Who Shot the Bitch Troll?
Chapter 6
Carrick
I just got a call from my old friend Emmet Jackson. It turns out that the police have just interviewed his daughter Lily in connection with the Elena Lincoln murder case. It would appear that my daughter has been making some very ridiculous statements in public about her hatred of Elena and they have reached the ears of the cops. There have been many times in her life that Mia has annoyed me, but this time really takes the cake.
"Mia!" I call as I walk out of my office as calmly as possible.
"Yes, Daddy?" she calls back.
Her voice is as vivacious and cheerful as ever, but I am in no mood for her charming antics. She needs to listen and not make excuses for her foolish statements. Damage control will start now.
"Please come down and meet me in the living room," I reply. "You too, Grace."
Looking puzzled, my wife joins me on the couch after I reach out my hand. As Mia enters the room, I indicate that she should sit across from us. As usual, she bounces into her seat, grinning.
"What is it Daddy?"
"Mia, we need to have a serious discussion," I begin sternly. "Word has come to me that you have been making some very foolish statements in public in the last month or so, statements regarding the late Elena Lincoln."
Grace immediately looks nervous, as Mia tosses back her short, dark hair defiantly. I am in no mood for her response.
"Mrs. Lincoln was a skanky, old bitch who got what she deserved," she answers, as if I have annoyed her. "Nobody is sorry that she's gone, especially after she ruined Christian's life."
"That is the kind of irresponsible statement that I am talking about," I answer, attempting to control my rising anger. "I understand that among your friends, you were making threats about wanting to kill her and hiring a hit man."
"Mia!" gasps Grace. "How could you?"
Mia rolls her eyes.
"Oh, Mom!" she says flippantly. "It was only a joke."
"Well, young lady," I reply sharply. "Taken out of context, your 'joke' has reached the ears of the police, who do not find it the least bit funny."
"Carrick!" exclaims Grace. "What has happened?"
For the first time since we have sat down, Mia has stopped smiling and fidgeting. She has become very quiet and attentive.
"Apparently," I explain in a milder tone. "Detective Clark has been to see your friend Lily, who has been passing rumors around about what you said. I correct myself. The rumors are rampant among all of your so-called friends, but he believes that she was the originator. Her father just called me to tell me that he had been to his office to interview her. Jackson tried to limit the damage by insisting that Lily only tell the truth and answer the questions directly, without embellishment."
"Well," replied Mia petulantly. "Lily is officially no longer my best friend."
"That is the least of your worries," I say. "If you had not been shooting off your mouth in the first place, this would never have happened. What in God's name were you thinking making those kinds of threats? We all know how angry you are that she informed the press about Christian's biological father and the fact that she was the one who most probably hired the private investigator who found him. But that is no excuse for talking like that, even if she hadn't ended up dead."
"Mia," adds Grace. "It is a dreadful thing to say about anyone, even if she is an evil and manipulative woman."
"Well," pouts Mia. "I bet that you're not sorry that she's dead. You basically ruined her social life and almost took her business down."
"But I would never in a million years have killed her or even considered it," says Grace. "Ruining someone's social life is a far cry from taking her life. What were you thinking?"
"I don't know," she answers. "I guess that I was just letting off steam. You know everything was fine and then she had to go and spoil it. . ."
"Mia," I interrupt her rant. "Let us not miss the point. And that is that Elena Lincoln was violently murdered in her own home by what was obviously a professional gunman, probably hired by someone who was seeking revenge. The issue is not her character. The issue in this case is that someone who committed a violent crime is still walking the streets freely.
"Now I personally think that the police are grasping at straws if they think that you had anything to do with it, but the public and the press are hounding them for progress on the case. I have to ask you some important questions. First of all, where were you when she was killed?"
"Carrick!"
"Daddy, how can you ask me that?" cries Mia.
"I need to know because if Detective Clark wants to talk to you, then you will talk to him with me present," I explain. "Before you answer any questions, I need to know what your responses are."
