“I’ve been advised.” It was a game of semantics, and both men knew it. “Jobs are at stake.”
“Then I’ll go underground.” Sin didn’t want to do it. He had hoped that he would never again have to deal with the type of people with whom he had dealt in the past. That was behind him—he thought. But things were different now, and he had no qualms about doing anything that he had to do to keep his son.
“There was this contact I used to have in Oakland…”
“I’m ahead of you.” He gave Sin the man’s new telephone number and address. “Now forget that you got that from me.”
“It’s forgotten, and it’s very much appreciated.”
“Don’t worry about it. What about the lead on the P.I. that your oldest gave you? Anything new on the trace to the rental car company?”
“The lead is too cold. The car he drove had been thoroughly washed and cleaned when it was returned. His fingerprints couldn’t be lifted. We have found out that Samuel Jamison does have an internal security staff, but I’m sure that the guy he used was outside the loop, way outside. He was probably paid in cash so there won’t be any bank transactions.”
Sin sighed. The effort to get custody of his son had been planned with the greatest of care. It had to be to make a man like Royce Jamison look good.
“Don’t worry old, friend. That boy of yours is staying right where he belongs. And I will do everything I can to help you.”
“I can’t thank you enough.”
After disconnecting, Sin sat back deep in thought. A new approach to finding the information that they needed was crucial. Royce Jamison had his father’s considerable fortune behind him, and it had been used very well. He had to utilize his resources just as well. If they could just track down the man that Colin had spotted, that would be a good lead. With a little pressure, he might be able to provide information about Royce Jamison. Donovan had his man on that, but Sin knew that he worked strictly within the law. Sometimes tiptoeing on its edges could provide better results. He was just about to dial the number that his friend had given him when the telephone rang.
Still deep in thought Sin answered it.
“Hello, Reasoner speaking.”
“Hello, Reasoner,” came the warm reply on the other end. It was Nedra.
He smiled at the sound of her voice. “And what can I do for you, my love?” His voice was husky, suggestive. She had stayed at home from work today to help Sharon move into the cottage, and he had no objection to going home for a lunchtime snack.
“I got a call from Royce Jamison. He wants to talk to me. He said that if I come alone, he won’t press assault charges against you.”
Her words quickly wiped the sensuous smile off his face. He uttered an expletive as he shot up from his chair and pounded a fist on his desk. “Hell no! Absolutely not!”
Sin’s explosive outburst brought his secretary into his office. He assured her everything was all right and waved her out of the room, but he was lying. Nothing was right about this.
“You’re not going! Where does he want to meet you? I’ll meet him. You bet your life I will!”
Nedra inhaled, not surprised by his reaction. She started not to tell him about the surprising telephone call a little over an hour ago, but thought better of it. Honesty and trust were the foundations of their marriage, and there was enough going on in their lives. She didn’t want to add deception to it.
The telephone call from Royce Jamison had shocked her. Their attorney had advised against any personal contact between the man and their family. She had been upset at Jamison’s request. It was nothing less than blackmail. Yet, as she reviewed what he was offering—Sinclair’s freedom—for one meeting with her, it had been easier to make her decision. However, she suspected ulterior motives. She wasn’t as naïve as Royce or her husband seemed to think she was. She hadn’t lived in a vacuum when she served as the pastor of a church located in one of the roughest areas of Oakland. She had learned a little something. Nedra remained calm.
“The profanity is not appreciated, Sinclair.”
“And neither is your meeting with Jamison. So don’t.”
“I simply wanted you to know what was happening…”
“No, Nedra!”
“And to tell you that I should be gone for no longer than an hour, maybe two.”
“I said no.” His anger was mixed with fear, but of what he wasn’t sure.
“I’m meeting him in a public place, and I don’t plan on going anywhere else with him…”
“If you love me, you won’t do this.” He was willing to say anything, do anything to keep her from that meeting.
“It’s because I do love you that I’ve got to go.” She hurried on. “Mrs. Lucia is leaving early, but Sharon said that she would stay here with the children…”
“Don’t do this, Nedra.” His plea was one he hoped she wouldn’t ignore.
