The Dark Prince (The Dark Prince Trilogy #1) (35 page)

He hated late nights, or being woken up in the middle of the night to deal with things. It always made the next day even longer. It was days like that that he lived off of coffee and hardly anything else. But it was something he learned over time to just get through it. He’d sleep later if he ever got the time to do so.

Clare was passed out still on the floor, Asher right next to her and both covered with a blanket from her bed.

Everyone else was passed out, fast asleep, around his living room. He couldn’t deny the way his wife looked, loving and motherly, as she held the sleeping girl. He could just picture her with a newborn baby, cuddled up and fast sleep. She’d do amazing well being a mother if given the chance.

But he forced himself to remember he didn’t want kids. Not with the lifestyle he was born into. He knew his parents would expect him to have an heir, just because it was part of their life they led, but it wasn’t worth it to Chase. He just couldn't bring himself to bring a child into this life, always having to look over their shoulder for any threat.

He made a call to Ryder, and then a call to his mother, telling them each what he had come across, and what he needed from both of them. Of course, they would both be by before mid-morning. He also asked Kayla to bring Emma along so Summer could have some time with her own mother. Kayla was more than happy to let the girl have time with her mother.

Seeing the coffee had long gone cold, Chase made a new pot, making it stronger than he normally would have. He knew he needed it and so would his house guests. It was going to be a busy day once again. It wasn’t long before Trent and Carter woke up, making their way for their coffee and making grunting noises. Chase would have laughed if he hadn’t been the same way just a few minutes beforehand.

Next, Asher and Clare were up, letting Summer and the nameless child sleep. Chase was determined to figure out a name to call the child. Maybe his wife could get one out of her by chance.

With a yawn, he leaned against the counter, waiting for his mom to show up as he held a steaming cup of coffee between his hands, inhaling the bold rich smell. She would be the first to stop by, as it was easier to look over the child before she went into work and draw blood to check for any illness and a DNA test.

It didn’t take long, and the ringing of the doorbell rang through the house, causing Summer to wake up as the child in her arms jumped at the unexpected noise.

Summer slowly sat up, helping the child to sit also as she clung to Summer, not sure what was going on. Summer blinked her eyes, trying to clear her fogged up mind. She was in no way ready to wake up after such short amount of sleep. She couldn’t help but mentally remind herself that she had once lived with only an hour or two of sleep a week before living here. But her body was still trying to catch up from years with lack of proper sleeping hours.

Chase answered the door, letting Kayla and Emma in. She had her doctor’s bag with her, like always while on house calls. He then led them both to the living room, where Summer still sat with the child who had a death grip on Summer’s shirt.

“Hello, Summer,” Kayla greeted.

“Hi, Kayla,” she said through a yawn.

Emma stood back, fiddling with her shirt as she gazed up at her daughter. She didn’t want to overstep any lines. She wasn’t even sure how to act in the presence of her daughter anymore, almost like they were complete strangers.

“I hear we have a little guest for a few days,” Kayla spoke calmly, setting her bag on the table. She looked at the little girl, taking everything in with just one look. “Hello, there.” She then sat on the coffee table in front of them.

The child blinked, then leaned more into Summer, if it was possible. Summer wasn’t sure what to make of it, as no one had ever looked to her for comfort before.

“Can I check you over, just to make sure you are okay?” Kayla said, her voice gentle. “I have some stickers you can have. And even a toy!”

That got the child’s attention, as her eyes widened just slightly as she slowly nodded her okay.

“Perfect,” Kayla said, encouraging the girl. “My name is Kayla. I won’t hurt you. I just want to listen to your heart, and take some blood samples, okay.”

She dug in her bag, getting her stethoscope out, and then listened to the child’s heartbeat, her grip slowly loosening around Summer.

“Can you tell me how old you are?” Kayla asked, not expecting a response. The child held up three fingers, making both Kayla and Chase beam, who stood just out of sight and near Emma. Summer couldn’t help smile down at her, too.

“Wonderful!” Kayla said, not entirely sure if her number was right, but wasn’t going to question it. “What about a name? Do you have one? Her name is Summer, and the man that saved you is Trent.”

At the mention of Trent, the girl tried to look around to see where he was. His voice carried from the kitchen, and she seemed to be a tad disappointed to not be able to see him.

“Do you have a name, then?” Kayla asked again. “Once I get a name, I’m sure Trent would love to know it too.”

“Sarah,” she whispered, her eyes beginning to water. “Mommy?”

“We are looking for her, Sarah,” Kayla responded in kind. “Do you know where she is?”

The girl, Sarah, shook her head.

“That’s ok. We’ll find her,” she said, putting a Band-Aid over the small place where she had used the needle. She hadn’t cried at all. Most kids hated blood tests.

“Promise?” the child asked, her eyes filling with tears.

“Of course,” Chase said, entering the room more. “I have talented men that know how to search for people. We
will
find her.” He promised the girl.

“Okay,” Sarah said, content for the moment over the issue, letting her head stay against Summer’s chest.

Kayla handed her the small stuffed animal she had picked up at the gas station, and the little girl was quick to take it, hugging it to her chest as she glared at the offending Band-Aid, just now registering the pain.

Kayla laughed as she stood up.

“I’ll have results within an hour,” she said making her way to the door right as Ryder showed up, Zinna in toe. He carried a bag of clothes, knowing the child needed something to wear, even if it was boy clothes for the time being. He was able to pick up a few clothing items from the police station before leaving work.

Zinna walked over to the child and introduced herself, also telling her who they were. Sarah shyly told her who she was, as Zinna asked her would she like to go potty and change her clothes to ones that fit. Sarah looked to Trent to see if it was ok to go with Zinna and at his nod, she took her hand to follow her, but not before looking at Summer almost pleadingly. Clare said she would help as they headed upstairs.

