Destiny by chance: A Contemporary Romance Fiction Novel (30 page)

Bill brushed back his daughter’s hair, remembering.  He didn’t know what real love was until the nurse placed Sydney in his arms.  There were tears in his eyes, stinging them.  Bill couldn’t believe that he wasn’t her father. 
Wouldn’t
believe.  It wasn’t possible.  And even if it was, he didn’t care.  He would steal her away, and they would live in Canada or somewhere else.  They would start over.  As long as there was breath in his body, he would never let her go.

The light from the hallway brightened as the door opened wider.  He wiped his eyes and sniffed before turning.  Destiny stood against the doorframe, arms crossed. 

“I thought it was you.” She smiled until she saw his tear-stained face.  Her smiled faded.  “I was getting worried,” she whispered.  Bill walked past her, down the hallway and into his room.  She followed him to the doorway and sat sideways on the bench at the end of his bed.  “Do you want to talk about it?”

Bill pulled out his suitcase and began taking clothes from his drawers and filling it.

“Are you going somewhere?”

“Yes, I am,” he retorted.  “I’m taking Sydney, and we’re getting out of here.”

Destiny felt like she’d just been punched.  She rolled forward onto her hands in total shock.

“Justine’s not going to give up.  I could see it in her eyes.”

“You went to see her?”

“Yeah,” he sighed, resignedly.  “I know I shouldn’t have, but I thought if I could just reason with her…  I should have remembered; there’s no reasoning with Justine.”  He angrily stuffed everything he could fit into the case.  “She has money and a powerful husband, and she’s made it clear that she’s not going to quit.  It’s not just about joint custody.  She wants Sydney.”

Destiny grabbed her head. “How can you just walk away?” Her heart was in her throat.

“Owen can run the Kemper House, or he can sell it.  I don’t really care.”

Destiny bent over, feeling like she was going to be sick.  Bill stopped packing and saw her rocking.  He exhaled before going to her, kneeling before her.  “Destiny, I want you to come with us.” Bill took her hands in his, speaking as earnestly as he could.  “We can start over.  Together.”

She looked at him, perplexed.

“I already talked to Charlie about it.  He can get us new identifications, and we can start over.”

Destiny couldn’t believe what he was saying.  The thought of losing them now was too much to bear.  “You can’t do this, Bill.” Destiny pulled her hands from his.  “If you run, they’ll find you, and then what?  They’ll take her away from you because you’ll be in jail.”

“I have to try!”

“This is wrong.” Destiny tried to be the voice of reason.

Bill threw his overnight bag across the room.  “Then, what the hell am I supposed to do?  Just stay here and let her take Sydney away!” he bellowed, tears in his eyes, no longer caring who heard him.

As he started to retrieve his bag, Destiny stepped in between him and the suitcase, holding his arms to prevent him from packing.  He tried to move around her but stopped in frustration.  Her hand moved to his face.  “Not like this.” She caressed his cheeks, pleading softly.  “Not like this.”

The clothes fell from his hands as he dropped his head to her shoulder and wept.  Destiny pulled him to herself and stroked his head sweetly, compassionately.  He looked at her.  She forced a smile as she wiped his tears.  “I’m right here.”  Destiny kissed him gently.  “I’m right here.” There was a knock on the front door, and she patted his cheek.  “All the guests already checked in and are upstairs.  Who could that be at this hour?”

“No telling,” he replied.

“I’ll get it.” Destiny kissed him once more, then walked to the front door and peeked through the curtains.  Two police officers stood on the front porch.  She turned to see Bill standing in his doorway.  Destiny opened the door and welcomed the men inside the entryway where they wouldn’t be pummeled by the freezing elements that had blown in overnight.  “May I help you?”

“We need to speak to Mr. William Ireland.”

Bill walked toward them.  “I’m Bill Ireland.  Is there something I can do for you?”

“Do you know a Justine Aloetti?”

Bill and Destiny exchanged glances, as she took his hand. 

“Yes.  May I ask what this is about?”

“Did you see Mrs. Aloetti this afternoon?”

Bill hesitated a moment, but finally replied, “Yes, we met to discuss our daughter.”

“We will need you to come downtown with us to answer some questions,” one of the officers said firmly.

“I’m sorry.  I don’t understand.”

“Mrs. Aloetti was assaulted this afternoon, and she claims you did it.”

“
What?
” Bill exclaimed, shaking his head.  “When I left her she was sipping expensive vodka and—”

“Daddy?”

Everyone turned to the young girl who was rubbing her eyes and walking toward them.  Bill and Destiny moved toward her, but the officer held Bill’s arm.

