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“No. We just returned this morning. We haven’t had a chance.”
“Tanner? Would you mind pulling up the coverage from News4? Go to the section where they’re spanning the home.” Tanner nodded, pulling up the video.
“As you can see, there is nothing left of the Judge home. The appliances have literally melted to the floors. The upper levels are completely gone. We see five, possibly six, bedrooms that have nothing left in them. Investigators do find it strange that there were so many safes in the home and that one of the bedrooms had a number of locks on it. Definitely something that investigators will be looking into, Jim.”
“I don’t understand,” frowned Nate.
“The bedroom with the locks. It wasn’t mine. I was always told that it was a room for storage. Until I saw that video, I didn’t remember. My nanny whispered to me once that it was my sister’s room. I had a sister, Nate. And I think you knew it.”
“Babe.”
“Don’t. You don’t have to say anything. I know you were trying to protect me. While you all were meeting this morning, Faith and Erin helped me to find the birth record of my sister. Apparently, my parents had an affinity for 1930’s movie stars. Garbo was much older than me. I don’t remember her. Not even a little, but I do remember finding a photo of her once. My father stripped it out of my hand and tore it into little pieces. He said it was a woman who tried to destroy our family.
“Autopsy results would most likely say otherwise. She’d been raped and abused multiple times. I learned that from your Aunt Julia. A similar fate was waiting for me if you hadn’t walked into my life. I’m going to do this, Nate. With or without your help, I’m going to expose my parents, Judge Morrison, and anyone else involved in this sick game.
“I won’t stop at the sex games. I’m going to bring them down for what they’re trying to do to the weapons factories.”
“Factories? Plural?” asked Luke. Faith cleared her throat, stepping forward.
“Grace was invaluable in helping us with this. She still has some great contacts, and we learned that two factories in New Mexico have recently been sabotaged. Their computers were hacked, and all plans, patents, and pipeline projects were stolen. All of them. I think we can backtrack and determine who it was.” She looked at Tanner and the others. They all nodded, giving a smile to the beautiful older women.
“Harlow? Baby, this is so dangerous for you. If your parents find out that you’re trying to expose them, they will come for you.”
“Didn’t you say I was safe here? Didn’t you say that no one would know that I was here?” He nodded. “Okay, then. I know for a fact that once before someone from this family gave a press conference from an undisclosed location. I can do the same.”
“She’s got you there, brother,” smirked Tobias. Nate only frowned, shaking his head.
“I can’t lose you, Harlow. I can’t,” he whispered, holding her tightly.
“You won’t lose me,” she smiled. “In fact, you’re going to marry me so that everything that legally belongs to me will go to you. My parents won’t be able to claim that anything belongs to them.”
“M-marry you?” he stuttered.
“Wasn’t that where we were headed?” she smiled. “I mean, you were the one professing long-term passion in California. Has that changed?”
“Fuck no,” he smiled. “You’ll marry me? Really?”
“If you ask me,” she smiled. Katrina walked up to her son, handing him a ring box. He stared at it, wondering where in the world she got a ring.
“Mama Irene isn’t the only one that knows things,” she grinned. “Marry your girl, and we’ll all keep her safe. She’s now part of the legal team.”
If you utter the word ‘wedding’ at Belle Fleur, you better have your suit ready and flowers in your hand because it will happen before dinner. And it did. The priest had them married, signed on the dotted line, husband and wife before seven p.m.
Food? No problem. A feast was on the tables, and the celebration was real. Harlow looked exquisite in a simple white dress, wearing his mother’s pearl and diamond necklace and earrings.
“Thank you for doing this,” she said, kissing him sweetly at the table.
“Thank you? For marrying you? Honey, I was going to marry you whether you wanted it or not. I just never dreamed you’d be the one asking me,” he laughed. “I know it’s hard for you to understand, Harlow, but I love you. I’m absolutely crazy about you, and I knew you were mine from the moment I laid eyes on you.”
“I love you, too, Nate. I’m scared for you and for everyone here, but I know that we can stop them. We can stop them, and then you and I can have a wonderful life. Right here. I won’t ever have to see my parents or those hideous people again. But I do want to stop them, Nate. I want to stop all of them.”
“Me, too,” he said, kissing her. “What else do you want?”
“I want my husband to take me back to our cottage and make love to me. Tomorrow will be the start of a long journey, but tonight, I want my husband.”
Nate took her hand, slowly walking out of the cafeteria to the sound of applause from the others. They walked leisurely, enjoying the opportunity to be a couple, alone. The night was quiet. The wind died down. It was a perfect evening.
Inside the warm cottage, Harlow walked down the hallway, and Nate thought to give her a moment. A few minutes later, she walked out in a white lace bustier with a white garter belt and the tiniest thong he’d ever seen. He nearly choked on his water.
