Leverage (11 page)

I ran my hands over my face and turned down the hall, but I lurched to a halt when I heard Katy’s soft cries coming from my bedroom. Though the room was dark, Katy had left the blinds and drapes open, and white streetlight flooded into the space. She was curled on her side, her body silhouetted against the harsh light from the window beyond.

I walked around to her side and sat down along the edge of the bed. Her face was buried in the sheets and blanket, and her shoulders quaked with the soft sound of her muted sobs. We’d been so acutely attuned to each other following Leo’s death, maybe she somehow knew this was the end, that I’d come to tell her she had to leave, to find a life without me.

I skimmed my hand along her arm. Katy flinched and pulled away as she wailed louder and her body shook beneath the bedcovers.

“Katy,” I whispered and fell to my knees beside her. I tugged at the covers, even as she tried to hold them in place.

“No,” she whined and rocked away, pulling the sheet down far enough to see me.

The ghostly streetlight blanketed her eyes for just a moment, but that was all it took for me to see. I yanked the bedcovers back with enough force to strip them from the bed. Katy moaned and turned her face into the pillow. That’s when I noticed the blood. It was smeared across the pillow and the sheet below Katy’s body. I grabbed her wrists and turned her to face me.

Her face was a patchwork of scrapes, cuts, and bruises, her eye black, and her lip split and swollen. I recoiled, removing my hands from her wrists. They, too, were bruised and scraped. Horrified yet frantic, I returned to her side, panting as I pulled up on her sleeves, her pant legs, the hem of her shirt. Every part of her was marked. I grabbed her by the shoulders and gave her a small shake.

“What the fuck happened to you, Katy? Who did this?”

She shook her head and sobbed, her eyes closed against me. I pulled her to my chest and held her tight, my arm wrapped around her body and my hand against the back of her head. She cried and flinched under the pressure, but I couldn’t seem to let her go.

“Who did this to you, K?” I asked again and pulled far enough away to look her in the eye. “Was it a man? Did he…touch you?”

She closed her eyes and twisted her head away, and in that moment, I knew, in the way she turned from me, that whoever had beaten her, had done that and so much worse.

Everything around me seemed to move in fast motion, the nurses and their aides, the doctors and technicians, other patients and their families, even the maintenance workers appeared to whirl around me like Tasmanian devils. But in my own world, as I waited for word on Katy’s condition, life seemed to have come to an abrupt halt.

I was stranded in a bubble of unknown, of unanswered questions. So far, no one had come to brief me on Katy’s status. My nerves were strung so taut, I felt like I could literally bounce off the walls of the waiting room.

What in God’s name had happened to Katy? Who had dared touch her, to hurt her so badly? Had she been in the wrong place at the wrong time, flirting with the wrong guy?

She hadn’t said a word on the ride over to Harborview. Earlier, I’d urged her to let me call 9-1-1, to involve the police and have her transported by ambulance, but Katy had refused, saying she’d gotten home by herself, so she could damn well walk into the emergency room under her own steam. And she was adamant about not involving the cops. In her condition, I wasn’t about to argue. I knew, once the docs had seen her, that someone at the hospital would likely call the authorities. Katy would have little control over that.

I helped her down to my car and drove her over myself, holding her up as I escorted her into the emergency room. At that point, I was just relieved she’d agreed to be examined. She’d fought me on that, as well. I couldn’t figure out why she was so reluctant, why she wanted to hide. Didn’t she want to catch the guy who’d done this? I know I did, but my word had little sway so far.

So I waited. I waited for a doctor to come tell me she would be okay, to escort me to her bedside so I could see for myself, for the chance to convince her to cooperate, and for the police to arrive and question her. I wanted answers, and I wanted them now. A glance at the time on my phone told me I’d been waiting over ninety minutes already. I didn’t think I could take much more. My heart was already trying to burst from my chest, and just when I thought it might be successful, a young doctor walked in.

“Anyone here for Katy Holender?” he asked.

