Justice for All (7 page)

Van rolled over in bed and felt a cold, wet nose nuzzle into his neck. He reached a hand up from under the blankets and scratched Ralph behind the ear. In return, the dog licked his arm and then groaned with a huge stretch as Van scooting up to a sitting position.

“Merry Christmas, boy.”

Out of habit, Van reached for the nightstand and grabbed his smartphone, flicking through emails. He could smell the beginnings of breakfast from beyond his room, and his stomach rumbled in reaction. He knew when he walked into the kitchen, Aunt Betty would hand him a glass of orange juice before he even had the chance to say good morning.

The thought of juice made his mind naturally revert to Kay. The easiness of that evening together was something he couldn’t seem to get out of his mind. He wasn’t one to give in to daydreaming but he wondered what things would be like if they were a couple. Would she help him strategize his regular Diplomacy games before bed? Would she sit at the bar and sip at her coffee while he made her breakfast?

And if his thoughts of casual intimacy weren’t enough, thoughts of what he wanted to do to her in the bedroom had his body immediately reacting. He reached down to adjust himself, then scrolled through his phone to find her number.

Before he could think better of it and stop himself, he texted her a simple
Merry Christmas
, then hopped out of bed to hit the bathroom. When he returned, there was a message from her that left him grinning.

Merry Christmas. Are the hens making you breakfast? Just about to get dressed for church here.

His lips tugged up into an even bigger smile.
I can smell breakfast right now. I’ll make my appearance shortly in the kitchen to see what’s cooking.

Slipping into a pair of sweats and a T-shirt, he grabbed at the phone a little too quickly when he heard the next notification.

I hope you, the hens, and the roosters and all of your family have a very nice holiday, Van. Thanks again for the other night.

And even in a text message, she could turn him speechless. Not that he couldn’t think of anything to respond, it was just that nothing he could say would be appropriate to his way of thinking. Everything that came to mind would only lead her on … and lead him on for that matter.

Van stood still at the foot of his bed, phone held out in front of him. Ralph wiggled up, slithering on his belly. When he looked down at the dog, Ralph’s ears shifted back, and he cocked his head to the side.

“Yeah, boy, I know. I know…”

Then he whistled and flicked his wrist to motion Ralph down and dropped the phone into his pocket before heading for the kitchen.

~oOo~

Kay stared at her cell phone a few moments and willed Van to make a reply. Silence screamed back at her. With a groan at her own silliness, she tossed the phone into the freshly made bed and started getting dressed. When a notification sounded, she practically jumped onto the phone to look at it.

Disappointment washed over her when she saw that it was a holiday text from Thomas. She quickly tapped a reply, then made her way into the bathroom suite to finish straightening her hair. There were several more dings to her phone, and she managed to restrain herself through about three of them before going back into the bedroom for it.

“Damn, Thomas,” she muttered to herself. “Get a life, man.”

Merry Christmas hadn’t been enough apparently. Now he was staging photos with his
Breaking Bad
gifts. Even while she took a look at those, a few more popped up. Annoyed by his obsessive actions, she switched the phone to the lowest ring setting and placed it on the nightstand.

There were voices from the hallway so she peeked her head out and walked to the banister to look down into the vestibule. Her father was cooing to the baby, leaning against his cane with his face close to hers. The little one slapped at his nose, gurgling in response. Michelle looked very pretty in a dress of red velvet and with a plaid headband around her golden curls.

Hope said something Kay couldn’t hear, to which her father nodded and laughed. There was something very domestic and comfortable about the scene. Something Kay somehow felt she couldn’t fit into. She was again reminded of her mother’s feminine virtues. Waves of insecurity rolled over her, and she quietly closed the door and dropped down onto the bed, her shoulders slouched.

There was a tap at her door, and she jumped with a start. “Yes?”

“We’ll be leaving in just a few moments. Are you ready?” Jeremy spoke.

She swallowed to get past the dryness in her mouth, but that didn’t seem to be working. When she finally spoke, it sounded like a frog stuck in her throat. “Uhm, I’m sorry. I woke up late. I’ll try to get ready and meet you there.”

“Are you okay?”

Tears stung her eyes and she nodded then smacked her forehead, knowing he couldn’t see her gesture. “I’m fine, Jeremy. Don’t worry. If I don’t see you at services, I’ll be here when you get back.”

“Merry Christmas, sis.”

“Merry Christmas,” she murmured, barely getting the words out before tears began streaming down her face.

Kay managed to cry out most of her worry and frustrations, but she didn’t pull herself together in time for church. Today her father’s kitchen workers were given the morning off to be with their family. They would all return to make a large meal later, but in the meantime, they’d left lots of pastries and goodies for breakfast and brunch in the dining room.

Kay took a croissant and a muffin from the batch then placed them on a little dish to heat in the microwave. While the goodies spun around the carousel, she poured herself a cup of coffee. Her father’s newspaper was sitting on the table, and she could almost imagine him sitting there nursing his coffee while perusing the day’s news.

“Ready to talk about it?”

She jumped when Jeremy’s voice disturbed the silence of the house. Slowly inhaling, she turned on her heel and dropped her head to the side to glare at her brother. “Why aren’t you at church?”

