CHAPTER THREE
Auggie
True to his word, Bill arrived the very next day, accompanied by a van with workmen and equipment. He supervised the installation of a sophisticated, state-of-the-art security system. The workmen were so noisy that the baby couldn’t nap so I took him for a ride in the car. The rhythmic white noise of the tires on the roadway surface lulled him to sleep and I took this opportunity to do some thinking. It was a sunny day and the smell of baby paraphernalia filled the car, making it feel like a little slice of heaven.
I knew that Worth was playing down the significance of Linc’s arrival and the impact it would have on our lives. First of all, as Worth’s older brother, he was theoretically in line to inherit the LaViere fortune when Mrs. LaViere, Worth’s mother, passed on. Then I realized that Linc was not her biological son — in fact, she had never even met him — and would most likely leave things to Worth. This could only serve to anger Linc even further.
Then it came to my own mother, who, at this moment, had no idea he existed. She and I never had a close mother/daughter relationship, even before I learned of all her transgressions and how badly she treated Dad, whom I idolized. It occurred to me then that maybe Dad was just the person I could talk to. I headed in the direction of his farm.
Dad was outside when I arrived. He was raking twigs and winter leaves in the backyard. His face lit up in a smile when he saw me, his eyebrows rising in delight when he saw his grandson. “Auggie!” he called, waving. He met me at the back door, gave me a kiss on the forehead and took Ford from my arms. “I can’t believe how quickly he’s growing,” he marveled, rocking the baby back and forth. “Come in, come in. It’s been lonely and I’m in the mood for a good chat,” he said, holding the door open.
I took Ford back and said, “Well, it’s a good chat you’re going to get, Dad,” and headed toward the kitchen. I’d brought the baby carrier in with me and laid Ford in it near the window where the early Spring sun was streaming in.
“Is Carlos okay?” Dad asked, referring to my Thoroughbred who had boarded with him until one of our own barns was finally completed. “Have you been able to ride him yet?” he asked, referring to Ford’s recent birth.
“He’s great, Dad. I just walked him around a bit. It’s gotten hectic and I need the exercise, so I’ll be out on him more often now. I can’t wait until I can teach Ford to ride,” I said, getting out the makings of hot chocolate for us.
“So, what’s stuck in your craw, Auggie?” he asked. Dad knew me only too well.
“I figured you’d pick up on it. Now, promise you won’t get upset about this, but there isn’t much I can do at this point. You’ll hear about it eventually.” I set out two mugs and stirred the milk warming in the pan.
“Sounds serious,” Dad commented, leaning over to check on Ford sleeping in his carrier. “Have anything to do with the baby?”
“Not that one,” I said mysteriously and carried the mugs to the table. I sighed and related the events of the previous few days to him. He alternately frowned and cocked his head in confusion. When I was done, our chocolates were gone and I was waiting for his comments. His forehead was wrinkled and I guessed he was processing all the variations of how to handle it.
“So, you’re telling me that this Linc is really Worth’s older half-brother, which also makes him your half-brother and your mother’s son, do I have this straight? The boy in the grave is unrelated?”
“That’s pretty much how it works out,” I said, pushing my hair behind my ears so I could pick up Ford and hold him. I needed his sweet baby smell to calm the uproar that was now controlling my gut. “Dad, if Worth doesn’t cooperate with him, we could all be in danger. If Worth does cooperate with him, it will be illegal and will definitely, at the least, ruin us. I told Worth that we should hold off doing anything. That we should just appear to cooperate but not really get involved.”
“I’m not sure if that’s possible,” Dad said, picking up the mugs and rinsing them at the sink while I rocked my son. “That would be walking a fine line, to be sure. Are you going to tell your mother?” His face was creased in a deep frown, but he tried to hide it from me by looking out the kitchen window. I noticed for the first time how lined his face had become. The sunlight was exposing his age.
“Dad, are you okay?” I asked, concerned.
“Sure, right as rain,” he assured me.
I wasn’t so convinced. “You look tired.” My heart was heavy. Worth and I had exposed my mother’s infidelity, triggering their divorce. Perhaps it would have been kinder to keep him innocent of what she’d done.
“Well, things are different, Auggie, I can’t lie to you. I do talk to her from time to time. I check in to make sure she’s doing okay. Even though I enacted the terms of the prenuptial, I still don’t want her to suffer. After all, she was my wife for a great many years and I loved her. Still do, as a matter of fact, although that may be difficult for you to accept.”
“Isn’t up to me to judge that, Dad. Whatever you and Mother have between you is your business. You’ve never told me what to do, and I won’t do that to you, either. I know I haven’t been out to see you much, but with the baby, well, I’m sure you understand.”
“You didn’t answer me,” he said. “I asked if you’re you going to tell your mother about all this?
“Should I? I mean, not me personally. She’s not too happy with me and I certainly don’t care whether she’s mad or not. But you could tell her, Dad, if you’re still talking to her.”
He lifted a shoulder. “What difference would it make?”
“Well, Linc knows she’s alive and living around here somewhere. It’s only a matter of time until he tries to look her up. I think I’d much rather he find her cooperating with us rather than wanting to kill us, if you get my drift.”
“How in the hell did this happen?” he lamented. “You never did anything to deserve this mess, Auggie. Not you or Worth. And here you are, the ones in the greatest danger.”
“We’ll be fine, Dad. Worth has a security system being installed right now and there will be someone watching the house day and night. I’m a little worried about you. He’s liable to come around here looking for Mother,” I pointed out.
He bristled and stood straighter. “I’m not afraid of him, Auggie. This doesn’t involve me, one way or another. If you want me to talk to your mother about it, I will. Don’t expect her to run to your side to hold your hand, though. She never was very good at that sort of thing.”
“I get that, Dad. She set the mood for our relationship my entire life. I’m only sorry that she betrayed you.”
Dad chuckled, but it was not a humorous sound. “Some people are just made that way. How about Worth’s mother?”
I thought it curious that he asked about her, although I knew they’d had dinner together a few times. I’d thought it was more of a shared grief, but perhaps it was more than that.
“I’m leaving that up to Worth, and you’d better do the same.”
“I think that’s wise, Auggie. She’s been through a lot and she’s not as strong as the rest of us. Let Worth tell her in his own way, but don’t let it go too long. You don’t want that guy showing up at her condo uninvited,” he cautioned and I had to agree.
We visited for a while, talking about the upcoming yearling sales. Dad said he thought he might buy one, thinking it would give him something to do. I told him to keep an eye out for me, although my barns weren’t completely ready yet. “I’m on a day by day basis right now,” I shared and he nodded.
Ford woke up and immediately made it known that his diaper needed changing and he was starving. Dad stepped out of the kitchen so I could tend the crying baby. As I nestled my son to my breast, a knock came at the kitchen door. I looked up to see Linc standing there, his face peering through the window at me feeding Ford. “Dad!” I shouted as I quickly covered myself.
Within moments, Dad was in the doorway. “What is it?”
I nodded toward the door and Dad looked at me, then at the eyes of the man outside. I sat frozen to the spot but didn’t need to say anything. Dad knew who it was. He went and opened the door. “Help you?” he asked, pretending ignorance.
“Hi there. Hello, Auggie,” Linc acknowledged me. “Didn’t expect to see you here and certainly not like that,” he snickered, indicating my still partially exposed breast.
I nodded and rose, clutching the baby and my blouse tight against me. I left the kitchen but lurked in the dining room where I could overhear the conversation.
“I’m looking for my mother, Caren Langford,” I heard Linc say, his voice as rude and obnoxious as the night before. “Since Auggie’s here, I’m guessing I’ve got the right place. You Mr. Langford?”
“Who are you?” Dad asked. He had evidently decided to play dumb and buy some time.
“I’m pretty sure you already know who I am,” Linc said, his voice holding no humor. “Is she here?”
“No.” Dad came right to the point.
“Do you know when she’ll be back?”
“She doesn’t live here,” Dad answered and I could tell by the location of voices that he hadn’t invited Linc inside.
“No shit? Well, now there’s an interesting development. Where can I find her?” he pressed.
“Don’t have any information for you. She doesn’t live here anymore.” Dad was curt.
“Like that, is it?” Linc asked in a voice filled with anger.
“It is. Good day,” Dad said, followed by the click of the door.
I finished up with Ford and came back into the kitchen. “That won’t be the end of it,” I said to Dad. He looked me straight in the eye and nodded in agreement.
***
I found Worth at home when I got there. “Where were you? I’ve been worried,” he said, coming to help me carry Ford into the house.
I barely refrained from rolling my eyes. “You have my cell number. What’s the big deal? I’m not going to be a prisoner, you know.”
“You’re right, but you can understand, under the circumstances.”
“He showed up again,” I said simply, walking into the foyer.
“What? Bill was still here when I got back,” he said, puzzled.
“Not here. I went to visit Dad and he showed up there, right at the kitchen door while I was nursing Ford.” There was no point in holding back that information. Worth would find out about it eventually, I knew.
“The bastard!” he shouted. “What did he want?”
“Mother.”
“Mother?”
“Yes, of course! My mother, his mother, our mother.”
“Jesus Christ. How did this shit happen?” Worth was angry. I could see he was strategizing logistics and options again. “Here, let me show you how this security system works.”
I gave Ford to Betsy to bathe and feed him my pumped milk before putting him to bed then followed Worth through the house and his overview of the wiring, the remotes, and the cameras.
“I don’t like having cameras in the house,” I said.
“You think I do?” He was exasperated. He ran his hand through his hair in frustration. It occurred to me that if this was a stranger, Worth would just turn him over to the authorities for stalking. Linc, however, had secrets to spill and that made him dangerous, if not untouchable.
“Worth, we have to do something about this. We can’t let this man run our entire lives from here on out.”
“I’m already working on that,” he said, his voice reassuring, his eyes filled with promise.
“What are you doing?” I wasn’t stupid, but I was desperate. I needed to know.
His face closed up and he turned away. “The less you know, the better off you’ll be.”
Fear spiraled through me and I sighed, running a hand through my hair. “I was afraid you’d say something like that.” Then I was in his arms, hugging him for all I was worth.