I nearly jumped out of my skin at the sound of her name and was at the doc’s side in an instant. “Me, I am,” I said in a rush. “How is she? What happened? Will she be all right?”

The doctor raised a hand. “She’s resting. And you are…?”

“Katy’s…um…roommate.”

The doc scanned the other faces in the waiting room. “There’s no family here then?”

“Um, no. Just me. Is that a problem?”

“I can only divulge information to her legal next-of-kin. Has anyone contacted them?”

I shook my head. “Katy doesn’t have any siblings, and, from what she’s told me, she’s not on good terms with her father.” I put my hand to my chest. “I’m all she has, really.”

The doc pressed his lips together and sighed through his nose. “Look, I appreciate your position, but—”

“Oh come on! Just…tell me she’s gonna be okay.”

He nodded. “Yes, she’ll be fine. Her injuries are mostly superficial, cuts and bruises, which is remarkable, considering her condition.”

I pulled up short. “Her condition?”

“Yes. She could’ve easily lost the child.”

I took a step back. “What child? What are you talking about?”

“Her baby. Your friend’s pregnant. She didn’t tell you?”

“Pregnant?” I shot back, my hands to my lips. “No…no, she never… H-how far along is she? I mean, she doesn’t
look
pregnant.”

“She’s twelve weeks.”

Twelve weeks? I stared past the doctor and mentally counted back over the last few months. Twelve weeks. That means she’d conceived right about the time of Leo’s death.
Fuck!
Katy was pregnant, but was it mine? Or Leo’s?

I focused back on the doctor. “You’re sure? Twelve weeks?”

He nodded again. “Yes, the OB on call confirmed it with an ultrasound.”

“Shit.” I spun in a circle and started to pace, unsure what to think, what to do. “
Shit!
”

“I assume it’s your child, correct? I’m sorry, Mister…?”

I stared at the floor for a moment then looked back into the doc’s eyes. “Oh, um… Maguire,” I said as I offered my hand. “Conner Maguire. And…yes. Probably. I think.” I shook my head.

“Well, then, congratulations.”

“Yeah, thanks. Um…can I see her now? Is she up for visitors?”

A third nod. “Sure. Follow me.” He led me back to the nurses’ station and away from the chaos of the waiting room. “Debbie,” he called to a busy nurse, who looked up yet seemed distracted. “This is Katy Holender’s boyfriend. He’d like to see her.”

The doctor excused himself as Debbie checked the computer then glanced up at me. “She’s been admitted for observation and moved to the Pacific Tower, room 612.” She smiled briefly then went back to whatever she’d been doing.

After getting lost twice and walking in circles, I finally found Katy’s room. When I entered, she appeared to be sleeping. Walking past her roommate, I stood at Katy’s bedside, examining every visible inch of her flesh, especially her face, her black eye and split lip secured with tiny stitches. I slid a plastic chair up close and sat down, gently taking her cold hand in mine.

Katy stirred, and her swollen eye opened to a mere slit. She turned and looked at me. “Hey,” she said in a hoarse whisper and with the slightest smile.

I let my tears fall. I didn’t have the strength to fight them off any longer. “What happened, Katy? Who did this to you?”

She sniffled and looked away. “I don’t want to talk about it. Not now. Please respect that and try to understand.”

“I
don’t
understand, Katy, but…I’ll back off. For now.”

“I’m sorry,” she said. “I don’t mean to be so much trouble.”

“Katy, please. You’re gonna be fine. One day in this place, that’s all. They just wanna keep an eye on your… I mean, on
our
…you know. On the…baby.”

Katy squeezed her purple lid tight. Tears leaked out and streamed down her temples and into the shells of her ears. She sniffed in a ragged breath. “They told you?”

I gave her hand a squeeze. “Katy, why didn’t you tell me? How long have you known?”

She kept her face averted, refusing to look at me. “Four weeks. That’s why I came back. I thought you should know. But then,” she said and finally turned to look me in the eye. “You were with that girl, Nova, and you were getting your life back on track, a new job, new friends. I didn’t want to screw that up—again.”

“So, what, you were gonna leave, not tell me? Just disappear?”

“No! I mean…yes. Maybe. I don’t know. I’m so confused. I don’t know what to do.”

I didn’t either. “The doc said you were twelve weeks.”

Katy stared hard, her eyes pinned to mine. “Yeah, sounds about right.”

“But…that could mean that…maybe it’s not…mine? Maybe it’s Leo’s?”

She yanked her hand away and peered up at the ceiling. “Are you asking me or telling me?” she said then turned back to glare at me.

“Katy, I just wanna know the truth, if it’s mine.”

She huffed and pressed her mangled lips together. “Yes, of course it’s yours.”

“You seem so sure, but…I just don’t know how you could possibly—”

“You think I’d lie about my child’s paternity? Really, Conner?
Really?
”

I shook my head again. “How can you be sure, Katy? I mean, what about Leo?”

“What
about
Leo?” she threw back at me. “He and I hadn’t been…together…for several weeks before he died.” She glanced at her fingers, fidgeting with her IV site. “He was too preoccupied with whatever shit had been bothering him. I had my period the week before he fell, so I wasn’t pregnant when he died.” She turned her head and gazed at me. “It’s yours, Conner. I’m sorry if that ruins all your plans.”

Katy tried to rotate her body away from me, but the pain was too intense, and she cried out. I climbed up along the edge of her bed, my face above hers, forcing her to look at me.

“Katy, come on. Don’t be like this. We’ll work it out.”

“Work it out? What the fuck does that mean? I love you, Conner. I can’t do this without you. If you don’t want this, just tell me. I’ll have it taken care of before I leave the hospital.”

“The hell you will!” I spat and shook the bed. The idea made me sick.

“What choice do I have? I won’t do this alone.”

I softened my voice and cupped my hand to her cheek. “You don’t have to. I’m here.”

Katy’s arms wound around my neck with remarkable speed, given her injuries. She drew me in tight, then moaned at the pain she caused herself. I took hold of her wrists and pulled them away, taking her hands in mine. She smiled, the way she used to, when she was happy, before Leo died and all that ugliness had consumed us.

She sniffled. “We’re having a baby.”

I grinned at her announcement and nodded, surprised at how happy that actually made me, despite the nerves that now settled in my stomach. “We are,” I agreed. “Man, my mom’s gonna shit,” I added, and we both laughed.

But then she closed her eyes and started to cry again. “I’m sorry.”

I gathered Katy in my arms, careful of her injuries, but secure enough to show how serious I was. “I know this is scary, K. I’m scared, too, but…everything will be all right. I will take care of you, and our kid, too.”

I said the words to comfort her, but I had to keep repeating them in my head, over and over, so I’d be convinced, as well.

Unfortunately, it didn’t work.

Tyler had a long day ahead with three back-to-back meetings with various building inspectors. He wouldn’t have time for lunch, so I made what he referred to as a full English breakfast—fried eggs and sausage with mushrooms, baked beans, and tomato, all served with a pot of Twinings Earl Grey tea, just like his mum used to make, except for the black pudding, which I found disgusting and refused to prepare.

With his eye on the time, he wolfed it down and cleared his plate, dumping it into the sink with all the dirty pots and pans. He started to rinse off the frying pan and prepare to hand wash the dishes, until I swished a dishtowel at his arm.

“No, no, gimme that. I’ll do it,” I insisted. “You better go or you’ll be late.”

He dried his hands and wrapped them around my waist then pulled me in close with a soft kiss pressed to my temple. “Thanks, love. I’m sorry I don’t have more time. I’ll put them away when I get home tonight.”

“Just go,” I urged.

Ty pulled on his jacket, grabbed his roll of building plans from the counter, and headed for the door, but before he could make his escape, my cell phone rang from the kitchen table. The familiar ringtone indicated Conner, but I couldn’t answer with my hands a soapy, greasy mess. Ty and I exchanged curious glances. It had been three days since Conner had last called, and Ty knew I was anxious to hear how his new job had gone. He grabbed the phone, swiped his finger across the touchscreen then hit the speaker button.

