Daddy, Sir (Dirty Daddies 2024 Anthology #6)

Chapter 15

Chapter Fifteen

Fiona

As I put the sheets in the washer after transferring the clothes to the dryer, I heard the sound of not one but several cars pulling into the drive that ran up the side of my house. Apparently, Landon’s call was like the police commissioner of Gotham City turning on the spotlight that shot a picture of a bat into the sky. Only this light drew an awful lot of Batmobiles. A glance out the backdoor showed doors opening and closing as people climbed out of vehicles. To a one, heads swiveled and I was very glad I wasn’t attempting to hide behind a bush or in the branches of a tree.

Leaving the utility room, I joined Landon, rolling my eyes, but obeying when he said, “Stay back,” as he checked the window beside the front door and only then turned the key in the deadbolt and opened the door.

“Wow,” I said as people poured into my living room. “We’re gonna need more chairs.”

“I’ll grab them,” Matt offered.

I was about to tell him I was joking when I realized that while the people belonging to the faces on the phone were inside, Landon was talking to someone on the porch. With his attention diverted, I felt it safe enough to walk up to stand beside him. I made it to within two feet when Audra reached out and pulled me back.

“Save the glare,” she said in a far less friendly tone than I’d ever heard before. “Let him assign the others, then you can go to him.”

Forget the fantasy of men in tight spandex and capes. The true heroes were the men and women who didn’t hide behind a mask or secret identity. They were the ones who chose to serve their country and if that wasn’t enough sacrifice, they dedicated their lives to protect those weaker than themselves. If I’d felt safe after I’d joined Citadel’s client list, the security I was witnessing now was the level I’d only seen in movies or when the leaders of government or the Royal Family were moving out amongst their adoring public. Only I’d discovered I was not a fan of adoration unless it came from the man who was finally closing and relocking the door.

I didn’t move to Landon, instead, he moved to me, pulling me to his side and giving me a hug. “Everyone take a seat. I’ll grab the bag.” He kept his arm around me as he led me to the dining room table where additional chairs from the kitchen had been added. “You okay, baby?”

“I’m good.” I wasn’t, but freaking wasn’t going to help anyone. “Does anyone want coffee or tea?”

When a few people nodded, Audra and Matt offered to help. Within a matter of minutes, I was seated in a chair next to Landon, my hands wrapped around a mug of coffee to keep them from trembling.

“Fiona?”

“Huh?” I looked from the contents of my mug to where a pair of purple gloves was being extended by Reggie. I’d learned he was the official “science guy” of the team.

“This is the first time we have a chance to hopefully lift some prints other than yours or anyone on the team who’ve handled the slips of paper.”

“Oh, right, thanks,” I said, accepting the gloves and working my fingers into the latex as he passed them out until everyone at the table wore a pair.

Landon picked up the scissors I’d provided him from my sewing basket and cut around the area of the bag where the tape had been applied. He handed the bag to Reggie who put it in yet another bag. I pictured any one of the many forensic shows I’d watched and could only hope their ability to solve crimes wasn’t solely based on some super cool woman in a white lab coat down in the basement. I didn’t have a lab coat, much less a basement.

Shaking my head, I concentrated on what Landon was doing, my fingers locked around my coffee mug. The flight aspect of the fight or flight impulse was screaming at me to run, but I was determined to keep myself anchored. Everyone in this room was here for me and I’d stand with them no matter what it cost.

I was trying to figure out how Landon was going to get the tape off the paper without destroying it when I realized he wasn’t attempting to do that. Instead, he was carefully using just the tips of the scissors to cut what I realized was another plastic bag. This one was much smaller, about the size of a business card… or a folded piece of paper. The second bag had served as protection against the ice and water while in the cooler. It took a few minutes but when Landon used a pair of tweezers to pull the slip of paper free, I wanted to jump up and throw my arms around him.

Remaining seated, I held my breath until he pressed one side of the slip over so it was no longer folded. Though I couldn’t read the words, I could see black ink against the white of the paper.

“Read it, Daddy,” I said softly.

He looked up and I saw a man I’d never seen before. There was a look in his eyes that had me catch my breath before I recognized it as the one I imagined any soldier who’d stood face to face with an enemy wore. A determination that if necessary, he’d give his life to hold the line, to protect those in his care. Though I felt my eyes welling, it wasn’t from fear of this man. It was pride. The honor of being in his presence, in the presence of everyone seated around my table.