“Sir?”

“Just a minute,” he said firmly, as he noted the severity of the officer’s demeanor.

Destiny noted it as well.  “I’ll take care of this.  You do what you need to do.”

Bill felt overwhelmed.  He took a deep breath to calm down before losing his cool in front of two police officers.

“Daddy?” Sydney pulled from Destiny’s grip and ran to her father, hugging him tightly.

Bill knelt down and held her by the shoulders.  “Daddy has to talk to these officers for a few minutes.  You stay here with Destiny.”

“I want to go with you,” she whined, tired and frustrated.

“Syd.  I need you to listen to me.  I love you, and I need you to be a big girl right now.  Okay?” he said firmly, then smiled.

Sydney continued to rub her eyes but smiled back.  “Yessir.”

“I love you, Sweetie.”

“I love you, too, Daddy.”  Sydney hugged his neck.  Then she took Destiny’s hand, and they walked back toward her room. 

Destiny looked over her shoulders as Bill put on his coat.  “I’m going to clear this up, and I’ll be back in a bit,” he assured her.  “Please be sure to check those numbers we discussed.  They are on my dresser.  I’m sure you’ll find the right one.”

Destiny nodded, then watched them walk together out the front door before she turned and headed for Sydney’s room.

“Is everything okay?” Sydney asked as she crawled back into bed.

“Of course.” Destiny grinned, furrowing her brow.  “You know your Daddy knows everybody, and…  Well, they just needed to ask him something about one of his friends.”

“Did they do something bad?”

Destiny covered her up.  “No, Sweetie.  Now get some sleep.”

“Love you,” she murmured, as she closed her eyes.

“Love you too, Sweetie.  Now go to sleep.”

Destiny closed the door quietly behind her and walked hurriedly to Bill’s room.  On his dresser was the list he had told her about earlier, with a manila envelope.  She took them all to the kitchen, looking over the list of numbers.  She took out her phone, dialed his attorney and told him what had transpired.  Then she asked him to meet Bill at the police station.  Destiny sat perfectly still, nervously chewing on her lip for a moment before dialing Charlie.  After several rings the phone was answered.

“Jessie,” she gasped as she suddenly burst into tears.  “I’m sorry to call so late—”

Dale stood by his client’s side, in a sports jacket and jeans, not his usual attire for his profession, but the quickest and most comfortable thing he could throw on at eleven o’clock at night in the middle of an ice storm.  The pictures set on the table before them were of a beaten and bruised Justine.  Bill hadn’t spoken a word since they arrived at the police station.  He knew the drill.  Sadly, he’d just done this a day ago, which was why they were grilling him harder.  Dale conferred with his client and then told them his client had nothing else to say.  That was right before they arrested him, once again, for assault.

Charlie arrived at the police station only minutes after Dale.  In the few minutes Bill had alone with him before they were separated, it was clear what Charlie needed to do.  He merely nodded at Bill.  That was enough to give him comfort before they handcuffed him and booked him.  As he left the station, Charlie made half a dozen quick phone calls, waking up
all
the investigators that he had already secured to help with their investigation of Justine.  Each of them was alerted about what had just transpired, and each pledged to work even harder, given the high sense of urgency over the escalating circumstances.

While her husband headed to the police station, Jessie had driven straight to the Kemper House after Destiny’s distressed phone call.  When she arrived, Lisa was already there.  Destiny hadn’t called Andy since he had an early morning appointment, but texted him, asking him to call her as soon as he woke, stressing it was urgent.  When Jessie arrived, she found Destiny and her colorful friend in the kitchen drinking hot tea.  The three women sat up until four o’clock in the morning, drinking tea and discussing everything that was happening and what to do about it.  Their plans made, Jessie and Lisa helped Destiny prepare breakfast for their guests.

After everyone had eaten, they helped her do the breakfast dishes.  Sydney woke after everything was cleaned up and dragged into the kitchen, still looking like she could use another few hours’ sleep.

“What’s everyone doing here?” Sydney rubbed her eyes.

“What?  We can’t just come to visit you?” Lisa asked.

Sydney hugged Lisa and her Aunt Jessie.  “How’s Peanut?”

“He misses you,” Jessie replied, looking up at Destiny.  “In fact, I thought if you wanted to stay with us for a few days, you could go riding, providing the weather cooperates.”

“Really?”  She turned to Destiny.  “Where’s Daddy?”

“He had to go out, Sweetie,” she forced a reassuring smile before cutting her eyes at Jessie.

“Again?” she whined.

