The Soldier's Secret Child

by Lee Tobin McClain

  “Why?”

  “Because it can’t.” He could barely hear her voice, low and hoarse.

  He risked taking a hand off the steering wheel and gave her arm a quick squeeze. “We have to talk. Susan told me some stuff.”

  “What stuff?” She shifted to face him, sounding uneasy.

  A passing road sign told Vito they were halfway to Barnsdale. “Look, I’m sorry if this is none of my business, but apparently Susan thought I should know about your infertility.”

  She drew in a little gasp, her hand rising to her mouth.

  There was probably a tactful way to have this conversation, but he didn’t know it, not now. “I’m sorry, hon. That’s got to be tough, maybe the toughest thing for a woman.”

  She didn’t say anything, and when he glanced over, her lips were pressed tightly together and her body rigid.

  “But there are all kinds of ways to be a parent. It’s not just biological. I mean, look at me and Charlie.”

  She didn’t answer, and they rode without talking into Barnsdale, passing the automobile factory on one side of the road and a couple of small machine shops on the other.

  He tried again. “When all this is over, when we find Charlie and get him home safe, I want to have more of a conversation about this. Okay?”

  She nodded, reached over and squeezed his arm. “We’ll find him.”

  Vito pulled onto the street where Krystal had been renting a place, the last address he had for her. Dingy cottages and overgrown yards lined both sides of the street. “This isn’t going to be pleasant. Remember, I want you to stay in the car.”

  “I know. I’m ready to call the cops.” She looked around uneasily.

  He stopped the truck in front of Krystal’s place. “And Lace...”

  “What?”

  He hooked an arm around her neck, pulled her to him and gave her a fast, hard kiss. Then he pulled back to look into her eyes. “Remember, whatever happens, I want this with you.” He got out of the truck before he could say too much.

  There was a bang as the screen door flew open and back on broken hinges, slamming into the front of the house.

  “Hey, what’s going on, my man Vito!” Krystal came out on the front stoop, started down the concrete steps, and then grabbed the railing and sat down abruptly.

  A man appeared in the doorway behind her, the same one Vito had seen driving the SUV. The balding, bearded one who’d made Charlie cringe.

  Vito strode up the narrow walkway. “Is Charlie here?”

  “Yeah, he’s here.” Krystal held up a can of beer like she was making a toast. “Decided he’d rather live with his good old mom after all.”

  Relief that he’d found Charlie warred with worry about the situation the boy had gotten himself into. “I’d like to talk to him.”

  The bearded man came out onto the stoop, his face unfriendly. “What’s your business here?”

  “Just looking for my son.” Vito visually searched the place, glancing around the weedy yard, up at the little house’s windows.

  A curtain moved in one. Was it Charlie?

  “You been stepping out on me?” The man nudged Krystal with his knee, none too gently.

  “Aw, cut it out, Manny.”

  “You’ve got it wrong.” Vito kept his voice calm, because he could tell that the man was volatile. “I’m just an acquaintance of Krystal’s. Taking care of her son.”

  “You the daddy?” Manny asked.

  Behind him, Vito heard the window of his truck being lowered. Lacey.

  “I’m not his dad yet, but I’m going to adopt him. Let’s just get him down here and I’ll be on my way.”

  “Maybe I don’t like the way you look.” Manny shoved past Krystal and came down the steps. “Maybe I want you to leave right now.”

  Vito automatically straightened up, his fists clenching. He wanted to punch the jerk, but for Charlie’s sake he couldn’t. He needed to stay calm and keep things peaceful. “I’d be glad to leave you people to your own business as soon as I have Charlie.”

  Then everything happened at once.

  Manny drew back a fist, but Krystal rushed up and grabbed it. Manny shook her off and shoved her back, roughly, causing her to fall back onto the steps. At the same moment Charlie came running out of the house. He crashed into his mother, who reached out reflexively to grab him.

  Manny, unaware what was going on behind him, threw a punch that Vito dodged, but landed a second one on Vito’s shoulder, knocking him back.

  Behind him, the truck door opened. “Charlie!” Lacey cried. “Over here!”

  Manny advanced on Vito, and with no time to regret the violence, Vito threw a one-two punch, connecting with Manny’s ribs and then the side of his throat. Manny fell to the ground, gasping for air.

  Vito spun to help Charlie just in time to see the boy extract himself from his mother’s grip and run to Lacey. She was turning to usher him into the truck when Krystal spoke up.

  “Hey!” she called, her voice slurred but plenty loud. “Wait a minute. I know who you are!”

  Vito’s heart skipped a beat and he ran toward Lacey and Charlie, intent on getting them into the truck so they didn’t find out the truth this way.

  * * *

  Her heart pumping, her adrenaline high, Lacey ushered Charlie into the backseat. Then she turned to see where Vito was. She’d drive Charlie away herself if she needed to, even if it meant temporarily leaving Vito behind. He could fend for himself better than Charlie could.

  Vito was approaching the truck at a run, so Lacey went around to get in the passenger’s seat.

  The dark-haired woman, Charlie’s mother, reached the truck just as Lacey opened the passenger door. “I know who you are,” she said, her tone angry.

  Vito came back around from the driver’s side. “Come on, Krystal, we’ll talk another time. When you’re sober.”

  “I’m sober enough to recognize her.”

  Lacey studied the woman. “How do you know me? I don’t think I’ve met you.”

  “Krystal—” Vito started.

  She held up a hand and interrupted him, still glaring at Lacey. “You’re the woman who stole my man away.”

  That was so far from anything Lacey expected that she could only stare at Krystal.

  “Hey, now,” Vito said, “this can wait. Charlie doesn’t need to hear this.”

  Lacey stepped away from the truck door. Before she could close it in an effort to block Charlie’s hearing them, Krystal slammed it shut.

  Someone clicked the locks. Vito.

  She looked past Vito to Krystal, filled with a sinking feeling she didn’t understand. “How do you know me?”

  “Guy named Gerry McPherson sound familiar?”

  “Ye-e-e-s,” Lacey said slowly. “He was my husband.”

  “Well, he was my fiancé. And the father of my child.”

  “The father of your...”

  “Him.” Krystal pointed toward the backseat. “Charlie.”

  Lacey looked at Vito, who should be denying what this madwoman said, but Vito’s face was a stone.

  The edges of her world started to crumble. “Gerry was Charlie’s father?”

  “That’s right. I gave him more than you ever did.”

  The words stabbed her, but she ignored the pain. She had to explain to the woman how wrong she was. “But Charlie’s eight. I was married to Gerry when...” She stared at Krystal.

  Krystal threw up her hands. “You didn’t even know, did you?”

  Slowly Lacey shook her head. What she was hearing couldn’t possibly be right.

  “Yeah, he was seeing me on the side. At first, I didn’t know about you, either.” The anger was draining out of the woman’s voice. “When I figured out that he w
as married, I tried to break it off, but he said your marriage was on the rocks and he was leaving. It was only when I saw that photo in the paper that I realized he’d been lying. You two were hugging each other like lovebirds, all happy.” She shook her head, her expression bitter. “He wasn’t worth the time I put into him.”

  “At least you got...Charlie.” She heard the choked sound of her own voice as if from a distance.

  Gerry had been cheating on her?

  Could it be true?

  She cleared her throat. “How long were you seeing him?”

  “Couple of years. He didn’t come around as much after Charlie was born. To be fair, he was overseas a lot after that.”

  “Don’t be fair to him!” Lacey snapped. “Did he see you when he came home, too?”

  “Yeah. Some. Not much.” Something like compassion had crept into Krystal’s voice. “Charlie doesn’t remember him.”

  Lacey sagged back against the truck, unable to process what she was hearing.

  Gerry had been unfaithful during the whole course of their marriage.

  He’d conceived a son with this woman in front of her.

  He’d met the son and seen the woman when he came home on leave.

  And she’d known none of it.

  She put her hands over her face, trying to block it out, trying to preserve the memory of the husband she’d adored, of the happy marriage she’d thought she had.

  Vito cleared his throat.

  The sound brought a whole new betrayal into focus, and she dropped her hands away from her eyes and turned to stare at him. “You knew.”

  Slowly, he nodded.

  “You knew, and you stayed in my house, brought Gerry’s son into my house, and you didn’t tell me.”

  “Cold, Vito,” Krystal said.

  “Lacey, I wanted to tell you. Started to, so many times. But I promised Gerry I wouldn’t.”

  Krystal snorted. “Yeah, well, we all made promises, didn’t we? And look how much good that did.”

  Lacey stared from Krystal to Vito, trying to process it all.

  Vito was still talking. “I promised that I’d take care of Charlie and look out for you, too. He knew how much it would hurt you...”

  “Oh, that’s rich,” Krystal said.

  Lacey just stared and shook her head. He’d kept the truth from her so as not to hurt her? At Gerry’s behest?

  There was a sound from inside the truck, and she turned to see Charlie knocking on the window and mouthing words, his face anxious.

  Lacey just stared at him, the boy she’d come to care for so much. The boy whose eyebrows arched high and dark, just like Gerry’s had.

  He was Gerry’s son.

  Gerry had a son. She herself had had so much trouble conceiving, and when she’d finally gotten pregnant, it had been too late: Gerry had been killed, and she had lost the baby.

  Charlie was rattling the truck door now, and Vito and Krystal were arguing about something, but the words blurred into a mishmash she couldn’t understand.

  It was all too much. She had to get out of here.

  She spun away and started walking down the road, faster and faster until she was nearly at a run.

  Chapter Fifteen

  For a few seconds, Vito was paralyzed, watching Lacey disappear down the street.

  Charlie’s rattling of the door and the sounds of Krystal’s voice speaking to Manny, who was waking up, snapped him out of it.

  He needed to go after Lacey. He needed to reassure and help Charlie. And he probably needed to make sure Krystal was okay, too.

  The confusion of prioritizing made his military training kick in. Secure those closest and most vulnerable.

  He opened the truck door and leaned in toward Charlie. “Listen, we’re going to talk this through and figure it all out.”

  Charlie slumped. “Am I in trouble?”

  “Yes, you’re in trouble, but everyone gets in trouble. It’s okay.” He knew what Charlie would ask next, and he held up a hand to forestall it. “You’re not getting sent away. You’re still going to be my son and you can still see your mom every week.”

  “What about Miss Lacey?”

  Vito blew out a breath. No dishonesty. That was what had gotten him in trouble in the first place. “I just don’t know, Charlie. She’s pretty mad at me right now.”

  “How come?”

  “Grown-up business. We’ll talk about it later.” He stood, patted Charlie’s shoulder, and then reached in and gave the boy a hug. “Sit tight. I’ve got to check on your mom and then we’ll go make sure Lacey is safe.”

  He shut Charlie’s door gently, and then walked a few steps toward Krystal. “You going to be okay?” he asked, nodding toward Manny. “I can call the cops for you.”

  “I got this,” she said. “Go after her.”

  He took her word for it and drove out in the direction Lacey had gone, scanning the road. It was late afternoon and clouds were rolling in, thick and ominous. He had to get her before this storm started—or, given the neighborhood, something worse happened. “Help me watch for Lacey,” he told Charlie.

  A moment later, Charlie leaned forward in the seat and pointed. “Is that her?”

  He could see her yellow shirt. She was desperately waving down a truck. No. She wouldn’t get in a stranger’s vehicle. Would she?

  Did she want to avoid him that badly?

  The truck stopped. The passenger door opened, and Lacey climbed in.

