I walked down the hall to the conference room, intending on catching him after it ended, before he could disappear to wherever it is he goes. But as I approached the glass walls of the conference room, I just couldn’t move forward. Chris was there. At first I thought he was alone. But then he shifted to the left and I saw. In front of Chris was a woman perched on the edge of the conference table. She was tall with long, bare legs. She was wearing a red dress that somehow didn’t clash with her fiery red hair. And her skin was the most pale, unblemished skin I had ever seen. It was the kind of skin that was naturally like that and had never needed a dermatologist.
The appearance of the woman was so stunning that it took me a minute to realize that she was caressing his face. I just stood there, doing nothing, as he kissed her. That kiss was just like the ones we used to share in the beginning - so full of passion and future. I should have marched in and confronted him then and there. But instead, I just left quietly. A stronger woman would just leave Chris. At least that’s what I’d like to think. But I can’t. I just love him too much.
I have to get pregnant. It’s my only chance to keep him. Once there’s a baby involved, he’ll stop all of this and come to reason. I have to believe that. It’s my last chance to save us.
Forty Eight
Hailey got out of bed when the sun started to stream through the windows. As she put on her robe and slippers, part of her hoped that Maggie would be there when she got to the kitchen. But the other part of her hoped that Maggie had changed her mind and decided to save herself. Hailey already had Erin’s death and Gram’s on her conscience. She couldn’t handle it if she lost Maggie too. Hailey touched her stomach and took a deep breath. She needed to try to control her stress. All of this was bad for the baby. And the whole reason she was here was to protect the baby.
Hailey made her way down the hall and headed to the kitchen. She could smell hot chocolate and pancakes. Maggie was definitely here. Maggie made the best pancakes that Hailey had ever had and she knew it was Hailey’s favorite. Hailey was both elated and terrified to find her there. As she took her usual seat at the counter, Maggie turned around to greet her in that awful disguise.
“Good morning, Cassandra. Has Mr. Dalton left for the day?” She had to verify they were alone before she could talk freely with Maggie.
“Yes, ma’am. He did. But he left one of the guards in the living room just in case we need something since I am still new, ma’am.” Maggie was trying to tell her that they weren’t alone. Ears were nearby that would relay any information to Chris. Hailey nodded her understanding.
“That was kind of Mr. Dalton but I’m sure we could have sufficed. Cassandra, you mentioned a husband before. Is he here in Seattle with you?” Hailey needed to know if John was here too. If something went wrong, she needed to know exactly how many souls she would have on her conscience.
“Oh, yes, ma’am. He’s a contractor so he’s in between jobs right now. I think he’s enjoying having a bit of time. He has a friend who could use some help so he’s giving him an extra hand right about now. But never you mind about that. You’ve got enough on your plate creating a baby. I made you some hot cocoa and pancakes with warm maple syrup. That baby needs some nutrition first thing in the morning.” Maggie smiled at her as she put the food in front of her. “After that Mr. Dalton said we could get a jump on decorating the nursery. I understand from Mr. Dalton you are having a baby girl?”
Hailey beamed. “Yes, it’s a girl. I always wanted a girl growing up.” Maggie smiled back. They had talked about having baby girls together back home. They wanted their daughters to grow up as best friends just like they had.
“How wonderful! Mr. Dalton mentioned that the baby furniture will be delivered from the store this afternoon. I took the liberty of having one of the guards obtain one of those paint sample cards. If you want to pick out some colors, I would be happy to paint the nursery. I’ve already completed the cleaning so Mr. Dalton shouldn’t be worried about my duties slacking.”
Hailey took a big bite of pancakes and was surprised how much they tasted like home. If only she was back in New Mexico now. What would it have been like to decorate the spare bedroom at Gram’s house as a nursery with Gram and Maggie? She could almost picture the three of them putting up swatches of pink and purple with yellow accents with the sounds of John and Chuck laughing in the kitchen. It was like being in a desert and seeing a water oasis. She would be better off just putting the picture out of her mind.
“That sounds good, Cassandra. Thank you.” Hailey polished off the last of the pancakes and followed it with the remainder of the hot chocolate. “I’m ready to go check out those paint samples.”
Maggie put the plate and mug in the dishwasher and they headed to the room that was being transformed into a nursery. They spent a few hours working on the room when the guard in the house came to let them know that the furniture had arrived early.
“Thank you. Can you please go give the delivery men a hand? I don’t want a scratch on that furniture and you know how clumsy those guys can be.” Hailey smiled at the guard who was quick to agree and rush out of the room.
“Okay, Mags, I can tell you have something you’ve been dying to tell me. Spill. We only have a few minutes before he heads back.” Hailey ran over to Maggie and grabbed her hands.
“Chuck has been reading Erin’s journal. Before you got pregnant, she saw Dalton kissing a tall redhead with a pale complexion at Dalton Enterprises. But she didn’t approach him and never mentions finding out who the woman was. Chuck wants you to keep your eyes and ears open. She may give us a clue as to what Dalton is up to.” Maggie rushed over to the door as she heard the guard coming down the hall with the delivery men. “Ah, thank you! The crib will go by the wall to the left and the rest of the furniture will be against the back wall. But please leave some space so I can get back there and paint.”
