The Newlyweds (12 page)

“Let's just try to give each other a lot of space when we're at home alone, okay?” she said.

Sam nodded. A lot of space. Sure. They could do that. He just hoped removing themselves to different parts of the big house would be enough. Because, speaking for himself, it would take moving Bridget to the South Pole and himself to the North before he could even think about not wanting her.

He hoped like hell that their guy at Children's Connection showed himself soon.

 

When all was said and done, Charlie Prescott was a pretty weasely, mean-looking character. Everett didn't know why he hadn't noticed that before. Probably because he'd been sitting in a dark bar having a drink on his way home from work, and Charlie had made a point of seeing to it that Everett had had another drink. Then another. And another. By the end of that first evening with him, Everett could have been told that Charlie looked like Marilyn Monroe, and he would have believed it.

Of course, his willingness to trust and like Charlie was probably as much a result of his lifelong loneliness as it was his temporary inebriation. Everett hadn't had many friends growing up—or any, really—and he'd been so grateful for Charlie's fellowship that he'd let
himself believe it had only come about because he genuinely liked Everett. He should have known better. Because now he understood that what he'd thought was Charlie being his friend was only Charlie manipulating him. Using him. It wasn't because Charlie liked him. No one had ever liked Everett. Well, until Nancy. But if she found out about all the things he had done, she'd want no part of him, either.

And now it was too late for Everett to undo all the things he'd done. He'd even done things that, if discovered, could send him to jail. Despite his realization that Charlie had only befriended Everett because he wanted something he couldn't get by himself, Everett was powerless to sever his ties to the man. He was in way too deep. And even though he now knew Charlie to be someone capable of murder, Everett still couldn't break free of the man, because Charlie was blackmailing him now, reminding him that if Charlie—otherwise known as the Stork—got caught, he'd take Everett down with him. And if Everett tried to leave town, Charlie had promised to frame him for everything that had happened, including the attempt on Nancy's life. He'd sworn he would pin all the crimes on Everett alone. And Everett didn't doubt for a moment that Charlie would—and could—do it.

Everett's only hope now was to try and bargain his way out of his relationship with Charlie in whatever way he could. Then he'd try to do the right thing from here on out, live a decent life and hope like hell no one ever found out about his involvement in the black-market baby ring and everything else.

He only hoped Charlie
would
let him bargain his way out of the relationship. Because Everett didn't want to be part of this anymore.

He would do anything to be able to turn back the clock to that first night at the bar when, too drunk to know any better, he'd told Charlie about the realization he'd made while working in the accounting office at Children's Connection. About how the clients the Connection had turned away might potentially be gold mines, desperate to start families in whatever way they could. There were so many babies out there being born to women who couldn't afford them or didn't want them, he'd mentioned casually, and it would be so easy to match them up with people who had enough money—and desperation—to pay top dollar for them, no questions asked. And it would be a piece of cake to make those bartered babies look like legitimate adoptions, too, Everett had told Charlie that night. If someone had the right connections…

Little had Everett realized then that Charlie had had those connections. And he'd wasted no time in urging Everett to join him in such an enterprise. At first, Everett had naturally balked, had known it was unethical, illegal and immoral. But Charlie had sweet-talked him into believing it was a noble thing to do, matching up unwanted children with people who would love them and care for them. Those bartered babies would have much better lives as a result of Charlie's and Everett's efforts. They'd be with people who wanted them, not mothers and fathers who would, at best, neglect them and, at worst, hurt them.

And Charlie, like Everett, knew what it was to be neglected and hurt by his parents. He'd told Everett about his own past, about how he himself had been an adopted child, united with his parents by none other than Children's Connection. But Charlie's parents, like
Lester and Joleen Baker, hadn't been good people. And like Lester and Joleen, they'd mistreated their son. Charlie's parents had been even worse than the Bakers, Everett knew.

