Chapter 44
CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR
LONDON, THREE WEEKS LATER
The Montgomery home in London looked different than the last time Wyatt had visited.
Of course, it was winter now instead of fall when he’d been there for Arthur’s funeral.
Yet, there seemed to be more life outside today.
Flower beds that could withstand the winter surrounded the home, adding pops of color he hadn’t remembered.
He was planning to talk with his daughter, though, so maybe it was hope filling him when last time it’d been grief and pain.
With Natasha at his side, he had the courage to walk up to the door and face his daughter. He still wasn’t sure what he was going to say, but he couldn’t wait any longer.
He’d spoken to his mum on the phone last week.
She confessed she’d been curious over the years about Gwen, but she’d been too afraid to push.
It’d take him some time to get over that fact, but he wanted to forge a new path, a new future, so holding grudges and placing blame wouldn’t do anyone any good.
And nothing would stop Wyatt from soldiering toward Charlotte’s front door. He refused to miss out on another twenty years of Gwen’s life because of some misguided notion he’d be as shitty of a father as his old man.
“You can do this.” Natasha squeezed his hand as they walked down the cobblestone path, the clouds pulling overhead, rain threatening.
“Thank you for being here.”
She peered over her shoulder at him. “And thank you for waiting until I could come with you.”
When Natasha turned Balan’s USB drive over to the CIA, the Agency had scored not only enough evidence to put both the Wards and Jasper away, but Balan provided significant intel that enabled multiple target packages to be put together to take down HVTs around the world.
Bravo Team, along with A.J. and Roman, happened to be mid-assignment taking down a target now.
Wyatt wasn’t about to thank Balan, but in all the craziness, at least some good had come from it.
Plus, Natasha managed to convince the government to take the three hundred million from the hacks, which included the hundred and fifty Balan had transferred to Natasha, and divide it between the victims’ families who’d been affected by Kate Ward and Alexander Balan over the years.
It wasn’t blood money anymore, it was college tuition for the children of the soldiers who died in the helo crash in Algeria.
It was cancer treatments paid in full for the wife of another victim of Balan’s.
It was money the fallen CIA officer’s spouse chose to donate to wounded warriors. And so much more.
Natasha had been a champion for those people. She was truly a bright spot in what could be a dark world.
Wyatt squeezed her hand tightly once they stood in front of the double doors. “I really do love you,” he said before ringing the bell, his heart skipping a couple of beats.
“I love you, too,” Natasha replied just as one of the doors creaked open, revealing his surprised-looking daughter.
“I, um . . .” Gwen took a step back, and Wyatt glimpsed the luggage off to the side of the door. “I was just coming to find you.”
“What?” His brows lifted in shock, and he had to restrain himself from reaching out for a hug that’d probably be awkward for both of them.
“Your face healed.” Gwen smiled, then blinked a few times and stepped aside, offering them entrance.
“That’s a lot of bags,” Natasha commented.
Gwen blushed and tucked her blonde hair behind her ears. “I was hoping to stay in the U.S. for a few months.”
“You were?” He couldn’t seem to shake the shock.
“I didn’t know where you were living, but I had a feeling if I found Natasha,” Gwen began, “I’d find you.”
“I’m not exactly listed,” Natasha said with a smile.
“Yeah, but you should probably do a better job at hiding where you live. I found you pretty quickly.” She shrugged. Gwen really was a computer whiz, wasn’t she?
“How’d you know my last name?” Natasha asked, a touch of pride in her eyes.
“That evil hacker guy called you both Chandler and Natasha while we were in the auditorium, and I figured you were CIA, so . . .” Another shrug. A touch of modesty in the curve of her lips, in the slope of her shoulders.
“You didn’t hack the Agency, did you?” He didn’t want his daughter getting arrested the second her plane landed in the U.S.
“What, um, are you doing here?” Gwen deflected.
Wyatt tucked his hands into his coat pockets, attempting to formulate the words he probably should have practiced before he’d come.
“Your mom here?” Natasha asked.
“In the kitchen.” Gwen pointed to the hallway behind her.
“I’ll go say hello. Why don’t you two talk?” Natasha wrapped a hand over Wyatt’s arm, offering her support, then she left the entranceway in pursuit of the kitchen.