Hailey tried to absorb what Maggie had said while the delivery men brought in the furniture. She oohed and awed as expected so that she wouldn’t attract the guard’s attention while she processed the information. Why hadn’t Erin mentioned seeing Chris kiss someone else? Was she ashamed? Hailey thought they shared everything. Poor Erin! That must have been horrible to see and not tell anyone.
Hailey shrugged to think about it. That caught the attention of both Maggie and the guard. “Sorry - stepped into a draft. I’m just so sensitive to temperature with the pregnancy.” She laughed it off and they went back to setting up the nursery. But she could tell that Maggie was keeping an extra eye on her.
Forty Nine
Chuck was half asleep when the phone next to the motel bed starting ringing. He sat up quickly and almost knocked over the lamp as he reached for the receiver. No one usually called him here. Was something wrong with Hailey? Did Dalton find out Maggie’s identity? “This is Chuck.”
“Chuck, Wilder thinks he may have found something about your woman with the red hair. I told him to look through my son’s apartment and he found a photo of Dalton with a tall woman with red hair. There’s a date on the back. He’ll text the address to your phone. Get up and take a shower. I want you to meet him there pronto.” Gamboli hung up without even saying goodbye. Chuck knew that a man like that was used to being in control and wouldn’t even bother to give the courtesy of letting the other person on the other line know that the call was ending. It didn’t matter much to Chuck. He would rather keep their relationship as professional as possible. He wasn’t used to asking people on the other side of the law for help and he was a little uneasy at how comfortable he was with working with Gamboli.
After a quick shower, Chuck found that Wilder had indeed sent him a text. Chuck thought he recognized something about the address and quickly looked it up on his phone. Just as he thought, the address for Gamboli’s late son was just a few blocks away from Hailey’s previous apartment in Ballard that she had told him about. He didn’t have time to analyze that now. He needed to meet with Wilder before the man got ant
sy and further disturbed the scene before he could see it how Gamboli’s son left it.
When Chuck pulled up to the apartment building, he was surprised to find that it was in a nice little neighborhood with a doorman and other security. Inside the apartment was almost spotless and tastefully decorated. It didn’t seem like the apartment of a man working in the depths of the mob. He found Wilder sitting at the kitchen table with a beer in front of him.
“Hey, Chuck. I figured he wasn’t going to need the beer anymore so I grabbed a cold on. Want one?” Wilder pointed to the fridge in the kitchen.
“I’m good. I usually try to last until at least noon before I start drinking but you enjoy. Gamboli said there was a photograph?” Chuck wasn’t in the mood to drink and hang out. He was anxious to see the picture.
“Yeah. Boss said to be on the lookout for anything about a redhead. Here you go.” Wilder handed the photo to Chuck. “I didn’t find anything else but there’s a date on the back.”
Chuck looked at the photo. Standing next to Gamboli’s son was a redheaded woman in a short black dress. She looked to be in her early twenties and she towered over the 5’8 man standing next to her. Her skin seemed to almost be glowing it was so pale. She certainly looked like the woman described in Erin’s journal but there was no way to know for sure. Still, it was the best lead that he had.
He turned over the photo and saw the date that Wilder had been talking about. Someone had written 05-24-67 in a black permanent marker. Next to the date there seemed to be a symbol, almost like a star but it was missing the part upside down vee that connected the bottom two legs. “Hey, Wilder. Have you ever seen this symbol before?”
Wilder took the photo back. “Oh, yeah. That’s the logo for the Star Club downtown. It was the boss’ son’s favorite club. We used to have to go provide him backup when people would mouth off and he would want to get tough.” He handed the picture back to Chuck and Chuck looked at the back again.
“Do they have any type of lockers or anything at this club?”
“Yeah, actually. It’s a place where a lot of people in our lifestyle like to gather so they make you put your weapons in a locker to keep the peace. Why?” Wilder finished his beer and tossed the bottle into the trash, making a loud clanging noise.
“Interesting. I don’t think this is a date. It’s too far in the past. I think it might actually be a locker combination. Do you know which locker was his if we went down there?” Wilder was already grabbing his keys and getting up in response.
“Yeah, you’ve already been drinking. I think I’ll drive.” Chuck jiggled his own keys to show that he was serious.
“Haha. You’re probably right. I’m just used to playing chauffeur. I could get used to this. Let’s go, Jeeves.” Chuck followed Wilder out of the apartment and made sure it was locked behind them. He took a deep breath and made his way down the hall behind Wilder. Wilder had appeared professional and tough before but today he just seemed drunk. Chuck wasn’t sure if Wilder was just starting to feel comfortable with him or if he was losing it. Either way, he hoped he could keep his cool while in the club. Chuck needed information and he couldn’t get that while babysitting Wilder.
As they approached Chuck’s car, Chuck hit the unlock button and made his way to the driver’s side. Wilder let out a burp while getting himself situated and Chuck just looked at him.
“Dude, it’s cool. I’m just trying to relax. This line of work can get to a man, if you know what I mean.” Wilder put his head back and closed his eyes.
“Okay, but while we are in the club, let’s pretend that you haven’t been trying to unwind and let me do the talking.” Chuck pulled out of the parking spot and headed in the direction that Wilder pointed. Wilder nodded and then chuckled to himself while he looked out the window. Chuck got the feeling that something might be going on between the Gamboli and Wilder. He would need to keep his eye on it to make sure that it didn’t get in his way to help Hailey.
Fifty
Chuck and Wilder pulled up to the club. Chuck looked over to see that Wilder had fallen asleep and shook him awake. If he didn’t need Wilder to point out the right locker, Chuck would have been tempted to just leave Wilder in the car. He waited impatiently while Wilder stretched and got himself awake and aware. Wilder nodded at him to show that he was ready and they got out of the car and made their way into the Star Club.
Chuck could see why it would appeal to someone in the mob lifestyle. It had the luxurious touches that the mobsters sought for their personal lives and it was dark enough to be discreet. It wasn’t a place where wives would wander in and check up on their husbands. That meant that the husbands were free to flirt with the buxom waitresses that served them. It was definitely a boys’ club.
He followed Wilder to a side room of lockers. It made sense that a club like this would require the patrons to put their weapons in lockers. One wrong move could make one of the men mad enough to take out the whole club. This way security had time to get to them and calm them down before they had time to get to the locker, unlock it, and come back with the weapon. In order to leave the locker room and get access to the club, the men would have to pass through metal detectors. All in all, Chuck actually respected that the mob seemed to regulate its club in a fashion that was more tasteful and efficient than the airport.
Wilder moved to the back of the room and pointed to an eye-level locker. Chuck pulled out the photo and read the combination on the back of it. He twisted the knob to match the numbers and the door opened with ease. Inside was a notebook with the scribbled writing of a man. Chuck had learned quickly in his line of work that women often took the time to learn how to write in a flowery but fluid manner. Whoever wrote in this notebook showed signs of being in a hurry to get the information down.
“I’ve seen that notebook before. Gamboli’s son used to keep it in his jacket. We used to tease him about being a little girl with his diary.” Wilder looked over Chuck’s shoulder and tried to see what was in it. Out of instinct, Chuck shut the notebook and put it in his own pocket. He checked again to make sure there was nothing else in the locker and then he shut it.
“Alright, Wilder. Let’s go.” Chuck started to walk to the front door. He stopped when he didn’t hear any footsteps behind him. He turned back and raised an eyebrow at the sight of Wilder still leaning against the lockers.
“Actually, I think I might relax and unwind a little more. Probably as close to a vacation as I’m going to get. I’ll call one of the boys after to come get me after I’ve had my fill.” Wilder turned and put his gun in a locker behind him.
“Suit yourself. See you, Wilder.” Chuck put on his sunglasses and headed out to the car. At least this would give him some extra time alone with the junior Gamboli’s notebook before he had to report back to the senior. Besides, Wilder was getting on his nerves and he was relieved not to have to be stuck in a small space with him again.
Fifty One
Hailey was rocking in the chair in the nursery when Chris got home. Maggie had already left for the day as Chris preferred the help to be gone before he arrived home. He said that he dealt with people enough during the day and didn’t want to have to spend time making niceties with people who he paid to make his life easier. It was just one more thing that made Hailey’s skin crawl.
She could hear his footsteps down the hall and she knew that he was coming to see her. He always made a point to show her that he was kind and caring and nothing like the man that Erin made him out to be. But she knew the truth. Not just from Erin’s words but also from seeing it with her own eyes. Chris was happy to play the doting man as long as every single aspect of his life was within his control. Otherwise he would become a monster.
“Hey there, darling. It looks lovely in here. The nursery sure is coming along nicely. It will be perfect in time for our sweet little girl to arrive.” Chris came over to where she was rocking in the chair and knelt down next to her so he could put his hands on her stomach. He was getting more and
more comfortable with touching her without asking first. Just one more sign of his control of her. It took all of Hailey’s strength not to cringe from it. “Oh, darling, I have the best news. I spoke to my publicist today and she thinks it is time to make this official, our little family.”
Hailey looked over at Chris, confused at what he was saying. It was then that she saw his hand move into his pocket. She knew he couldn’t be going for a weapon because she was pregnant with his most important asset. But she still felt a chill of fear. Hailey closed her eyes and took a deep breath. When she opened them, Chris was in front of her with an open ring box. Inside was a large round diamond in a platinum setting. She looked at Chris and hoped that he was not serious.
“Hailey, dear, I have made arrangements for us to get married this weekend. In just two days’ time, we will be a real family.” Without waiting for a response, Chris put the ring on her finger. She felt the weight of her future in the weight of the metal. As long as she was responsible for the welfare of Erin’s baby, she would have to go along with what Chris said. She did her best to smile at Chris, to show that she would go along with his plans. “I know this is not what you planned as a little girl but I promise to make this wedding special. Our life together will be happy. You will see. And once we are married, we will move you into my room so that I can be near you when it is time for the baby.”
Last Chance Baby Page 12
