"Oh, Tammy, I'm so sorry. Did you have a fight?"
"No. That's what hurts so much. We'd been talking about getting married. Then all of a sudden this afternoon, he just says it's not going to happen. He wouldn't even give me a reason."
Tears started to fill Tammy's eyes again and Barbara got her a box of tissues from the bathroom. Michael's departure on top of losing her job was a lot to handle in one day. Barbara had plenty of her own problems tonight, but she temporarily shelved them and tried to think of how she could cheer up Tammy.
"You know, sometimes things that look horrible turn out for the best. Maybe there's a wonderful new man, even better than Michael, waiting right around the corner. Maybe you'll meet him when you find a new job."
Tammy shook her head. "I'll never find anyone better than Michael." She blew her nose again. "I bet his mother was behind this. She never liked me."
Barbara couldn't remember Tammy ever mentioning Michael's mother in any previous conversation. She couldn't help but think of how it sounded similar to her experience with Howard. She was tempted to talk about how she survived his abandoning her, but she always hated it when a person insisted on telling his or her story when she was trying to relate her own. Even when Tammy asked her if she had ever had her heart broken by a man and how it felt when Matt's father left them, Barbara refrained from focusing the conversation on herself.
She did her best to lift Tammy's spirits in spite of all the madness going on in her own head, but nothing worked. Even worse, by the time Tammy went home, she actually seemed irritated with her and even snapped at Matt on her way out. Barbara decided to give the girl a couple days to adjust on her own before offering any more advice or sympathy where it wasn't appreciated.
Shortly after Tammy left, Barbara got Matt off to bed and finally had a moment to call Kyle again. As soon as he answered she starting gushing apologies and excuses. "You have every right to be furious with me. I should have realized you'd be worried. First there was the note from Russ, then I had to go to the county courthouse for the restraining order, but it could take three days before they serve him, but that made me late for work so I didn't get a break, then Matt needed shoes and Decker called with an insane offer and threatened me, and Tammy just showed up—"
"Whoa! Could we run through all of that one more time, a little slower maybe?"
She took a deep breath and summarized her day for him. When she finished, she apologized again. "I really didn't mean to dump all that on you."
"That wasn't dumping. That was sharing. I just wish I'd been there to help. I miss you so much, love."
That one sentence somehow balanced all the negatives and she found she could take a full breath for the first time all day. "I miss you, too."
"I hope you're thinking about everything I said the other night. You don't have to go through this alone. I know I could make it all easier for you if you'd let me."
"I know. It's just that I wanted so badly to do it on my own."
"And you did. For years. Now it's time to relax and let someone love you again."
She hesitated a moment before answering. It was almost too tempting to resist, yet her common sense made her hold back. "I'll try." A yawn slipped out before she could stifle it.
"You've had a long day and I'm making it longer," he said with a smile in his voice. "Get some sleep and I'll see you when you get home from work tomorrow."
"Tomorrow? I thought you said you wouldn't get back here until Wednesday."
"Your situation requires a change in my plans. I don't want you staying there alone until the restraining order goes into effect."
"But—"
"No arguments. Say good night, honey."
Barbara chuckled. "Good night, honey."
"I love you."
He ended the call and she sent him a mental thank you for not insisting on a response to his declaration.
Another yawn overtook her. As Kyle had said, it had been a long day. She had meant to call Dani about Russ's note and the restraining order as soon as she got home, but the evening had flown by, and now she could barely keep her eyes open. She supposed tomorrow would be soon enough to update her.
As tired as she was, however, the conversation with Decker kept replaying in her head.
He was right. She couldn't win. Not if they wanted her to lose. After all, the Hamiltons had watched their own son drink himself into a grave rather than allow him to lead his life the way he wanted to.
She had tried to survive on her own, do everything without depending on any man's help, and where had it gotten her?
Nowhere. She had no home, no husband, no close friends. She rarely saw her parents. And now she could lose her son. Perhaps the time had come to try a different path.
Kyle's words echoed in her mind and wrapped around her like a warm blanket. Perhaps it really was time to share the burden with someone who loved her.
* * *
Only once in his life had Kyle been this frustrated. His plan had started out so simply, but with every day that passed, more complications were piled on. The lies were eating at his gut, yet he didn't know how to undo them without destroying himself.
He should have guessed that Russ wouldn't be pushed aside with something as incidental as a death threat. Obviously, only action was going to get through to him.
One thing at a time. First he had to rearrange his schedule so that he could get back to Barbara. He dialed his executive assistant's home number. Her sleepy hello increased his guilt. "Carol, it's Ham. I'm sorry to call you so late, but I've got an emergency. I need you to cancel tomorrow afternoon's board meeting."
Carol groaned. "Mr. Ivanovich will have a cow if he flies in and you're not here!"
"That's why I want you to call him tonight. He'll still have a cow, but he'll have it in Chicago."
"I know how anxious you've been to get the board's approval on the new stock option. What happened?"
"I can't explain now, but I will soon. I have to be in Richmond tomorrow."
"Richmond again, huh? Boy, whatever deal you're putting together down there must be pretty damn big."
Kyle sighed. "It's the biggest deal of my entire life."
Chapter 15
There was no note on her car's windshield the next morning, nor did Barbara get any sense of being followed on her way to work, yet she knew better than to let her guard down. Though Russ wasn't behaving in his usual manner, that didn't mean they were safe.
She had just finished opening an account for a new customer and was about to call for the next person on the sign-in list in the front of the bank's lobby when Russ suddenly stepped in her path. Her heart slammed against her rib cage, but there was little she could do without creating a scene.
"Please go away," she said in a low voice that quivered from the fright he'd given her. "I have a lot of people waiting for help."
He gave her his most innocent smile. "I know. I'm one of them. I came by to take you to lunch."
Barbara glanced around the busy lobby until she caught the eye of the security guard. At her nod, the man casually began moving closer. To Russ, she said, "I'm busy for lunch. Just say what you want, then leave."
"I told you before," he replied, still smiling. "I need your help. And I have some important facts you should know about." He walked over to her desk so that she was forced to follow.
His phony smile vanished as soon as they were seated across from each other. "I wouldn't have had to come here if you had called me like I asked you to. I waited all last night, but you never called. I'm starting to get the impression you don't want to help me with my recovery."
She clenched her hands in her lap and took a breath. "I know you've been following us again. Why would you do that if you've gotten over your obsession with me?"
He leaned forward with his elbows on her desk. "I just wanted to see Matthew. You know how I feel about our boy. That's one of the reasons I want to make up with you. I'm still the closest thing he has to a father. I wa
nt to be able to spend time with him and have him know how I helped you through that horrible pregnancy."
"How you helped me?" Realizing that they were attracting curious attention, she lowered her voice, but anger had brought a flush to her cheeks and an unusual hardness to her voice. "Simon Decker told me all about how much you helped me. You're lucky I don't hire an assassin to pay you back for all the help you gave me. And if you don't stay away from me and my son, I may still do that."
He studied her eyes for a moment, then said, "I came to Virginia to apologize for all that, but I can see that you don't have enough goodness in your heart to hear my side of it." He rose and bent forward with his hands braced on her desk and his face an inch from hers. "You're even a bigger bitch now than you were then. And bitches always get what's coming to them sooner or later."
"Do you need assistance, Mrs. Johnson?" the bank guard asked with a hostile glare at Russ.
She was struggling not to give in to the panic gnawing on her stomach and the question gave her something solid to hang on to. "Yes. Would you please escort this man out of the bank, and if he comes here again, I'd appreciate your calling the police. I have a restraining order against him."
Russ's eyebrows raised in surprise, then narrowed in fury as he decided she wasn't bluffing. When the guard grasped his elbow to move him along, he shook off the man's hand. "I'll leave on my own, but not before I say one more thing. You think you don't need me, but you're wrong, and I'll prove it."
The guard unsnapped his holster and placed his hand over the butt of his gun.
Russ saw the move and started backing away. "Your new boyfriend's name isn't Kyle. It's Hamilton. And all he wants from you is the same thing Decker wants—control of Matthew!" Without another word, he whirled around and stormed out of the bank.
Barbara thanked the guard for his help and accepted his offer to escort her to her car after work.
Russ's last statement proved that he would say or do anything to get her attention, but to suggest that Kyle was a Hamilton was ridiculous. Even if she stretched her gullibility far enough to consider that, it wouldn't make sense for the Hamiltons to be offering two million dollars to buy Matthew if another relative could be named as heir for free.
She no longer had a single doubt about Russ changing. He still believed she and Matt belonged to him, and he would undoubtedly believe that until the day he died... unless she found a way to show him otherwise.
Dani's comment about a stalker backing off when his victim married another man came back to her, but when she allowed herself to think about marrying Kyle, she still felt they hadn't known each other long enough for her to hand over her and Matthew's life to him, no matter how wonderful he was.
* * *
Russ's tires squealed as he tore out of the bank parking lot. He wanted to punch something... somebody. Another restraining order! He hadn't been served yet, but the bitch wouldn't have said it unless she had really filed for one. The last thing he needed now was to get himself thrown in jail... and out of the game.
He probably shouldn't have blurted that out about Ham without being able to prove his claim. Now Barbara would probably tell her boyfriend and he might follow through with his death threat.
And if she blabbed it to Tammy, that one would probably make an attempt on his life as well, or at the very least cause him some serious damage. Not that he really cared what she thought. He was sick of her lording it over him, as if she were the only one smart enough to have a plan. He'd begun to suspect that her plan was meant to keep him away from Barbara instead of setting her up to marry him.
Jealous bitch! Sometimes she acted like her pussy was gold-plated. It was obviously time to show her once and for all who was the boss. The confrontation with Barbara had put him in exactly the right frame of mind to do it too.
As soon as he got back to his motel room, he would call Tammy and demand she get her sassy ass over there pronto. Thoughts of what he could do to straighten her out stirred a ripple of excitement that swelled his dick.
In the meantime, he had Decker's latest offer to think on—a hundred thou to get Barbara out of the way. Rather than use the word murder, he had suggested some sort of permanent abduction—a scenario in which Russ would get the mommy all to himself and the Hamiltons would be able to discreetly take possession of the son.
Since he had no intention of letting that happen, but wanted to get hold of some of that cash Decker was waving around, he tried to think of a way to kill two birds with one stone.
While he tried to sort out his options, a news item on the radio broke into his thought process. There had been another drive-by shooting in a suburb of Richmond—the third this month. As the idea that news triggered developed into a plan, he revised the old saying about the two birds. If he just killed one bird, named Ham, he'd solve two problems. He'd be rid of his competition and, if it looked like the attempt had been against Barbara, Decker might be convinced to fork over an advance chunk of the payment to Russ on good faith.
He had an untraceable gun, but it had been a decade since he'd fired it. He was certain, however, that with a little target practice, he'd be as good as he was when he and Pop used to go hunting. It wouldn't do to get caught practicing around here, though, considering the restraining order.
Then there was still the matter of proving to Barbara that he was the only one she could trust.
In a flash of brilliance, the solution came to him. He hated losing the couple of days it would take to drive home and back, but in doing so, he could collect all the evidence he needed for Barbara, get in the necessary target practice, and avoid being served until he was ready to carry out his plan.
That settled, he went back to fantasizing about how he was going to deal with Tammy before he left on his trip that night.
* * *
After Russ's departure, Barbara began to fret that he might go by Matt's school and try to get to him. Under the circumstances, she was of no use to anyone, and her supervisor gave her permission to go home for the day.
The moment she and Matt walked in the door, she knew someone had been in their house.
"Stay here, honey," she told Matt, leaving the door ajar. "I want to start doing our entrance check again, the way we used to." Matt made a face, but he obeyed, even though he didn't notice what she saw.
It was so subtle, the average person probably would have overlooked the clues. But she had trained herself to pick up on the little things. Each morning before she left the house, she did a walk-through and made sure there were no crumbs on the table, clothes and towels were picked up and so on. Everything had its proper place, and she enjoyed coming home to a neat house after working all day.
One thing out of place she might have attributed to absentmindedness on her part, but there were quite a few. In the living room, the door to the cabinet where she kept her music and videotapes was closed. Since it tended to stick, she never shut it completely. A chair in the kitchen was at a slight angle instead of squared off with the table the way she liked it. At first glance, Matt's room and the bathroom seemed to have been left alone, but her bedroom and closet showed small signs of tampering.
"Okay, Matt," she called after she was certain the intruder wasn't still in the house. "All clear. I'll be out to make us some lunch in a sec." There was no reason to frighten him any more than he already was at this point.
It only took her a few minutes to determine that nothing was missing. She had very little of value anywhere in the house, but if it had been a burglar, surely he would have taken the stereo or Matt's video game system.
If it had been Russ, he would have taken something personal of hers, but all her underwear and toiletries were accounted for. Nothing had been added, either, as Russ often did to let her know he'd been there. Then again, nothing he'd done lately had followed his old patterns.
It didn't look as though frightening her was the motive. Instead, it appeared that someone had been searching for something and had tried to put ever
ything back in its place so that she wouldn't notice that he'd been there. What could she possibly have that someone would want to steal? Who wanted something that he thought she had?
The only answer that came to her was that Simon Decker and the Hamiltons wanted her son. To get him they needed proof that Matthew was Howard's child. She couldn't picture Decker sneaking around her house, but after everything he'd revealed to her, she could easily imagine his hiring someone else to do it for him. He already knew what it said on the birth certificate, but perhaps he thought she had some other document or personal letters he could use.
She moved her vanity chair into the closet, stood on it, and rearranged several shoe boxes on the top shelf until she could retrieve the one that didn't have shoes or a purse in it. Taking it to her bed, she quickly flipped through the contents. It was impossible to tell if anyone had gone through the various receipts and legal documents, and it wouldn't make any difference if they had. There was nothing in there that revealed who Matt's father was.
Her gaze touched on the white envelope in the bottom of the box. Inside were the only items she had left to prove that she had ever known Howard Hamilton IV. She couldn't remember the last time she'd looked at them, and she didn't think she wanted to now, but her fingers pulled the papers out and the past was suddenly staring her in the face.
Regardless of the painful memories they called up, she had never been able to throw away the cartoons Howard had drawn for her. She had told herself it was something positive that she could show Matthew when she finally told him the whole story, but there was more to it than that. She had needed to keep them to remind herself that Howard had loved her enough to ask her to be his wife and that she had loved him enough to have his child even after he abandoned her.
Decker's revelations had slashed open the old wound and poured salt into it. She and Howard had had a chance for the kind of happiness very few people ever experienced and his parents had coldheartedly stolen it from them.
Unnatural Relations (Lust and Lies Series, Book 1) Page 21