“Want to take a walk?” Gwen sidestepped him without waiting for a response, grabbed her jacket, and opened the front door.
He followed her outside, and they began walking along the path toward the back of the property. He remained quiet, still not sure what to say, or how to go about expressing his thoughts.
“I read the follow-up story about what happened in Montreal. The papers said both Kate and Felix Ward will be going to prison. Jasper, too. But they wouldn’t be in jail as long as Kate.”
“You read the newspaper? You don’t get your news online like most people your age?”
“I can be old school when I want to be.”
Maybe Wyatt was the one deflecting now. He wasn’t sure if he was prepared to talk about Balan’s quest for revenge or the people who’d been responsible for nearly killing Gwen and Natasha.
“Felix wasn’t as ignorant as he let on,” he admitted, “but he’s also dealing with some other lawsuits.
” Wyatt had a feeling Gwen already knew this part, too.
“Some women at Cyber X stepped forward about Felix’s inappropriate behavior.
” The idea was too horrible for him to even say aloud.
It not only repulsed him, it awakened his sniper brain and made his trigger finger itchy to know Ward had tried to get Gwen to sleep with him in exchange for a job.
“There’s a group of women at Cyber X who will be taking over the company now, right? An awesome and diverse group of kick-ass ladies. Thank God some good came from Felix’s fall from fame,” she said. “But um, how long are you in London for?”
“As long as you want me to be.” And that was the truth. He would put aside his position as Echo One for as long as Gwen needed him to. He couldn’t miss out on her life. His mum and Charlotte had been wrong about him. He would have chosen his daughter above all else, even at eighteen.
“I honestly would like to get the bloody hell out of here. Maybe spend a few weeks in New York before I rent a flat near wherever you’re living. There are some great schools in D.C. I could transfer to in the fall.”
He blinked. More surprise moving through him.
She wanted to get to know him. Rent a flat and go to school nearby. Was this really happening?
“My twenty-first birthday is next month. I can’t imagine a better place to celebrate than the Big Apple.”
Twenty-one. New York. A birthday.
He was going to have heart failure at the idea. What if . . .
He couldn’t think like an operator right now. Besides, it was only early February. He had time to come up with a plan for her birthday, a way to ensure her safety.
“I’d absolutely love for you to come to the U.S.,” he finally admitted as she pointed to a bench at the back of the house on a patio area. He took a seat and twisted to the side to face her. “Why, though?”
She fidgeted with the zipper on her jacket before peering at him. “Mum told me the truth two days ago. She told me you never knew about me, not until right before you came to Montreal.”
The blood rushed from his face as if he were fast-roping from a helo upside down. “She did?”
“She said Dad wanted me to know the truth after he died, and she almost did it, but then she freaked that I’d hate her and him.
” Emotion cut through her words, and it was a machete to his heart to hear and see her hurting.
This was the last thing he wanted. “I know why you didn’t tell me back at the hotel.
” Her lips pinched tight as if she were fighting tears.
“You were going to take the blame and let me hate you, so I wouldn’t blame him . . . because he’s gone.”
He closed his eyes, trying to channel the strength he’d need to get through this.
“He wanted you to be in my life, though. He asked me for forgiveness, and then he told me to ask you for forgiveness as well.”
He opened his eyes at her words. “I don’t understand.”
“There was a letter Mum was supposed to give me after he died. Dad wrote it when he was sick. She gave it to me the other day.”
Wyatt covered his mouth with his palm, trying to wrap his head around it all.
“He also said he forgives you for leaving. And that what happened with Mum wasn’t your fault.
” She grew still for a moment, tears beginning to trickle down her cheeks, her blue-gray eyes shimmering.
“Mum told me what really happened back then. She said Dad had been cheating, and she was angry. She, um, used you.” She swiped the backs of her hands over her cheeks.
“We were all very young.” He swallowed, hoping his voice would continue to work. “Younger than you are now. Not as mature as you are either, so it would seem.”
“Would you have wanted me if you’d known the truth back then?” She blinked away the rest of the liquid from her eyes.
“Yes, but I also know Arthur gave you a life I don’t think I could have. Your mother was right to worry about me. I was wild and hated being tied down to the life of a noble. I joined the military, and I never really had a permanent address.”
“You don’t need to justify what they did.”