CHAPTER ELEVEN
Brandon watched her absorb the news. He couldn’t say he was especially surprised. Not after seeing her next to Don Bradley.
Sonya pulled in a deep breath. “All right, so what does that mean? The parents I grew up with stole me?” Her jaw hardened. “I don’t believe it.”
“It could be they had no idea you were a kidnapped child. It could be you were a black-market baby. Someone kidnapped you and sold you to the highest bidder, so to speak.” Brandon spoke gently. She’d had a shock. And while it looked as though she was dealing with it, he knew she was in for some rough times ahead. He found himself wanting to be there for her. He reached around the desk and took her hand. It trembled in his.
Tears hovered on her lashes, but didn’t fall. “So. I’m Heather Bradley. I guess the next step is to let the Bradleys know, right?”
“Yes.” He picked his phone up from the desk. “I’ll call Don and ask him if we can meet.”
She nodded and sniffed. “Today. I want to do it today. If he has the time.”
“I’d rather tell him in person. Over the phone seems pretty cold.”
“Yes. In person is probably best.”
Hector tapped his pen against his desk. “Do you want me to look into your parents’ past? See if I can find any record of adoption or how they came to have you?”
Brandon saw a flurry of emotions cross her face, and then she nodded. “Yes. I’ve come this far. I might as well find out the whole story.” She twisted the strap on her purse. “If I don’t, I’ll just wonder.”
“I’ll take care of it.” Hector made a few notes. “Also, I would think you would want to do DNA tests with the Bradleys.”
Sonya blinked. “Why?”
“For their peace of mind, for one thing. Just for extra confirmation.”
Brandon dialed the number. Don picked up on the first ring. “Hello?”
“Hello, Don. Brandon Hayes here. I was wondering if you’d have some time to speak with us again.”
“I’m at my office. Could you come here?”
“Of course. What time?”
“Anytime.”
“We’re on our way.”
“You have some news, don’t you?” He asked the question hesitantly.
“Yes.”
“All right.” Now the man sounded downright nervous. “I’ll be waiting.”
Brandon hung up. “All right, let’s go.”
Sonya stood. “I’m ready.”
Hector held up a hand. “Hold on a sec.” He had his phone pressed to his ear, listening. He nodded and hung up. “I ran down the Bradleys’ son, Donald Junior. He’s an accountant for Grand National Bank in Texas. He’s been at a conference in San Diego for the past three days. He flies home tomorrow.”
“Is he really there?” Brandon asked.
“He’s there. He’s one of the main speakers and hasn’t missed a session.”
“Then he’s not the one after me,” Sonya mused.
“Unless he paid someone,” Brandon muttered. He looked at Hector. “Thanks.”
“Sure thing.”
Brandon escorted her down to where he’d parked the car and helped her in. She had her seat belt fastened by the time he climbed behind the wheel. “Are you all right?”
She let out a sigh. “I’m stunned, Brandon. My brain is whirling, and I don’t know what happened or how my parents ended up with me. A kidnapped baby. I don’t know why my mother had the baby bag and birth certificate in her closet or how it came to be there because I’d never seen it before that day. I don’t know a lot of things, but I’m ready to find some answers.”
He reached over to clasp her hand in his. Her strength and determination only made him admire her more. “You’re a pretty amazing woman, you know that?”
She let out a low, humorless laugh. “No, I’m clinging to God with everything I have in me when all I really want to do is go home, bury my head under the covers and pretend this is all a bad dream.” Tears floated to the surface again. And again she held them back. She lasered him with an intense look that shot straight to his heart. “I’m so glad I have you working on this with me, though. I really don’t know what I would do without you,” she whispered.
Her words rocked him, but didn’t stop him from pulling her into a hug. “We’ll get through this. I’m not going anywhere until you’re safe and we have the answers you need.”
“What if I never find them, Brandon? What if we just keep going in circles?”
He laid a light kiss on her lips, his desire to comfort her so strong it nearly strangled him. “Well, if you never find the answers, I guess that means I’m going to be around an awfully long time.”
She flushed and he swiped a stray tear. “Thanks,” she whispered.
“Welcome,” he whispered back. Then let her go to start the car.
The twenty-minute drive to Don Bradley’s office passed in a comfortable silence, both of them lost in their thoughts even though Brandon continued to keep an eye on their surroundings, alert for any hint of danger. But while his eyes roamed, his brain spun with his feelings for the lady beside him. She’d wiggled her way into his heart when he hadn’t been looking. And that scared him. He hated to admit being afraid, especially since not much scared him.
His feelings for Sonya had him tied in knots. So what was he going to do about it?
Nothing.
She was a client.
Then you’d better stop kissing her. The thought taunted him. There was no way he wanted to lead her on, but the thought of her walking out of his life when all of this was over was simply unbearable.
He glanced at her. She had her eyes closed and her head against the window. Probably praying.
Maybe he should try it.
God? You know I believe in You even though I’ve been mad at You for a while now. Is it too late to ask for Your help? Not necessarily for me, but for Sonya. She really needs You. She believes You’re there for her. She’s hanging on to You. Could You just keep us safe? And help us figure out who wants us dead?
The prayer felt strange. And familiar.
He felt her gaze on him. “What are you thinking?” she asked.
“Nothing.”
“Liar.” The word lacked heat. It was a gentle rebuke that made him shoot her a rueful grin.
“Yeah. I wasn’t really thinking. I was…praying.”
That got her attention. Her brows shot up. “Really?”
“Yes.”
“I didn’t know you prayed.”
He snorted. “I pray. Just not very often.”
“Oh.”
“I’ve been…mad at God. About a lot of stuff.”
“Like your mom?”
He sighed. “Yes. Like my mom. And even my dad. But mostly my mom.”
“Will you tell me why?”
He glanced at her again. The compassion in her eyes twisted his heart inside out. How could she do that to him with just one look? “I didn’t have a horrible childhood, if that’s what you’re thinking.”
“Oh. Well, yes, that’s kind of what I was thinking.”
“My parents were teenage sweethearts. They got pregnant when my mother was sixteen. Instead of having parents raise us, we were all more or less like siblings. In the early part of our lives, my parents pretty much just ignored us. They partied. We were in the foster-care system a few times. Then they got us back after they took parenting classes and promised to party less.” He narrated the story as though telling about someone else’s life. It was the only way he could talk about it without the bitterness rising up to choke him. He looked at her. Felt her hand rest against his upper arm. He shrugged. “They started studying and going to school. Once we were old enough to be latchkey kids, we were. Mom became a nurse, Dad a mechanic. They worked all the time and we three kids fended for ourselves.”
“But you turned out all right.”
“We did. We had some good neighbors who kind of looked out for us. We even went to church with some of the other children in the neighborhood, catching a ride with whoever was going.” He sighed. “It wasn’t a miserable existence, but it wasn’t ideal, either.” He paused. “I wanted parents like some of the other kids had. The ones who came to the school plays and football games. I was quarterback and neither one of my parents ever made it to one of my games.”
“Oh, Brandon, that’s so sad.”
“Exactly. And so now you know. I was angry for a long time. Then I pushed it aside and focused on making something of my life.”
“And what about your mother? She came to the station today.”
“Yes. My mother.” He shook his head. “She’s trying to make up for lost time, I guess. She wants me to come to dinner Sunday.”
“Are you going?”
“No.” He heard the flat, cold word leave his lips. It effectively ended the conversation. That, and the fact that they’d arrived at their destination. He turned into the parking lot and found a spot under a shady tree.
He opened the door and stepped out of the car. His window exploded and he heard Sonya scream his name.