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From Ezra.
And he says that he’s free to meet with me day after tomorrow.
Two days later, I’m getting ready to meet Ezra for lunch and tell him everything. So that we can come up with a plan to handle it all with his father and mine and even in the public eye, if need be.
I can’t believe that I’m saying this, but I’m glad Ledger isn’t home.
He isn’t even in town.
He’s gone for an away game, and as much as I hate this first separation between us, I don’t want him anywhere near me when I do tell Ezra and inevitably come back home, upset and crying. I know it’s going to happen even if he receives the news of my pregnancy without me having to ease him into it.
It’ll just be a final nail in the coffin, and then there’s nothing stopping me from telling Ledger that our time’s up.
That it’s time for me to leave our little dreamland and for us to rejoin real life.
And go our separate ways.
Only connected by these little two beings I’m carrying.
I just hope that he trusts me enough to know that I’m not taking his babies away from him. That he’ll still be a part of their life even though I’ll be married to another man. Not to mention, I’ve decided – once I’m married and my brother and Callie are safe – that I’ll tell Ledger everything. About my father’s scheme; why I married Ezra; why I had to keep it a secret from him even though he had his suspicions about something being wrong in my life.
Everything.
And again I just hope that he understands that my hands were tied. And that I did it for family, for his and mine.
I’m almost out the door to meet with Ezra when my phone rings. It’s Callie and distractedly, I pick up, “Hey, I’m just heading out the door. Can I —”
“Tempest.”
Her voice, sounding so feeble and small, brings me to a halt. I pause in the process of shrugging on my spring coat that will hide my belly until I manage to tell Ezra and ask, “What’s wrong? Is it Halo?”
“No,” she says, sniffling. “I… It’s Reed. His shop.”
At this, dread settles in my chest and my own voice almost matches hers. “What?”
“There…” she begins, but trails off for a second. Then, “There were some people who came over this morning for an inspection. I-I mean, I didn’t even know there was going to be one. Reed didn’t know either and… And they’re saying that he doesn’t have the required paperwork.”
“What required paperwork?”
“I don’t know. I don’t… All I know is that it’s apparently a big deal and…”
“And what?”
She waits for a few seconds and even though I understand that she may be trying to gather her thoughts — my own seem pretty scattered right now — I still want her to hurry.
“Tempest,” she begins, her voice still as shaky, “they’re saying that they could close down the shop and there may be an inquiry on Reed. And that they might suspend his license,” she gulps, “forever. I don’t… I don’t know how it happened. He loves that shop. That shop is his life and he’s so particular about it. He’s always stayed on top of things and his business was starting to pick up now and… I didn’t know who to call and I’m… I’m freaking out.”
I wish I could say something to her.
God, I don’t know what to say to her.
She’s right.
My brother loves that shop. It’s been a big part of his life ever since he was a teenager and Callie is right. He’s so particular about everything, even more so now that he owns it rather than simply working there. He’s always on top of keeping up to date with his licenses, equipment, keeping the other guys who work there in line and…
Oh fuck.
Fuck, fuck, fuck.
Is it… him?
Is it our father?
But why would he do that? I’ve done everything he’s asked of me and…
“Listen, Callie,” I say, my voice sounding foreign to me. “I’m going to figure this out, okay? I’m going to ask around and see what’s… happening. Just wait for my call, okay? Don’t… Don’t freak out.”
I’m not sure if I did anything to soothe her fears, especially when I sound so scared myself. But I unfortunately don’t have the time to worry about that right now.
As soon as I hang up, I call Dad and he picks up before the first ring is even complete, making me think that maybe he was expecting my call.
Which sends dread right up to my throat, strangling me.
“Someone’s up early,” he says chirpily.
I’m at the front door of the cabin so I lean against it for support as I growl into the phone, “What did you do?”
“This morning?”
I close my eyes for a second. “What the fuck did you do, Dad?”
