Poison (12 page)

John pulled the car into the Everhart’s quaint rambler that sat tucked in between other quaint ramblers on a street that cried out with its small town beauty. It was a huge upgrade from the trailer parks Cassie had inhabited until she was twenty years old. The bitterness and anger that had always been part of her life and personality started to percolate. The last few years in her efforts to change she’d tried to stop being angry, forgive and let go. But now anger churned in her gut as her blood raced through her.

John had been silent all the way there.

“You may want to wait here. You’re probably not going to approve of what I have to say to Harry.”

John looked over at her. “I get what this means to you, okay? The betrayal of Harry leaving you with Heather. Harry being a well-respected doctor with plenty of money and leaving you to grow up how you did. None of this is lost on me.”

She blinked in surprise. “I forgot what it was like to have you be nice to me.”

“Come on.” He opened his door. She did the same, and they met on the sidewalk walking side by side up to the neatly painted red door. John took her hand and squeezed it after he rang the doorbell.

Harry Everhart answered. He looked as groomed as ever in casual dark pants and a button up shirt. Dapper was the word Cassie associated with Harry. He smiled pleasantly at them, a look of mild surprise on his face.

“Hello John. Cassie. Is everything all right?

“Sure dad. Everything’s great.”

Harry’s smile faded and turned downward. His face seemed to sink with age in front of her eyes.

“Estelle is out shopping, so please come in,” he said, with perfect politeness. From his tone she could have sworn he hadn’t heard her.

“Fine.” Cassie followed him into what must be his home office. It was dominated by a cherry wood desk that gleamed, his papers and books perfectly stacked in piles. Not a thing was out of place. Just as she kept her things, and the complete opposite of how Kelly and Heather lived.

Harry sat down at the desk and leaned his elbows on its gleaming surface, resting his chin on one hand and rubbing his neck wearily with the other. Once they were settled he finally looked Cassie in the eye.

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t tell me you’re sorry. I know you deliberately didn’t want me to know about you. Blame dumb luck I know.”

“Let’s start there and see if we can’t work this through.”

Cassie wanted to scream in his face that there was no way they could work out anything. Anger burned through her blood, ready to simmer out of her mouth. John’s gaze was on her. He put a restraining hand on her forearm.

“Heather was robbed,” John said. “We think Leary did it looking for information about where Cassie is. He found it. Something Heather has that states you are Cassie’s father. That’s what was stolen. Kelly came this morning to warn Cassie that hers and Tim’s lives are once again in danger, that Leary will likely figure out where she is. So imagine Cassie’s surprise to find out that you are her father. Imagine how she feels knowing you have done nothing out of the ordinary to help her.”

Harry looked shaken by the news. “Heather and I have corresponded several times about you. I destroyed all the letters as soon as I read them, and I assumed Heather did too.”

“Well she didn’t, and Cassie is in real danger now. You should have told us. She deserved to know. I deserved to know. She’s staying in my house. Luke and I are trying to protect her and Tim, and this is just the information that we need to make sure Leary doesn’t figure out where she is. But now he’s going to, Harry.”

“I’m so sorry. For all of it.”

“Give her an explanation, all of the truth now. Cassie deserves at least that from you.” John’s tone was low and icy. Much the tone he usually used with her.

“Heather was an unfortunate mistake in my life. The only one like that I ever made, I swear. Estelle and I have been married for forty years. We married when I was eighteen. And I’ve loved her every day of that time. She and I never had kids. We tried, for years. Estelle was despondent over that. Adoption was not an option for her. She is devoutly religious and believed there was some divine reason she and I couldn’t have kids. She wouldn’t consider any infertility treatments. She was not well for a long while, and quit wanting me.”

“You were in your mid-twenties, and your wife wouldn’t fuck you anymore, but Heather would?”

Harry’s shoulder’s jerked back. He looked up at Cassie, his eyes round saucers. “Yes, Estelle was not able to make love to me for a long period of time. We even had separate bedrooms for a while. But I loved Estelle, and my heart was breaking for her. I was busy with medical school and well, I acted in a way that to this day shames me. I met your mother at the clinic I volunteered at.”