"I was at home that night, and so was Mom," she says, finally chastened. "I was on the phone."
"Your cell phone?"
"Yes."
"Good," I nod. "We can get the records."
"Now prior to that, had you made any large withdrawals from your trust fund?" I ask.
"Of course, I did," she replies. "I was Christmas shopping."
"Were you using credit cards?" I ask. "Did you use the money to pay credit card bills?"
"No," she answers, making a face. "I hate credit cards. I always forget to pay the bills and then I get nasty phone calls. I always pay in cash."
"I suppose that this is a stupid question," I say grimly. "But you don't happen to have the receipts, do you?"
"Of course not," she answers. "Why would I save all that stuff?"
"Well, in this case," I reply drily. "To prove how you spent your money. How much did you withdraw?"
"Um," she says. "I don't know, a lot I guess. I would have to go to the bank and check the balance."
"Oh, Lord Almighty, give me patience," I mutter. "Mia, I knew that you were irresponsible with money, but I didn't realize how much. I knew that you liked to shop, but I thought that at least you had some idea of what you were spending."
"Christian spends money like water," she retorts. "You said so yourself."
"Christian is a billionaire, who works for a living making money to replenish his coffers," I reply. "He has a wife and a child on the way and he makes millions of dollars in donations to various charities. And I am sure that he knows exactly how much money he spends, and if he doesn't then Andrea does."
"Maybe I need a PA," she suggests.
"Maybe you need a course in basic accounting and another one in economics," I reply. "In a case like this, where the police are forced to start chasing shadows, whenever a possible suspect arises, they start from the premise that this person is innocent until proven guilty.
"In this case, I am sure that Clark would rather eliminate you as a suspect than have to deal with me or your brother. Your irresponsibility, which started this mess, is making his job harder. In other words, you aren't doing anything to help yourself, while you have done a lot to hurt yourself."
"I didn't do it," she sulks. "So why should I have to worry?"
At this point, I can't talk to her anymore. I realize that all of this is really our fault: Grace, Elliot, Christian, and myself, because we have spent the last twenty-two years indulging her every whim. My poor wife is looking upset once more.
"Mia," I say calmly. "Please go up to your room and stay off the phone and the computer."
Her mouth drops open.
"I don't want you adding more fuel to the fire, do you understand?" I add.
"Yes, sir," she says meekly and as she leaves the room she gives a kiss to both Grace and me. When she is gone, Grace looks at me.
"Carrick, is this really bad?" she asks anxiously.
"Not as bad as it sounds," I reply. "The police are, indeed, grasping at straws. It is unfortunate that our daughter has given them one to grasp. But, this is a very weak circumstantial case at best. Clark knew that Jackson would call me the minute that the interview is over, probably to give me time to prepare Mia. She may be interviewed as a 'person of interest,' but there is not a shred of proof of any wrongdoing."
"Then why are they doing this?" she asks. "Are they trying to harass us?"
"Trust me," I say. "They don't really want to harass us. But right now they are looking pretty foolish. They don't want to admit that someone may have pulled off the perfect crime. Unfortunately, sooner or later the press will uncover it and it will fill up a twenty-four hour news cycle. But let's forget about that and address the larger issue.
"Mia has got to learn some self control. Christian is going to be furious. In fact, I am going to call him now to let him know. Why don't you call Elliot? But tell him to keep his mouth shut to Kate. She has been dying to sink her teeth into this story. I know that Elliot has spoken with her, but I would prefer to keep temptation out of her way."
"And that's why you told Mia to stay off the phone?" she asks. "Are you afraid she'll tell Ethan?"
"Among others," I reply. "Her friends have proven untrustworthy. I am afraid that she is going to learn a very hard lesson from this incident. And I don't want her talking to Christian first. She will undoubtedly get him all worked up and you know what his temper is like."