Of course, now that Everett could look back on the conversation where Charlie had revealed all that, he understood that much of Charlie's motivation had come about because he wanted revenge. Revenge on Children's Connection for allowing him to be adopted as an infant by such unfit parents. It was Charlie who had maliciously switched the sperm vials so that two innocent women—maybe more, who knew?—became pregnant by men they hadn't approved as fathers. And it was Charlie who'd stolen the fertilized eggs and sold them on the Internet. Everett hadn't known about those acts until it was too late to do anything about them. But now that he understood the full extent of Charlie's viciousness, he knew he needed to get away from the man.

It didn't matter that Charlie's childhood had been as bad as, or even worse than, Everett's. That didn't excuse him for doing all the terrible things he had done. And it didn't excuse him for luring Everett—stupid, unwitting Everett—into his schemes.

Still, it had been Charlie's sob story about his past, and his assurances that he and Everett could prevent any more children from experiencing such hurt themselves, that had ultimately swayed Everett. He knew what it was like to be unwanted by one's parents, understood neglect better than anyone. In his inebriated state, he'd told himself that the end justified the means. And that if he and Charlie didn't undertake such an enterprise, someone else would. And that someone else might not be as caring as Everett and
Charlie were. Their intentions might not be as good. Even when he'd sobered up the next day, Everett had convinced himself that no one would be hurt by what Charlie had proposed.

But people had been hurt. And Everett had discovered, too late, that some of the babies Charlie had “acquired” for parents here in the U.S. had been taken from mothers in Russia and other countries who didn't want to give them up. What Everett had told himself was a noble enterprise was actually nothing more than a way for greedy men to line their pockets. Charlie
was
someone who didn't care, someone whose intentions weren't good. And now Everett was someone like Charlie.

But even more stupid than discussing with Charlie how money could be made through Children's Connection, in an effort to show off that first night, to make Charlie like him even more, Everett had told Charlie who he really was—Robbie Logan. And now Charlie used that, too, to keep Everett in line. He'd threatened to tell Leslie and Terrence about Everett's true identity, and what kind of criminal he'd become. And Everett couldn't have the Logans finding that out. They would have been so disappointed in him. They'd already had their hearts broken once, and it was all his fault. No way did he want them to be hurt all over again.

Oh, why hadn't he just kept his mouth shut that night? he asked himself as he waited in the same bar for Charlie, who had called him at the office earlier and demanded they meet. Being an accountant suited Everett well. It was quiet, solitary work that kept his mind occupied and off matters he'd rather not think about. Being a criminal did not suit Everett at all. But then, he hadn't set out to be a criminal. No, he'd only
wanted to make a friend. Which was ironic, because these days, he felt more alone than ever.

“So you showed up after all.”

Everett turned on his bar stool to see Charlie standing behind him, the pale yellow light of the bar making him look even more menacing than usual. Which was odd, because Charlie wasn't a big man. Even though he and Everett stood eye to eye at five-ten, the other man seemed much smaller, because he was so was scrawny and slope-shouldered. His features, too, were small, his eyes dark and beady, his lips thin and drawn. He dyed what little hair he had a shade of brown that looked anything but natural, and topped it with a cheap toupee that looked worse than no hair at all would.

Still, Everett knew the Stork considered himself to be quite a looker. Evil, he supposed, was as blind as love.

“Why did you want to see me?” Everett asked without preamble.

Charlie smiled unctuously. “What? Aren't you going to buy a drink for your old friend?”

“You're not my friend,” Everett said, a splash of heat washing his belly at his own defiance.

Charlie pouted like a debutant. “Why, Everett, don't you realize it by now? I'm the only friend you do have.” He sat down on the stool next to Everett's and dragged it close. Too close. Everett had to tamp down the urge to lean away from the other man. “And that,” Charlie said in a low, dangerous voice, “is why you'll do exactly as I tell you to do.”

Everett's heart hammered hard in his chest. He really hated Charlie. “That's not why I do what you tell me to do.”

Now Charlie grinned his greasy grin again. “Then it
must be because you realize that your life as you know it will be over if you don't.”

