CHAPTER 96
(ANA)
"So that's it then?" I ask as I look at the screen of the open laptop in front of me. Christian is sitting silently beside me holding my hand and Eva grins widely and Gideon who is sitting with her nods.
"It's over" Gideon says with an air of obvious relief, "It is finally over, I have rid myself of this dirty secret which has been like a millstone round my neck for years and I have shown the world exactly what Elizabeth is like and has always been like".
"How do you feel now?" Christian asks carefully.
Gideon smiles at him, "Liberated" he says simply. "There is nothing more that can come out now, every last dirty sordid detail of my life is out there, Elizabeth has been punished and what she does now is no concern of mine. I have my family, I have my extended family in Seattle and for the first time in my life I feel a sense of closure and peace".
We both smile at that, and the way he emphasises the word my isn't lost on any of us, the fact this once solitary man is revelling in the concept of having a family who care about and love him. Gideon really does look and sound different now, this has been the best thing that could happen and I am so happy for him.
"How are Ireland and Christopher?" I ask as Gideon's talk of family made me immediately think about them as Elizabeth is also their mom.
Gideon nods, "Good, they are still standing beside me and supporting me. Chris has tried to initiate contact with them but Ireland told him that if he wasn't prepared to treat me the same as them she wasn't interested. Needless to say that wasn't part of Chris's agenda. He threw a hissy fit over Vidal Records and I as the primary share holder stepped in and sorted it… and I must say what I did, I did with some satisfaction".
"What did you do?" Christian asks.
Gideon snorts, "I threatened to withdraw and demand my money back, Chris is not in a position to accommodate that and we both knew that if I exited the business it would fold. So he has signed over his share to Christopher and he has left the business and New York".
"Shit" I say in surprise.
Gideon shrugs, "It was the best thing for the business, despite our differences over the years, Christopher knew what he was doing with Vidal Records but he had his hands tied, Chris wouldn't let him implement the ideas he had to expand and I'd go as far as saying Chris was responsible for it getting into difficulty in the first place which necessitated my bail out. I essentially carried Vidal Records for a number of years, ironically so that Ireland and Christopher would get the inheritance that they believed I had stolen when I took over. Therefore I refused to get involved and just tried to keep it afloat as Christopher and I didn't have the best relationship so it was debateable whether he would listen to me either, but now we are on the same page and we are building the company and I foresee great things.".
"Where has Chris gone?" Christian asks.
Gideon shrugs again, "Don't know and don't care. As far as I know he has family in the Chicago area so I am assuming he may have gone there. Christopher and Ireland don't know where he is either, but to be honest it is no great loss for any of us. Victor and Angus have stepped up and embraced Ireland and Christopher so they have two father figures in their lives who they know that they can count on should the need arise and they both know that they can rely on me now".
"What about Ryan?" I ask.
"He's good, he's biding his time and hopefully as soon as he becomes eligible for parole it will be granted. It won't be for a while, he got five years imprisonment so I'm guessing it will be in about 18 months or so that he will become eligible for parole. We are working hard with Caroline though and I visit him three times a week. I also know Ireland and Christopher visit him and I believe that Christopher has already made the offer for him to stay with them when the time comes for him to be released until he can get himself on his feet again".
"Are you going to help him out when he is released?" Christian asks.
Gideon pauses and then nods, "I am" he says simply. "But enough about me, how is everyone in Seattle?"
"We are all good, El and Meg are coming for dinner tonight. They are going for their first scan today, I'm surprised they haven't called to be honest, but they are probably waiting until tonight to talk about it. Things are really going well with the therapy with Grace and Carrick, El said he really feels that significant progress has been made and he is working out all that resentment he has felt since he was a kid and he said he feels to be in a far better place now. Mia has been commissioned to organise the wedding of the Mayor's daughter, so that is huge for her and we are all so proud of her". I pause as I try and remember what else I need to say.