“I’m okay, read it so we can find him and end this.”

He didn’t nod, just dropped his gaze to the paper and read:

You’ll not know the day, the minute, nor the hour,

But you’ll learn it is I, not he, who possesses the powe R .

I was about to speak when he looked up at me.

“There’s another line.”

“Another? There’s never been more than two lines,” Matt said.

“What letter is capitalized?” Zeke asked.

“The ‘R’ in power,” Reggie said, evidently able to read upside down from where he sat.

I heard the others, but I kept my eyes on Landon. “What do you mean another line?”

Landon turned it so I could see the note even as he read the words aloud while I read them silently.

Soon, Augusta ? —

“Wait, it’s a woman?” Tommy asked.

“ No , I don’t think so. I don’t think it’s a signature, I think he’s addressing Fiona,” Audra said.

“But her name isn’t Augusta.”

“Yes, it is.” While the others’ glances bounced between Audra, Landon and I as we’d spoken those words at the exact same time, Landon’s eyes moved to look not at his team, but at the shelves across the room.

“Will someone tell me what the fuck is going on?” Zeke reached across Reggie to grab the note, snarling, “I’m not an idiot!” when Tommie reminded him to be careful.

“I know who it is,” I whispered and when Landon’s eyes shot to me, I jumped from my chair. “Oh my God! I know who it is!”

I tried to climb over Landon who was tilting his chair back, not to block me, but to keep from getting hot coffee from pouring into his lap. I’d totally forgotten I’d been holding a full mug of coffee, simply dropping it when the puzzle pieces clicked into place.

“Shit,” Reggie said, also pushing back while the ones at the end of the table lifted laptops, pads of paper and their electronic tablets off the surface.

“Towe—” Tommy was in the process of barking while I practically did the splits to span the distance of Landon’s arms and legs when he abandoned the chair. Somehow, I ended up with one leg hooked over his arm and would have faceplanted if he hadn’t made some superhuman Daddy move and flipped me upright.

“Thanks!” I bent forward to kiss his cheek while squirming to get loose.

“Go.” He set me on my feet and then swatted my ass as if I needed additional encouragement.

By the time I found what I was looking for and returned, the spill had been soaked up by what looked like an entire roll of paper towels. Normally, I would have reminded them spills were why dish towels had been invented, but decided I didn’t particularly care.

I didn’t even bother trying to reach my chair again. Instead, I climbed onto Landon’s lap and slapped the book I’d retrieved down on the table where the slip had been.

“ In Service of My King ,” Reggie read before looking up at me. “And that helps how?”

“Not the title, Reggie, the author,” Audra said, not even looking at the book. “It’s a book written by Augusta Beshum. A very good book, I might add.”

“You read it?”

“I did,” Audra confirmed with a smile.

“I’m so glad you liked it!”

“Hello? Are we invited to this book club meeting?” Reggie asked, waving his hand in the air to remind me he was waiting for an explanation.

“Sorry. I’m Augusta, I mean, Augusta is my pen name. I wrote it,” I said.

“You’re Augusta? That Augusta?”

“She is.” Landon looked over at me and grinned. “It’s an anagram made of our names.”

“Okay, but may I point out the obvious? There is no ‘F’ and no ‘L,’” Matt said.

“Right, that’s because I used our middle names.” I borrowed Landon’s pad and wrote the letters as I continued, “Méabh is my middle name and Augustus is Landon’s. If you rearrange the letters”—I demonstrated by crossing out each letter and writing it on another line—“you get?—”

“Augusta Beshum,” Zeke said, grinning as if he’d solved the Enigma Code.

“Correct! Even though we weren’t together when I started writing books, I always felt we should be. If I couldn’t be with a Westerly in my real life?—”

“You could be in your fantasy life,” Reggie provided.

“I’ll be damned. How long have you known you created an author, Major?” Matt asked.

“Since a few weeks ago when Fiona asked for a bedtime story.” Landon looked at me. “I had no clue she was the author until I opened that book.”

I reached for the book and opened it, turning pages until I got to the dedication page I’d had watched Landon read the night I shared the secret my loving him had inspired. I’d seen the recognition of himself in the words. Placing the book back on the table, I read:

To the only king I ever wish to serve… my heart and soul belong to the king of the hill.