“Was the clinic for the poor?” Cassie interrupted.

“Yes. Anyways she came in and in the course of my examination, she came on very strong. I shooed her off, but she kept coming back, and I admit I was flattered. She was a very—”

“Yes I know what Heather was and is to men. So, you couldn’t resist her advances and started screwing her.”

Harry winced, tightening his lips in a line. “I did have a relationship with Heather for several months before I came to my senses and broke it off. Guilt nearly made me break down and tell Estelle, but she was so fragile at that point I couldn’t bring myself to risk it. I couldn’t bear to lose Estelle. I didn’t find out about you until Heather gave birth to you.”

“My mother was never faithful more than a week. How did you know I was yours?”

“Yes I regret I knew that about Heather. But she came to the hospital where I was working then, and I saw you. You looked so much like me as a baby I knew Heather was telling the truth. Since then, about ten years ago I had her send me a hair sample of yours and I had our DNA run, just to make sure for my scientific mind, and yes you are mine.”

“Well that’s a relief we wouldn’t have wanted you to pay Heather off if I wasn’t yours.”

“Yes well, that came about, and I had no choice. There was no love between Heather and me, and when she came to me with you, I hated her, and wanted nothing to do with her, except for her to get out of my life. I was frantic Estelle would find out. If she knew I had a baby with someone else, it would have broken her. And as the years went by, the longer the lie went on, I knew I could never tell Estelle. Even when she was stronger, she would have left me over a secret as big as this. So I paid Heather a sum each month. Estelle has never done our bills and has no idea where our money goes. So it’s been easy to conceal from her.”

Cassie hesitated. “And the Christmas cards?”

“I made Heather give me some pictures and letters telling me about you. I felt like you should know me, even if you didn’t know who I was to you. I wanted to contact you. So I included your sister and sent those presents, it was all I felt I could do.”

Harry stopped and then leaned back in his chair. “When you called asking for my help I assumed Heather had told you about me. But you were so polite and grateful I realized she hadn’t and that you really were in danger and had nowhere to turn to that your ex-husband wouldn’t know about. I was glad to help you. I wanted to do more, but I didn’t know how I could. You needed help, and I couldn’t refuse it. I’m sorry if the job wasn’t enough.”

“And Estelle? Making her watch my child? Your grandson?”

Harry nodded. “She offered. How could I explain to her she shouldn’t do that? I told her you were a friend of John’s so she was glad to help out with your son. And later, I really believed you would be better off with Luke and John around you, than an elderly couple. So I thought it would be okay. I’m sorry. There was no way I could have kept my wife if I acknowledged you. A better man would have found a way to fix it all. I let it go on and on and on, until at some point I couldn’t tell either of you, because if I did, I knew I’d lose both of you.”

Cassie stood and swallowed over lump in her throat. Her eyes on her father. “You made a decision about me thirty-three years ago and stuck to it. You chose your wife over your daughter. I always wanted to know who my father was. I now know. So that’s it. Your decision was never in doubt, and it’s Estelle. I see no reason to ruin her life, she’s done nothing to me or my son, so rest assured, your secret is safe, only now you don’t have to pay for it. Goodbye dad.”

Cassie turned and walked out, her shoulders erect, and her strides firm. Her sarcastic “dad” seemed to echo through the elegant room.

****

John got up and looked at Harry with disappointment. “I would never dream you’d have such a secret.”

“I’ve disappointed you. We all do wrong things. We’re human. I’m sorry for it, I am. But I can’t be her father.”

“Maybe you don’t deserve to be. You’ve done enough by hiding this from her. You’ve let her ex-husband find her. And what about Tim? You’ll miss out on him. He’s great; I don’t know how you could turn your back on that.”

Harry regarded John intently. “Do you love her?”

“No. What the hell made you ask that?”

“You seem overly involved and concerned for her. You care for Tim. I may not have the right, but I’d be pleased if she had you in her life.”

John shook his head. “You know nothing about her or me.”

“I know what I see. And you have taken an avid interest in Cassie, without her or you knowing it. Will I be expecting you at work still?”

