Chapter 13
Something bothered me. A lot. Carlisle had been playing up to Jane to get the name of whoever she and Aiden were working for.
Not to mention, he was trying to find whatever "product" the evil duo had.
So why hadn't I heard anything about that?
The obstinate man brushed me off. He was always so secretive, and it frustrated me to no end, especially since he had promised not to keep me in the dark anymore.
Now, here we were, and I was left wondering what he was up to.
Well, I wasn't about to let him have all the fun.
Penelope might be with the father of her baby, but Levi Riley was sitting across from me at Coffee Bean.
I discovered it was quite easy to block my mind from him.
Levi had a sixth sense, though, because the look he gave me hinted that he knew I was thinking about doing something I shouldn't. He cocked a brow.
"Whatever you're thinking, it's a bad idea."
"I only have good ideas," I countered aloud.
"Me too, Miss. Tallulah."
I jumped up at the sight of Lionel and gave him a hug. "How are you doing?"
"My arthritis is acting up in this cold weather." He shook his head. "It's not supposed to be this cold.”
"Yeah, we've had a couple of freezing winters." I took his elbow and helped him into a chair beside Levi and me. "Would you like your usual?"
"I would. Thank you, Miss Tallulah."
I left them to talk while I got his drink ready. Bernie prepared the sandwich while I busied myself behind the counter. "I have an errand to run soon. I'll wait until Jessica arrives," I told Bernie.
"Why do I get the feeling that Carlisle isn't going to like this errand?" She snickered.
"Because you know me well." I grinned. "Oh, here's Scott.
" I quickly took the food and drink back to Lionel, blushing deeply and unable to meet Scott’s gaze.
I felt awkward, wishing Levi had guarded his thoughts better.
I wished to forget it. Like, really forget it.
I shuddered, huffed out a breath, and met Levi's gaze.
He looked flushed, too. A grin spread across my face. I was delighted to see him embarrassed.
"Oh, Lionel, Sheila is here." I patted his hand. "Levi and I will leave you to eat alone. We have an errand to run."
He winked. "Do you need me to come with you? I can bring my skillet."
I laughed, remembering when he knocked Aiden out with a skillet that was heavier than he was. "I'll be fine, but thank you for the offer."
"Stop staring at him.”
Levi’s eyes snapped to mine.
"Are you embarrassed, Levi Riley?" I smirked and headed to the back for my jacket.
"So, where are we going?" he asked, ignoring me.
I turned to face Levi. "I thought you would have some idea." I held his gaze. "Levi, I want to know what the hell is going on. Just because Aiden is dead doesn't mean it's over. I need it to be over. Pen needs peace, especially now."
“All the more reason to let the sheriff handle it. He has my colleagues with him. They both have experience with this kind of thing. Let them get on with it. Carlisle will kill me if anything happens to you."
I rolled my eyes. "You're with me. I'll be fine. Besides, I'm an adult. I can make my own decisions." Levi followed me out the back door. He didn't really have much choice.
At his SUV, I turned to him and smiled. "So, where are we going?"
His jaw clenched, and he hesitated before answering. "I have an idea that no one is going to like, but it might end this quickly."
"Now you're speaking in riddles." We climbed into the SUV, and Levi pulled out.
"You can't tell anyone what we're about to do. Do you understand, Tallulah?"
My nerves rattled. "What exactly are we going to do?"
"Something that I hope won't get us both killed." He glanced at me and briefly searched my face. "What I'm thinking should work because we have the foolproof way of communicating."
"You still haven't said where we're going."
He sighed heavily. "To talk to your father." He winced. "Or rather, you are."
"What the heck?" My mouth dropped open in shock. "What exactly does this have to do with my father?"
"Everything."
My father knew what part Tate had played all those years ago.
He knew who was responsible for Monica's death.
I'd never forget the truth. It made me sick. Now, I’d discovered that my father was behind the drugs that Jane and Aiden were involved with.
Aiden had sweet-talked the nurse out of her panties, and now she was dead. Trevor had also been involved.
"Keep an open mind so I can hear what you're thinking. Otherwise, I can't help you." He paused. "And don't fidget with your foot. This whole thing is pointless if they find the listening device.”
"I know." I inhaled deeply and tried to clear my mind. I was confronting my father so that I could get the answer the cops needed. Maybe I could finally get him to tell me where my mother was. I hadn't seen or spoken to her since Tate died. The pain from losing him was still fresh.
As I stepped onto the porch of my childhood home, the cold hung around me like a heavy blanket. The front door hadn't been fully closed. I had a sinking feeling that something was terribly wrong.
"What is it?"
"I'm not sure," I said to Levi. "I'm going inside."
My heart threatened to beat out of my chest as I slipped inside. I saw that the furniture had been overturned, and there were signs of a struggle. I made sure Levi noticed them. "The house is silent," I added.
"Be careful."
I rolled my eyes.
Wearing flat-heeled boots, I moved silently to the kitchen.
Julie, my parents' housekeeper, was nowhere to be seen.
I felt a twinge of guilt as I realized that I hadn't kept in touch with her.
I loved Julie. She had always been around while I was growing up.
I had been avoiding this house since Tate had died.
I wanted to distance myself from the memories.
I was also angry at my parents for letting an innocent man be accused and convicted after his death for Monica's murder.
Exhaling sharply, I knew the one place I should check was my father's office. The house still felt silent and empty. That didn't stop my heart from beating wildly in fear. I swallowed hard and slowly crept down the hallway toward the office, which was off-limits unless invited inside.
The double doors loomed in front of me. I nervously pressed my ear to the door, straining to hear any sound from inside. There was nothing but silence, which made my heart race even faster. Where was everyone? "I don't think anyone is here," I said to Levi.
"The house has been watched. One of Kendrick's men reported that Duke James hadn't left."
My eyes strayed to the doorknob. With my breath stuck in my throat, I slowly turned it. "Oh!" I gasped, feeling blood roar around my head.
"Tallulah! Talk to me."
My eyes darted around the room in shock as I tried to take it all in. I swallowed hard. "My dad and two men I don't recognize have Carlisle in zip ties. He's been beaten."
Snapping out of it, I rushed to Carlisle, knelt down beside him, and put my hands on his face. His eyes met mine, and I could see the fear and pain reflected in them. I knew the fear was for me.
"Let him go," I said to my father.
"You shouldn't be here." My father moved from behind his desk with a twitch at the corner of his mouth. "What the hell am I going to do with you?"
“You're going to let Carlisle walk out of here with me."
One of the men snickered. "He doesn't take orders from you—"
"Shut the fuck up!" Dad hissed at the man. "No one speaks to her." He turned to me. "You need to stay here until this is over, and then you can go."
"I'm not leaving without Carlisle," I said stubbornly. I wanted to wrap my arms around him, but I didn't want to hurt him more than he already was. The pain in his eyes was evident, but I could also see love and concern shining through.
"That won't be happening." Dad moved around the desk and dropped into his chair. "Hallen isn't going anywhere with you. He's poked his nose into the wrong place this time."
Tears ran down my face at the stern look on my father's face. He was serious. There would be no budging him. "I love him. Daddy, please let him walk out with me. I'm begging you."
His eyes flickered, and his jaw tightened. "Infatuation is not love!" he shouted.
"Daddy, please," I pleaded, my voice cracking with emotion.
I couldn't bear the thought of being separated from Carlisle.
But my father remained unmoved, his resolve unshakable.
I knew then that I would have to do something different.
I wiped the tears from my cheeks, squared my shoulders, and steeled myself to fight for the man I loved.
"Where Carlisle goes, I go. I don't love him because I'm infatuated with him.
I have been in love with him for years. He is my future, whether he wants that or not. "
Carlisle huffed out a breath. "Talla," he whispered.
I turned to him and held his gaze. "I love you, and I’m not leaving."
"Levi, you need to come in here and get Carlisle. Don't worry about me. My father is a bastard, but he won't hurt me. Promise me. Carlisle first."
"You're a pain in my ass, Tallulah James."
"Promise me."
"Buy us five minutes."
I inhaled and slowly exhaled. "Are you the boss?" I asked my father. "Aiden and Jane worked for you. I know that. I want to know if you work for someone."
He watched me thoughtfully. "Do you expect me to answer that?"
“I want to know why you would hurt the man I love. I want to know where Mom is as well. I'm also struggling to accept that Aiden acted on your orders. I don't want to believe that my father would do that. But you did. Why? Did someone make you?"
He narrowed his eyes, and I noticed the other men getting restless out of the corner of my eye. Maybe they were more dangerous than my father thought.
"Aiden wanted more. I tried to blackmail him because I knew he killed Monica. He blackmailed me in turn. That's how our alliance started.”
"What about the drugs?"
"An acquaintance needed help moving things around when he was arrested." His eyes moved to Carlisle. "A friend of yours, Hallen."
"Stillman," Carlisle snarled.
Dad and the two men laughed when one said, "He'll be out soon, and he will finish what you started, Hallen."
"Over my dead body."
One of the men snickered.
"Levi!"
Ask James who Stillman works for."
I pressed against Carlisle's side and glared at the man who fathered me. "Who do you and Stillman work for?"
He scoffed. "I just want you to be safe, Tallulah. I'm not going to get into that with you."
“If that person gets upset, they'll come for me. Surely you should know this. I have the right to know which direction the attack is going to come from."
He paused. “Stillman liked to run his own enterprise. As far as I know, he had a supplier south of the border. I only got involved with him after he was sent down. He had a lot of stuff to get rid of. He wanted the money. We came to an arrangement. Aiden was eager to help. Jane would do anything for that man.”
The more he spoke, the angrier I got. "You let Pen marry that bastard knowing what you did."
He winced. "I did tell Aiden to leave the girl alone. He wouldn't listen." His eyes flickered to Carlisle before settling on mine. "He knew Jessop wanted her."
"That bastard," I hissed.
"Describe where everyone is positioned."
Levi's voice broke through the anger eating at me. I pressed even closer to Carlisle. "Father is behind his desk, which is front and center as you enter. Two goons on either side of the room are pointing weapons at Carlisle and me. We're on the floor in the middle of the room."
"On one, lie flat... three, two, one—"
With all my strength, I covered Carlisle on the floor. I just caught the hiss and curse of pain as heavily armed men burst into the room. The two goons dropped to the floor. My father raised his hands in the air.
It was all over within seconds. I burst into tears when I moved off Carlisle. Levi helped me sit down, crouched beside us, and cut the zip ties. "The medics are on their way into the house," he told us. He winced as he took in Carlisle.
I wrapped my hands around one of Carlisle's and held his gaze. I didn't move when my father was taken out of the room in handcuffs. I only moved when the paramedics lifted Carlisle onto a board and started toward their truck.
"I'm going with Carlisle."
"I've messaged Jessop. He and Pen will meet you there." He paused. “And Tallulah, your mother is in a rehab center. She is safe and well.”
"Thank you, Levi." I turned and met his gaze.
He nodded, so I climbed into the back of the EMT truck.