“Landon and my brothers played that game all the time?—”

“And Fee always cheered for me,” Landon said.

“That’s pretty fucking awesome,” Zeke said.

“It is,” Landon agreed and leaned down to kiss me.

Tommy grinned and reached for the book. “I do love a good fantasy world. Is it futuristic or set in the days of wizards and dragons?”

“It’s contemporary.”

Tommy shrugged. “Not my favorite genre, but if Audra recommends it, I’m game to discover a new author.”

“Oh, I promise you’ll discover a whole new world,” Audra said.

I looked up at Landon, not sure where to go from here, but he just grinned, leaned down and spoke against my ear. “No reader appreciates spoilers, babe.”

Noticing Audra wasn’t offering any more details, I followed suit. “If you like, you can borrow it.”

“Thanks!”

“Did anyone notice that while our Augusta’s dedication was the exact opposite of threatening and doesn’t rhyme, it resembles the lines of our stalker?” Matt asked.

“I’m sure we all did, but you’re right. Back to the case. You said you know who the stalker is, give me his name,” Zeke said, his fingers poised over the keyboard.

“All I know is his first name is Henry but that’s not how to say it. There was an accent. Not quite like Audra’s but?—”

“How about Henri,” Audra suggested, pronouncing it properly. “Maybe he’s French?”

A lightbulb went off over my head. “That’s it! Remember when we got the last slip and it had the ‘U’ capitalized and we were stumped as we all thought it would be an ‘R’? That’s because Henri is French… or maybe French-Canadian, but whatever his birthplace, it’s not in America.”

“Couldn’t his parents be immigrants but he’s American?”

“I suppose, but he didn’t go to school here in the United States because unlike us, some countries spell savior with a ‘U’. That’s why the ‘U’ threw us.”

“There’s bound to be a lot of Henrys or Henris in both countries,” Zeke said, his fingers flying over the keys.

“Narrow the search to the area around Niagara Falls or southern Ontario,” I suggested. “That’s where I met him. I attended a conference on the Canadian side. There were more than authors and fans there. There were publishers, illustrators, models who are already on covers of books, but also many people who were hawking their wares as narrators. With the audio book market expanding all the time, the need for narrators has increased. If you find a great one, your sales can grow pretty substantially.”

“Which one is this Henri?” Audra asked, her own laptop open in front of her.

“A narrator. Though I suppose he could have been auditioning to be a cover model as well.”

“So he’s a hunk?” Matt asked.

“Let’s just say he’s not ugly,” I provided.

“Did you get stalker vibes off him?” Reggie asked.

“No, I thought he was very charming when we first met at the opening of the conference. The sponsors hosted a Meet and Greet where people just mingled and had a glass of wine and the usual canapes. I remember he took a toothpick with a cherry tomato and ball of mozzarella. When he bit into it, you could tell it wasn’t right. Instead of yelling at the poor server or making a big production that she’d given him a rotten tomato, he discreetly spit it into his napkin and even threw it away himself. I was rather impressed because, believe me, I’ve met a lot of people who wouldn’t have been as diplomatic.”

“What happened afterward that made you change your opinion?” Audra asked.

“Part of the event included listening to those who were looking for authors to read their books. Henri was one of the readers. He kept stumbling over the text and when he did get a few words strung together correctly, he spoke in a monotone, without any variance of emotions. I could barely understand what he was saying and the thought of him reading one of my scenes had me picturing my sales plummeting.”

“And you told him this?” Reggie asked?

“Of course not. I didn’t even speak to him that evening. But the next day, he came to

my table during the book signing. I was busy with other readers, signing books and taking photos, and everyone was having a nice time. When he offered me his services, I thanked him for his interest, but told him I didn’t think his voice was right for my books. He picked up one of the books on display and said he was very talented and creative. I was trying to think of another way to dissuade him, without hurting his feelings, but then he asked what kind of books I wrote.”

