Her Twin Surprise (Forsaken Sons Book 2) Page 10

  Chapter 15

  Stevie gently kissed Halley’s chubby cheek, then smoothed her hair back. She did the same for Harrison, then paused just a moment to look at her children. Their lives had taken a dramatic turn, and yet, they’d gone with it. No hesitation in accepting Lincoln and Kinsley into their lives. They’d simply embraced their new world order.

  Oh, if only Stevie could be that accepting!

  Standing up, she slipped out of the twins’ bedroom, pulling the door mostly closed but still open so she could hear them during the night. In her own bedroom, she picked up her cell phone and, after rummaging around in the stack of papers on her desk, the stack that she never seemed to have enough time to go through, she eventually found the card with the private investigator’s information on it.

  With shaking fingers, she dialed the number, her fury increasing with every number.

  As the phone rang, Stevie paced around her bedroom.

  “This is Frankie,” the woman answered.

  Stevie froze. “Frankie? This is Stevie Hunt.”

  “Hi!” the PI replied, her voice warm and friendly. “How are you? I’m glad that you called. I didn’t want to pressure you in any way, but…”

  “Really? No pressure? So then, why did you tell Janus about my children?” she demanded.

  There was a long silence and Stevie trembled with her anger.

  Finally, Frankie replied, “Stevie, I don’t know what you’re talking about. And who is Janus?”

  “Janus Meyers.”

  “The football legend?” she asked with a laugh. “Good grief, I wish that I could get in to talk to him!”

  “Seriously?” Stevie snapped. “You’re going to go that way? You’re actually going to lie and tell me that you didn’t contact Janus Meyers and tell him about my children? After you promised me…” she paused to close her eyes, “…you promised…that you would let me think about this situation and make my own decision! I trusted you!”

  Another long silence and Stevie waited, wondering what excuse the woman would offer.

  “Stevie, I don’t know what’s going on here. I haven’t spoken to Janus Meyers and I definitely haven’t said a word to Edward about the twins. As far as I’m concerned, I’m on hold until you tell me what you want to do. Your kids,” she reiterated firmly, “your rules.”

  Stevie stopped pacing, closing her eyes as confusion washed over her. “You didn’t find out that Janus was the father?” she asked, her voice a whisper as dread threatened to choke her.

  “No! I wouldn’t do that.”

  “But…” Stevie looked around the small bedroom as if she could find answers in the soft, well-used comforter and beaten, scratched dresser. “But if you didn’t tell Janus, then who is this private investigator that did? He said that he’d received a visit from a private investigator! Janus showed up! Here! Today!”

  She started pacing again, her worry drowning out her anger.

  “I don’t know, Stevie. But I’ll find out. In the meantime, call Lincoln. Let him know that you might need help. He’ll be there for you.”

  “Right,” she whispered.

  “I’m going to call you in the morning when I have something. What is the best time to do that?” she asked.

  Stevie bit her lower lip and forced her mind to think. “Um…I take my class to lunch at eleven twenty each day. I have about a half hour of free time then.”

  “I’ll call you tomorrow at eleven thirty with whatever I’ve discovered. Until then, don’t worry,” she urged. “I’ll figure out what’s going on, I promise you.”

  “I can’t…” she stopped, bowing her head. “I can’t afford your services, Frankie.”

  The other woman chuckled. “Don’t you worry about my fee, Stevie. Everything will be charged to Edward Meyers.”

  Stevie ended the call and sat down on the edge of her bed, not sure what to do. She was still too tense to sleep, but she tossed her cell phone onto the bed and started her normal evening routines. Still, her mind was going a mile a minute. Why would Edward Meyers have hired a second private investigator? What was that wily bastard up to?

  Chapter 16

  Frankie didn’t wait to be announced. Not this time. As soon as she stepped off of the elevator, she headed for the old man’s office.

  “Ms. Winward!” the assistant yelped, leaping to her feet. “I don’t have you on the schedule!”

  Frankie ignored the woman entirely and kept going. Frankie didn’t even slow as she approached the double doors to Edward’s office.