“I’ll tell you what.  Why don’t you go and pack a bag and let me worry about your dad?  I’m sure it will be okay.”  Destiny quickly changed the subject.  “You hungry?”

“I’ll take care of that.” Jessie grabbed her niece, turned her around and faced her toward her room.  “Get dressed and pack a bag for three days, just in case.”

Sydney was suddenly wide awake as she rushed down the hallway.

“Thank you,” Destiny smiled.  “I’ll keep you posted as soon as I know something.”

“You’d better.  Just remember,” Jessie added, as she pulled her jacket back on, “old Charlie may think he’s the brains of this operation, but he’s got nothin’ on me.” She winked.  “Call your brother and see if he can pull any strings without getting in trouble and just put those results off for one more day.”  Then she turned to Lisa.  “You got this?” 

Lisa smiled wryly.  “Absolutely.” 

Jessie turned back to Destiny.  “Are you gonna be okay, Honey?”

Destiny hesitated, then nodded.

Jessie tapped her on the chin.  “We’re not gonna let anything happen to any of you.” They all turned as Sydney skipped into the room.  “Especially this little munchkin here,” she added, hugging the girl to her side.  “You ready?”

“Absolutamentee!” Sydney beamed, eager to check on her pony.

“Is that even a word?” Lisa asked.

“Apparently it is now.” Jessie steered the young girl toward the back door. 

Sydney broke free to hug Lisa one more time, then to hug Destiny.  “Tell Daddy I love him, okay?”

“Absolutamentee!” Destiny replied, to laughter.

After they had walked out the door, Lisa clapped her hands together once.  “We have a lot to do in a short amount of time, so I suggest we get moving.” Lisa smacked her friend on the butt.  “Do you think we should call Owen?”

“That idiot?  Forget it.  He was already on the defense team’s witness list, remember.”

Lisa wagged her forefinger.  “Forgiveness is a virtue.”

“So is character, of which he has none.”

Lisa took her friend’s arm.  “You call your attorney, and I’ll call my office.  I have a very important spa appointment to schedule.”

They had released Justine immediately after her police interview.  Though she had no broken bones, she was markedly bruised.  Uri had hit her before, but never like this.  He had been so angry when he saw the two glasses of vodka that he didn’t even give her a chance to explain—more pointedly, an opportunity to think up an explanation.  Uri had slapped her harder than he ever had, and then he shoved her into the bar, before calling her a whore as he stormed out.  Thankfully, Uri didn’t notice her secondary cell phone on the table beside the drinks, or it would have been all over. 

How could he possibly have known where she was, and why hadn’t he called to announce his arrival?  Uri was extremely jealous, so Justine figured he must have had her followed. She immediately called Consuelo and told him to stay away for awhile.  After composing herself, she went into her ensuite and saw herself in the mirror.  She looked like hell, and yet, as she stared at her reflection, she constructed the conclusion to her little web of lies.  Her husband may have just handed her daughter over to them on a silver platter.

She immediately called the police and sobbed through her best performance in years.  She smoked a cigarette and had another glass of vodka until the doorman announced them.  She broke the glass on the table, made a little cut on her hand and waited for them to arrive.  They were very considerate and compassionate, especially the nurses at the hospital.  They listened empathetically to her weave a tale of mistreatment that began just after she and Bill married.  Terrified of him, she’d had to flee without her daughter for fear of him.  Everything was now documented for admissibility in court.  Better yet, for her coming emotional profession to Uri.  How else would one explain abandoning a child so many years before?

Her phone rang during her police interview, and she saw it was Consuelo.  She texted him that she would call him later and quickly turned the phone off.  Uri called five minutes later, on her other phone, saying he was sorry, and that he went back to the suite, and she wasn’t there.  She told him she was at the doctor, simply to milk the sympathy, but said she’d be back soon, and he could make it up to her in person.  He offered to have her picked up, but she promised she would get a cab.

When they released her, she turned on the phone that she kept separate for her
own
personal use.  No one ever wants her husband scrolling through her personal phone numbers, right?  You never know what he might find.  Better to spend a little extra and keep that part of your life separate, or, at least, that’s the way Justine saw it.  And so far, it had worked blissfully.  The two lives had never met, and she fully intended to keep it that way.  Justine also planned on keeping Consuelo on a leash while enjoying her high society life in Venice.  When she got full custody of Sydney, and she was certain that would happen now, she would simply ship the little girl off to boarding school.  Justine had already been checking into one in Rome, which was far enough away that she wouldn’t be bothered by the tedious day-to-day issues so that she could still enjoy her life while she was young.  Besides, Justine wanted the best for her daughter, and she’d heard that this one was the best.