John hesitated. “Yeah, but not until this situation is taken care of; since Cassie has no family to help her, mine is.”

Harry nodded. “You’re a hell of a doctor. Take off as long as this takes. Keep her safe, please. I sound like I don’t care, but I do. She’s my daughter, and I’m asking you to keep her safe because I can’t.”

“You won’t.”

“Okay I won’t. Take care of her.”

“I will. I always do,” he said simply and walked out.

Chapter Twelve

John hurried to the car. Cassie sat there looking out the window, dry-eyed and frowning. John slid into the driver’s seat and started the car. He glanced at her and felt it again. That damn jab that seemed to pulse through him from being in proximity of her. And the more he tried to disengage himself from her, the more he was drawn in, and contrary to what he’d told her, John knew it was far more than because of the circumstances they were in.

“Are you all right?”

“Yes. I am.”

“Do you want to talk about it?”

“No. I don’t.” She let out a sigh. “I need to go out. Alone.”

“What do you mean out?”

“I need a few hours to think about all this, you know, put it into context. I need to think about what’s next and what to do about Marcus, and my life.”

“Cassie he’s going to find you.”

“I know.”

“We need to figure out what to do.”

“I know. I just need a few hours. Alone.”

He waited a moment then nodded. “Okay a few hours, but you’ll be back home by four. Keep your cell on, and pay attention to what’s going on around you. If anything seems off, drive to the police station, and call me.”

Cassie agreed and looked out the window without another word until they reached the house. She walked around to the driver’s side, got in, and left without a backwards glance at him.

****

John was met by an earful of questions by the strange assembly of house mates that were all worried about Cassie. John picked Tim up and hugged his small body to him. He looked confused and wanted Cassie. He clung longer than usual to John. And John felt that tug again of fierce protectiveness. Tim was so small and innocent, with an unabashed joy over every word and hug of affection John or Luke bestowed on him. Tim couldn’t seem to get enough. And what bothered him was he was starting to feel the same way.

And something was different today with Cassie. She was talking different; her demeanor had completely changed in the last few tumultuous days. What was going on in her head just now, John wasn’t sure. She had seemed shaken by this today, but stronger, surer than he’d ever seen her before.

John wanted this all to be over with. His reasons had changed. He wanted to know for sure Cassie and Tim would be fine. He wanted them out of his life, but only if he could guarantee they’d be safe. Kelly was now along for the ride John guessed, by her stance in front of the window. Kelly was here until the end, and Cassie had seemed to have found resolve and courage from her sister’s presence.

And everything in his life, all relationships even, seemed to go back to Cassie. Why that was, John wasn’t ready to answer.

****

John glanced at the clock. Where was Cassie? Tim went up to his room to play before dinner. Since it was going on five o’clock and getting dark out, John stared out the windows, willing Cassie’s car to come into view and berating himself for letting her go out alone.

Finally her car came down the road and stopped in the driveway that now looked like the parking lot to a mini-mart. He sat down unobtrusively so no one would know he’d been waiting for her like an expectant, worried parent. Cassie’s clipped footsteps echoed on the porch, and then she pushed open the door and walked in.

No one moved.

Ten years had dropped off of Cassie. Cassie Reeves was back. She had chopped her hair off; it was now above her ears, the ends flipped out in wild layers. Thick bangs covered her forehead and softened her face, emphasizing her big brown eyes. And she was blonde again, with thick platinum and gold streaks. Her clothes too were different. Stylish, form fitting without being inappropriate. That quick, Cassie looked like the girl he’d been in love with most of his life.

John finally took his eyes away from the clinging sweater and glanced around the room. Luke’s eyes were big. Kelly’s mouth was open. Sarah’s face was scrunched up. Kelly rose and walked over to Cassie who finally smiled.

“So sis, you’re back huh?”

“Yeah, I’m back.” Cassie nodded, her mouth turned up on one side.

“About damn time.”

“I don’t get it,” Sarah said from behind them, still staring open-mouthed at Cassie.

“You wouldn’t.” Kelly rolled her eyes. “My sister thought everything with Marcus was her fault. She thought going unnoticed was a way to protect herself from everything and everyone.”