Chapter 22
"He's expecting pictures. I can't hold him off much longer."
Merdan Kaya stares at the man standing before him. Two weeks ago, this man had come to him, almost quaking in fear. Ever since his great grandson's kidnapping, Merdan realized the world he used to rule had gotten out of his control. Before he went to prison, no one would have dared do anything like this to someone who carried his name. But he's been out of prison for a while now. It's time these kids realized once again who was really in charge. He's been actively searching for anyone who had the nerve to get involved with Yekta and the kidnappings. Word of his search has gotten around. People are starting to fear him again. This man included. Yekta may have hired him, but he now takes his orders from Merdan.
"He wants me to keep following your prosecutor grandson and take pictures of him alone with a working girl he's hired."
Trying to ruin his life, Merdan figures. Fortunately this photographer came to Merdan two weeks ago when he got the assignment from Yekta. Merdan was able to warn Ilgaz to never be caught alone. So the photographer has not been able to catch him in a compromising situation. The whole thing is sneaky and underhanded. And quite beneath someone like Merdan Kaya. But it's just the sort of thing Yekta Tilmen would do. But Merdan won't allow any of it. Not when his family is at stake.
"Keep doing what you're doing," Merdan orders the photographer. "And wait for my call. This will all be over soon."
Yekta and Merdan have had a sort of agreement for years. Merdan minds his business and Yekta minds his own too. They mutually agreed to stay out of each other's way. But Yekta has gone too far this time. He's messing with Merdan's family. And Merdan won't stand for it. He is going to make Yekta wish he had never been born.
The excuse they give is that this is a half birthday celebration for the soon to be six month old Asen. But the real reason for the gathering is as a secret planning session for what Ceylin likes to call Operation Cobra Strike. They all know if Yekta gets even a hint of what they're up to, this plan would fail. He's meticulous. He's smart. And he seems to know everything that happens almost before it even happens. So secrecy in this case is key. This party for Asen is the only excuse they can come up with for gathering the key players in a location outside of the courthouse or police station. Nothing stays a secret there.
Esma and Ibo already left to go back to their inn, so they won't be in attendance. They needed to get back and get things prepared for the upcoming heavy tourist season. They hired a couple of new employees that they needed to make sure were trained properly. Employees that will be able to handle the running of things on their own soon enough. The business may be Esma and Ibo's livelihood, but they are reaching the age where they don't want it to be their life. They want to be able to visit Asen, their children, and their other grandchildren more often. Ceylin was sad to see them go, but she knows she'll see them again. She's grateful they've become surrogate parents for both her and Ilgaz.
But it was at that point that Ceylin realized they also needed to find a way to live peacefully with their actual parents. Her mom is at a place where Ceylin hopes she'll get the help she needs. But Ilgaz's father is right here. He's living his own kind of pain. Guilt has become his prison. Ceylin realizes that her anger has long since passed. She actually feels sorry for him now. And she's sorry she hasn't done more to help him forgive himself. They're all going to need to be on the same page if they plan on working together to take down Yekta. They'll need to be able to work together without all the awkwardness if they want this plan to work. But she doesn't know how to help that.
She's just putting out the last of the party food when llgaz walks into the kitchen, phone in his hand, a scowl on his face.
"Dede called," he tells her. "The photographer is still following me, trying to catch me with my pants down, so to speak. This is so humiliating and disgusting. Like I would ever do something like that to you!"
"More like you know that you better not ever do something like that to me," Ceylin threatens, in a teasing way, of course. Because she knows him. She knows he'd never cheat on her with some hooker. Or anyone for that matter. It's not the kind of man he is. But the rest of the world doesn't know that. The rest of the world doesn't understand how much Ilgaz loves her. It took her longer than it should have to realize it herself. However, the public would jump on a scandal like this. Something like this could ruin his career.
Because of that, the past two weeks of being followed has made him even more paranoid than he was to start with. The month prior - the month following the kidnapping and her accident - Ilgaz had slowly been settling down from that trauma. He was pretty bad off at first, though. For about a week after everything happened, she doesn't think he slept at all due to his constant watching over her and Asen. He didn't go in to work, either. Refused to go on any calls. She finally had to put her foot down and kick him out one morning. She had Eren come to pick him up and told their friend not to bring him back until the end of shift. She had Neva stop by his office every couple of hours to make sure he stayed put. Pars even made a few appearances, pretending to need a consult from Ilgaz on a few of his cases. It was a group effort, but they succeeded. Ilgaz, and life in general, was eventually able to get back to normal. But then Yekta happened. And now, Skittish and Uneasy Ilgaz is back.
"With any luck, this will all be over soon," she assures him. "We'll catch Yekta in the very trap he's trying to lay for us and he will be out of our lives. For good."