Summer felt empty as Sarah left her lap, but shook it off. She told herself she couldn’t get attached to the child. It never boded well to be attached to anyone or anything.

Chase walked his mother to the car and thanked her again before giving her a hug goodbye, telling her when Emma was ready to leave someone would take her home. As she pulled away he made his way back inside to his beautiful wife and guests. He hoped that Summer and Emma would be able to get away to spend some time together after such a long time.

Chapter 33

Once the sun was higher in the sky, Chase and Ryder went to the office, mostly to talk without so many ears. They left the door opened part way, just in case someone needed either of them. Chase needed a few things cleaned up and a couple concerns answered.

“Everything cleaned up from the other day?” he began as he took a seat behind his desk tiredly. His body sank into the soft leather. He couldn’t wait to bring everything to close, but knew it was nowhere near that stage yet.

“Yep,” Ryder was quick to answer. “Jason’s killer confessed hours after the shooting and he’s being held without bail. Along with a number of others.”

“Good,” Chase stated, glad that was cleared up as fast as possible. “Nothing tying any of us to it?”

“Nope. There was no evidence against you or Summer,” the other man answered just as easily. “There was enough evidence there at the scene to frame his men, and the ones that were found there had just woken up, so they were also all taken in. And most of them were men we had been looking for in a few other cases.”

“Good. I want every single one of his men off the streets,” Chase stated, leaning forward in his seat. “I don’t want any of us at risk.”

“Already on it,” Ryder drawled out. It was surprising how well both men thought alike.

“But how did Jason know I was married, and to his daughter on top of it? I never did get to really talk to the men I was to meet,” Chase asked.

“I’m pretty sure your father let it slip to other people who didn’t need to know,” Ryder shrugged. “Word always travels fast for our kind; you know that. It only takes one or two people to know of what went on, and it spreads like fire.”

“What will your plans be for that child if her parents are found?” Ryder went on after a moment.

“Trent seems to be taken with her,” Chase shrugged out, but concern did lace his voice. “Knowing him, I’m sure he’s already thinking about ways to keep himself in her life in some sort of way. It’s not often he acts like this. But I’m hoping Sarah isn’t an orphan, mostly for her sake.”

“She has a mother somewhere, at least,” Ryder mused. “It’s just hard to find her with no information to go off of. And if her mother is by chance in a bad crowd, I don’t want to draw attention to anyone right now. But if in a couple hours nothing turns up for the facial recognition program, I will need to get the media involved.”

“I know,” Chase sighed, rubbing his hand over his face. “And hopefully Trent can do the right thing if needed.” He knew that his cousin would do just about anything to make sure that the child was taken care of, and if the mother was in a bad crowd, Trent would be sure to get her out without anyone knowing where she went.

When Trent put his mind to something, he was always able to get things done without anyone knowing.

“He will,” Ryder spoke. “Trent knows he can’t keep her if the child’s parents are found, even if it will be hard for him to let go, but maybe he can work out something with the parents to keep tabs on her so he knows she is ok.” He paused, taking a look around the office. “Summer doing okay?”

“Seems so now,” Chase answered. “She’s strong and getting better every day. I was afraid she’d not bounce back like she has, but she always surprises me.” He then gave a smile at how strong his wife was. Summer really needed to give herself more credit. She
was
stronger.

“She is,” Ryder agreed. “Maybe in the next few weeks, the girls can all go out for a shopping day or something. Zinna keeps talking about wanting to get to know her better.”

“It would be good for both of them,” Chase agreed. “I know Zinna has grown up a lot since her time at the compound. She was just skin and bones, worse than Summer had been, but she never once gave up on hope after I found her. She was always happy with me, then more so after you.”

“Yeah,” Ryder laughed, trying to not shift awkwardly in his chair. He hated talking about his loving wife when she was so . . . . scared of everything. It hit a sore spot in his heart. “Not much gets her down. She won’t talk about her past, she still even has a few nights with nightmares, but they aren’t as often anymore. I hate having to wake her up those nights.” He ran a hand through his hair.

“Are they bad again?” Chase questioned. He knew Zinna had horrible sleeping issues for about year after he gave her a new life, but thought they were getting better.

“Sometimes, more so when she’d stressed or overtired,” He said with a sad smile. “But we know what triggers them, so that helps. She hides it well from everyone, but they aren’t nearly as bad as they once were.”

“That’s good,” Chase spoke up. “Maybe talking to the other two girls will help all three of them. What do you know of Sebastian?” he changed the subject, wanting to know more about his detested cousin, and his father’s right hand man.

“Not much,” Ryder shrugged. “Other than him working with your dad for years, his background is perfectly clean of everything. He kept you out of trouble a time or two from the FBI before I got in there, but otherwise, hardly anything. I think you really should talk to your dad about him. I have a feeling that there is a lot more to Sebastian than any of us know. Possibly even your father.”

“Knowing him, I won’t get any answers,” Chase laughed out. “But you’re right. I know Sebastian was the first to take Summer in from Jason, and I want to know why. There must have been a reason behind his actions. He’s never taken in anyone, not that I know of unless my father requested it.”

“You aren’t the only one,” Ryder grumbled out. “Ask Ivan for time to talk, just the two of you, in the next few days. He would make sure to find time for you. You know that, Chase.”

“I know, Ryder,” Chase said with a yawn. And he did. Ivan always made time for his son, to support him with big discussions. Surely, the older man would answer Chase’s questions to clear things up. There had to be some sort of explanation for why Sebastian took Summer, but didn’t keep her for more than a couple of months.

“Was there anything else?” Ryder asked.

“I think that was all,” Chase answered after a moment of thought.