Guardian Knight

Chapter 5

"I do wish your father had told me what he was planning."

Melissa looked over at her godfather and shrugged. "You knew Dad: once he got an idea, he ran with it. And he probably meant to, when I came home from school break. Except . . ."

"Except he died before then."

"Kitt suggested Dad may have been letting Michael, you, and me how much he trusted Michael."

Devon nodded his agreement. "Does it bother you?"

"When you look at him, do you see Michael or Garthe?"

"Michael," replied Devon, without hesitation.

"And when did you first see him as Michael, not Garthe?"

Devon considered the question carefully for a moment. "I always saw him as Michael, from when the bandages first came off after the surgery."

"You saw the man he is, not the face he wears."

It was a statement, not a question. Devon still answered it. "Yes."

"Same here."

"Despite your . . . history with Garthe?"

"Because of that history, I know Michael isn't Garthe."

Devon gazed fondly at his goddaughter. "Then your father – as usual – made the right decision. I always said he was a certifiable genius."

"A certifiable genius who ended up with a son who is certifiable and a daughter who is a genius."

Michael entered Devon's office in time to hear that last statement. He considered responding but decided against it. This wasn't the time or the place for a serious conversation with Melissa about why she still referred to her dead brother in the present tense.

Sorry I'm late. I was with Lisa," he said. "Who apparently has started caring about who her son spends time with. So we were at the pool with Elliott and his two sons."

Melissa frowned. "I think it's deliberate. To keep you from learning anything about her so you can't investigate her case."

"Oh, it's deliberate," Michael agreed. "But is it to –"

"Decide if she can trust you or so she can –"

"Pull the wool over my eyes."

"Which gets us to my research. So first thing this morning, before PT –"

Michael cut her off. "I told you it could wait until after PT."

Melissa smiled at him sweetly. "Yes, but you can't make a binding contract with a minor."

"I . . . see," said Michael slowly, beginning to wonder what he had gotten himself into by agreeing to be her guardian.

Melissa dismissed the whole thing with a few waves of her hand. "Besides, I am a morning person. I'm in the habit of doing my schoolwork first thing in the morning. This was basically the same."

"All right. Let's hear what you found."

"David Warwick is the head of Sky Traders. It's one of those companies Dad wouldn't have done business with. What was that phrase he used? About colds?"

The last was aimed at Devon, who knew the one she meant. "That the CEO of the company had better catch a cold, so the coughing fit puts him back on the right side of the law."

Michael laughed. "The old man had integrity."

"To his core," agreed Melissa. "Now, Sky Trader is, in turn, owned by Faro Services, which is even less savory. The head of Faro Services died about a month ago. Even money has his grandson taking over, with Warwick a close second. However, there's a dark horse candidate: Shane Kendall. And I do mean dark horse: he's considered a young Turk. Much more aggressive than the other two. Especially when it comes to pursuing those less savory business opportunities. He's suspected in several corporate and industrial espionage cases. And at least one rival disappeared under mysterious circumstances."

Michael nodded his understanding, and then asked mildly, "And?"

"And? I think that's pretty impressive results for the time I had."

"Oh, it is. But you, young lady, are just a little too smug over there. So spill it."

Melissa grinned and held up a folder. "I have photos of the two main players. Here's Warwick," she put down a photo of a dark-haired man, "and Kendall," and a photo of blond man was also laid on Devon's desk.

"Okay . . ." said Michael uncertainly. From his expression, Devon didn't see the big reveal, either.

"Come on! Don't you see?" Both men shook their heads and Melissa gave an exasperated sigh. She tapped the photo of Kendall. "Timmy looks exactly like this guy, down to the blond hair."

Once she said it, it was obvious to both men.

"But the question is whether Lisa is afraid Warwick will figure out Timmy isn't his son when he sees Kendall at the meeting on the succession vote and came here to be safe."

"Or?"

"Or if she's planning on leaving Warwick for Kendall, bringing Timmy with her. She came here to make it easier for her to make her getaway."

"Or to return home if Warwick wins the vote," Michael pointed out.

"Yeah. I just wish we knew when the vote is going to take place."

"Oh, it'll be soon. Another day or two at the most." Michael was confident in his assessment

"How can you be sure?" asked Melissa.

"Lisa wouldn't have shown up here if the meeting was a month away. She's good, but she can't possibly string us along for that long."

Devon listened to the back and forth between Michael and Melissa. But he was more interested in their interaction than in the content of their conversation. He hadn't exactly kept Melissa away from Michael. She went to a boarding school. Since Wilton's death, she had generally stayed with friends over school breaks, when she wasn't taking extra classes to graduate early. So, she hadn't been at FLAG before now. And since he hadn't read Wilton's will, he hadn't known about the last-minute change in her guardian. But as with first KARR and then Garthe, she was another of Wilton's . . secrets was too strong a word but really the only one that fit . . . he had kept from Michael.

"But –"

Michael held up a hand, cutting off whatever complaint Melissa had been about to make. "I said no. And I meant no."

Devon decided to give Michael the assistance that the younger man didn't know he needed. Wilton had had a stubborn streak, a streak both of his children had inherited. In Garth, that stubbornness had manifested as arrogance; in Melissa, it manifested as defiance. The difference was that Melissa, unlike her brother, could be reasoned with. If you took the right approach.

"Melissa, Michael is the investigator, and you are his assistant. It is, therefore, his call on whether and to what extent he involves you on his cases. Further, he is your legal guardian, and it is again his call on what you do or do not get to do."

Melissa looked at her godfather, clearly considering what he had said, and then turned to Michael. "I am sorry, Michael, sir."

Just as Melissa had a few minutes earlier, Michael dismissed it all with a few waves of his hands. "I have no problem with you doing the background research, since people aren't likely to become suspicious. However, we're now up to asking questions that have to be asked indirectly. I know the people to ask and now, thanks to you, I know the questions to ask."

"Then what else can I do to help?"

"Well . . . you could run interference so I can make some calls without Lisa finding out."

"In other words, you want me to keep her distracted, so she doesn't go looking for you and overhear you on the phone."

"Exactly."

Melissa sighed. "I've never much liked making small talk."

Michael grinned. "We could have Devon do it."

Melissa grinned back. "I didn't say I can't do it; I said I don't like doing it. Besides, Lisa would likely be suspicious if Devon suddenly started talking to her. I'll just drop by after lunch, while Timmy is napping, and ask her how things are going and if she needs anything. I am, after all, your assistant. It's more natural for me to check in with her."

Devon made a mental note to discuss Melissa with Michael after the case was over. As her legal guardian, there were things he needed to know about her, things that Devon was likely the only living person – other than Melissa – knew. Devon owed Michael that much for all of Wilton's secrets he had kept from him.