“Hey, Conner,” he answered.

“Ty? I thought I dialed my mom’s number.”

“You did. She’s elbow deep in dirty dishes at the moment, but she’s right here, and you’re on speaker.”

“Hey, Conner, it’s Mom,” I called out as I rinsed my hands under hot water.

“Mom, can you take a break, please? I really need to talk to you about something, to both of you, actually.”

Tyler walked the phone over as he tried to make his excuses. “Conner, I’m already running late. Can this wait ‘til later?”

I dried my hands as Ty held the phone out.

“No, not really,” he replied.

I snatched the phone from Ty’s hand, but kept it up between us. “Are you okay?”

A quiet pause was followed by a deep sigh.

“What is it, Conner?” I repeated. “The job going okay? School?”

“No. I mean…yeah, the job’s great. I love it. And school’s fine. It’s just…” Another sigh. “I have some news, and I doubt you’ll be pleased.”

Tyler and I exchanged another glance, this time worried.

“Whatever it is, Ty and I will do what we can to help.”

Ty cocked his chin to the side in an arguable challenge. I waved him away.

“Um, well…it’s…it’s Katy,” Conner admitted, and Ty let out a small huff.

“Katy?” I asked. “You mean Leo’s girlfriend? That Katy?”

“Yeah, only…after Leo died, we sorta, you know…hooked up.”

“Oh, Conner.”

“Mom, it’s how we got through it. And now…well, she’s…” A third sigh, this one louder than the last two.

“Spit it out, Conner,” Ty said impatiently.

“She’s pregnant,” he blurted.

I gasped, but as shocked as I was, Ty looked even more so, with his fingers pressed to his forehead and his faced screwed up in horror. He shook his head and turned away as he swung a fist backward through the air. “Bloody fucking hell!” he swore under his breath.

I tried to regain my composure, but found myself stammering, both at what to say and how to interpret Tyler’s reaction. “God, Conner, I…I don’t even know what to say.”

“I know,” he replied, his voice sad. “I’m so sorry, Mom.”

“Well…what’re you going to do?” I asked as I watched Tyler pace back and forth. “Is she going through with it, or—”

“Yes! God, of course!”

My shoulders sagged, though I couldn’t be sure whether it was from relief or trepidation. “Then what’re your plans?” I paused as my breath hitched momentarily. “Conner, you’re not planning to…get married, are you?”

“No, Mom, we haven’t even discussed that. But she has moved in with me.”

“What?” Ty exclaimed, his eyes a strange combination of anger and fear. I started to turn around, but Ty grabbed my arm and spun me back to face him. “No,” he whispered as he shook his head. “Absolutely not.”

Irritated, I pulled free of his grasp, tapping the speaker button and raising the phone to my ear. “Conner? I’m sorry, can I call you back in a minute?”

“Ty’s freaking out, isn’t he?”

“Uh, well, yeah, maybe a little. He’s just in a hurry. He has a bunch of meetings, and he’s already late, so—”

“Yeah, right. Whatever.”

“Conner, wait—”

“I’ll talk to you later, Mom. Bye.”

“Conner!” I cried out, but he’d already disconnected the call. I stared at the phone for a second then placed it on the counter as I took a moment to regroup, but that’s all Ty allowed.

“No, Hannah, no way. I don’t want her living with him. That girl’s trouble.”

“
That girl?
” I asked, confused by his tone. It sounded like he knew her. “What do know about
that girl
? Besides trying to locate her, has Conner talked to you about her?”

He stopped pacing and stared at me with his mouth open. He snapped it shut and shook his head. “No…of course not, it’s just…”

“Just what, Ty? What do you know?”

With his hands on both hips and his head tipped back, he closed his eyes and sighed. Then he straightened and looked at me, his gaze worried and his brow wrenched together in that wrinkled furrow I hadn’t seen since…

Oh God. Tell me it’s not that bad.

