” she managed, desperately wishing she could speak with Lana now. “You can’t take her away from me!”

  “She’s my daughter,” he retorted. “You want a good settlement from me, you’ll give me full custody. And that is nonnegotiable.” He bared his teeth, but not in a smile.

  Kait managed to shake her head. “Absolutely not.”

  He was startled, incredulous. “I will have custody,” he said, “and I will fight you tooth and nail to get it. If we go that route, do not expect me to be generous with you.”

  She had to get out. “I don’t care about your money,” she snapped. “This isn’t about money! This is about a child!”

  He burst into laughter. “Like hell! You don’t care about money? Now that is a good one if I ever heard one!”

  She stared, trying to comprehend his awful statement—did he really think that Lana cared more about money than their child?

  “Baby, you set me in your sights because of my money, and we both know it,” he said cruelly.

  “No, that’s not true!” She was horrified that he would think such a thing.

  “No?” He stood. “Like you’d have looked at me twice if I was some poor jerk making a couple hundred bucks a week. I should have listened to Rafe. He nailed you as a gold digger the moment he first laid eyes on you. But I refused to listen! Well, so be it. Now I am prepared to pay whatever price I have to, in order to get rid of you.” He stared.

  Kait was aghast. For one moment, their gazes locked, and cruelly— for there was such venom and loathing in his eyes. Kait could not stand being near him another moment—she could not bear his hatred. She turned and rushed from the room, so off-balance that she staggered. In the corridor, she hugged herself, gasping for air.

  Lana did not pick up her daughter at school, but that did not mean she was a bad mother. That did not mean she should lose her daughter this way. Kait had not a doubt that Lana would fight tooth and nail for joint custody of her daughter.

  And surely she loved Trev Coleman. Or surely, she had once, six years ago, fallen in love with him—and it hadn’t had anything to do with his money.

  She was blinded now. Blinded by hot tears.

  Trev Coleman’s expression blazed in her mind.

  She slowly straightened. He didn’t merely want a divorce, she thought, stunned. He hated his wife. She had seen it in his eyes.

  But she had seen more than that. He didn’t merely despise his wife; he hated her with a vengeance.

  And he intended to have his vengeance, too.

  CHAPTER 3

  Before she could truly comprehend the situation, before she could even begin to analyze it and consider its ramifications, the front door opened. Kait was standing near the window where she had left and lost her handbag. She glanced outside. The Land Rover was parked between her car and Trev Coleman’s blue Dodge Ram.

  Elizabeth was speaking in the foyer. “And I just baked them this afternoon.”

  A pause ensued. A soft, childish voice said, “Is Mommy home?” There was something hesitant and tentative in Marni’s tone; oddly, Kait’s heart broke. She rushed into the foyer. “Marni!” she cried.

  The little girl looked up, wide-eyed in surprise.

  Kait cautioned herself not to be too emotional—she was Lana now, who missed her daughter, who had been away for a mere three days. She was not the aunt whom the child had never before seen, a thirty-two-year-old single woman who no longer enjoyed her career and was lacking love and a family. “Hello, darling,” she said hoarsely, barely able to believe that the beautiful little girl standing by the door in her tiny navy blue blazer, pleated skirt, and knee socks was truly her niece.

  “Mommy,” Marni said, smiling a little, anxiously. Her long, dark, curly hair was pulled back in a ponytail with a red ribbon.

  “I have missed you,” Kait breathed, kneeling and holding out her arms. “Come here, I need a hug.”

  For one moment Marni did not move; she resembled a surprised and confused doe caught in the headlights of an oncoming car. Then she smiled again and came forward. Kait swept her into her arms, far too hard, but the child did not protest. Instead, she clung.

  Kait breathed in baby powder and baby shampoo, clean cotton and

  Ivory soap, and as she held Marni in her arms, she thought about what a treasure she was, and how lucky Lana was. And Kait believed that Trev Coleman had been exaggerating about everything he had accused Lana of. Perhaps his accusations that Lana was too busy to be a mother—that she was not functional as one—were the groundwork he was laying for his divorce case. Kait felt certain that she should not take Trev’s opinion of her sister as gospel.