“We’ll talk when I get back home.”
“Nedra!” He yelled into the telephone, but she disconnected.
Sin slammed the telephone down and snatched his suit coat from the rack on his way out of the door. He hoped against hope that something would delay Nedra and keep her home until he arrived.
Chapter 19
“You’re telling me that she didn’t give you a clue where she was going?”
Sharon recognized that Sin’s anger was barely controlled. This was a side of him that she had never seen. It was scary.
A little over an hour ago, he had come into the house and raced past her and the children in the family room without a greeting, then up the stairs to his bedroom suite. The children had recognized that something was different about his demeanor and turned questioning eyes toward her, but she had been unable to offer them answers.
Cautiously, she had gone upstairs to see if there was anything that she could do to help. The bedroom door was cracked. When she knocked to gain admittance, it opened further, revealing Sinclair stalking the room with the telephone at his ear. He was slipping an object into his jacket pocket. She knocked harder, and his head snapped up. His face was a mask of rage.
After she entered, the two of them engaged in an escalating war of words as he demanded to know everything that Nedra had told her about her meeting with Jamison. Sharon was shocked.
“All she told me was that she was going out and would be back within two hours. Then she asked me to stay with the children. That was it!” Sharon told him for the umpteenth time. “I sure didn’t know that she was going to see Royce Jamison! Why would she meet that man?” She spat out the last word with contempt. Whether he was Trevor’s biological father or not, as far as she was concerned, he was the enemy and fraternizing with him was treason. “Are they meeting with the lawyer again? Why aren’t you there?”
Sin gave a disgusted sigh. “Because I wasn’t invited. It seems like it was a private party for two.”
Sharon frowned. “I don’t understand.”
Sin resumed pacing, mumbling to himself as he did so. “If she can go meet him and come back home in less than two hours, then she’s not too far. Her cell phone is off…” He ran his hand through his hair in frustration.
“Sin, what is going on? Are you saying that Nedra met with that man alone? Why?”
He didn’t seem to hear her as his agitation increased with every step. “I’ll kill him if he puts one finger on her. I swear on my mother’s grave that I’ll kill him.”
His manner was deadly. Sharon felt a chill run through her. “Sin, please tell me what’s happening? Is Nedra in danger?”
That caught his attention. Sin’s mind raced as he considered what Sharon had asked. Did Royce pose a threat to his wife? During their short encounter with him, he had assessed him as a man not to be trusted. Leering at another man’s wife and goading him into a confrontation were not honorable actions. So, it was clear that the man was a louse, but was he dangerous? There was something sinister about him. He could sense it.
Sin’s uncertainty only
intensified Sharon’s anxiety. She grabbed his arm to get his attention.
“Do you think he would harm Nedra?” Surely the man who had sired a boy like Trevor couldn’t be that evil!
“I don’t know, Sharon. I really don’t know that much about him. But I do know that if he lays a single finger on her in any way, there won’t be a spot in hell hot enough for him to hide that I won’t find him.”
Downstairs, the Reasoner children were deep in discussion about what was happening in their household.
“Something’s wrong with Daddy.” Gillian’s small voice left no room for doubt about her observation.
“It’s about me,” said Trevor. His handsome young face reflected his sadness.
“No it’s not,” Colin quickly corrected his brother. “Dad’s just got a lot on his mind.”
“What?” asked Gillian, abandoning her place in her Daddy’s big chair and coming to sit on the sofa between her brothers.
“His business, taking care of us, and he does a lot for the foundation, too.”
Trevor’s eyes narrowed as he listened to his brother. “I’m not a baby, Colin! I know that everything that’s going on around here is about me. It’s because that guy wants to take me away!”
Gillian’s eyes grew wide. “When are you going, Trevor?”
“He’s not going anywhere!” Colin’s tone was harsh, not reassuring.
Gillian’s troubled gaze traveled between her brothers. Colin avoided her eyes. Trevor didn’t.