Everett said nothing. What, after all, was there to say?

Charlie ordered a drink and told the bartender to put it on Everett's tab. When the bartender glanced at Everett for his okay, he nodded reluctantly, then heard Charlie chuckle with much satisfaction. The two men sat in silence until the bartender returned with the bourbon straight up, and after Charlie had enjoyed his first sip, he turned to Everett.

“Have you taken care of Nurse Nancy?” he asked.

Everett wanted to slug the other man for using his own endearment for Nancy, especially since when Charlie said it, it sounded like an insult. After he'd chased Charlie from Nancy's apartment that night he'd tried to kill her, Everett had managed to convince him that it wouldn't be necessary to return for Nancy, that Everett would be able to discredit anything she might say that would incriminate him or Charlie. He'd had to say something to keep Charlie from going after Nancy again. And so far, Charlie had left her alone.

“I told you I'd take care of it,” Everett said levelly.

“Just see to it that you do.” Charlie said. Lowering his voice, he added, “And in the meantime, I've got another job for you.”

“I don't want any more of your jobs,” Everett muttered, surprising himself with his defiance. He'd just had enough, that was all. Enough of Charlie and his vengefulness and his viciousness. “I don't want to do this anymore, Charlie,” he said. “I want out.”

“Out?” Charlie echoed incredulously. “You can't get out of this, Everett. You're in too deep, you're over your head and suffocating.”

Not yet, he wasn't, Everett countered to himself. Yes, he'd done things he shouldn't have, but he hadn't sunk as low as Charlie had. Everett hadn't hurt anyone, or worse, tried to kill anyone. There was still a chance, if he got himself out of Charlie's clutches, that he might be able to start anew. He could forget about what had happened, what he'd done, and go in a new direction. With Nancy. There was still a chance he could make things work with her. If he washed his hands of Charlie once and for all.

“I want out,” he said again. “Just leave me alone, Charlie. Find another patsy to do your dirty work. I won't say a word to anyone about you or your baby-selling operation. If you'll just let me be, I'll pretend I never saw you.”

At first Charlie said nothing in reply to Everett's petition, and Everett thought—hoped—the other man would just slink away, and that would be the end of it. But then Charlie started to chuckle, an evil menacing sound. And then he began to laugh, a sound that was even worse.

“You'll pretend you never saw me?” he repeated through his laughter. “Oh, that's rich. Like I believe that.”

“It's true,” Everett said. But his assurance sounded anything but reassuring, even to his own ears.

“Forget it,” Charlie said. “Even if I did believe you, you've become too important to this operation for me to let you leave it.”

“You'll find someone else,” Everett said.

“The hell I will,” Charlie retorted. “And why should I try, when I have you all trained just the way I need?”

“I want out, Charlie,” Everett said again.

“Well, that's too damned bad. You're not going
anywhere. You know too much, and you're too important. And I have a job that needs doing
now.
”

Everett swallowed hard and squared his shoulders, sitting up as straight as he could on the bar stool. With all the courage he could muster, he said, “What if I refuse to do it?”

There was an eerie silence from Charlie again, but it wasn't followed by laughter this time. No, this time it was followed by a very softly, very scarily uttered, “Then I might have to do something you wouldn't like.”

Heat splashed through Everett's belly, and his shaky bravado evaporated. “What do you mean?”

Charlie's smile was nothing short of malevolent. “Well, for instance, it would be a shame if anything happened to your long-lost sister, wouldn't it?”

Everett felt himself pale. “I don't have a long-lost sister,” he said, even though he knew exactly who Charlie was talking about.

“Sure you do,” Charlie countered. “Bridget Logan Jones. She married herself a man who's even richer than her family is. Why, he can give her anything she wants. Except a baby. So they're on the waiting list to adopt one from Children's Connection. I've been watching her since she showed up. She's a pretty little thing, isn't she? Maybe I could give her that baby she wants. And not by selling it to her, either.”