Everything She Wanted (5 page)

“Put him in front of me and I’ll see to it he doesn’t get away with anything ever again,” Kate swore.

Ben admired her conviction. He believed her. She wanted Evan dead. He wanted Evan to pay for his many sins, but he didn’t want Kate to get hurt or end up in a cell herself.

“Tell me what’s going on here.”

Kate jumped up from the couch, her face contorting with rage. “That fucker killed my sister and her fiancé.”

“This is your sister’s place?”

“Yes. Donald bought it for her last
year.”

Ben held up his hand, palm up. “Wait, your sister’s fiancé is Donald Faraday?”

“Yes.”

Ben grimaced. “He’s married.”

“He wasn’t going to be for long. He asked his wife for a divorce today and now he’s dead. They’re both dead.”

“And you believe Evan Faraday killed them?”

She waved one hand in front of her palm up. “Now you’re all caught up.”

“Why would he do that?
It’s too obvious if Donald asked Christina for a divorce.”

Detective Raynott stepped forward to fill him in. “The scene’s been staged to look like a murder-­suicide. Kate schooled the responding officers and the crime scene guys to look deeper at the bloody knife and blood drops unrelated to the shootings. We can’t confirm a third person, but the lab tests will tell us if the blood is from
our victims or someone else. We don’t have Evan Faraday’s DNA in the system, so getting a sample may be tricky.”

“Have the police notified Christina and Evan that Donald is dead?”

“Not yet.”

“So Evan could have left the country by now.” Ben hated to think Evan might get away with this after all.

“That would only make him look guiltier,” Kate pointed out. “They want the money. Donald
had a prenup. Christina got next to nothing for cheating on him. Donald and Evan fought on the phone today.”

“Did you overhear this conversation?” the detective asked.

“No. When I left with Alex . . .”

“The baby?” Ben asked.

She sighed heavily. “Yes. Donald was upset. He said he spoke with Evan on the phone. They argued. Evan wasn’t happy his father essentially cut him off. I sensed
there was something more, but I’m not sure what. Donald was uneasy when I left. He handed me a key without my sister knowing.”

“A key to what?” Ben asked.

“I think the safe. He tried to convince me and Margo that everything was okay, but deep down, I think he worried something like this might happen. That’s why they asked me to take Alex for a few days.”

“Wait. Alex is Donald and Margo’s
child, not yours?”

“He was, but now he’s mine.”

She didn’t wear a ring, which made his assumption that she hadn’t gotten married in the last year plausible. But the baby made him think she was in a committed relationship and he didn’t have a chance with her despite Morgan’s prediction. Now he breathed easier.

Ben thought through all the facts. “So Donald asked for a divorce from his
wife to be with your sister, who has been his mistress for at least two years if they have a child. There’s a prenup that leaves Christina Faraday with a settlement, but the bulk of the estate would go to Evan and Alex.”

“Essentially, if Donald and Christina divorced. He served her the papers, but it’s not final or anything, so I don’t know if a judge would say they’re technically still married.
So now, the Faradays will fight to keep everything and exclude Alex.” Kate raked her hand through her hair and held it away from her pretty face. Grief dragged her shoulders down and made the depths of her eyes flat.

“That’s why I called Ben,” Detective Raynott said. “If you’re going up against the Faradays, you’ll need an attorney who’s dealt with them before and has a personal interest in
taking them down.”

“Why do you hate them?” She narrowed her eyes, the ever present suspicion still there despite the fact they had a common foe.

“Just Evan. Pricks with money who think they can get away with anything and everything because their victims don’t have the same resources to fight back.”

“The reason you founded Haven House,” she guessed.

“Is that how you two met?” Detective
Raynott eyed Ben, then Kate, silently asking Ben if they had a past.

“Kate is a social worker down in San Jose. She works with teens, but sometimes gets cases of abused women. She’s sent a few to Haven House when they needed help and a safe place to hide outside of San Jose.”