“I thought Mommy and Daddy are trying to stop him from taking you away?” Gillian’s voice trembled.
Colin tried again. “They are.”
“Yeah, and that’s why everything is all messed up around here,” cried Trevor. “It’s my fault!”
Colin noted the silent tears slide down Trevor’s cheeks and how his body was taut with anger. He had no idea how deeply this situation was affecting his good-natured little brother.
Gillian began to sniff. Colin turned his attention to her in an effort to quell the impending storm.
“It’s okay, Gillian. Don’t worry. Like I said, Trevor’s not going anywhere.”
“Then why is Daddy mad?” Her sniffs turned into a whimper. “And where’s Mommy? I want my mommy!” She began to wail.
Colin picked her up to comfort her. His jaws clenched tightly as he thought about the man who had brought so much pain into this house. He hated Royce Jamison for what he was doing to his family. He wished that Dad had put him in the hospital when he beat him up, and then maybe all of this would be over. Dad would take care of everything. He knew deep in his heart that he could depend on him. He just knew it!
“Gillian, everything is going to be all right, okay?” He pulled her arms from around his neck so that he could look into her eyes. “Dad and Mama said that they would take care of things, and that’s what they’re doing. Don’t you believe them?”
Gillian searched his face. Was he trying to fool her? Both Colin and Trevor did that sometimes. This time he looked like he wasn’t. Her eyes went to Trevor. He was watching the video, but he still looked mad.
Returning her attention to Colin, she shrugged her shoulders in answer to his question, but that wasn’t good enough for him. He wanted blind faith in their parents from both his sister and his brother.
“I’m going to ask you again. Don’t you believe that Dad and Mama will make everything okay?”
This time she gave him a confident nod. He turned to his brother. “Trevor? Did you hear what I asked?”
He nodded. “Yeah.”
“And do you believe it?”
He nodded again.
“And you do know that none of this is your fault, don’t you?”
Trevor continued to look at the video, but he nodded one more time. It was weak, but it was better than nothing. Colin decided to talk to him further when they were alone.
“So everybody just chill out and don’t say a thing about this to them. Do you hear me, Gillian?”
Her tears now abated, she nodded and snuggled comfortably in Colin’s lap, but the conversation was still on her mind. She turned to her oldest brother.
“Mama and Grandma said that if we pray God will take care of everything.”
Caught up in the action on the TV screen, Colin nodded absently. That was all the confirmation that she needed.
“That’s what I’m going to do,” Gillian announced to no one in particular. “I’m going to pray as hard as I can so everything will be okay.”
* * *
Royce Jamison smiled to himself when he spotted Nedra walking though the restaurant door. Dressed in a well-tailored pantsuit, the light makeup she wore was perfectly applied and every hair was in place. His pulse jumped. Damn, she was fine! All he had to do now was to convince her how the two of them could work together in attaining what was best for the kid.
His father would kill him if he knew what he was up to. All the old man wanted was to get this whole thing over with quickly and get on with his plans before he died, but he was tired of always dancing to his father’s tune. This woman was too delicious for him to let go. He had to at least try to see whether he could get past the barrier that she called a husband. He knew that if he dangled his freedom as a carrot that she would meet him. Unfortunately, she seemed to love the man, but Royce always did like a challenge.
She loved that kid, too, and using him as a bargaining tool just might get him what he wanted. Meanwhile, he hoped that she had told her husband about their meeting. He would have paid a fortune to have heard that conversation. Whatever was said, her will had prevailed. He wasn’t surprised. She didn’t seem to be the submissive sort. He liked that.
Nedra saw him the moment she walked into the restaurant. He was sitting at a secluded table away from the door so that she would have to walk the length of the room to get to him. She wasn’t surprised that he had arrived early. He had planned it that way. It was a power play, so there would be no doubt about who was in control.
Her fervent prayer since Royce Jamison filed for custody was that his motives for wanting Trevor were good ones. After his altercation with her husband, she no longer held such an illusion. He had put her family in a difficult position, and she was here to do what she could to lessen the burden. She didn’t like being here, but what choice did she have? This man held in his hand the fates of both her husband and that of her son.
With her head high, Nedra followed the hostess across the room to where Royce Jamison was waiting. He rose when she reached the table. He was dressed neatly in a conservative suit. His face still retained traces of the bruises he had received at the hands of her husband.
“Nice seeing you again, Mrs. Reasoner.” He bowed, wincing slightly. Sin had also bruised a couple of his ribs. The air nearly crackled with his charm. Nedra wasn’t impressed.
“It is unexpected, Mr. Jamison.” Her manner was cool and reserved. She took a seat at the table, then immediately took control. “May I ask what this meeting is about?”
Royce was taken aback by her bluntness. His impression from their previous meeting was that she would be subtler in her approach. He had been wrong. It seemed that this lovely lady might be a bigger challenge than expected. That really turned him on. The bulge in his pants grew larger.
“You certainly do get to the heart of a matter, don’t you?” His smile was ingratiating,
“Yes, I do.”
“Well, I was hoping that by meeting here at a restaurant we could set the formalities aside and get to know each other better for the sake of my son. Perhaps the two of us could reach a mutual agreement that would be best for all concerned, an agreement without our attorneys breathing down our necks while they make a fortune.”
Nedra didn’t respond. She sat with her hands in her lap, staring at him blankly, making it difficult for him to read her thoughts. Royce shifted, uncomfortable with the silence. This woman was a hard nut to crack.
“Anyway, I’m famished. Why don’t we enjoy a nice lunch, rel
ax a little, and then we can discuss what we’re here for after that.” He picked up a menu. The waiter appeared as if on cue.
Barely glancing at what was being offered, Royce ordered a steak, rare, ranch potatoes and a salad. He peered over his menu at Nedra, expecting her to be surveying the menu. It remained on the table in front of her.
He raised a brow. “Aren’t you ordering?”
She looked at the waiter. “A glass of water with lemon, please.” She returned her attention to Royce. “You’re famished. I’m not. It was your choice to meet in a restaurant, not mine.”
Royce dismissed the waiter. Nedra was a stone wall that he was determined to scale. He flashed her another smile meant to endear. His mind clicked rapidly.
Her demeanor was disarming. Women were usually susceptible to his charms, but this one hadn’t budged. A topic that would get a response from her should do the trick.
“Tell me something about my son, Nedra. You don’t mind if I call you Nedra, do you?”
“I prefer being addressed as Mrs. Davis-Reasoner.”
Royce hesitated. A muscle flinched in his jaw. “Of course then, Mrs. Davis-Reasoner it is. You can call me Royce.”
“Please continue, Mr. Jamison.”
Royce couldn’t hold the chuckle. Yes, she was tough indeed.
“All right, so be it. Anyway, I’d love to know something…anything about…uh, uh…” What in the hell was the kid’s name?
“Trevor.” Nedra’s tone was granite. He didn’t care enough to know his son’s name? This was no desperate father. What exactly was he? What did he want?
Royce tittered nervously. “Yes, Trevor. Anything that you can tell me about him would be appreciated. I’ve missed so much of his life. What kind of boy is he?”
“Ours.” Nedra remained expressionless. “That is until you came along.”
Royce shifted tactics. Playing with the napkin in his lap, he looked down, trying to look humble. “I know that my coming into your lives hasn’t been easy, Ned…Mrs. Davis-Reasoner, but I had hoped that you can see my position.” Royce’s demeanor changed to one of sadness. “Maybe I appear to be a man who has it all in life, but believe me, that’s a façade. I’m a lonely man. My mother and sister died under tragic circumstances. My father is the only family I have. At least that’s what I thought until I was blessed with Trevor. I was so happy to know that I had a child.” He looked up to gauge her reaction to his words. She looked skeptical. “Despite the circumstances in which he was born,” he added quickly. “I won’t lie and say that I had any kind of relationship with his mother.” Hell, I don’t even remember her! “But, I am capable of loving that boy and will do everything in my power to prove it, but I’ll need help—your help.”
Sinful Intentions Page 18