"As always, dear, you're right," she sighs. "I am beginning to wish that we had never met Elena Lincoln."
"Yes, dear, I feel the same way," I agree.
Actually, I have been wishing that since I had my conversation with Chris Price before he left Seattle. Luckily, Grace has not yet put two and two together with regards to Elena's lifestyle and her involvement with Christian. And I am glad that I was forewarned. It gave me time to get over the shock before going over and confronting him. However, it is very hard to say with what I would have confronted him, if I had gone over to the house.
My son was young and vulnerable. She seduced him and then led him down a very dark road. It is no wonder that she hated Ana so much. It has become clear to me that it is Ana who has led him back to the light and given him a shot at a normal, happy family life. There is no way that I will let anything destroy that. Whatever has happened to Elena Lincoln, it had nothing to do with him,
Taylor
It has been one of those days when the mood in the Grey house has swung from north to south in a manner of minutes. Today we made the official move into the new house on the shore. Of course most of the move involved clothing and personal items, since we will continue to keep a fully set up household in Escala. The Greys had just finished dinner and Gail was getting ready to return to our apartment when the phone rang.
It had been a long time since Grey has blown his stack the way that he has tonight. Gail has been with Ana for the past two hours trying to sooth her. Although this has nothing to do with her, she is still deeply affected by his moods. While Gail has been tending to her, I have been subjected to a full out, Christian Grey tantrum. He hasn't been this angry since the night that he found out that Ana was pregnant.
The lesson that I took away from that was not to allow him to leave the house and keep him away from the liquor cabinet. Ana will be even more upset if he walks out and she doesn't know where he is. And eventually, he will go to bed with her. I cannot permit him to do this drunk.
Fortunately, he has been content to sit in his study and yell at me about Detective Clark and all of his inadequacies as an investigator. He is swearing up a storm as usual. I never knew that there were so many variations of the root word "fuck," although I suspect that he is inventing a few new ones as he goes along. He seems to be missing the point however that more of the blame belongs to his sister, than to Clark.
There are three people whom Grey loves more than his own life: Ana, Grace, and Mia. Mia has always been pampered and spoiled by her family to the point that she has become self-indulgent and childish. Throwing public temper tantrums about the woman who probably leaked the story to the press about Grey's biological father and most likely being the one who found him was pretty reckless.
Anyone with half a brain could see that Mrs. Lincoln was making enemies left and right and playing a dangerous game. But there are times when I doubt that Mia has even half a brain. Elena Lincoln was a train wreck waiting to happen. Sooner or later, she was going to piss off the wrong person and find herself in a situation that she could no longer control.
At last Grey has run out of steam, and invective. After standing and listening to him for the past two hours, I calmly suggest that he either try to do some work or go to bed and get some sleep.
"I have half a mind to go out and find Clark and beat the shit out of him," he growls. "How dare he put my sister through this?"
"I would not recommend that, sir," I answer respectfully. "Assaulting and possibly killing a police officer are major offenses. Think about what it would do to Mrs. Grey if you were in prison when the baby is born."
He looks back at me uncertainly.
"It's not just about Mia," he says in confusion. "I forgot that."
"I don't see how beating the shit out of Clark would benefit Miss Grey either," I reply patiently. "However, she is not my concern. I am hired to protect you and Mrs. Grey. In this case, in order to protect your wife, I am going to have to restrain you from making any foolish choices. Your sister has gone beyond the pale in making foolish statements, but that is her responsibility, not yours."
"But I hate to see her in this position on account of me," he says.
I sigh.
"She put herself in this position on her own behalf," I say. "May I speak freely?"
Now he sighs.
"You might as well," he replies. "You have been listening to me rant for the past two hours."
"Yes, I have," I state. "From my perspective, as an outsider, it seems that Miss Grey has been feeling unnecessarily jealous because your biological father has not only appeared, but he has brought three half-sisters for you along with him. Your sister is, for whatever reason, intensely jealous of them."
