Waves of Reckoning (The Montclair Brothers)

Waves of Reckoning

The Montclair Brothers : Book 3

By Terri Marie

Copyright

© 2014 by Terri Marie

All rights reserved

This novel is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to real people, dead or alive, is strictly a matter of coincidence. Places and events depicted in these pages are from the author’s imagination or used fictitiously.

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. This book contains material protected under International and Federal Copyright Laws and Treaties. Any unauthorized reprint or use of this material is prohibited. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without express written permission from the author / publisher. 

Published by Gossamer Publishing

Author contact:

Terri Marie

PO Box 972309

Ypsilanti, Michigan 48197

Cover art by:

StanzAloneDesign

stanzalonedesign.weebly.com

From the Author

This has been one heck of an amazing journey. Without the love and support of my readers and my Beauties, I wouldn’t have fulfilled my dream. The Montclair Brothers Saga has turned out to be one of the most entertaining series to write, and though it’s kept me quite busy, I’ve never been happier! I wouldn’t trade my job for any other. I love you all!

Terri Marie

Dedication

For my Beauties, because you’re the best team out there!

Angelique Luzader, my editor, the very patient, humorous, and fellow watermelon lover…no one else could bring that many laughs to the cave. No one.

Janet Breton, my other set of eyes, you’re such an amazing woman.

You ladies are forever in my heart.

Books by Terri Marie

A Billionaire in Disguise Series:

Forbidden Disclosure, Book 1

A Perfect Plan, Book 2

The Wrong Side of Midnight, Book 3.

Book 4 to be announced

The Montclair Brothers Series: New romantic suspense saga:

Make it Rain, Book 1

Through the Storm. Book 2

Waves of Reckoning, Book 3

Book 4 to be announced in the summer of 2014.

The Ties that Bind Series

Running from Beige, Book 1

Secrets by the River, Book 2

Children’s Action and adventure

The Shack, Merry, and A Cat Named Cha-moan

You can find Terri Marie’s books at all major retailers
.

PROLOGUE

C
all your next
witness.”

“The state calls Angelique Barns, Your Honor.”

“Objection!” yelled Knowles. “We were not given any information on this witness.”

“My apologies to the court, Your Honor,” Furrow responded calmly. “We were just now able to locate Ms. Barns again.”

“What’s her importance, Mr. Furrow?” It was obvious that Judge Weddle was just as tired as the rest of them.

“She’ll testify that she didn’t start the fire at Castle Lake, and she witnessed Mr. Preston attempt to kill Renee Preston, Jacob Montclair, and Brian Waters, Your Honor.”

Judge Weddle turned to Furrow. “Do you need time to interview this witness beforehand? I’ll give you an hour, but that’s it.”

“The defense chooses to proceed, Your Honor.” Knowles sat down with a grimace on his face. Robert looked like he wanted to kill him.

Once Angelique was seated, Tyler noticed that the seven of them, suddenly sat up straighter. In all honestly, he couldn’t imagine this woman to be physically capable of starting that blaze.

“Please state your name for the record.” Furrow turned the page of his legal pad.

“Angelique Barns.”

“How old are you Ms. Barns?”

“I’m fifty-four.”

Tyler about fell off his chair. She looked more like she was in her late sixties, especially with the huge glasses she had on her thin face. She had to be lying.

“Do you remember a night in Castle Lake when a house caught fire?” Weddle looked back up at her.

“Oh my, yes! My home burned to the ground!” Angelique shook her head, looking down at her lap.

“Ms. Barns, the house isn’t legally yours. You’re aware of that, correct?”

She took a long frustrated breath. “I’ve lived there for years…If they wanted the house, one of them should have told me. I would have packed my things and moved away, but I just figured it was mine, so I stayed and cared for it.”

“Did you see who started the fire, Ms. Barns?”

“No, I didn’t. When I ran outside, it was already burning.”

“Please tell the jury what happened after you ran out of the house,” instructed Furrow.

“There was a lot of smoke, and it was hard for me to see. I began running down the driveway to a neighbor’s house so I could phone for help. The closer I got to the road, the more I could make out a man with a gun. He was shooting people!” Angelique pointed at Robert.

“You saw this man, Robert Preston, shooting the others?” Furrow put his hands on his hips and stepped away from the podium.