Consuelo wasn’t answering his phone, which was mildly irritating. The only two men she’d talked to today had treated her badly, and she desperately wanted to hear Connie’s sweet voice, telling her how much he loved her and what he wanted to do to her later.  Of course, Justine wasn’t sure what she’d be up to, considering how sore she was, not to mention quite bruised, and a little tired from the pain medication they gave her.  Before leaving, Justine called for a cab and asked them to pick her up within twenty minutes of her release, which they did.  She paid the hospital with a check from her personal bank account in the States, one that Uri didn’t know she had, once again to assure there was no paper trail.  Then, as she walked out of the hospital, she threw the paperwork they had given her into the trashcan.

The driver glanced back occasionally at her in the rearview mirror, which only annoyed her.  The last time he looked back, Justine stared hatefully into the mirror at him, and he never looked back again.  She would never have gone out in public like this if she hadn’t had a good reason.  And right now, it was a means to an end.  Before getting out of the car, she draped the long gray scarf over her face, as she had done when she left.  No need for those around her to see how visibly disfigured she was.  Between that and the sunglasses, no one was the wiser.

Uri was waiting for her in her suite.  Housekeeping had already cleaned up the spilled vodka, the glass, and the blood.  When Uri saw his wife’s bandaged arm, he burst into tears.  He had been in such a rage that he didn’t even remember breaking the glass that cut her.  She walked past him, distant and unaccepting of his apologies until it suited her.  Justine acted offended that he had punished her before she was able to explain that she was entertaining someone who was helping her to buy a particular sailboat that he had been wanting.  She made a mental note to find the elusive salesperson before the end of her trip, to validate her story if needed.  Uri begged and cajoled until she finally, tearfully accepted his apology. 

Justine had considered telling him about Sydney, but wouldn’t—not quite yet. She had already paid a private investigator to follow Bill and his little tramp.  And since the investigator had someone on the inside at the laboratory in his pocket, the results would indeed come back in her favor.  But since she didn’t like leaving anything to chance, she would wait until her investigator had the results in his hand to break the news to Uri of his long lost daughter.

Uri was beside himself trying to please her, offering to call room service to order in lobster thermidor for a late night dinner, her favorite, with a fresh berry trifle for dessert.  She was too sore and tired, so he was more than happy to take her to bed, although make-up sex was definitely out of the question, with the level of pain she still professed.  He promised her a day of pampering at the spa to relieve her sore muscles and make her feel brand new.  Justine accepted his offer—
only
if he promised her a shopping spree, and
only
if she was feeling better, of course.  Uri, as always, promised her anything she wanted.  He could always take care of business tomorrow night.  After a day at the spa, she was
always
in a better mood and usually more compliant. 

Most nights Justine slept in a separate bedroom since Uri’s snoring was like a freight train going through a tunnel, but tonight, with her pain meds, she slept through with no problem.  When she awoke in the morning, Uri was already gone, probably working out in the gym downstairs.  She pulled her other cell phone from between the mattresses and called Consuelo again.  Damn.  He still wasn’t answering.  Where the hell was he?  He was there for her, not the other way around.  She called her private investigator, this call going to voicemail as well.  She checked the time again.  It was after ten.  She called room service and ordered a specialty smoothie. 

Not having any success with her other phone calls, Justine called the hotel spa, but all their appointments for that day were completely booked.  Telling them she was in the penthouse didn’t pull any weight since they were down a person as well.  Did she want to schedule one for tomorrow?  Justine emphatically told them no; that was unacceptable and unprofessional, and the manager would be hearing from her.  She slammed the phone down to emphasize her point.  A moment later her phone rang.  It was her investigator informing her of Bill’s arrest.  They would arraign him Monday the morning.  Justine told him to see what he could do to expedite the lab results.  Then she instructed him to keep her posted.

Room service arrived a few minutes later with her smoothie.  Justine was in such a good mood she’d forgotten how bruised she was until the waiter looked aghast at seeing her face.  She gave him an annoyed glare and signed his ticket without giving him a tip before slamming the door in his face.  Then she lay on the sofa, propped her feet up and sipped on her smoothie.  It was almost as good as Consuelo’s.  Feeling a little more refreshed she dialed his number again.  When it went to voice mail, again she left him a less loving message than she had before, laid back and finished her smoothie.  Justine closed her eyes.  How humiliating it must have been for Bill—being arrested in front of his daughter and his little whore and all his paying guests.  She smiled to herself.  Yes, everything was falling into place quite nicely.