"That's crazy!" he exclaims. "They are cute kids, but I feel nothing for them certainly not anything like I feel for Mia."
"No offense, sir," I reply. "But your sister is not the most . . . logical woman on the planet. Of course, you enjoy their company, but I have not observed that you feel a whole lot of affection for them, nor they for you."
"True enough," he admits. "In fact, Melissa told me that they were jealous of me. What is it with all these crazy women?"
"I don't know," I say. "But my suggestion is that you let your father deal with your sister. You have Mrs. Grey to worry about. Gail has been with her for the last two hours trying to comfort her. Even though your ravings had nothing to do with her, anything that upsets you; upsets her."
Now he looks guilty. He knows this. I give him time to process my words.
"Thank you for reminding me of that, Taylor," he says. "I will go see her now."
I follow him to their bedroom, where Gail is sitting on the bed with Mrs. Grey. She has her arm around her shoulder. Mrs. Grey is leaning on her as Gail strokes her hair. I can see that she is whispering to her. I can see Grey's eyes soften when he sees them.
"Thank you, Mrs. Jones," he says softly. "I will take it from here."
At the sound of his voice, Mrs. Grey looks up at him hopefully. He walks over to the bed and once Gail stands up, sits down and envelops his wife in a close embrace. Gail and I turn and leave them alone.
"Is he okay now?" she asks, when we are out of earshot.
"I think so, but with him you never know," I reply. "He never deals well with situations that are out of his control. However, when I reminded him that his wife needed him, he was finally able to put things in perspective. Mia got herself in some trouble, but it is up to her father to get her out. We all know that she hasn't done anything, but the police are desperate."
"It's amazing that they have no clues whatsoever," she comments.
"Well, it seems that they have at least two people who didn't like her," I say. "Her ex-husband and Mia Grey. At least those are the two most obvious. The lady lived half of her life in a shady and dangerous world. It is very possible that she had enemies that they haven't uncovered yet. Because of the nature of that alternative lifestyle and it's secrecy, chances are they may never have the whole story."
"Do you think that someone from that world could be that smart?" she asks innocently.
"Gail, you know very well that very brilliant people are fully capable of living the BDSM lifestyle," I answer logically. "And you also know that they are very capable of hiding their predilections. My guess is that Mrs. Lincoln got herself involved with the wrong person or persons. The whole thing could easily have blown up in her face."
"Do you think that the killer will ever be found?" she asks.
"Who knows?" I shrug. "But chances are that if they haven't found anything of substance yet, they won't find anything at all. The trail is growing colder every day."
I can see that this talk has disturbed her. So I change the subject.
"How is Ana?" I ask.
She smiles softly.
"She's really better than she looks," she says. "She just hates to see him in such a state. She will be fine now that he is calm and comforting her."
"You are really quite fond of her," I comment.
"In many ways, she's the daughter that I never had," she replies honestly. "You know we have been through so much together in the last six months. I can see her fragility and how easily Mr. Grey can hurt her and it makes me want to protect her, to take care of her. And we talk a lot, you know? Her mother was never much of a mother to her."
"What about her relationship with Dr. Trevelyan?" I ask curiously.
"That's interesting," she answers. "Dr. Trevelyan loves her because of everything that she has done for her son. She is very caring, but they have not developed a close relationship in the sense that she feels that she can share things with her. Ana and I also understand each other because I was a navy wife and Ray is ex-army. I am afraid that she feels sometimes that Dr. Trevelyan is a little above her league. She's really a very down to earth girl."
"I guess that I can see that," I reply. "But Grey doesn't really want us having close relationships with them. He prefers distance."
"Well, he's not home with her a lot because he works so hard," she replies. "And when he's not home, you're not home. We keep each other company."
"I understand," I say. "And if he gets bent out of shape then I'll try to make him understand."
"Thank you," she says simply.
