Chapter 26We deserve some fucking answers!
Chapter Twenty-Six
WE DESERVE SOME FUCKING ANSWERS!
Emmanuel knew it was three in the morning, but the time of day wouldn’t stop him from protecting his family. Although, Larson had been told to wait for his mother’s call. The man couldn’t seem to stop himself from calling, leaving messages demanding to see ‘his wife, his Grace’.
When Emmanuel woke up to use the washroom, he found Larson had sent him yet another message. Something had urged him to listen to it.
No, Larson hadn’t implicitly threatened Ivy, but he didn’t like Larson’s unhinged tone.
“How would you like it if someone snatched your woman from your life?”
It took everything in Emmanuel not to throw on some clothes and go over to Larson’s and leave him gargling on his own blood for even putting the thought out there. Slipping out of their bedroom, he padded down to his office. With no apologies or care for the time, he placed a call.
“What man!? Do you have any idea what time it is?” Darsh groused.
Emmanuel heard rustling in his friend’s background.
“Yes, I wouldn’t call if it weren’t important.”
“So, this call can’t wait until the morning, during business hours?”
“Possibly but?—”
“Fine. Just know I’m not taking this call as a friend. This is a business call, and I will bill you as such. Hey Lacey, let go of my dick.” At least he didn’t have to feel bad about waking up his friend.
“Aww…” he heard a woman whine. “…but you said it was my turn after Macey was done.”
“Business calls. I’ll be back. You two entertain yourselves,” Darsh instructed.
“Really man—” Emmanuel began but was interrupted.
“Nope. Don’t say a word. As it is, this call has a hefty cock blocking fee. Give me a minute to throw something on and go to the office.” Darsh grumbled the whole time, but he finally got to his home office.
“Okay, what’s the emergency?”
“I need you to put a team in place for my woman, my mom, and my children.”
Darsh’s tone was serious. “What’s going on?”
“Larson sounds unhinged, and I don’t like that shit. I will also need a dedicated driver for Ivy.” He could feel anxiety kneeling on his chest at just the thought of anyone posing a threat to Doc. “Roy’s new role will be solely for her security.”
“I assume you still want the driver armed?”
“Yes, and security will need to be beefed up around here as well.”
Emmanuel sighed as he rubbed his hand over his face. Was there a possibility that he was being over the top? Possibly. But he wouldn’t gamble on his family’s safety. What he knew of Larson he couldn’t trust, and the odds tripled when factoring what he hid all these years. His family wouldn’t be happy with the changes. They lived a hassle-free life. The little security they had was so unnoticeable they barely remembered they existed. Now that would change. The person who would have the hardest time with this would be Ivy. Once upon a time, he made her a promise.
“I don’t want security, Emmanuel. You don’t have any.”
“I have security. They just remain at a respectable distance.”
“Well, that’s the kind I want. The only kind I will accept.”
“The world is changing. I just want to be prepared. I don’t know if you and our future family can have the same kind of freedom my mom and I had.”
“Are we in danger?”
“No. Being with me isn’t a danger to you.”
“Then I don’t want to be tripping over bodyguards. I want us to live as normally as possible, along with any additions to our family. Can you promise to give us that?”
Begrudgingly, he agreed, “fine, I won’t have security in your face.”
Emmanuel had kept his promise all this time. It had never, ever been a close call. Now a threat coming from his own damn family was going to make him break the promise.
“Well, that shit sucks, but temporary coverage will be on site within six… no, give me eight hours. Permanent coverage will be available within forty-eight. I noticed you didn’t include yourself. No worries. We’ll have you covered too. As well as keep eyes on Larson.”
By the time Emmanuel slipped back into bed, he felt relief.
“Hey, Baby where did you go?”
“We’ll talk in the morning, Doc. Go back to sleep,” he instructed as he pulled her into his arms.
Ivy wasn’t going to be too happy with him. He would gladly put it off until the morning.
Their alarm went off much sooner than he would have liked. It took Emmanuel a moment to get up and running, by the time he dragged himself out of bed Ivy was already in the shower. After brushing his teeth, he slipped into the shower with her.
Ivy was lathering her hair.
“Need some help?” He offered. She nodded as she dropped her hands, making room for him. She sighed in contentment as his fingers massaged her scalp.
“Thank you, Baby. You’re the best.”
“Remember, you just said that.” Emmanuel’s movements slowed.
“Aht, aht, aht. If you are here to deliver bad news, keep those fingers moving.”
Emmanuel decided to just rip off the Band-Aid. “Larson’s last message was concerning. Everyone is getting security. All the children and my mom included.”
“Okay. If you think it’s for the best. Does that include me?”
“Yeah, Doc.”
“Roy?”
“Of course.” Emmanuel was sure to offer her some small comfort that she didn’t have to deal with a stranger.
“Okay then. Just know, I’m not it. You’re telling all the kids and your mom.” Well, she was taking the news a lot better than he thought she would.
“No objection?”
“No, I trust your decision. Besides, Larson has been acting a bit manic. God knows how he is going to handle it when she files for divorce.”
“I suppose we cross that bridge when we come to it. In the meantime, at least I know you will all be safe.”
Between helping Doc with her hair and other activities, the shower ran longer than expected. It threw them both off schedule. Ivy grumbled that she didn’t appreciate him making her late when she was already leaving the office early for the lawyer’s appointment.
While Emmanuel took responsibility for the shower, the quickie once they were dressed was completely her fault. But he wasn’t foolish enough to mention it to her.
It only added to his wife’s irritation that she had to leave the office so early to meet Anna Harkness, only to have the lawyer be an hour and a half late. It was soon forgotten as they explained the reason for their visit to Anna. Emmanuel was doing his level best not to look smug as his lawyer’s neutral expression slipped. Ivy explained the science behind what had happened.
“I’m sorry. What?” Anna looked from Emmanuel to Ivy.
Her gaze rested on his as she asked, “so, you have an identical twin brother that you never heard of before? Who set you up to take paternity of his son? I know this sounds completely unprofessional, but that is some Dynasty shit if I ever heard it.”
He had wondered how the straight lace Harkness was friends with Frank, and now he understood. Beneath it all was the same irreverence.
“Legally, what are our options?” Ivy asked.
“I hate to tell you this, but not much. The court has established paternity by a conclusive DNA test. The paternal parent has the means to care for the child financially.”
Ivy shook her head. “Even if a new test proves his brother is the father? And he signs an affidavit that he is the father?”
“Unfortunately, yes. The only way I can imagine they would change paternity at this point is if criminal fraud charges were brought and he was found guilty. Or pleaded guilty to fraud. Is that something you would like to pursue? This guy tried to screw you.”
“Would he go to jail?” His bleeding-heart wife inquired.
“Probably not, but he’d have a record. But any hope of it staying under wraps would go out the window.”
“So, unless I want this whole thing all over the media. I have no recourse? I would remain this child’s father?”
Anna didn’t answer right away. Turning to her computer, she tapped away.
“Actually, your one out would be for the child’s father to adopt him. Then we seal the original paternity results.”
Leonardo was a fucking idiot! Look at the mess he had gotten them into? If he wanted to be legally recognised as the father of his own son, he would have to adopt him. Looks like the apple didn’t fall too far from the tree.
They spoke about some remaining details concerning their case. It left them with a lot to think about. Emmanuel already had a good guess of how Doc would like to proceed.
Earlier, Emmanuel’s Mom requested that he inquire if Anna would represent her in his parent’s divorce. If the Chesire Cat smile was anything to go by, Anna would enjoy tearing Larson to pieces. The thought brought a great deal of joy to Emmanuel.
Once they left the meeting, Emmanuel returned Frank’s call.
“You and your sibling are a pain in my ass. Cutting my damn mini-break short. His Lordship is ready to fly out tonight. We will be back early in the morning. Heads up, he is already in a pissy mood. Good luck with your revelation and shit.”
T he choices Emmanuel made regarding friends needed to be reconsidered. Darsh kindly returned the favour and called him at three in the morning.