  “You can’t…” the assistant called out, stiffening with outrage. “What are you doing?” she demanded. “You can’t just go in there!”

  Frankie kept going. Obviously, no one dared to enter the private sanctum of the all-powerful Edward Meyers without permission. The assistant didn’t even think to physically block the doors. Frankie threw both doors open and stalked in.

  “We need to talk,” she announced as the doors slammed shut behind her. Edward was staring out the window as he sipped from a glass that Frankie suspected was filled with scotch or bourbon. Her gaze narrowed on the glass. “It’s seven o’clock in the morning!”

  Edward stared at Frankie, obviously startled. But he rallied quickly.

  “Get out! This is my private office and I don’t want to be disturbed!”

  Frankie ignored him. “Too bad. You hired another private investigator,” she said conversationally as she moved to mirror his stance in front of the other window. She didn’t bother to sit, refusing to let him play god today.

  “That’s right!” the man snapped, his red-rimmed eyes narrowing on her. “You were working too slowly! I wanted answers!”

  “What’s his name?” she demanded.

  “Tony Malleto!” Edward hissed, then grinned at the horrified shock on Frankie’s face. “That’s right! A man will get the job done right! You’re fired!”

  Frankie laughed. “Tony is the most unethical private investigator in the city!”

  “He’s a former police detective!”

  “Yeah!” she replied echoing his tone. “Who was fired from the police force for illegal activities!” Frankie shook her head. “Tony was caught roughing up prostitutes and demanding sex in return for not arresting them! He wasn’t even working vice at the time! He’s scum!”

  “He got me results! He says he’s really close to finding one of my sons. He just needs a day or two! What have you got?”

  Frankie rolled her eyes. “You are an idiot!”

  She turned on her heel and left the office, disgusted and furious at the mess he’d created. Stevie was a good person and didn’t deserve what this excuse of a man would put her through. And she had to do something to stop Tony from doing whatever he was about to do. Frankie didn’t doubt that he was up to something nefarious.

  Sometimes, this job really sucked! Actually, there hadn’t been many good moments lately, which gave her a moment’s pause. If the job was no longer fulfilling, why was she still doing it?

  Sighing, she continued on. That was a question for later, she told herself. Right now, she had a crisis to avert.

  Twenty minutes later, Frankie paced back and forth across the reception area. This office was much nicer than Edward’s. Frankie enjoyed the irony of the old man trying to entice his abandoned sons to take over his empire with the promise of wealth, when both of his located sons were far wealthier than he was.

  Good! She didn’t like the man, but Lincoln was a good person. This Janus Meyers…? She had yet to determine his worth.

  “Mr. Meyers can see you now,” the assistant announced.

  Frankie stood up, trying to hide her frustration with what was going on.

  Stepping into the elegant office, Frankie was impressed with the clean lines and incredible view! Wow!

  “How can I help you, Ms. Winward?” The tall, handsome man asked.

  Frankie’s attention turned to the man and… she froze. “Oh wow! You’re really Janus Meyers!” she whispered i
n awe. “Goodness, I loved watching you play!” she continued with a smile, moving towards the man who was still a legend in the industry.

  “Thank you,” he replied politely, those silver eyes of his shockingly similar to his brother’s. But Lincoln had several interesting flecks of yellow while Janus’ eyes were pure silver. Just like his father’s.

  “I was under the impression that you had information on an urgent matter?” He prompted.

  Frankie pulled herself out of the celebrity induced silliness. “Right!” she replied, closing her eyes for a brief moment to collect her thoughts. “Sorry about that.” She shook her head and opened her eyes. “I’m here about a man named Edward Meyers,” she began. His face went carefully blank. “I know that he’s your father. And I also know that another private investigator contacted you. A guy named Tony. I heard…”

  Janus Meyers lifted a hand, stopping her next words. “I’m sorry, Ms. Winward, but I can’t discuss pending legal issues.”

  Frankie read between the lines and leaned forward, her voice dropping with anger. “What did he do? Did he threaten Stevie? Did he…?”