I hold out my arms and she comes into my embrace and allows me to cuddle her closer. As I hold her, I think about this whole mess that Elena Lincoln has created. I wouldn't have thought it possible, but the woman is more trouble in death than in life.
Grace
Well, Detective Clark has just left the house after interviewing Mia and it wasn't nearly as bad as I thought that it would be. She sat between Carrick and myself at the dining room table and humbly answered all of his questions. For his part, Clark was stern, but not antagonistic. He simply wanted to hear her side of the stories of her rantings that had been flying around since the Elena Lincoln murder broke. Before he left, he commented that the tabloids were going to be very disappointed.
For once, Mia actually followed her father's advice to the letter. She did not like the questions that Detective Clark asked her about the threats that she had made about Elena. She also did her best to keep her emotions in check about her. The questions about the large cash withdrawals from her trust fund were embarrassing for her. She had to admit that she doesn't keep track of her spending and doesn't like using credit cards because she forgets to pay the bills.
Clark did not ask a single thing about hit men or paying for them. He must have realized that she would have no idea of where to even begin to look for one. The crime had been so perfectly executed that there was no way that she could have committed it on her own. As soon as Clark left, she went up to her room. Carrick returned to the office, so I decide to go upstairs and talk to her.
"Come in," she says in a resigned voice when I knock.
As I enter, I can see that she is lying on her bed staring up at the ceiling. She has been very subdued since our last discussion. I know that she has spoken to her brothers, and both of them had told her the same thing. It is time for her to grow up and behave more responsibly. She has not been able to discuss it with her friends, for fear that one of them may talk to the press.
"Well, it looks like the worst of the nightmare is over," I say to test the waters.
"Yes, Mom," she agrees.
"Have you learned anything from this experience?" I ask tentatively.
"I've learned that I can't trust Lily or any of my other friends," she replies truculently.
I shake my head.
"No, Mia, have you learned anything about yourself?" I press on.
I know that she doesn't want to talk about it by the way that she rolls her eyes at me. Nobody likes to admit that they are wrong. But for Mia, she needs to admit that she must change her behavior in some very large and substantive ways. And it doesn't take any expensive psychologist to understand that she doesn't want to.
"Mia," I continue patiently. "You realize that you need to grow up and find some direction for your life. In a few months you will be twenty-three, but you don't have any kind of college degree or career plan. You fill your days with shopping trips and your evenings with clubbing and parties. Now, you will not be able to continue that in a couple of weeks when you start school, but I want you to know that we expect that you to stick it out."
"I know, Mom," she says with a sigh. "But you know that I was never much of a student. School has never been my thing. And I think that it's awfully mean of Christian to expect me to get a college degree when he never finished his."
"But Christian turned his life around when he was still in high school," I reply. "He dropped out of Harvard, not State U. He had a plan and figured out how to earn a lot of money, doing what he loved to do. You, on the other hand, skated through high school and didn't even apply to college. You talked us into the French cuisine school, but there hasn't been much that you have done with that.
"You need to think in terms of a career rather than a hobby. Young women today don't marry once they leave high school and live the life of the wealthy, married woman anymore. Most men worth marrying want women who can hold intelligent discussions with them. And they want wives with interests of their own. Look at the women that your brothers have chosen as wives."
"Do you think that that is why Ethan doesn't want to have a more serious relationship?" she asks.
"I believe that that is part of it," I say. "But he is also not ready to settle down. He is really very young himself. After all he is five years younger than Christian and seven years younger than Elliot. He has a rigorous graduate program ahead of him. If he wants to succeed, he will need to spend many hours both studying and working. You know, it's kind of like med students who choose not to marry until they are at a career point where they are ready to settle down."
"Oh," she says. "So then it's not really about me."
"Mia, everything is not about you," I answer patiently. "Family and friends make decisions for themselves all the time that have nothing to do with you. You need to strike out on your own and create your own life. You need to be patient with yourself and leave yourself open to new possibilities.