At least she hopes that's what will happen.
Ilgaz comes over and wraps his arms around her. He's usually the one giving her comfort, but this time she knows he's the one taking comfort from her. She just smiles and sighs, snuggling into his embrace. She loves to be the one giving to him for a change, but she can't deny the pleasure she gets as well.
They hear Asen through the baby monitoring, making the usual baby babbles he makes when he wakes up. He's still such a happy baby. He doesn't cry much, even when waking up. He just lays in his crib and coos for a while until someone comes to get him.
"I'll go get the 'half birthday' boy," Ilgaz says, rolling his eyes.
"It's going to be fun for him," Ceylin laughs. "And it was the best excuse we could think of for everyone being here tonight. Yekta shouldn't get too suspicious."
But now isn't the time to be thinking of Yekta. Not yet. His time will come later. Right now, they had a party to put on.
Asen, as expected, had a blast. He ate tiny bits of cake and got hugs and kisses and cuddles from everyone and is now sleeping easily in Neva's arms. She refused to be left out of the operation despite her job as a judge.
"You're like a sister to me, Ceylin," she had said. "I love you and I won't let anyone hurt you and your family."
Similar sentiments came from Eren and Pars. They had had to leave Umut out of this one. It's not that they don't trust him. But having him at the house too would have been too suspicious. But their little group is rounded out by Merdan and Metin. Anyone else will be brought in as needed.
"Here's what we do know," Eren starts as they begin their little meeting. "We have an audio recording of Yekta giving kidnapping instructions to Gül Hanım. However, it's nothing that would be admissible in court."
"On its own, no," Neva inputs. "But as a judge, I would allow it as a part of the case as supporting evidence. It would be considered a 'nail in the coffin' so to speak. So don't discount it as useless just yet."
"Thankfully we were able to use it to pinpoint the day and time of the meeting they had," Ilgaz adds. "Then we used the GPS data on the phone to determine the meeting location. Unfortunately there wasn't any video footage from the cafe they were meeting at nor from any surrounding shops. Yekta was thorough in trying to erase his connection to Gül Hanım and made sure everything had been deleted. But he wasn't thorough enough. Because we also scoured social media sites to see if we could find images from that cafe on that day. You know how young people like to take selfies of their food. We were lucky. A few of the posted pictures and video reels have Yekta and Gül Hanım in the background."
"Again, it wouldn't be enough on its own as evidence," Neva says. "But with something else strong enough, this evidence would go a long way in putting him away."
"That's where I come in," Merdan says, a slow smile on his face. "I haven't let Yekta get to my grandson these past two weeks. So he's getting desperate. And desperate men make mistakes. Especially if he has me whispering in his ears, unbeknownst to him of course. The photographer he paid to follow you now answers to me. So I'm actually the one in control of Yekta's plans."
"What do you have in mind, Dede?" Ilgaz asks.
"If he wants you, then I say we let him get you."
Ceylin takes Ilgaz's hand and looks at him. She's not sure she likes the sound of that. Why is she suddenly afraid of what's in store for them?
Plan solidified, the party finally ends and everyone goes home. Ceylin is quiet. More quiet than Ilgaz expects and it worries him.
"Talk to me," he says softly, brushing her hair out of her face. "What are you thinking?"
"You're taking all of the risk," she confesses. "Yekta is after me. He's trying to tear apart my life. So why are you the only one at risk in this plan? I don't like it."
"I'm at risk either way, Sweetheart," Ilgaz reminds her. "And you know I'd do anything to keep you safe. You and our children. Especially this little one right here."
He covers her belly with his hand and smiles. She's getting softer. Rounder. It fills him with a sense of pride that he had a part in making this baby.
"So much can go wrong," she worries. "How do we know we can trust your grandfather's guy? I mean, he did agree to take compromising photos of you for Yekta. I don't think he's the most reliable."
He pulls her into his arms and holds her tight.
"You're right," he admits. "We really can't trust anyone. But you trust me, right? You trust that even if the photos get taken, that doesn't mean I've cheated on you, right?"
"Of course I trust you," she says quickly. "Don't be ridiculous. But what about your life? Your career? Pictures like that could ruin you, true or not. Everything could be over for you, all because Yekta can't stop playing games with our life."
He kisses her and gives her a smile that he hopes is carefree and worry free.
"It's just a job. I'd rather lose it than lose you, Ceylin. If necessary, I'll be a house husband. You can work and I'll take care of the kids. We'll all cram into my old, tiny apartment and live with my family. Won't that be fun?"
The teasing hits its mark and his heart lightens when she laughs.
"Together," he reminds her. "Remember? Always together. We can get through anything as long as we have each other."