  Lana surely treasured the beautiful child now in Kait’s arms.

  Kait pulled back a little and said, “I have a present for you.” She had been at FAO Schwarz the moment they opened that morning in order to buy Marni a play stable that they could assemble together for all of her horse models.

  Marni’s eyes were wide and searching. “Really?” She smiled a little, her small mouth quivering.

  “It’s upstairs.” Kait straightened and took her hand. “Do you want to help me unpack?” How right the child’s small hand felt in her own!

  Marni stiffened with surprise. Then she nodded eagerly. “Marni needs a snack, Mrs. Coleman,” Elizabeth said brusquely. Kait glanced at her and saw disapproval and frostiness all over the older woman’s face. She felt certain that her earlier instinct that Elizabeth was territorial where Marni was concerned was accurate. Kait intended to draw a new line in the sand. She smiled grimly at the housekeeper. “Would you mind sending up the milk and cookies?” She then grinned down at Marni. “We’ll have a snack together while we unpack.” Marni made everything—Trev’s hostility, Max’s coldness, Elizabeth’s attitude—all worth it. Marni made the deception worth it.

  Kait knew she would give up her own life to protect this child, much less switch places with her sister for a few days.

  When Elizabeth did not respond, Kait looked over at her. The woman was staring at her as if she had grown two heads.

  Kait’s heart lurched. She really hoped that Lana wasn’t as disinterested a mother as Trev claimed. But Elizabeth seemed to be regarding her with utter suspicion now. And Kait couldn’t help recalling the sister she had known before they had gone off to different colleges. Lana had never been able to stay home, to be alone. She had always surrounded herself with friends—all of whom had been boys—and she had always been on horseback, on a bike, on a skateboard, on skis.

  Kait had never assumed that she had become the baking brownies and making pot roast kind of wife, but many mothers had careers and hobbies and still were actively involved in their children’s lives.

  “I want to pack with Mommy,” Marni said eagerly.

  “What is going on?” Trev said.

  Kait whirled and saw him standing with a strained expression directly behind her. “Marni is going to help me unpack. Besides, her gift is upstairs in my carry-on bag.” She purposefully kept her tone light, as if he had not just declared he intended to take Marni away from her, which was tantamount to declaring war.

  His jaw flexed. “Really?” His eyes were dangerous now.

  Kait hesitated. Trev Coleman unnerved
her as no man ever had, but that was because of the deception she was practicing on him. “Don’t tell me I am not allowed to give Marni a present,” Kait said as lightly, with a plastic smile.

  “Marni needs to be at the stable in an hour,” he said, clearly trying very hard to control his temper. He seemed explosive.

  It took Kait a moment. “She is riding?”

  He stared closely. “She rides every day after school at four o’clock. You know that.”

  A slip—but not a fatal one. “Of course she does!” Kait cried. Not about to release Marni’s hand. “I just thought, after my having been away, we might change her schedule a bit.”

  “I want to stay with Mommy,” Marni said.

  Trev flinched as if struck. “But we are going hacking, darling, you and I. You love to hack with Daddy.” He gave Kait a terribly cold glance. “You were gone for three days. It’s never been a big deal before.”

  Kait knew she had been right—this man had somehow come to loathe his wife. Her urge to save her sister’s marriage remained, but she also knew that she would be meddling now if she did. On the other hand, look at the position she was now in! A position Lana had chosen to put her in, making the decision without consulting anyone else— without talking it through with Kait. She took a huge breath. “Trev,” she said, swallowing. She tried out a more genuine smile, hoping to soften him, but the mask that was his face did not change. “I’ve been doing a lot of thinking. We need to talk.”

  “Anytime,” he said tightly.

  Marni shook her head. Kait glanced down and saw a very stubborn look in her eyes. “I want to pack with Mommy.” Her eyes held a warring light.

  Kait stooped down. “I have a great idea!” she exclaimed. She did not want to antagonize Trev any further. “We have a whole hour to unpack, to play with your present, and have cookies and milk. Then I will bring you down to the barn and watch you ride.”

  Marni’s eyes widened. “You want to watch me ride Prince Charming?” she exclaimed, clearly surprised.

  “I most certainly do,” Kait said, grinning. She tousled her hair, straightened, and looked up. Elizabeth and Trev were staring at her with consternation, disapproval, and even suspicion.

  Kait stared back. She was afraid to understand that Lana never watched her own daughter ride. But that simply wasn’t possible—was it?

  Marni had to be the cutest short-stirrup rider in the world! Who wouldn’t want to watch her ride her white pony?

  “Why are you staring at me like that?” she managed quietly, with dread.

  Trev looked as if he was about to grind down every single one of his lower teeth. He didn’t answer—he simply strode out.

  Elizabeth did reply. “Because you never bother to watch your daughter ride, Mrs. Coleman. Because you have come back from the city behaving as if you are somebody else.”

  Marni clung to her hand the entire way upstairs, and even once they had entered the master bedroom, she did not let go. Lana’s garment bag and duffel sat in the middle of the room, where Max had apparently dumped them. And in spite of what had just transpired in Trev’s study and the foyer, Kait’s heart was singing. She would worry about Elizabeth’s shrewd comment another time.

  She smiled happily at Marni. “Close your eyes, sweetie,” she said. Marni obeyed, grinning.

  Kait released her hand, knelt over the duffel, then froze. Slowly, she looked up.

  At the foot of the bed was a beautifully upholstered bench. On the bench was her missing Gucci handbag.

  “Mommy?” Marni whispered.

  “One moment, darling!” Kait cried. She quickly opened the duffel and took out a gift-wrapped box. “Here you are,” she said gaily.

  Marni grinned eagerly when she saw the cheerfully wrapped big box. Kait sat down on the floor and patted it. Marni blinked in surprise, then, beaming at the gift, sat there beside her. Kait helped her unwrap the box, her pulse racing. Whoever had taken her bag, he or she had returned it. Why? Kait could only conclude that the matter had not been one of a simple theft. She was anxious to inspect it. But she still couldn’t think of a single incriminating piece of evidence that had been in that bag.

  Marni finished tearing off the wrapping paper. She saw the picture of the assembled barn on the outside of the box and she whooped. “Is it a stable for my horses?” she asked eagerly.

  “It most certainly is. All you have to do is assemble it, and we can do that together.” Pure love rippled over Kait. It was so hard to keep her hands off Marni, so she briefly stroked her hair.

  Marni began to rip off the clear plastic paper and Kait helped her open the box. They spilled out its contents. “Look, a fence for a paddock,” she cried delightedly. “And it’s white, just like Daddy’s!”

  Kait patted her shoulder, just as there was a knock on the door, which remained widely open. She looked up at Elizabeth, who was carrying a tray. However, only one glass of milk was on it, and a small plate with two cookies. Kait got to her feet. “Thank you, Elizabeth,” she said pleasantly. “I was hoping for milk and cookies too.” She tried a smile out on the older woman.

  Elizabeth’s expression did not change as she set the tray down on a small round Chinese table, lacquered red. She glanced carefully at Marni and her gift. “Since when do you eat sweets?”

  Kait stared. Her mind raced, because while she was a fairly healthy eater, she was a chocoholic. Here was an issue Lana had never addressed in her letter. But Kait could guess that Lana probably avoided chocolate and anything fattening at all costs. As a teen, she had been obsessed with her body image. She had started dieting then, even though there’d been no need.

  Kait knew she could give up a lot of things, but chocolate wasn’t one of them. She said quickly, “This is a special occasion, now, isn’t it?” She smiled at Marni, who grinned happily. “If this isn’t the time to splurge, when is?”