"Have you heard anything from Kate?" Eva asks and I shake my head.
"No, not a peep. I don't know if she saw the interview or not but nobody has heard or seen anything of her since it aired. So I am looking at it as a good thing, no news is good news and all that".
"But you're still waiting for the other shoe to drop" Eva says with a grin.
"Where Kate is concerned I think I always will be" I admit.
As Christian leans forward to say something the door opens and Taylor appears.
"Mr and Mrs Grey have arrived" he says simply.
"El and Meg are here" I say brightly and I see Eva's face light up at that news.
A moment later I hear voices and Ava comes running in, she runs to us and flings herself at Christian squealing his name and as she turns to me she spots Eva and Gideon.
"AUNTY EVA, UNCLE GIDEON" she shrieks and waves wildly at the screen.
"Hey Ava how are you?" Eva calls as they both wave back.
"Mommy and daddy are having two babies" she says and we are all stunned into silence at that news.
"Well thanks for announcing that baby girl" Elliot says as he appears gripping Meg's hand. "Hi guys" he adds as he greets Christian and I before peering at the laptop and giving Eva and Gideon a small salute.
Meg waves at Eva and says hello.
"Two babies?" Eva asks and Meg nods.
"Twins" she says. "That accounts for why I am starting to show so soon. El first noticed a slight bump when we were all in the pool here and I thought it was too soon for me to be showing as I'm not that far along but that's the reason".
"Identical?" Gideon asks.
Elliot shakes his head, "No fraternal, there are two placentas so they won't be identical, and there is the possibility that they could be different sex as well".
"Are you pleased?" Eva asks and Elliot grins and nods his head adamantly.
"I'm totally ecstatic, it's brilliant" he says as he wraps his arm around Meg and pulling her close presses a kiss to her temple. She responds by leaning into him and laying her head against his shoulder.
"What about you Meg?" Eva asks.
"I'm overjoyed, it was a bit of a shock at first but I'm so happy" she says her eyes shining and she is radiating complete joy at this news.
"Have you told mom?" Christian asks and Elliot nods.
"Yeah, we called in on our way here. Mom was watching Ava for us, and so we told them when we went to collect her".
"Has Rachel not returned yet?" Eva asks.
Elliot nods, "Yeah she's back, but today was her day off" he explains. "She will be wanting a raise, now. She doesn't actually do that much now Kate has gone which sounds ridiculous really. But Meg and I share a lot of the childcare so Rachel doesn't put in the hours she used to when Kate basically let her raise Ava" he adds.
We all talk a while longer and congratulations and best wishes are exchanged and soon Gail pops her head around the door to tell us that dinner is ready. Reluctantly we close the Skype session with New York and say our goodbyes with the promise to see each other again in person soon.
As we are moving to the dining room Christian's phone starts ringing and so does Elliot's.
"Brilliant timing" I mutter as I roll my eyes.
"Sorry baby" Christian says, "It's Mia" he adds.
"It's Lucy" Elliot says as he looks at his phone.
Meg and I take our seats as Christian and Elliot both take the calls. We watch as they both lose all colour from their faces and Meg reaches for my hand.
"What is it?" I ask as I look from Elliot to Christian and back again.
"Ok Mia, don't panic – I'm guessing that is why Lucy is calling El at the moment but don't worry about this and thank you for letting me know" Christian says in his clipped CEO tone.
He talks to her for a few more moments before ending the call, and then he turns to look at El who sounds as though he is talking Lucy down off the ledge. When he ends the call the two brothers look at each other and its as if a silent conversation is going on between them.
"What's going on?" I ask.
"El, what's happened?" Meg asks at the same time.
"Kate" both Christian and Elliot say in unison.
"Oh for fucks sake" I mutter under my breath and then quickly look round to see where Ava is. Thankfully she is unaware of what I said and I turn my attention back to Christian and Elliot.
"It appears that Kate has secured an interview with Jen and is looking to dig the dirt on Sadie" