by Dylan Allen
“We’ll be right out, darling. Go make sure everyone’s gathered round.” He flushes at the term of endearment before he disappears to go and do her bidding.
Phil came up to spend a week with me. He said he needed a change of scenery and left his precious restaurant in the hands of his staff. It’s been fun, and my family loves him. Even Jack.
And tonight we’re leaving for Texas. Our meeting with Susan Kendicott is in two days.
“You know he’s half in love with you right?” I say to Penn as she puts more food on the tray.
“No he’s not. He’s just enjoying having someone mother him.” She smiles indulgently. “Now pick up this tray and come suffer through my embarrassing speech like the good son that you are.” She bumps my hip with hers on her way out. I heft the very heavy tray onto my shoulder and follow her out into the living room.
Jack, Beth, Porsha, Joe, Phil, Nadia, Ryan, Hetal, Dean, and his wife Milly all gather round in the small living room of my apartment with their glasses in hand and turn to watch my mother. I grab two glasses and walk to stand with Beth by the window. She takes it from me with a radiant smile and tucks her arm through mine. I’m going to miss her.
It’s just four days I’ll be away, but it’s the longest we’ve been apart since the night of Upwards gala and it feels like an eternity.
“I want to say a few words,” Penn calls and clinks her glass with the handle of the small spoon in her hand.
“Life doesn’t make any mistakes. All of us know that truth with sometimes uncomfortable intimacy,” she squeezes Joe’s hand and they share an intimate smile before she continues.
“We’re here by choice…and maybe some grand design. Besides Nadia and Jack, none of us share a drop of blood between us. The roads we traveled intersected the way they do with thousand of other people. But, when our paths crossed something made us stop and pay attention. We’ve defied lots of odds to becomes this composition of souls who call themselves family.” She smiles fondly around the room. “ I asked everyone to come tonight so that we could give our intrepid boys a proper send off.” She nods at Phil and me.
“We’ll be here when you get back, too. Not because we’re bound by blood or by law. That is what a family is. This is what a family does.”
Beth squeezes my hand and I smile down to find her swiping the knuckles of her free hand across her cheeks.
“Phil and Carter, please thank Susan Kendicott for me. Without her tremendous sacrifice, my heart wouldn’t be whole. Because even before we found each other, you were written in my stars. You were meant to be mine and I would have known something was missing if I hadn’t had you. I hope you get everything you need out of this trip. And that she does, too.” She lifts her glass and everyone follows suit.
Jack clears his throat. “I want to say a few words,” too.
We all look at him, surprised and worried.
“Well, it was nice while it lasted,” Nadia mumbles.
He scowls at all of us.
“Don’t fucking worry. I was just going to say that I’m glad you got your DNA shit worked out. Everyone knew it was only a matter of before you said “fuck it” and started boning again. And - tell Susan, I hope like hell she’s not guilty. ‘Cause I want that piece of shit asshole who can’t win an election, to get the fucking needle for everything he’s put you through.”
“Jack,” Penn groans and she elbows a laughing Joe.
“I’m always honest, mom.” He lifts his glass and nods at us. “I love you guys. You, too Beth. Even though you have terrible taste in female friends.”
Everyone laughs and takes a sip of their champagne. He shoots Porsha a downright evil grin and she flips him the finger but she’s smiling from ear to ear.
I exchange a glance with Beth. “They’re fucking.” She mouths and I frown at her.
“No way,” I mouth back before I whistle to get everyone’s attention.
“Thanks for coming tonight, guys. If you’d told me a year ago that this is what my life would be, I wouldn’t have believed it. I’ve learned some really important things since then and the biggest is that who I am and the kind of life I live, is entirely up to me. It’s my choice, not chance, that determines destiny.” I turn to look at Beth.
“Falling in love with you was the easiest thing I’ve ever done. Staying that way has been the hardest.”
“Ugh, dude, you know she can hear you, right?” Phil says and everyone laughs. I drop a kiss on my baby’s sweet mouth and we share a look that says I love you a million times in a million languages in the space of second.
“She knows what I mean. This hasn’t been easy. We’ve had to fight like hell, but it’s so damn worth it. You’re my person. We don’t need DNA tests, or licenses, or anyone’s approval to tell us that. I want this forever.”
She nods, and wipes a tear from her cheek. “I love you. But I’m gonna kill you for making me cry again.”
“Last time, I promise.” I kiss her. The loud buzz from my security panel sounds.
“Call when you get to Dallas tonight. And then before you set out tomorrow, okay?” My mom’s voice is fraught with worry.
“I promise. Don’t worry.” I press a kiss to the top of her head and hug her one last time.
“I wish I was going with you guys,” Beth says, her voice watery and thick with emotion.
“It’s not going to be a fun visit, Clo. And it’s just a few days,” Phil says and runs a gentle hand over her head.
I love that she has her brother again. I’m also ready for all of this to be done so we can start living a normal day to day. One where the drama of our pasts unfolding like one of those never ending nestled dolls.
“And you’ve got those agents to meet with next week,” Phil reminds her.
She grins now, big and bright. “Yeah, I’m so excited I can’t believe it’s happening.”
“Believe it. You’ve worked so hard for it. And I’ll be back in time to cheer really loud when you make a decision.”
“We all will,” Porsha says.
“Thank you, It means everything to me.”
“You mean everything to us,” Joe chimes in from his seat next to my mother. They’re holding hands. Their relationship has blossomed and even though I have moments where it feels strange to see her holding another man’s hand. But I’m happy she’s happy. And that Joe’s is, too.
“Come on, I’ll walk you out,” Beth says and I sling an arm around her neck and head toward the elevator. Jack and Porsha follow us on and I give him a “where the fuck are you going look,” that he returns with a grin I recognize from summers of sharing a room with him when he was home from college.
Beth is right.
These two are definitely hooking up.
When I kiss Beth goodbye before I climb into my car, the last thing I say is, “I can’t wait to get back so we can finally start making plans.”
In less than 72 hours, I’ll wish those words back. Too late, I’ll remember that plans are just a big red flag waved in the face of fate. And ours was going to come charging at us, horns first, ready to show us who was master.
The Devil’s Due
BETH
I’m on my way home from my Krav Maga class the next morning when my phone starts to ring. Halfway down the subway steps, I stop to see who it is.
“Hey,” a man behind me yelps right before he slams into me and sends us both stumbling down to the bottom.
“I’m sorry,” I call and look at my phone. My stomach lurches. I sprint up the steps, taking them two at a time to get back above ground where I have reception.
The call is now showing as missed and I call right back.
“How did you get this number?” I ask not bothering with a polite greeting. My my ire and suspicion are extinguished and replaced by worry at the sound the jagged crying on the other end of the phone.
“Fiona, talk to me. Is it Cameron?” I ask and hold my breath, my heart already starting to ache from the film reel of disastrous
possibilities that rush through my mind.
“Yes, ” she croaks and I sag against the wall of the buildings I stopped next to.
“What happened?” I demand in a voice that’s just above a whisper.
“I’m so sorry, Liz. I am so sorry. I know you hate me, I know what I did was wrong and I just I’m so sorry.”
“Fiona, take a deep breath. Tell me what’s wrong with Cameron. Are you somewhere safe?” I ask, trying to sound calm.
Her sudden, hard exhale is followed by the loud sound of her blowing her nose.
“Yes, I’m home.” She’s not crying but her voice is broken and nasal.
“What happened?”
“It wasn’t my plan. Your father, he told Duke that if he’d marry you he could have the money and I thought…Duke promised me…. He said he loved me. He said would help me get away from your father once he had the money from your wedding. And I believed him.”
“Oh my God,” I clutch at the wall behind me, shock hitting me like a high speed Mack truck.
“I know. I’m so sorry. I knew it was wrong to lie to you like that. But, you didn’t love him, and I thought you’d be happy to get the money and get out of there. I don’t know what to do. I’m so scared of him,” she wails.
I stumble into a coffee shop around the corner and sit down in the first open booth. I’m momentarily numb with shock at her confession. I listen to her sob for a full minute before I snap out of it.
“Why are you calling me?” I ask, my voice is hostile but she stops crying mid sob.
“Duke and your friend, Dina - they’re living together. I feel like such a fool, Liz. I don’t know what to do. I don’t have anything. No money, no real friends, and now even Duke has abandoned me,” she moans piteously.
Her evasion of my question is forgotten when she says Dina’s name. “They’re living together?” I ask, stunned.
“They’ve been having an affair all this time. Your father fired Duke after the wedding. Duke moved up to Dallas, but he promised me he’d find a way. And that bitch friend of yours, swooped in and stole him. I knew she was working for your grandmother…” she says her voice turning icy with contempt.
“How did that happen?” I ask.
“After the wedding, she swooped in pretending to be so sorry on his behalf. Turns out she’s had a thing for him all along. And stupid me, I didn’t know. At first they pretended she was just helping him for the money. Duke said he’d offered her a cut once he got the inheritance from you.” She blows her nose noisily.
I reel in the face of these new revelations about Dina.
How can she have loved James and be with Duke, now?
“If all else failed, we were going to blackmail Drew. She said she gave Carter something that your dad would pay a lot of money for. We could use it as leverage to get more out of him … We sent Serene to get them.”
This just get crazier.
“Serene?”
“Yeah. She got a wig that looked like your hair and went to LA and found a way to cross paths with him. He didn’t have what she was looking for. She had to try two more times and track him to New York before she got the file. It wasn’t what we needed to squeeze Drew. Just the DNA results that showed he was Phil’s brother and she had some pictures, of her and him doing stuff. So we blackmailed him instead. It wasn’t as much money as we could have gotten from your dad, but it was better than nothing and I just wanted to get away from Drew.”
“Wow,” I shake my head incredulously.
“They betrayed me. Since he got the money from Carter, he won’t even take my calls. He’s living with that bitch. And, he told your father about us. Everything is ruined.”
“I’m sorry all your shitty plans have fallen through, but I don’t know what any of this has to do with me.”
“I need help. I don’t have anyone else but you.”
“Me?” I ask, flabbergasted and horrified all at once A few of the diners glance my way. I slide out of my seat, throw down a couple of dollars for occupying the space and leave.
“Why would I help you?” I ask when I step out onto the street again.
“Your father… he took Cameron away. He gave her to your grandmother. He waited for him to leave town, so I wouldn’t have anyone to call. And he took her,” she crying frantically.
“What?” My blood runs cold and my breath forms a cloud in front of my face as I start to pant.
That monster has Cameron.
“What does he want with her? What did he say you had to do to get her back?”
“Nothing. He said it was to make me pay for humiliating him.”
“I’ll call you back, Fiona. Give me a few minutes. And I’ll call you.”
I hang up without waiting for her to agree and call my grandmother.
“Hello?” She answers on the first ring and I shudder at the sound of her oily, arrogant drawl.
“What do you want for the girl?” I ask, direct and to the point.
She’s quiet for a beat.
“Oh Fiona called you, did she? Your father predicted just right,” She says in a cool drawl.
“Tell me what it will take.”
“This is an unexpected turn of events. We thought we were going to have to kidnap you or something. Your father inadvertently killed to two birds with one stone,” she says with a laugh.
“What do you want for Cameron?” I ask, stonily.
“For you to legally forfeit your claim to the Wolfe fortune.”
“Fine, and?” I snap. I can’t wait for them to find out I have no claim to begin with.
“You’ll have to sign a codicil that changes the rules of inheritance to make sure nothing like this happens again. And then you can have her and her stupid mother, if you’d like.”
She speaks as if she’s reciting a grocery list. I swallow my disgust. I can focus on that after I’m rid of her for good.
“You can send the documents to my agent, he’s a lawyer. I’ll sign them, and send it back.”
“I’m not an idiot,” she snaps irritably. “I want you to sign them in front of witnesses who we trust. You could contest it as soon as you get what you want. You will come here, to my home and do it. Then you can take the girl with you right away.”
“I’m not coming there alone,” I warn. My stomach pitches at the thought of going back there. But, there no way I’m leaving my sister there alone.
“I don’t care who you bring. But if you involve the police, you’ll get that child back in pieces. And spend the rest of your life looking over your shoulder. Because we won’t let you have that money. It’s ours and you’re not fit to be a Wolfe. Be here tomorrow evening.”
She hangs up in my face, but not before I hear the distinctive sound of Cameron crying.
I hang up and call Fiona.
“Liz, what happened? I’ve been trying to call you back. Please, he has my baby. That woman…she’ll hurt her. She’s shrieking and on the edge of hysteria.
“Fiona, you need to take a deep breath, and listen. I’m coming to help you.”
“You’ll come?” She stops screaming and starts to sob, just as violently.
“Yes. I’ve spoken to Agnes. But when I leave Texas, I’m taking Cameron with me. You can come, too. But if you don’t, I’ll take Cameron and then fight you in every court in the land before I let you have her back.”
“Oh my God, Lizzy. Thank you so much. I’ll go anywhere you want. I just need to get away from these animals,” she gushes.
I bite back my irritation her gratitude. It’s grating and I wish I could leave her there to rot, like she deserves, but I know Cam loves her mother.
“Do you have all of her papers - like birth certificate, passport, and stuff?”
She hiccups. “I can get them together. Oh my God, Beth. Thank you. I was so scared.”
“Where’s my Father?” I ask, ignoring her.
“He went to Austin. He’ll be back on Friday.”
“Then get her stuff and wait for my ca
ll. I’ll fly to Dallas today and get a hotel. I’ll give you all my information and you can meet me there tonight.”
“Okay, I’ll start driving as soon as you let me know when. It’s about three hours.”
“That’s the flight time from New York, just about. So, you can time it to get to my hotel tonight so we can plan for tomorrow and wait for Phil and Carter to join us before we go to Agnes’.”
Her crying stops abruptly.
“Phil and Carter? Wa- Wait for them? Where are they?” She’s panicking again.
“They’re on a business trip but they’ll be able to get to Dallas no later than tomorrow morning.”
“There’s no time. He’s had her for two days.” She starts to weep, the hysteria creeps back into her voice and my head starts to hurt.
“Fiona, if we go without them, there is no way, even if we do what they say, to guarantee we’ll get her back. It’s one day. But it’s worth the wait to make sure we’ll leave there with Cam and ourselves safe, too. Just don’t do anything until I get there.”
“Okay. I’m sorry. I’m just so scared,” she cries.
“Me, too. But it’ll be fine. I promise. I’ll call you when I have my flight details.”
I hang up and start dialing a new number. I stop in the middle of dialing and put my phone down. Because the number I’m dialing is James’. He was the first person I wanted to talk to just now. He would know what to do. A wall of grief, one hundred feet high, slams into me. I sit in the booth and sob. I let it take what it wants. I need to get this out of my system so I can focus. I want to make sure I have nothing left but rage and vengeance when I face my grandmother. Any weakness she perceives will make her less inclined to play fair. I don’t want to do anything to risk getting Cam back. Once I have her safe, I’m going rip those black hearts out of their chests and shove them down their throats.
Three hours later, I’m on my flight from LaGuardia to DFW. I check my phone, and grimace. I’ve been calling Carter and Phil since I got in the cab, but their phones are both going to voicemail. I knew I wouldn’t be able to reach them once they go to the jail. But I hoped I’d catch them before they went in.