  Elizabeth stared. Then she shrugged. “Fine. I’ll be right back.”

  “Mommy? Come take one of my cookies,” Marni cried. She got up and rushed to the table, reaching for a cookie. As she did, she knocked over the glass of milk.

  Marni froze. Then she looked up with wide, stricken eyes—clearly expecting to be berated for the accident.

  “It was just an accident,” Kait said kindly, covering her small shoulder with her hand. “I’ll clean it up in a flash. Elizabeth? Two more glasses of milk, please. Whole milk,” she added on a whim, being perverse and relishing it. Lana probably only drank fat-free, or worse, soy.

  Elizabeth seemed completely taken aback. She turned to leave and as she did, Kait realized Trev was standing in the doorway. And instantly she was angry—she did not want to share her precious time with Marni, not with him, not with anyone. She gave him a cool look, and went into the bathroom for some towels.

  When she came out, Trev was on his knees, showing Marni how the barn should be assembled. Marni looked worriedly at Kait. “I’m sorry I spilled the milk.”

  “Who cares?” Kait smiled, wondering how to kick Trev out. This wasn’t fair, especially when they only had an hour together—especially when she was only at Fox Hollow for two days. He rocked back on his haunches to study her. She gave him an angry glance and began to mop up the milk. “See? All gone, just like that.”

  “I want to talk to you,” Trev said quietly, standing.

  She faced him, trying to tamp down her anger. She decided to set boundaries. “I’ve been away for three days. I would appreciate some time alone with my daughter.”

  His eyes widened. “Since when?”

  She put her hands on her hips, and then realized how that would look, and she dropped them. “This isn’t fair,” she said evenly. “Please let us spend some time together.”

  “I know what you’re up to,” he said flatly.

  “I am not up to anything,” she cried. Then she stiffened and glanced at Marni. She forced a smile. “We’re not fighting, sweetie,” she said. “Really.”

  Marni bit her lip. “But you fight with
Daddy all the time.”

  Kait stared, aghast.

  Trev gave her an I-told-you-so look.

  Kait breathed. “Look, we can talk later, at supper. Or whenever you want. But right now, Marni is going to help me unpack and we are going to start on her stable.” She smiled as brightly as possible at him, no easy task, given the circumstances.

  “Later,” he said. He smiled at his daughter. “I’ll see you at the barn.” He walked out.

  Marni looked after him, and then she looked at Kait with wide, worried eyes.

  Kait sat down on the floor, pulling her into her lap. “There is nothing for you to worry about.”

  Marni’s gaze was searching. “Daddy’s mad at you. Really, really mad.”

  She flinched. “I know. But even mommies make mistakes.” Marni hesitated, thoughtful. “Daddy doesn’t know you are a new mommy,” she finally said.

  Kait froze. Her ears thundered, her blood rushed. “What?”

  “He doesn’t know you are my new mommy,” she said with a sweet smile. “It’s my old mommy he doesn’t like.”

  Kait could not move. Marni knew.

  Somehow, the child knew the truth, that she wasn’t Lana, not even close to it.

  It was said that children were very perceptive and very astute. She’d even read that children could see things adults couldn’t—like ghosts. Kait hardly believed that, but somehow, Marni knew that she was not Lana.

  She was at a complete loss for words. She somehow smiled. “Even mommies change.”

  Marni grinned and laid her palm on Kait’s cheek. “I love my new mommy,” she said.

  While Marni was taking her things from her garment bag and putting them in the walk-in closet, Kait rushed to her Gucci handbag, still reeling from the fact that, of all people, Marni had guessed the truth right away. She opened the purse, dumped everything out on the floor.

  The first thing she saw was her sister’s cell phone and the second thing she saw was a folded scrap of paper.

  She froze.

  She had completely forgotten about that little scrap of paper. On it was the license plate number of Lana’s Porsche, as well as the words “level 3, row 2, space 4,” a note Kait had made for herself in order to find Lana’s car when she arrived at Reagan National.