Ben didn’t offer up any other information. Like every time he saw her in the past, no matter how short the visit
to her offices to pick up someone in need, he’d been drawn to her and her quiet intensity. Smart and kind with an underlying strength that told you she didn’t take shit from anyone. She’d always kept things on a professional level, sending out don’t-­touch, don’t-­even-­ask vibes. Still, he’d always sensed interest in her that she didn’t give in to—­except that one time. The few times he saw her
after the wedding reception, he could have pushed, tried harder, showed more interest, but he pulled back to save himself from a polite rejection. The attraction was there, thrumming through his system even now. The lost and devastated look in her eyes drew him in and made him want to wrap his arms around her and hug her close. He wanted to comfort her. The need to keep her close surprised him.

He wanted to fight it, dismiss it, and move on before she ran out on him again, but Morgan’s prediction played in his head. What if Kate was the woman meant for him? What if he walked away from her without really trying and he never got another shot? What if he missed his chance for the kind of happiness Jenna and his other friends had found because he let it slip right through his fingers
because he was too stubborn, afraid, lazy to hold on tight to it?

She’d brushed him off before, held back when he sensed she wanted to leap. He’d let her. Not this time.

“Ben, I thank you for coming tonight, but there’s nothing you can do. I’ll go through my sister’s and Donald’s papers, see what’s what, and go from there. The police will nail Evan. He staged the scene, but he made mistakes.
Those mistakes will land him in jail.”

He placed his hand on her shoulder and slid it down to her arm. She didn’t back away. He held it there, offering comfort.

“You’re not dismissing me that easily. I can help with the papers and make sure Alex gets what’s his. As far as Evan is concerned, don’t think this is a slam dunk. Evan will hire a top attorney to defend him. He’ll try to squirm
his way out of this mess. If he can’t, he’ll use his money and status and the fact he’s never been convicted of a crime to get out of serving any real time. He’ll find any hole he can escape through to get out of this mess. Let me help you, and I’ll keep the pressure on the DA to make sure he pays.”

Her sad gaze met his. “Why? Why do you want to help me?”

“No matter what, you’re going
to need a lawyer to go up against them. You and I have worked together in the past. Better the lawyer you know, the one who is going to put everything I have into this case, than the one who will run up a huge bill. You don’t want the DA handing out a plea that gets Evan out in a few years. You want him locked up for good. I will advocate for you and Alex to make sure that happens. I know Evan and
what makes him tick. I’ve gone after him in the past.”

“But you didn’t win.”

Ben felt the jab right in the gut. He tried not to take it personally. Still, the loss pissed him off. Having her point it out embarrassed him, but he’d done everything he could to advocate for the family of the man Evan beat to death and get them justice. The DA couldn’t prove the case and there wasn’t a shred
of credible evidence to file a civil suit. Not the case for the man Evan beat in a bar brawl. That civil suit ended in a settlement, the criminal charges plead down to a measly misdemeanor. He couldn’t fault his client for taking the money. Still, Ben didn’t want to see Evan get away with yet another murder. He wanted to see Alex get his due.

“If you’re right and the evidence puts Evan in
that kitchen and the gun in his hand, he’ll go to jail, but you’ll still have to go up against Christina Faraday to get Alex’s share of the estate. I can help you with that.”

“As a social worker, you know I don’t make a lot of money. I probably—­no, I definitely can’t afford you.”

Ah, so that’s why she hesitated. Not because she didn’t think he could win this time, or do his best not to
lose. The hope she squashed earlier that she had some faith in him rose up again.

“Kate, I don’t want or need your money. I’m not asking you to hire me. I’m telling you that I will help you make this right.”

Kate fell onto the sofa and landed with her back against the cushions. She covered her face with both hands and scrubbed them up and over her head. “I don’t know what to do first.
I need to bury my sister and Donald, figure out what to do with this house, and Alex’s inheritance. I have to figure out a way to explain all of this to him one day. I have to figure out how I’m going to take care of him.”

“Kate, one step at a time. I can help with all of that.”

“You can help me take care of Alex?” One of Kate’s eyebrows shot up.

“Well, everything but that. Though
kids usually love me.”

“Do you have kids?” She cocked her head, her eyes filled with accusation that maybe he’d kept something from her.

“No.”

“What’s with the handprint on your shirt?”

“Dinner out with friends included eight children. Grace loves chocolate cake and me.”