  His gaze sharpened suspiciously. “How do you know Stevie?”

  Frankie pressed her lips together. “If you try to hurt Stevie, I will stop you!”

  Janus stared at the woman, his gaze moving over her features carefully. She was a strikingly beautiful woman who obviously tried to hide her beauty behind a tough veneer of strength. But those copper curls framing her pale features combined with the emerald eyes…it wasn’t working. That kind of beauty can’t be hidden.

  Unfortunately, she left him cold. Ever since he’d seen Stevie again, other women hadn’t done a thing for him. He wasn’t sure if he should be upset or relieved that everything he remembered about Stevie had been right and not a figment of his imagination.

  Still, this woman knew Stevie. That meant that she knew about his children. “What have you done?” Janus demanded. “Did you…?”

  “No! Never!” she replied quickly. Was that relief he saw in her eyes? Relief over what? “I haven’t told anyone about Stevie. In fact, I only told Stevie about…” she hesitated.

  “I know about my children.”

  “Good. That’s probably why Stevie called me last night, furious with me for going back on my word.”

  “What did you do?” he growled.

  Frankie laughed, shaking her head. “Nope. Sorry, buddy. But I didn’t do anything. But your father did. He’s the one who hired the unethical private investigator. I was just in Edward’s office and…”

  “Did you tell him about my children?” he demanded in a thunderous voice guaranteed to scare the bejeezus out of anyone. Anyone but Frankie. In fact, his anger over the possibility of someone endangering his children was just the clue that she needed.

  “No,” she replied calmly. “I spoke to Stevie a few days ago. I explained that Edward was looking for you.” She emphasized that she was an intermediary. “I haven’t told Edward anything about your relationship. Nor will I ever tell anyone about your children. I’ll tell you the same thing that I told Stevie: your kids, your rules.” She straightened up. “But I’d recommend not allowing Edward Meyers anywhere near those children.”

  “I wasn’t planning on it. And if you’ll keep this quiet, I’ll pay you for your assistance.”

  Frankie laughed, shaking her head. “You don’t need to pay me to keep quiet about your children, Mr. Meyers. Just…protect them from your father.” She sighed and shook her head. “Actually, Edward hired me to find you. Not your children. So any information that I have about your kids is irrelevant to my investigation.”

  “I don’t want him near my family.”

  Frankie lifted her hands into the air. “I will respect your wishes.” She shifted on her feet. “On another matter, Edward is interested in meeting you. But I told Edward when he hired me that I would only find his sons and let them know that he is interested in meeting. I wouldn’t force you to meet him.”

  He snorted. “As if you could!” His eyes narrowed thoughtfully. “You said sons? As in, plural?” He leaned closer, trying to mask his interest, and failing. “I have brothers?”

  Frankie heard the plaintive note in his voice and reacted to it. “Yes. From what I understand, there are three sons that Edward decided weren’t worthy of his notice. Three mothers who were kicked out of his life at the first mention of their pregnancy.”

  Janus bowed his head, shaking it slightly as he muttered something under his breath. “Please,” he whispered, then cleared his throat. “Will you…can you, tell me who they are?”

  Frankie hesitated. “Are you a good man?” she asked, looking directly at him, her gaze unwavering.

  “I try to be,” Janus replied back.

  She stared at him for another long moment, then nodded. “Fine. Yes, I’ll give you their information. But I have to clear it first. I’m not giving you anything unless they want to be in contact.”

  “That’s fair,” Janus replied straightening his shoulders. He rubbed his face, looking exhausted all of a sudden. “I didn’t know about my kids,” he told her, then reached into his desk drawer. “This other guy, the private investigator that your client,” he sneered with disgust, “hired is about to be arrested for blackmail. He gave me these,” he explained, tossing a wrinkled envelope on his desk. “And said that he wouldn’t tell the press about my kids, if I paid him a million dollars.”

  Frankie gasped and grabbed the envelope, looking quickly through the pictures. “How did he get these?” she demanded, noticing the age range of the photos.