"And you need to stop quitting as soon as things are not going your way. Sometimes in life, you just need to see things through. Show Ethan that you are taking full advantage of your college classes. Talk to him about the different things you are learning. I guarantee that it will interest him a lot more than the new dress you just bought."
"Oh," she says.
"And Mia," I continue. "You need to cultivate some new friends, and not just because your present friends betrayed you. Your friends are just as unfocused and without direction as you are. You need to spend more time with people who have goals in life."
She looks at me, surprised because I have never spoken so candidly to her before. But I have coddled her long enough. I want to see my daughter happy in life, but I can tell that she will never be truly happy unless she moves forward and starts to mature. I leave her alone to think about my words. I am hopeful that she will finally begin to take my advice to heart.
Price
The news out of Seattle about the murder of that awful woman has been absolutely scandalous. First there was the murder itself. She returned home from her vacation in the South Pacific and was shot to death in her own house. It was obviously a professional job, no fingerprints or any other clues. In fact, they have been unable to find any hairs or fibers other than those of herself and her "boyfriend."
The "boyfriend," Isaac, who discovered her was clearly an oddball. The papers described him as some kind of "Goth," who could barely answer their questions. He obviously knew nothing, but was the key to discovering her lifestyle. When they made a complete search of the house, the police discovered that she had her own private BDSM dungeon in her basement.
The photos of the place revealed the exact nature of this very twisted and perverted woman. She had all kinds of torture devices. Her closets revealed only black clothing including a wardrobe of black leather than looked like something out of a comic book. It made me sick. I hate to even imagine the kind of abuse that he suffered at her hands.
Carrick and I discussed the matter, unbeknownst to Christian of course. While we both knew of the fact that she had collared him while he was still underage, neither of us had done too much research into the lifestyle. It made both of us sick to think of what our son must have gone through during his teenage years. It became obvious to Carrick why he had had no normal dating with young women his own age. This woman had very nearly ruined him for any kind of loving relationship with any young woman.
The rest of the Greys had learned that Christian had had an "affair" with Mrs. Lincoln during those early years, however none of them knew the true nature. When he was questioned, her ex-husband absolutely denied any knowledge of her alternative lifestyle.
Luckily, Grace took this to mean that she didn't start all of that nonsense until after she had finished with Christian. She is a very smart lady, but it is easier for her to remain in denial. Carrick and I have agreed that it is absolutely necessary that she stay that way. Other than Carrick, I have never breathed a word of this to anyone, not even to Melissa. There is no benefit and it will only cause great heartache to anyone who has ever known and loved Christian.
Linc Lincoln is quite a smooth piece of work himself. The police have interviewed him a couple of times. Despite the fact that he hated her like poison, there was no reason to suspect that after all these years and for no reason at all, he would suddenly decide o bump her off. However, recently his company was broken up in a hostile takeover by Grey Enterprises. While that would make him hate Christian, whom he already disliked, it gave him no motive to kill Elena.
That is until the most recent revelation. Mrs. Lincoln left no will. She had always told Linc that she had no family at all. When they had married in Las Vegas, she had a birth certificate from Los Angeles, but her parents' first names were very common, as was her last name, Martin. When as her former business partner, Christian had recommended that she make a will, if only to disperse money to her various charities, she had only said that she would think about it.
Considering that Christian had recently gifted the entire salon business to her, which is an extremely lucrative business, she is worth quite a large sum of money. Her lawyers have been looking for and blood relatives, but so far have come up empty. Several days ago, they disclosed this information to the press, hoping that someone would come forward. There is a catch however.
Anyone who claims to be a blood relative to Elena Lincoln must prove it by undergoing a DNA test. So far, there have been no takers. There is only one other person who is eligible to inherit, her ex-husband Linc. There is an interesting little clause that was hidden in the divorce decree. If one of them fails to marry and pre-deceases the other, the other gets everything, unless there is another blood relative to inherit. Carrick thinks that this was added to cover any children, legitimate or illegitimate of the deceased.