“You’re doing this shit on purpose,” Emmanuel harshly whispered as he answered. Ivy stirred beside him, and he got out of bed and headed to the washroom.
“I sure the fuck am.”
Smug bastard.
“I have news. If you’d like, I can call you back later.” Darsh sounded so pleased with himself.
“No, never mind. I am up now.”
“We tracked the nurse who was present at your birth. She left a message that she would be willing to talk.”
The news woke him up completely. “Really?”
“Yeah. She was reluctant at first but finally came around.”
“While it’s good news. It doesn’t warrant a three a.m. call.”
“Does the news we have located your maternal grandmother warrant an early at the crack of dawn call?”
Emmanuel leaned against the bathroom counter. “Concetta? You found her mother?”
“Yes, she lives in a retirement village on the outskirts of the city.”
All this time, a connection to the woman who had birthed him was an hour away.
“Has anyone approached her?”
“No, I thought we would leave it to you.”
Well, Emmanuel supposed ‘you’ now included him and Leonardo.
“What about Concetta’s father?” Emmanuel asked, although he was certain of the answer.
“He passed about five years ago,” Darsh informed him.
He felt an unexpected sadness. Emmanuel didn’t expect the news to have any effect on him. However, since reading Concetta’s diary, he was curious about everything to do with the woman who gave birth to him. A moment of silence followed, prompting Darsh to check in.
“You still there?”
“Yeah. Thanks for the three a.m. updates. We’ll talk later. Also, thank you for putting the security in place.”
“No problem. Larson is still being problematic?”
“He’s calmed down some. My Mom told him she would speak with him tomorrow.”
“You still want security to remain as is?” Darsh asked.
“Yes. He is far too unpredictable right now.”
They ended the call, and Emmanuel used the washroom. Since he had so many things on his mind, he was tempted not to return to bed. In a few hours, he would share with Leonardo who their birth father was.
Emmanuel wondered how his brother would take the news. Would it change how he felt about their mother? Leonardo was very protective of her memory. Well, he would soon find out. They had made arrangements to have dinner at Frank’s.
Emmanuel decided holding Doc in his arms was a better alternative than over thinking in his washroom. He slipped into bed.
“Your early morning meetings are becoming a habit.” She voiced, startling him.
“Sorry if I woke you. Darsh was returning the favour.”
“Well, that is to be expected.”
She squealed as he tickled her.
“Is that so?”
“You know how he can be.”
“Well, since we are up…” Rolling her onto her back, he continued. “The least you can do is help me get back to sleep.”
“ D inner won’t be anything fancy. I have to throw it together last minute.”
Emmanuel looked around Frank’s dining room. Although it was set formally, at least the table wasn’t set for a five-course meal. So, by Frank’s standards, this wasn’t fancy. Emmanuel wasn’t sure he was much up for eating. All he wanted to do was get the news over with. He and Ivy walked past the dining room, into the den where Leonardo sat waiting.
Frank was right. Leonardo didn’t look like he was in the best mood. His hair looked dishevelled like he had been running his hand through it. He didn’t look like he had slept. Well, his mood was about to get worse. Or at least Emmanuel thought it would.
Their greeting was barely cordial.
“I was summoned, and here I am,” Leonardo announced once he saw Emmanuel.
“I thought we should discuss this face to face,” Emmanuel answered as he and Ivy took a seat together on the sofa facing Leonardo.
Ivy asked if he wanted her by his side when he broke the news. Part of him had wanted to relieve her of the arduous task of being at his side through yet another family revelation. He wanted to, but the thing was, he needed her with him.
She kept him grounded. His wife could see things he couldn’t. So, she was with him because he needed her. God, he hoped all the upheaval would be behind them soon. When they could come up for air, he was going to whisk her away somewhere and make all this shit up to her.
“What do you have to tell me?” Leonardo asked, looking from between Frank, Emmanuel, and Ivy.
“After I read, um… our mother’s journals. I was certain I knew who our father was. I left so I could confirm it. You deserve to know.”
“Who is he? Tell me,” Leonardo demanded with an anxious tone.
“Our father is Larson Scott,” Emmanuel announced and watched the colour drain from his brother’s face.
Confusion marred his expression. “As in your father? The man who raised you?”
“Yes.” Emmanuel confirmed.
“You did not know all this time?” Leonardo asked. The accusation was loud and clear.
“Until recently, I thought he and the woman that raised me were my biological parents. Then, for a little while, I thought they were my adoptive parents. Now. I know Larson is our father. He and our mother had an affair.”
Leonardo stood up abruptly. “An affair?” He paced. “I’m not sure I would call it that. I have a question for you.”
“Okay. Go ahead.”
“How old was your father when you were born?”
What an odd question.
“I don’t know.” Emmanuel did the math in his head. “Mid-twenties I guess.”
At the same time, Frank answered. “Twenty-eight.”
His friend was a whiz at remembering people’s birthdays and ages. Not only people he knew, historical figures as well.
Leonardo stopped pacing. He shook his head as if he was trying to figure out a puzzle. “Your father is a real piece of shit, huh?” He asked.
“Yes.” It wasn’t like Emmanuel could deny it. Look at the havoc Larson and his lies caused.
Leonardo sat at the edge of the seat he had previously occupied. The man scoffed as he ran his hand over his face. “Did you know my mom’s birthday is two weeks before ours?”
Emmanuel hadn’t noticed her birthday and wasn’t sure where he was going with this piece of information.
“No. I didn’t know when her birthday was,” he answered cautiously.
“Yeah. Birthdays were always hard for her. If she didn’t relapse on her birthday, she would relapse on mine or shortly after.” Leonardo had a faraway look as he recounted this information. The more he found out about his mother, the more conflicted Emmanuel felt.
Concetta had cheated with his father. Emmanuel was watching his Mom deal with the fallout of the pain of that betrayal. Part of him wanted to excuse it because of how substance abuse ruined her life. After reading her diary, he felt for her. Maybe it was the bond he had for the mother he didn’t know. Who knew?
Emmanuel was so lost in his thoughts; he almost missed his brother’s question. “Do you know how old Mom was when she gave birth to us?”
“No.” A feeling of dread started in the pit of his stomach. “How old was she?”
“Well, at least she was legally an adult. She gave birth to us two weeks after turning eighteen years old.”
All the air seemed to be sucked out of the room. Who the fuck was Larson Scott?
If she gave birth to them when she was eighteen, that meant Larson was at least sleeping with a seventeen-year-old girl. Who knew how long it had been going on? It could have been when she was younger. His stomach roiled.
Leonardo and Emmanuel echoed each other. “What a piece of shit!” they spat out simultaneously.
Concetta, his mother, was a fucking child! Not much older than Sage. His little baby girl. No wonder she couldn’t handle having her children separated. What the fuck had Larson done? Emmanuel was going to be fucking sick. Of all the things he had discovered about Larson, this was the worst. He had taken advantage of a child and then ripped one of her children from her.
“How did this happen? How did they even meet?” Leonardo asked. “I want to have words with this… man. He fucking ruined her life. She never had a chance.”
“Tomorrow.”
“What? Why do we have to wait until tomorrow? Are you trying to protect your father?”
“Protect Larson? No! Larson needs protection from me. If we want answers. There is only one person who can get them for us. Can get him to tell the truth, but my God, I have to prepare her for this. For what he did.”
“Who? Who are you talking about?” Leonardo probed.
“My Mom. Without her, he’ll never tell the truth. He will take everything to the grave. We deserve some fucking answers.”
“What if he doesn’t tell us the truth?”
“Hopefully, our grandmother will fill in some blanks.”
Leonardo looked confused. “You found our grandmother?”
“Yeah. My people found her.”
“My Mom would cry for her when she was having her darkest moments. I always assumed she was dead.”
Great, yet another mystery. Well, they had come this far. They were going to get to the bottom of it all. Then, somehow, he was going to make Larson pay.