  “I don’t know.” He shrugged. “I just assumed that he’d taken them.” He sighed. “To be honest, I was overwhelmed by the idea that I had two children that I didn’t know about. I forgot to ask for details about anything else at the tie.”

  Frankie looked up at him, noticing the exhaustion and wariness in his features now. “Stevie is a wonderful person and an incredible mother,” she said firmly. “I’m guessing that she tried to tell you and something happened.”

  Janus lifted his hands in the air. “I know. Stevie…,” he shook his head, smiling faintly. “Yeah, she’s a good mother. And she did try to contact me. It was my fault. I was going through…some stuff when she got pregnant.”

  Frankie nodded slowly, thinking back to the headlines five years ago, quickly connecting the dots. “It was just after the illegal tackle,” she said, not asking. “The tackle that caused you to retire.”

  “Yeah,” he replied with a harsh laugh. “Thanks for not calling it an accident.”

  She stiffened. “That was no accident,” she hissed furiously. “That ass went after you!”

  “Exactly,” he replied, nodding in agreement. “He did. But things have worked out pretty well.”

  Frankie grinned mischievously. “Not for Rockwell. I heard he’s back in jail.”

  Janus laughed. “Not my fault, this time. The man has demons that he hasn’t dealt with.”

  “That’s true enough.” She sighed and looked around. “May I take these? I’ll return them, but I have a sneaking suspicion that Tony didn’t get these via legitimate means.”

  Those silver eyes narrowed again. “Are you saying that he broke into Stevie’s house to get those pictures?”

  Frankie shrugged. “I don’t know. They look like pictures that Stevie took of her and the kids over the years. They don’t look like surveillance photos.”

  “Right.” He rubbed a hand over his face again. “Yet another mess my father created for me.” He nodded at the pictures. “Let me know what you find out about those pictures. My lawyers are already working with the police and the district attorney’s office. Charges will be filed against him this afternoon.”

  “Excellent!” Frankie replied. She tucked the envelope into her inside jacket pocket. “I’ll get back to you as soon as I can. And I’ll contact your brother and ask if he’s interested in meeting you.”

  “Thank you,” Janus replied,
extending his hand. Frankie smiled, shaking his hand with a firm grip.

  “I’ll be in touch,” she told him.

  Chapter 17

  “What do you want?”

  Stevie turned at the sound of the familiar, angry voice behind her. It was a chilly Saturday morning and she’d called Janus’ office yesterday, asking if he would be free to meet with her here.

  Stevie stood up and shoved her hands deeper into her pockets, not wanting him to loom over her. Of course, he was still about a foot taller than she was, but at least she wasn’t sitting down.

  “I wanted to…” she trailed off, knowing that her next words were going to change her entire life. And she resented that she had to do the right thing.

  He sighed with irritation. “Spit it out, Stevie. I have things to do.”

  As if she didn’t?! Taking a deep breath, she stifled her anger. “I wanted to talk to you about Halley and Harrison.”

  “What about them?”

  She looked over at the playground, sadness tightening her words. “I wanted to introduce you to them. And figure out a way to…” her voice cracked. “And figure out how we can work this out.”

  “Afraid of losing them?”

  She glared daggers at him. Her anger and panic were so intense, she almost choked. “No. I’m not afraid. I’m a good mother and you damn well know it.” She nodded towards the playground. “Those two little people are well adjusted and healthy. Only a petty jerk would try to take them away from me.” She glared at him. “Are you that petty jerk? Are you going to play dirty and drag those two innocent kids through the mud just so that you can get revenge? Revenge that isn’t even justified?” She saw the startled look in his eyes. “Besides, if you try to fight for custody, I’ll fight back. I’m not as poor as I was before. I have resources now.”

  She took another deep breath, closing her eyes for a moment. “But that’s not what’s best for Halley and Harrison.” She paused and looked at her babies again. “I’m not doing this because I’m afraid of you,” she told him. “I’m doing this because…” her voice cracked again and she took a moment to compose herself. “I’m doing this because you’re their father and they deserve to have you in their lives. They deserve to know you.”