Since Linc knew that Elena had no children and intended to have no children and that she had claimed to have no family, this clause was primarily for his benefit. On the other hand, it is entirely possible that he has an illegitimate child somewhere or that he might still have one. It is quite interesting that neither ex-spouse married. But that may also have been an unspoken agreement they had when they divorced. There is no way to know now, as Linc will never tell.
However, knowing this, it would have given Linc a very solid motive for killing her. How he would have gotten the money to hire the hit is still a mystery. Hit men are not known for accepting IOUs. In their desperation, the police even questioned Christian's younger sister, Mia.
We met Mia once and she was rather coldly polite to us. Having met her, it is impossible to think that the girl was capable or either killing Elena or putting out a hit on her. She is one of the flightiest young women that I have ever met. And she is more immature than my oldest daughter, Sarah, who will be fifteen in a couple of months. Carrick told me that he thought that the cops were throwing a bone to the press.
While he was not pleased to see his daughter used in this way, he was glad that it happened because it gave her a wake up call. He and Grace had spoiled her dreadfully, and compared with Ana and Kate, who are both the same age, she is extremely childish and highly impulsive. He is hopeful that she will settle into her college career and find some direction for her life.
Christian and Ana have moved to the new house and are very comfortable there. They had taken us over to see it before Christmas, at which point all of the renovations were complete and they were busy bringing in the furniture. Ana has furnished it in a simple Mediterranean style, full of sunshine and light. Christian has promised that in the spring, they will invite us for a long weekend and then he can keep his promise to the girls to take them out on his boat.
Ana has even furnished one of the guest rooms with three beds for the girls. She is very thoughtful that way. In addition to making a nursery for the baby, she has also made one of the guest rooms into a bedroom for her father for when he comes to visit. It is obvious that she cares for him very much and is looking forward to seeing more of him.
An interesting dynamic has evolved between Carrick and myself. We have begun to refer to Christian as "our son." We are both determined to take care of him and make sure that everything goes smoothly for him now that he is finally settling into a normal family. It is everything that Carrick has ever wanted for his son, and certainly what's would have wanted for him, had I raised him. Looking back at all of the sorrow and anguish that they have felt over the years for that very damaged little boy whom they adopted, I would never begrudge them the right to be called Mother and Father by him.
I often think back to those days after high school, when if I had known about him, perhaps Ella and I could have married and raised him ourselves. I could have saved both of them from that wretched life that she fell into. But what would have happened to my college career? Could I have really supported them? Ella and I were both so young. Would we have been able to sustain the kind of love needed to make a marriage successful?
Then, I think back to that time after college when, if I had known of his existence, I would have taken him then. But would that have been the best thing for Christian? Could I have provided the love and support that he needed as a special needs child all by myself? Was I ready for any kind of parenting at that point in my life? Would I have made his problems even worse?
And I have seen for myself, that despite his terrible years as a young child and then the awful treatment that he received at the hands of that woman, Grace and Carrick were the ones who were best suited for raising him. I am simply grateful that now he is allowing me to share a small piece of his life. I would do anything for him to keep him safe.
Perhaps I failed him when he was a small child, but I shall not do so forward
I suppose that I am lucky that we share so many common interests and have grown into similar types of men. I am hopeful that we can develop a friendship that will not interfere with his relationship with his adoptive family. Our wives are certainly friends and I believe that the girls will come to like him as my friend rather than my son.
I am looking forward to the trip to Aspen and hope that in the future I will be able to reciprocate with a trip to Tahoe. I am just hoping that this situation with Elena Lincoln's murder will resolve itself so that we can all move on with our lives.
Do you want the story to resolve before or after Aspen and Las Vegas trips? Feedback please.