AN: A little Thank You Thanksgiving treat to all my US readers (I'm a little early but I'm not sure when I'll get another chance to post this week) - here is a longer than usual update!
To my dear reader, Sylvia Elaine: So sorry I haven't done a great job with introducing Johnnie Rosco, Francis (aka "Sid") Callahan into this story. If you would like to read back to where I first mentioned them in the investigation, they appeared by name in Chapter 15 and 19, along with their accomplice Dermott Wakeley who was questioned and released. These guys were responsible for roughing up Whitney a little, further back in the story. I hope this chapter will provide some more clues as to who they are and how they are involved with the Holdens. Thank you, as always, for your kind comments and feedback!
"Amanda England" - What a terrific idea to have some Christmas themed stories out there! I'll see what I can do help make that happen ;-) As for signing up to be a member, there should be a "sign up" option somewhere maybe at the top of the page on the right hand side when you get to this site? I'm signed in mostly so I'm not able to tell where that option is right now. Try the home page and see if you can find it. You may not be able to sign up if you are using a mobile (cell) phone to view the site. Let me know how you go. I'll try to help if I can. You'll need an email address to link to your account which you'll use to sign in, along with a password that you create. Good luck!
"Meixel" - Welcome back! Hope things will settle soon for you ox
Tanith
Chapter 34
George Holden paced the floor in front of the two burley men in his private office.
"She hasn't been home since we roughed up her husband," one of the men said. "I don't reckon he'll make it."
"And the little girl?" George prodded.
"She's with her mother."
"Gentlemen, I have a deadline which means so do you! Now, I don't think I need to remind you what happened to the last people who failed in getting the job done so get out there and bring me the brat!" Holden ordered. "Mrs. Lee had better be smarter than that husband of hers if she wants to see her child back in one piece. I'm running out of patience."
"Yes, sir," the two men said obediently.
George waved his hand dismissively. When the two heavy set men left, he poured himself some scotch and took an indulgent sip. Over the years, the pressure of being a successful businessman had mounted to overwhelming proportions. To stay in the game and survive meant that he had to be ruthless and play smart. It was something his son and heir had yet to learn. So many times, he had to clean up after the boy's mess and it was becoming tiresome. Whitney's heart and lack of a back bone, as Holden senior called it, was a weakness that he felt would bring about their down fall if it wasn't squashed out of him. His son's dealings with petty criminals had led to a blackmailing scheme that cost the company money and time – neither of which they could afford to spend. He needed to learn that getting the job done right the first time required him to pay the right people to do it. Whitney's problem was that he was too afraid. His conscience was getting in the way of the bigger picture just like when he had hired those street bums, Rosco, Callahan and Wakeley to persuade the Lees and their neighbours to sell their property and businesses. Obviously, they didn't have what it took to be persuasive enough to get the job done. Sure they got a few people scared but their tactics wasn't enough to guarantee optimum results. And how dare they blackmail his son? They obviously had no idea who they were dealing with. Nevertheless, he made sure they weren't going to squeeze any more money out of the Holden name. With Rosco and Callahan out of the way, he just needed to take care of Wakeley.
When Whitney reappeared from the bathroom, he found Jeannie sitting on the edge of the bed with a box on her lap and an expectant expression on her face. "What is this, Whitney?" she questioned apprehensively.
Whitney's face fell as he struggled to come up with an explanation that his beloved would accept. "After what happened recently, I took up self-defence classes and..."
"You never mentioned to me that you were getting a gun and…and these..." Jeannie said, holding up the brass knuckles in one hand and the knife in the other.
"Princess, I did it for you! I wanted to make sure you felt safe when you moved in. To feel that I could protect you." Whitney sat down beside Jeannie, removing the box from her lap and gently taking the weapons from her clutches.
"Don't you think we should have talked about this first?" Jeannie frowned. She tried to sound neutral but she couldn't erase Steve's words from her mind. He had only just told her somebody attacked him with brass knuckles. She hated thinking about the coincidence that stared her in the face. It just felt so wrong and the worst part was that it made perfect sense.
"I know I should have and I'm sorry." Whitney placed his hands over Jeannie's but she quickly withdrew hers, and in an obvious act of putting some distance between them, she stood up then starting pacing in front of him.
"Steve was attacked by someone who wore brass knuckles," Jeannie stated. Her voice held an edge to it that she barely recognized. No, it can't be! Whitney would never do something like this. Her attempts to fill her conscience with excuses was beginning to sound like a broken record.
"So, you think I was the one who beat the crap out of him, do you? Just because I happen to have these." Whitney held up the weapon before throwing it into the box.
Jeannie stopped pacing and stood directly in front of her fiancé with her arms crossed. "What were you two fighting about today?"
"You're asking me now? Does it really matter?" Whitney threw his arms up in frustration.
"Yes, it matters to me!" Jeannie's eyes flashed angrily.
Whitney rolled his eyes and rubbed the back of his neck uncomfortably. He drew in a deep breath. "Look, I'm sorry I didn't tell you about the gun or the brass knuckles, but I didn't rough up your friend. I mean, that is all Steve is to you, right? A friend?"
"Of course! Did you even have to ask?"