This time she kisses him. She wraps her arms around his neck and rubs up against him like a little cat. He takes the hint and lifts her, letting her wrap her legs around his waist. She hangs onto him while he walks around, shutting off all the lights and making sure all the doors are locked.
With that done, his hands are now free to start roaming her body.
"Only you," he whispers to her, pressing kisses down her neck. "These kisses are only for you. My love is only for you."
"Then take me to bed and prove it," she challenges.
And that is exactly what he does.
"Unsatisfactory," Yekta tells the man standing in front of him. "It's been two weeks. Why are there no pictures yet?"
"Short of snatching the man right off the street, there's no getting to the Prosecutor," the man explains, using the exact words Merdan had given him to say. "He's never really alone."
"So why don't you?" Yekta shrugs. "Do what you just said. Snatch him off the streets and get what we need. I'm getting tired of waiting. Make it happen."
Yekta moves to dismiss him, but the man still has a part to play.
"With all due respect, Yekta Bey," the photographer says, raising his hands and backing away. "I just take pictures. Nothing that will get me in too much trouble. I'm strictly a hands off guy. But you're talking about taking a man right off the street. A prosecutor, no less. If you think it's so easy, then you do it. Just tell me where and when and I'll make sure you get whatever pictures you need. But kidnapping isn't my thing."
The man sweats when Yekta just stares at him for a long time. He may be working for Merdan now, but Yekta still terrifies him.
"Go away," Yekta finally says. "You're right. I need to make sure I get someone who won't screw this up. Give me a few days. But you stay on standby. That means no other jobs. When this is done, I'll double your pay. Just stay available for me."
That's all he was waiting to hear. The man doesn't stick around. He quickly leaves when Yekta tells him to. His work here is done. He's just the guy who takes the pictures, after all. The rest is up to Merdan Bey and the Prosecutor.
The call comes four days later. And Ceylin finds herself pacing the floor of her living room, watching nervously as Eren tests the operation of the tracker they just put on Ilgaz. She doesn't have as many details of the operation as she would like, but from what she can gather, they expect Yekta to ambush Ilgaz, take him against his will and make him take the compromising photos. Possibly even drug him to keep him compliant and malleable. Her stomach turns at the thought of him having to pose with another woman, the nausea having nothing to do with morning sickness. She sits and grabs the cup of tea she had sitting on the table. It's the only way to keep her nervous hands still.
"We'll be with you the whole time, Ilgaz," Eren promises. "This tracker is one of the best we have. If the guys following you lose you, we'll find you with the tracker. And as soon as the photographer gets the call, we'll have guys go and set up where he's setting up too. You're fully covered."
Eren speaks the words to Ilgaz, but Ceylin knows he's also saying them for her sake. But she's still worried. She has to stay behind. Stay safe. She understands where they're coming from. But she still doesn't like it. She doesn't like any of this.
"I'll have a police radio, Kızım," Metin tells her softly. "We can listen to everything if you want."
Metin had been chosen to stay with her. Ilgaz needed the extra peace of mind knowing his family was safe. She agreed because she didn't want him worrying needlessly when he needed to be keeping his wits about him during this operation.
When it's time, he walks over to her and pulls her into his arms.
"I'll be fine," he assures her, kissing her on her temple. She holds on to him a little tighter and a little longer than usual.
"Come back to me," she orders. Then she lets him go.
"We'll keep him safe," Eren promises before he follows Ilgaz out the door.
Ceylin lets out the breath she had been holding. All she can do now is wait and pray. And trust that Eren will keep his word. Trust that he'll bring Ilgaz home.
Asen lets out one of his rare cries, so she goes to him. He had just needed a diaper change and a bottle to put him in a better mood. And she can't deny that his adorable little smile made her feel better as well.
"Let's go see how your Dede is doing," she coos to the baby. "You haven't really spent a lot of time with him. Today is a good time to change that."
She takes Asen downstairs where Metin is taking his job as guard extra seriously. He's going around, making sure all the windows and doors are locked, peeking out the curtains to survey the area. Anything to stay out of her way. And she realizes that's the opposite of what she wants. Not anymore.
"Tea?" she calls out, surprising him with her request. He must not have heard her come up behind him.
"That would be nice. Thank you."
She surprises him again when she pushes Asen into his arms.
"He just woke up and is ready to play now," Ceylin says with a smile. "You two entertain each other while I'm in the kitchen."
She keeps an eye on the two while she makes the tea, laughing at the serious way the two just stare at each other for a few minutes. But Asen must like what he sees, because he gives Metin his famous little gummy grin. That grin has been known to melt hearts. Metin is no exception. The man relaxes when he realizes Asen is okay with him.