  Vito hit the gas. “Do you know anyone who drives a blue pickup?” It seemed to have writing on the side, but Vito couldn’t read it.

  His stomach was lurching. If something happened to Lacey...

  He got behind the truck, which was traveling at a normal rate of speed, and was relieved to see it was headed toward Rescue River, rather than away. Maybe she’d known the person and was getting a safe ride. But he still followed, just to be sure.

  His head was still spinning from the way it had all gone down. Lacey had found out the truth about Gerry in the worst possible way.

  Why hadn’t he told her before? The betrayal in her eyes had just about killed him.

  How awful for her to find out about her adored, war hero husband from his lover, screaming jealously at her.

  And normally, she’d have turned to him for comfort. But instead, she’d looked at him as the betrayer, and rightly so.

  Except he’d promised Gerry he wouldn’t tell.

  He tried to think of how it could’ve worked out differently. What all he’d done wrong. He shouldn’t have made the promise. He shouldn’t have moved in with Lacey. But that had been for Nonna...

  There was a sniffle from the seat behind him, and Vito pulled his attention away from his thoughts and to Charlie. “Hey, buddy. What’s the matter?”

  “I thought Mom would want me,” Charlie said in a subdued voice. “But when I got to her house, she told me to go away because Manny would get mad. And then Manny saw me.”

  “Did he hurt you?” Vito would kill the man if he had.

  “No, but he made Mom shut me in the bedroom. And they said I couldn’t come out. And they were gonna call you, but then they started fighting and kind of forgot about me.”

  “You can’t do that, buddy. You can’t run away. And you can’t live with your mom.” As he spoke, he was watching the truck in front of him, relieved to see it taking the exit that led to the guesthouse.

  “I know.” Charlie’s voice was subdued.

  “We’re gonna figure this out, talk about it.” Vito reached over and ruffled Charlie’s hair. “Right now, though, we’ve got to check on Lacey.”

  He followed the truck, and when it pulled up in front of Lacey’s place, he pulled up behind it.

  “Do I have to
stay in the truck again?” Charlie’s voice was quiet.

  “No, buddy, but you have to let me talk a little bit to Lacey. Grown-up business. Go see Wolfie. Okay? Take him out and walk him down the street, but stay where you can see me. We’ll go inside in just a minute.”

  “Good, because I’m hungry.”

  They both got out of the truck, and Vito watched to make sure Charlie was safely out of earshot. He turned in time to see a dark-haired man walking beside Lacey toward the front door.

  Jealousy burned inside him. He didn’t want anyone else walking with Lacey. Especially not some tall, buff, thirty-ish guy with no scars and, probably, no baggage.

  He followed them up the steps. “Lacey, I need to talk to you.”

  She ignored him and turned to the dark-haired man. “Thank you for the ride.”

  “Would you like me to stay?” the man asked in a courteous voice with just a trace of a Spanish accent.

  She glanced toward Vito without meeting his eyes. “Maybe for a few minutes, if you don’t mind. I just need to talk to...my other boarder, without him bothering me, and make a couple of arrangements.”

  “It’s no problem.” He sat down in the porch chair Vito had begun to consider his own.

  Lacey turned to go inside.

  Vito started to follow. “Lacey—”

  “The lady prefers that you don’t come in,” the other man said, standing up to block Vito as Lacey continued on inside.

  Vito stopped, lifted an eyebrow, wondered if he was going to have to fight again that day.

  “She’s an old friend, and she told me on the way home that she doesn’t want you around. Not my business why.” The man shrugged. “Sorry, man.”

  Vito sat down heavily on the front steps. He could smell someone barbecuing for Saturday dinner. He and Lacey had done the same just last week.

  Before everything had fallen apart.

  Charlie came back into the yard, tugging Wolfie. He started up the steps. “Let’s go in. I’m starving.”

  “Can’t. Not yet.”

  “Why not?”

  “Lacey is... She doesn’t want us to come in just yet, but we can in a little while.”