I paused, the memory as vivid as if it had just happened yesterday. When Landon pressed a bottle of water into my hand, I took a sip and thanked him. “Anyway, when I told him erotic romance, it was like my book was the potion that turns Dr. Jekyll into Mr. Hyde. His entire demeanor changed. His eyes turned into slits, his lip twisted and though he didn’t go berserk, it startled me enough that I stepped back. He said it was just as well because he’d never lower himself to read that kind of book. I just stood there and watched him walk away as if nothing had happened. For a moment I thought maybe I’d just imagined what I’d seen. I’m used to people putting my books down as if they were hot potatoes when hearing the word erotic but never have I ever had anyone do what he did. The book he’d been holding? It was like he was the Hulk or something. He didn’t tear it in two, but he threw it on the ground, the cover was torn off and the pages all crumpled and ripped.”

I looked up again and met their gazes. “I only saw him a few times after that, talking to other authors, vendors, and readers. When he’d see me, he’d stop talking and just stare at me. It was unsettling enough that I’d turn and walk in the other direction or just leave the room. I’d done my best to be polite and he?—”

“Decided that since you didn’t immediately heed his words and mend your ways by packing your little books and scurrying off like a frightened mouse, he’d make an even bigger impact by using his own words to scare the living fuck out of you!”

It was as if every word from Landon’s mouth wasn’t said, but growled in a tone that left no question of how he felt about the situation.

“She didn’t invite him to stalk her, Landon,” Audra said. “She just wasn’t rude and blunt enough to tell him he read at the level of a psychopathic first grader.”

“Fiona mentioned he was diplomatic at first. Also that he wasn’t ugly. Ted Bundy was charming and a very attractive—” Matt wisely chose to lift his coffee mug to his mouth when every head swiveled in his direction.

“I’ve been to signings all over the United States and even in Europe,” I said softly. “I’ve met so many wonderful people, some who don’t read my genre and others who love it. I didn’t even pose for a photo with Henri?—”

“That doesn’t matter, really. Henri could have taken Augusta Beshum’s photo without you even knowing. Anyone, regardless of reading ability, who is skilled enough with a computer, can go through social media until”—Zeke turned his laptop around so we could all see the screen —“he discovers she has an identical twin named”—he pressed a key—“you guessed it, one Fiona Flanagan, who is a psychologist in the great Lone Star State.”

“If that wasn’t enough, the cover he stole probably was.” Tommie flipped my book over and there, on the back was a photo of… well, me sitting in front of a poster of the skyline of Houston, Texas.

“I feel like a fool.”

“Don’t.” Landon’s voice was softer and his hand on my chin gave me no choice but to look up. “You had no idea this would happen and, no, baby, you didn’t invite it. That was just my anger talking. All of this is on one guy. This Henri whatever. He’s the guilty one here.”

“Maybe he’s not a bad guy. Maybe he just wants me to give another genre a chance?”

“Over my dead body,” Landon said once again. “I don’t give a rat’s ass what he wants, or even if he thought this was some creative out-of-the-box way to redeem you? You don’t need redemption. You write books that make people happy. You don’t judge or demean, discriminate or play any of the holier-than-thou crap. Meanwhile, this creep has broken the law. He’s been following you for weeks, which means he could have approached you for a cordial, nonthreatening discussion, if he’s even capable of having one, seven fucking times since the conference.”

“So, how do we find him?”

“By turning the tables,” Audra said. “May I present Henri Depardieux.” Mimicking her teammate, she pressed a key on her laptop and a photo appeared.

“That’s him,” I said. “How did you find his last name so fast?”

“Thanks to your putting the pieces together. You gave us the time and event and a name. The audio book market might be booming, but there are only so many conferences. What are the odds that more than one or two people named Henri are submitting their resumes to every single audio publishing company in both the States and Canada? Remove the one who doesn’t look anything like a possible cover model candidate and, voilà. Now all we have to do is find the physical him.”

“Which should be relatively easy,” Zeke said with a grin.

“By following the money,” I said as if I knew what that even meant.

“I believe Zeke is referring to the fact our Henri appears to have a history of being a bad boy,” Tommy offered.

“How do you know that?”

“Because, Fee, that photo is a mug shot.”

I probably should have known that, but then again, research for a romance book didn’t usually include flipping through a thousand mug shots either. “And when we find him?”

“Then we kick his arse!” Audra said.

“Exactly,” Landon confirmed, not bothering to correct her pronunciation, but perhaps that was because he was too busy reaching down and patting mine.

I wasn’t sure if it was meant to be comforting or a promise of a lesson on better protecting my identity in the future, but I was good with it either way.