"Aren't you a happy baby?" Ceylin hears him say. She brings the tray of tea and sets it on the table. Metin turns his attention to her. "Çınar was a happy baby like this. It was such a change from Ilgaz. Ilgaz was a serious baby. Very calm and quiet. Much like he is now."
Ceylin smiles at the thought of a baby Ilgaz. He must have been adorable. She puts her hand on her belly and smiles.
"Maybe this next baby will take after him more."
"Baby? You're pregnant?" His eyes light up for a minute. But then just like that, everything goes dark again.
"Not too far along," she says quickly, trying to keep from losing him to his darkness and guilt. "But probably in about 7 months or so, you'll be a grandfather again."
That apparently was the wrong thing to say as well. His eyes go even darker. He stands and hands Asen back to her. He goes to stand across the room, looking out the window, weight of the world on his shoulders.
"You need to give yourself a break," Ceylin says quietly, hoping he listens and really hears what she's saying. She just has to figure out what to say.
"Did you ever hear the story of why Ilgaz and I got married?" she asks him. "I mean, the real story. The whole story. The truth I never admitted to."
That gets his attention. He stays where he is, but turns to face her.
"It was back when I was still defending Çınar," she starts. "And at that point, I was actually still on the fence as to whether or not I believed in his innocence. I just needed to stay on the case so that I could continue getting information. I figured I would either clear Çınar, or I would be in the loop to make sure you guys didn't some how help him get away with murder."
"At least you were unsure. I had no doubt. Case closed. I was ready to wash my hands of him."
"Don't blame yourself. The evidence could have gone either way. And that's what led me to Inci's professor's house. It's what led me to steal their toothbrushes. You should have seen the look on Ilgaz's face when he realized what I had done."
She can't help but laugh now. At that time, though, he had frustrated her with his sheer unwillingness to budge even an inch. But he was right in the end. The police eventually got around to talking to the couple and having cause to get their DNA. And because of her impulsiveness, the couple was almost able to flee.
"Needless to say, he was one hundred percent against the idea," she continues. "He even tried to throw the toothbrushes away. I didn't consider the consequences of my actions, though. All I was hoping was for some proof that the professor had hurt my sister. I was blinded and couldn't see reason. Ilgaz warned me, but I didn't listen. And of course I got caught. I was at risk of losing everything if Pars was able to prove what I had done. He had no evidence, just my word against theirs. But he had an ace in the hole, or so he thought. He thought he could count on Ilgaz's honesty. And in a way, he was right. Ilgaz said he wouldn't lie for me. But instead, he offered to marry me."
"So the marriage was Ilgaz's idea," Metin says, amusement glinting in his eyes.
She's glad to see he finds this funny, but she doesn't know why. So she asks.
"What's so funny?"
"My son," Metin chuckles, the sound harsh and rusty as if he hasn't had much chance to use it lately. "He's more like me than I realized."
At her confused look, he explains.
"Kaya men know almost immediately when they've met the one. It was like that with me and his mother."
When she still looks confused, he continues.
"Kızım, Ilgaz could have come up with at least a half dozen other ways to help you. Off the top of my head, even I can think of one or two ways. He didn't marry you just to help you. He married you because he wanted to. He married you because he realized you were his one."
"That sneaky little …" she mutters when she thinks about the words Metin just said and how much sense they make. But to be honest, she can't be really mad at Ilgaz. Not when the end result is the wonderful life they have now. He just realized they were meant to be quicker than she did. It took her a little bit longer to come around to the idea.
"For the record, I'm glad he found you. You make him happy, Kızım. Happier than anything else ever has."
"And he wants you to be happy too. We both do," she says. "That was the point of this whole story, before you sidetracked me. Everyone makes mistakes. Everyone is one bad decision away from stealing a toothbrush. Or covering a murder. Happens to the best of us."
He just shakes his head and laughs again.
"You really are something else, aren't you? I can see why my son loves you so much. You're good for him. He needs someone who won't let him take himself too seriously."
"He's a good man. And a good father. He got that from you. So forgive yourself, okay?" she begs him. "Come back to the land of the living. Because my kids need their grandfather. You're the only one they have."
"That's just a fact," she adds quickly, before the guilt can take Metin over again. "My father made his own bad decisions and they landed him in the grave. That's not on you. That's not on Çınar. It just is."
He nods. She can tell it's going to take a while to sink in. But he looks like he's going to think about it. And at least try. And that's all she can ask.
Just then, the police radio sparks to life. The cop that Metin used to be drapes back over him like an old coat. He's all business now. He listens to the chatter and is able to decipher all the different codes they're throwing around.
"What's happening?" she asks, unable to keep the fear from her voice.
"The trap has been sprung," he tells her.
That means the operation has officially started. And now, all they can do is wait. And hope that this is finally the end of Yekta's reign of terror.