“Yes. I hurried into the brush and looked around. The area where I was standing used to be a beautiful garden, so I knew there were rocks in it. I found a large stone, and snuck up behind him. I grabbed it with both hands and swung it hard at his head. After I knew I’d stopped him from shooting, I continued to run down the driveway to use someone’s phone. There wasn’t one at my house.”

“You’re sure Robert Preston was the shooter?”

“Yes, that’s definitely him.” Angelique glared at Robert and nodded her head.

“I have nothing further for this witness, Your Honor.” Furrow walked back to the table and sat down next to his two assistants.

Knowles walked up to the podium.

“Ms. Barns, how can you be positive that the person you saw in the driveway of the Montclair Estate in Castle Lake, was Robert Preston?”

“Because I saw him!” Angelique stated with conviction.

“What’s your vision like, Ms. Barns. I see you’re wearing glasses.”

“I’m legally blind, or so they say.” She adjusted the large frames on her face. The lenses were thick.

“Do you wear your glasses all the time?” Knowles glared at her.

“Oh my goodness, no. Sebastian hates these things!”

She quickly put one hand to her mouth, while the other one clutched her chest.

The Montclair men were on their feet in seconds.

Chapter 1

J
udge Weddle slammed
his gavel down and glared at the Montclairs. “If you can’t control yourselves, I’m going to ask you to leave my courtroom!” The vein in his forehead was protruding as he yelled.

Tyler Montclair glanced at his brothers, and then sat down when he felt Renee grab his wrist and tug on it. He watched as Angelique Barns tried to gather herself after her blunder. His heart felt like it was beating out of his chest, and for a moment, the room began to spin.
Sebastian Montclair.
The thought of his father still being alive, was settling in his stomach like poison.

Prosecutor William Furrow, removed his glasses, took a handkerchief from his back pocket, and rapidly rubbed the lenses before returning the wire frames to his face. Furrow took a long drink of water from the glass sitting on the table in front of him. Tyler could tell the man was thrown for a loop, along with the rest of them, and he was giving himself some time to recuperate from the shock.

“Do you have any more questions for this witness, Mr. Knowles?” asked the judge.

“No, Your Honor,” he answered with a wide smile.

“Mr. Furrow?” Weddle turned to the prosecutor.

Furrow approached the podium. “Just one more question, Your Honor.” Pausing for a brief moment, he nervously smiled at Angelique. “I’d like to ask you once more, Ms. Barns. Is the person you saw firing the gun, on the night of the fire at the Montclair Estate in Castle Lake, in this courtroom?” Furrow wiped at the sweat beading on his face.

“Yes. He’s right there.” Angelique pointed to Robert Preston.

Robert tried to stand up. “You hit me in the head, you stupid, blind
bitch
! You could have killed me!”

Angelique stared down at Robert and gasped in shock.

“Get him out of here!” Judge Weddle ordered the bailiffs.

“We have no further questions for the witnesses. The State rests, Your Honor.” Furrow walked back to join his assistants.

“Mr. Knowles?” asked the judge.

“We’re finished, Your Honor.” Knowles sat down at the defense table.

“Let’s adjourn for today and begin the closing arguments tomorrow morning at 9 a.m.” Weddle gave the jury instructions before dismissing them.

When the jury had filed out of the courtroom, Tyler bolted outside. His eyes scanned every face that left the building. He wanted to grab Angelique the second she’d stepped off the stand, but he didn’t want to get in trouble for messing with a witness. His brothers soon joined him.

Vincent grabbed Tyler’s arm and pulled him away from the reporters. “Be very careful, okay? Don’t harass or start yelling at the woman. Your best bet is to wait until after the trial is over with.” He kept his voice low while amongst the crowd of reporters.

“Why?! So she can disappear again? No way, Vinnie. We’re going to find out the truth,
today
!” Tyler clenched his teeth and fists in anger.

Renee, Emma, and Brian, quickly approached the brothers.

“Tyler, she’s getting into a cab!” Renee pointed to the side of the building. “I saw her as we were coming out.”

“Damn! Go get the car, Sean.” Tyler ran as fast as he could around the corner; the cab was driving off, up the street. “This can’t be happening…”

“It’s okay, Ty. There’s Sean,” said Vincent as he pointed towards the black SUV, squealing its tires as it left the parking lot.

“Let’s go!” Tyler took off running and met Sean in the middle of the road. He and his brothers quickly climbed inside. Sean took off after the cab.

“Go straight!” Tyler looked both ways at every intersection they came to.

“I think we’ve lost her.” Vincent looked over at his panicked brother.

“She’s going back up to Castle Lake, or wherever the hell she’s been holed up with our
father
!”

“No, she can’t leave yet, Bro. Angelique’s still in the area, we just have to find out where.” Vincent dug a card out of his wallet and made a phone call. “Everyone be quiet for a minute.”

“Hi, is this Carrie Oliver?” asked Vincent with a pleasant voice. “Hey, this is Vincent Montclair. Are you still in Southfield?...Yeah, we’re doing good. Listen, I have a favor to ask. Do you know of any way that I can find out where Angelique Barns is staying while she’s down here?...Oh I see. Well thanks anyways…Sure, that sounds great. I’ll see you then.” He hung up the phone and shook his head.

“Is that even legal, Vinnie?” asked Sean as he turned a corner.

“No, not really. But if we can get an address, we’ll approach Angelique when she’s leaving the motel
after
the trial. I thought that maybe Carrie could help us, but she can’t. I’m tempted to ask Furrow, but he’s not going to give us that information and risk a mistrial.” Vincent sighed as he shoved his phone back in his pocket.

“This is a nightmare,” uttered Tyler.

Jacob leaned forward from the back seat. “Listen, Ty. She’ll probably be in the courtroom when the verdict’s read.”

Tyler looked over his shoulder. “She knows she screwed up. The last place she’ll want to be is around us.”

Vincent briefly smiled. “The cops are going to want to talk to our father. The only way they’ll be able to find him is through Angelique Barns. Let’s go to the office. I think we need to ask Frank to come in and meet with us.”

“He’s not going to say anything,” said Sean, as he glanced at Vincent, before heading towards Montclair Pharmaceuticals.

“Maybe he will and maybe he won’t,” began Vincent. “He definitely owes us one.”

“Did Carrie give you any information at all? Certainly she’s on our side.” Tyler ran his hands through his hair.

“Yes, she told me what time to meet her for coffee.” Vincent smiled again.

“Wait a minute! We’re trying to find this crazy woman, and you set up a date?!” Tyler looked at his youngest brother in disbelief.

“Way to go, Vinnie!” exclaimed Sean. “Treat her really good in bed, so that you can milk her for info!”

“You’re a pig, Sean,” remarked Vincent. “A total pig. I’m not taking her to bed,” he laughed.

“Yeah you will,” added Jacob. “We know you. Out of all of us, you’re the smoothest talker.”

As they pulled up to Montclair Pharmaceuticals, Tyler looked at his watch. “Don’t be climbing into bed anytime soon. We have a verdict to get ready for. I’m going to call Renee to have her, Emma, and Brian, come to the office. I don’t want the reporters having a feast if they’re spotted.”

Tyler reiterated to his security guards to be careful not to allow the press on the premises, before taking the elevator to the twelfth floor. His brothers followed him into his office and spread out on the furniture. As they were getting comfortable, they overheard Vincent talking on his phone.

“Yeah, Frank. This is Vincent Montclair. I was wondering if you could come up to Tyler’s office and meet with us?...Right now…We won’t keep you long…Okay thanks, Frank.” Vincent hung up and walked over to a chair.

“Nice!” Tyler nodded in approval.

“When he gets here,” explained Vincent, “let me do the talking. We’re going to have to tread lightly if we want to get any info out of him.” He looked directly at Tyler.

“I won’t say anything to him, okay?” Tyler held his hands up in his defense. “When can he come in?”

“He’s on his way,” said Vincent. “He works later this afternoon and he has some things to take care of before his shift. We can’t hold him hostage.”

“Let me get the others here.” Just as Tyler was getting ready to dial Renee, there was a soft knock on the office door and the three of them walked inside.

“Are you guys okay?” asked Emma as she walked over to Jacob.

“Here,” said Vincent as he tossed Emma his office keys. “We’re getting ready to have a meeting with Frank. I think it’ll be best if only the four of us are present.”

“We’re not going anywhere.” Renee announced.

“Baby, I think Vincent’s right. We promise to fill you guys in on everything we find out. If Frank sees you, he might turn around and leave, without telling us anything. I’m sure he still feels bad about towing your truck.” Tyler took her hand.

“This is ridiculous,” added Emma as she glared at her boss. “We’ll go, but I swear, if you guys leave out even one detail, I’ll explode.” Emma motioned for Brian and Renee to follow her. Once they’d left and the door was closed, the brothers stared at one another.