Ty pulled out one of the kitchen chairs. “Please, Hannah, come sit down.”

I shook my head, frightened, concerned. “Why? What is it? You’re scaring me.”

“I’m sorry. I should’ve told you sooner, but…I didn’t want to upset you when I really don’t know all that much.”

I scurried to the chair and sat along its edge, my hands drawn into a fist I laid upon the table. “But you know something, obviously.”

He nodded. “Yes.” Ty pulled his own chair out and sat down. He placed a hand over mine. “After I had Aaron search for Katy, he shared a few things that have me...concerned.”

“About Katy?”

Another nod. “Yeah, and Leo, too.” He removed his hand and leaned back. “Seems they’re both Russian, if you can believe that, and Aaron doesn’t think it’s coincidence either. He suspects Leo might have been placed at the U-Dub to get close to Conner. And Katy, well, she’s not even registered there. Never was. She lied about that and about living at her residence hall. So maybe they were both planted there. I don’t know.”

I stared at Ty, horrified at his revelation, furious he’d kept that information from me when he believed my son might be at risk. I dropped my gaze, stood up, and spun away from the table. My anger burned so hot, so close to the surface, I feared I might lash out and strike Tyler. I walked to the sink and focused blindly out the window.

“Is that what you think, too?” I asked. “That they were planted there?” My voice wavered. I couldn’t control it.

Tyler blew out a long, heavy breath. “I honestly don’t know what to think. I mean, if Leo and Katy were purposely placed there, wouldn’t they have made some kind of move against Conner in the last fifteen months? Against all of us? Why wait? And who could possibly be behind that anyway? Everyone who ever had a vendetta against me, against my family, is dead. With Dmitri and Alexi gone, their organization disbanded, the
Vory
scattered among the
Bratva
in California and Oregon. The FBI has located every single one of them. They aren’t interested in me, Hannah.”

“And yet, you think Katy is a threat?”

He shrugged and stood up. “Honestly, no, I don’t believe so, but I can’t disregard what Aaron said, not until I hear back from him and know for sure. We just spoke a few days ago. He’s still looking into it.”

I took a step toward Ty, my arms crossed over my chest. “And what? You never once thought
I
had the right to know, for sure or otherwise? To know my son might be at risk? And what about Conner?”

“He knows, at least about Katy not being a registered student, but I don’t know if she’s a threat or not. I didn’t want to disrupt his life more than it already was.”

“Oh, I see. It’s just
me
in the dark then. I’m the only one who doesn’t have the right to know what may or may not be a threat to my family, to
my
child, to
my
life?”

“Hannah, that’s more stress than you need. I didn’t want to risk your pregnancy when we have no real idea—”

“We?” I snorted a bitter laugh. “There’s no
we
here, Ty. There’s just you making decisions for all of us, for me.” I held my hand to my chest. “We’re not supposed to have secrets between us. That was rule number one when we got married, remember?”

“Yes, of course I do, but—”

“No, there’re no buts, either.” I paced around the kitchen for a moment then stopped. “Is this what’s been bothering you, why you’ve been so moody and distant?”

He lowered his gaze to the floor. “Yeah, it’s been on my mind a lot lately.”

“Lately? It’s been weeks, Tyler. Just how long have you known, exactly?”

A shrug and a shake of his head. “I don’t know, since Conner went into rehab, I guess.”

My mouth hung open. “That’s almost two months! You’ve been lying to me for two months?”

“No, Hannah, not lying. I was protect—”

“That’s bullshit! This is about you, about your issues with control. Goddamn you, Tyler. Goddamn you!”

He stepped closer, palms up. “Hannah, please, the baby.”

Moving in reverse, I slapped his hands away. “Get away! Don’t touch me!”

Ty dropped his arms and froze, his eyes tormented, probably remembering the last time I’d screamed those exact words at him, the very day we met.

He nodded, his lips a tight line. “Right. Okay then.”

His gaze dropped to the floor. Then he turned, grabbed his keys from the table, and walked out the door.