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Vaughn’s cell begins to ring, cutting him off as all eyes in the room swing toward the sound.
“What did you find?”
Vaughn’s guy obviously found something of note because as they speak on the other end of the line, Vaughn’s eyes light up slowly.
“Keep digging.”
And following that instruction, he ends the call, a smile tugging at his mouth. “So, get this. The girl—Iris—has a link to GenoCell, the lab that analyzed the paternity samples. Aidan Marsh, the father of her other child, works there!”
My mouth drops open as hope swirls in the depths of my stomach.
I shift about to take in my husband’s disbelieving face, his mouth opening and closing like a goldfish before he manages to mutter, “At this point, I’m not sure if I need a time-turner or a nap because,Jesus, it’s not even 10 a.m., and this day has made me age a good decade.”
* * *
Once Alex touches base with Henry, the process goes a lot more smoothly.
Henry was able to act as the go-between for Alex and a very irate chairman of the Board, who really wasn’t buying anything Henry was saying, much to his intense annoyance.
He immediately organized a meeting between himself and the illusive Iris for later in the afternoon, where he told her that he would give her the cash that she had asked for. She wanted to keep it discreet and in a neutral location, so asked to meet him on the main deck of the Empire State Building.
But, in what I have come to learn is true DeMarco fashion, Henry booked out the observation deck for the entirety of the afternoon, ensuring absolute privacy.
The ride in the elevator takes less time than I recall ever taking on my previous visits, and before I know it, I’m stepping out into the lobby that’s weirdly empty.
I straighten my spine, fully confident in what I’m about to do, and march single-mindedly out onto the observation deck.
A pale, thin girl with lackluster brown hair falling almost to her waist meets me. She almost appears vaguely familiar somehow, and I can’t help frowning at how she’s not atallwhat I expected.
Her baby bump should be much bigger for being seven months along, and it again reinforces my instinct that everything is not what it seems.
“Iris?”
She turns her wide brown eyes to mine, blinking rapidly as she glances left and right, clearly taken by surprise at my appearance.
“Where’s the other guy? The brother? He’s the one I’m supposed to meet.”
She turns to leave, realizing that we’re eighty-six floors above the ground, her shoulders sagging as she turns to face me with uncertain eyes.
“I’m Reyna. I’m—”
She cuts me off. “I know exactly who you are.”
I nod softly, something inside of me telling me that I need to take things gently with her.
“I only want to talk.” I hold up my hands, palms facing her. “Is that okay? Can we talk?”
She shakes her head rapidly, her long hair swishing around her face. “I can’t talk toyou. He’ll—”
She stops suddenly, as though she’s said too much, and I tilt my head to the side in question.
“Who? Your boyfriend? Ex-boyfriend?”
“I don’t have a boyf—”
I step closer, cutting her off softly. “We know about Aidan, Iris.”
She flinches, and my chest tightens, feeling her conflict on a visceral level. “Oh, Iris, ishemaking you do this?”