“Man, you guys are going to be in the dog house,” laughed Sean as he looked at Jacob and Tyler.

Tyler put his arms on the desk, then let his head fall forward onto them. “I just want Robert to be convicted so we can be free to go find Sebastian.”

“Ty,” began Vincent. “Robert will be found guilty, there’s no doubt about that. But what are you going to do when we find our father? Are you ready to stand face-to-face with him? You’re going to have to prepare yourself for that.”

Tyler’s began to fill with rage. Before he could open his mouth to respond, security came over the intercom to announce Frank’s arrival. “Yeah, send him up,” said Vincent, into the speaker.

As soon as Frank arrived, Tyler could feel his face starting to twitch. Keeping calm wasn’t exactly one of his strong suits at the moment. If he could get away with it, he’d shake the information out of the cop.

“It’s nice to see you guys outside of the courthouse. How goes it?” Frank sat down in the chair that Vincent pulled out for him.

“We need a favor…” began Tyler. Vincent glared at him.

“What Tyler means,” interrupted Vincent, “is that we want to know if you can find out where Angelique Barns is staying. She screwed up on the stand today and let it slip that our father is still alive. He’s been presumed dead for years. Is there any way you can do that for us?”

Frank stared down at his hands. “Look, I know I screwed up before, and I owe you guys for not busting my balls over having Renee’s pickup towed for Robert, but you’re asking me to break the law again. If I tell you, I could lose my job.”

Tyler rose to his feet. “We understand Frank. We didn’t mean to put you on the spot. We definitely didn’t want to make you feel like you
owed
us anything!”

“Ty, come on,” whispered Vincent.

Frank cleared his throat. “You’re right. I do owe you guys a lot.” He got up and walked over to the window. The room was silent for about two minutes. The cop slowly turned around and stared at the ground then up at Tyler. “There’s no way you’re going to get me to discuss the noise complaint from the party up at
Village Inn
. Don’t even ask me about it!” Frank calmly walked out of the office, closing the door behind him.

“Oh. My. God.” Tyler smiled for the first time that day and pumped his fist in the air.

“Here are the rules, Ty. Seriously, listen to them carefully,” warned Vincent. He took a deep breath and began to explain.

“
Rules
? Who the hell’s playing by the rules, Vin?!” interrupted Tyler. “Not Robert, and certainly not our father! If I remember correctly, Sebastian broke every single one of them the day he married mom.”

Tyler grabbed his suit coat from the back of his chair and briskly left the office. He heard his brothers following close behind him, but had no intentions of discussing the matter further. It was time to find Angelique and make her talk.

“Tyler, stop!” demanded Vincent as they passed his office. Renee and Emma came running out into the hallway.

Renee grabbed ahold of Tyler’s arm. “Honey, where are you going? Talk to me!”

He stopped in his tracks and turned around. Tyler met Renee’s eyes before looking down to her small pregnant belly. He could see the fear in her eyes, and the last thing he wanted to do was cause her grief. Brian was standing beside her, his face full of worry.

“I want to talk to you alone, Ty. Will you come and sit with me for a second?” she pleaded calmly.

Tyler let his body rest against the wall for a minute. His breathing was rapid and his temples were pounding. With his head down he walked into Vincent’s office, sat behind the desk and stared into space. Renee walked in behind him and shut the door.

“What happened, Sweetheart?” She started to move a chair next to Tyler.

“Don’t lift that.” He grabbed the chair and slid it beside him. “We know where Angelique is. We have to get her to tell us where our father is hiding, Renee. He has a lot to answer for.” He spoke softly but his jaw remained tight.

“Listen to me. What can he say that’ll satisfy you? You’re looking for a reasonable explanation, but maybe you already know all of the answers.” She reached over and pulled on his chin, so he’d look at her.

“Don’t you think we deserve to know why? Why he did what he did? Why he caused our mother to hang herself?!” He got up and began to pace.

She went to him and wrapped her arms around his waist. As his eyes watered, she took his hand and slid it down to her stomach. “You deserve so much more than life has given you. Despite all of the horrible things that have happened, you’re going to be the world’s greatest father.”

“I know what you’re trying to say, Renee, but there needs to be closure for us. All I want is answers, and we’re not going to get them unless we can get Angelique to disclose Sebastian’s whereabouts.” Tyler held her close to him.