Whitney shrugged his shoulders innocently. "I don't know, you tell me, because you're treating me like the jealous boyfriend."
"Then what was the fight about?" Jeannie demanded.
"If you really must know, it was about you but not in the way you think. Steve is jealous of our relationship. He was the one throwing the punches and I'm not just talking about the physical ones, okay? That guy has serious issues and clearly has had the hot's for you for a long time!"
"No, not Steve. I'm having a really hard time believing he'd provoke anybody into a fight. I've known him a long time and so has my dad. This is not Steve!" Jeannie said defensively, shaking her head.
"Yeah, well, we've known each other longer than that, yet I'm the one being questioned!" Whitney shot back. "Why is that?"
Jeannie sighed heavily and looked at Whitney in disbelief. "Whitney, I'm not questioning you. I just want you to be honest with me. Is that too much to ask?"
"I told you what happened!" Whitney snapped. "Steve started saying all these dirty things about you. I wasn't about to take that from nobody! I don't care who you think he is or was but no one talks that way about my girl! I told him to shut his mouth. That's when he took a swing at me." Lowering his voice, he continued, "Look, I don't know, maybe he didn't mean every word he said, but what I do know is I love you Jeannie Stone and I wasn't about to just listen to someone saying things about you that aren't true." Whitney stood up and placed his hands on either side of Jeannie's arms. "Look, Princess, I'm really sorry I didn't talk to you about the precautions I've taken to keep us safe but I swear to you, I had nothing to do with the attack on Steve. The only thing I'm guilty of is loving you and if that's a crime then so be it."
Jeannie cast her eyes downward, unable to look Whitney in the eye as she digested what he had said about Steve. She refused to believe Steve would say anything unkind about her but that didn't necessarily mean Steve was completely innocent of provoking Whitney. It could be that Whitney had taken Steve's words out of context. Whatever the case may be, she needed some space to think things through and re-evaluate her relationship with Whitney. "I need some time to process everything that's been happening."
"Sure, whatever you say." Whitney kissed the top of Jeannie's head and was about to hug her but once again she pulled away.
Jeannie looked up into Whitney's eyes and with a heaviness in her heart, she said, "Whitney, I need some space. A break. From us."
Whitney's eyes misted over as he realized what Jeannie was trying to say. Like a punch to the gut, he felt all the air sucked out of him but it wasn't long before the stabbing pain in his heart morphed into suppressed rage. He took several deep breaths to calm himself. "Oh. I...uh... I understand. I just..." Several seconds ticked by in slow motion before he managed to say in a disembodied voice, "I'm sorry things turned out the way it did."
"So am I. Look, let me fix you that soup that I promised and then I'll give my dad a call to pick me up," Jeannie said sadly. She looked down at the sparkling gem on her finger, her eyes began to blur from the tears that welled up. Swallowing hard, she started to work the ring free from around her finger when Whitney stopped her.
"Why don't you leave that where it belongs? At least until we make a final decision. Please?"
"Okay," Jeannie said with a sniff. She turned away from Whitney so he wouldn't see the tears roll down her face. "I better make a start on that soup."
Jeannie left Whitney standing in his room and hurried downstairs. She had forgotten where the kitchen was but knew if she tried to ask Whitney for a reminder she was likely to lose her composure entirely. The last thing she wanted was to break down in front of him.
Whitney picked up the box from the bed and stared at its contents. How stupid of him not to have found a better hiding spot? But then again, how did Jeannie find it in the first place? He had stashed it on the top shelf of his closet, well out of reach of anyone who had her height. Was she snooping? Women! He thought bitterly. Whatever had prompted the unfortunate discovery was not important right now. What he needed to do was to somehow make Jeannie see she was wrong about him. He couldn't lose her. An image of Jeannie running into Steve's arms at the alter appeared in his mind. Jealousy bubbled through his gut like poison. This was all Keller's fault. If it weren't for him Jeannie would not be so hesitant in defying all the rules her father had laid down. There was something going on between them, he was sure of it! Every time when things were just going so well, Steve would somehow ruin it! The mere mention of his name was beginning to make his skin crawl.
Whitney replaced the lid on the box and returned it to where it belonged, on the top shelf of his closet. He then walked over to a narrow book shelf and pulled out a thick volume titled, "Managing Your Business". It was definitely not something a woman would be interested in reading, he thought darkly. At least Jeannie was not likely to be sticking her nose in his literary collection. In the centre of the book, he had cut a section out to form a space big enough to fit a small bottle. Removing the bottle from where it was nestled snuggly, he gave it a little shake. Tiny bubbles floated to the surface of the colourless liquid inside the phial. He had never used the substance on anyone before but he had a feeling that his father had. After all, he had taken it from his father's library and it wasn't the only item of interest he'd seen the old man stash away. He was, however, well aware of what it would do.
One way or another, Jeannie was going to remain at his side. He thought about all the women he'd been with since graduating high school. They all shared one thing in common: money. Every single one of them was after his fortune and they were willing to sleep with him to get to his money. But not Jeannie. She was always out of his reach. And she was the only one who didn't care about the money. He was a fool for letting distance come between them before. A fool for sleeping with other girls since senior high when he should have known that Jeannie was the one for him.
He was not letting her go this time.