The suspicion left her eyes. Her lips tilted. Not exactly a smile, but he’d take it. He hated seeing her
this devastated and upset.

“That’s sweet.”

“She’s a sweet girl.” He thought fondly back to how much he enjoyed dinner with the family tonight.

“They do exist.”

He didn’t quite understand the reference. “Sweet kids?”

“No. Nice guys.”

Maybe that’s why she ran off that night. She thought he was taking advantage. “You’re looking at one, Kate.” He wanted her to believe good
men existed, that he was one of them. He had to admit, the way he grew up, surrounded by men like his father, he’d often wondered that himself. He questioned his own goodness on many occasions. As a small boy, acting out his anger and frustration because of his depressing and scary home life, he’d feared he’d end up just like his father and uncles.

“Ben’s the best,” Detective Raynott agreed.
Ben’s eyebrow shot up, surprised by the compliment. “If you like those do-­gooder types. I mean, he’s a top notch attorney, rich, and helps women and children, for God’s sake. He makes the rest of us look like asshole losers.”

Ben couldn’t hide the smirk. “I’m sure you can find at least a half dozen women who will tell you what an asshole loser I am and a hundred times that of ­people who
have lost to me in court who will tell you I’m a total dick.”

Kate met his steady gaze. “Well, lucky for me Ben the dick lawyer is exactly who I need to go up against the Faradays. Evan may think he’ll get away with killing my sister, but there is no fucking way I let the Faradays get away with taking anything more from Alex.”

“Then let’s get started on taking down the Faradays,” Ben suggested.
“Detective, when will you notify them of the murders and question them?”

“The crime scene techs will finish up here. I’m heading over to see Mrs. Faraday now.”

“Great, I’m coming with you,” Ben said.

“Me too.” Kate stood and straightened her purple blouse. The deep color made her blue eyes that much more striking.

“Sorry, Kate, but I can’t allow that.” Detective Raynott held Kate’s
shoulder.

A friendly gesture meant to comfort and make the refusal easier for her to take. It set off something inside Ben. He wanted to tear Raynott’s hand right off his body and stuff it down his throat. He’d never been the jealous sort. Well, not like this. He stuffed his hands in his pockets to keep from following through on impulse and tried to drag in a soothing breath. It calmed him,
barely.

“Ben can go on your behalf as your attorney to inform them that you intend to get Alex’s inheritance, but I can’t allow you to interfere in the investigation. Plus, I don’t want to tip my hat too soon about the bloody knife and other blood evidence. We’ll wait for confirmation from the lab results. They’ll take time. We’ll use it to build a solid case against Evan. Right now, all we
have is speculation that he did it. Let’s see how confident Evan is about getting away with murder.”

Ben walked the few steps to Kate and sat beside her on the sofa. He stared down at Alex sleeping peacefully. He saw bits of Donald in the boy’s face. The shape of his chin. The slant of his nose. He had the same shade of brown hair as Kate. Ben wondered if he had blue eyes, or maybe a different
color, more like Donald’s dark brown. He’d met Donald on several occasions, but had no idea what Margo looked like. Did the two sisters look alike? Or were they as different as Kate seemed to all other women?

He could never quite put his finger on it, but something separated her from others. She wasn’t better than anyone, just different.

“He looks so peaceful when he sleeps,” Kate said.
“Like nothing and no one bothers him. He has no idea his father and mother are dead in the other room. He has no idea the life he could have had with them is gone. He’ll only know the life he’ll have with me.” She sighed so heavily he felt the depth of her spent emotions reverberate through him where their thighs touched. “It’s not fair. This isn’t how it was supposed to be.”

Ben put his hand
over Kate’s in her lap and squeezed to offer what little comfort he could, knowing nothing he said or did would change what was and what would be. “If you ask me, he’s lucky to have you. You love him. That’s all anyone really needs.”

“I don’t know if I can be everything he needs.” The whispered words held a trace of fear.

“That’s the same thing I imagine every parent faces when they have
a child. You’ll be great, Kate. Because it matters to you, you’ll do your best to be everything he needs.”

“You’re an optimist.”

“Most of the time, but in this case, I know a sure thing when I see it.” Before things got too weird, he asked, “Will you be okay here until I get back?”