“Ah.” He put his hand to his heart. “I guess I’ll have to make a confession.”

She snorted. “We’re Episcopal, Jeremy.”

They stared at each other a moment, then both burst into laughter. Some of their Durman cousins were Roman Catholic, and as children they’d often complained that they’d have to go to confession if they did anything naughty. Jeremy and Kay used to find that “cop-out” excuse hysterical and would tease each other with those words when they were teenagers. It had been about that long since they’d used the joke.

Once he had his breath, Jeremy rubbed his stomach and then faced her with a serious expression. “Just tell me what’s going on, Kay. I heard you crying before we left.”

Her hand trembled, and she watched little ripples appear in her coffee. She placed the cup onto the table and dropped into the closest seat. Jeremy pulled out the chair across from her and sat down, leaning his head into one hand to watch her.

“You could’ve backed me up, Jeremy. I mean, we don’t know them. We don’t know anything about them. And what they’ve done putting you and Daddy in danger like this is intolerable.”

“Intolerable, Kay? This isn’t a courtroom. They had nowhere else to go. It wasn’t as if they were searching us out. He has a deed to Aunt Iggie’s house, for goodness sakes.”

Kay rubbed a finger along her upper lip and considered that a moment.

“He resembles us. He’s our cousin.”

“What do you remember about Aunt Iggie?”

“I was just a kid, Kay. I don’t remember much…”

She huffed the air between her teeth. “You have to remember something.”

He only shrugged.

“C’mon. I remember Nanny reading the three little pigs to me when I was three years old. I remember the way the way she huffed and puffed, Jeremy.” Her voice rose steadily until it was almost a scream. “I remember that and yet you don’t remember much?”

“Kay, what does it matter if I remember? Daddy remembers Aunt Iggie. And Daddy believes this is her son.”

He sounded just as exasperated as she felt. Kay sipped her coffee and gazed out into nothing. “You know what she did to Daddy. Nanny told us how it broke his heart when she left, how he spent months away and how it came between him and Momma. Nanny used to say it was like a cloud hanging over the entire...”

“Nanny didn’t know everything. She had a soft spot for Mom because she was her Nanny, but she didn’t know Aunt Iggie. She shouldn’t have tried to poison us about her. I was old enough to know what she was doing.”

Kay waved her hand at him. “That doesn’t matter. No matter what she told us, part of our childhood was missing our dad because of Aunt Iggie. He was depressed, he was caught up in looking for her for years and … and it’s wrong, Jeremy, but when I look at Brennan, I think of that. And it pisses me off!”

“So you’re going to blame him for the sins of his mother? That’s not like you.”

How did he know what she was or wasn’t like her? Sometimes she didn’t think she even knew. “You’re right.”

“There’s something else. What’s wrong?”

Kay lifted her shoulders and rolled her neck a few times. “Nothing. I don’t know, something.”

He didn’t say anything else, just waited with the utmost patience for her to collect her thoughts. Finally, she tapped at her coffee cup with one fingernail and looked up at him.

“I have the most uncomfortable feel about it, Jeremy. Like … like if I let myself like him, I’ll be banished to my room or something.”

Jeremy laughed, then stood and rounded the table to put his hands on her shoulders. “Kay, you aren’t a child, and Nanny’s not here to punish you anymore. It would make Daddy happy if you could try to get along with them.”

Nanny wasn’t the one she was thinking of at that moment. In truth, Kay realized Nanny had always just been an extension of her mother’s own thoughts and wishes. Her mother hadn’t ever forgiven Aunt Iggie for what she’d done to their family and to Daddy. And she’d ingrained that in Kay’s mind. And for all of her willfulness, all Kay ever wanted as a child was for her momma to be proud of her. Somehow she always managed to fall short of the noble countess’s expectation.

Chattering and slamming doors echoed through the house, and Jeremy gave her a comforting squeeze before speaking. “Well, sounds like the fun’s about to begin. Decorating and presents and caroling galore.”

Warmth tingled in Kay’s chest and she smiled, thinking of the children opening their gifts. With a deep sigh, she planted her hands onto the table and pushed herself to stand. “Jeremy.”

Her brother looked down at her with both brows lifted in question.

“Thanks.”

“Anytime, sis.” He kissed her forehead and exited the room.

After he’d left, Kay cleaned up the last of her breakfast and brought the leftover pastries and coffee back to the kitchen. After some digging around, she located the cider left for them in the refrigerator by the staff. She carefully heated it and poured several glasses, garnishing them each with a stick of cinnamon. Placing them all on a tray, she made her way slowly down the hall to the den. Using her backside to push her way into the partly opened door, she lifted the tray a bit in display and called out, “Cider, anyone?”

Hope turned swiftly from speaking with her father, eyes wide in surprise. Their gazes met, and for a moment time stood still. The baby made a sound, and she looked at the little blonde cherub, instant affection for the charming baby impossible to deny. When her eyes returned to Hope’s, a sliver of understanding replaced her previous distrust and anger. She smiled a bit and nodded to the woman, then turned her attention to passing out cups of hot Christmas cider.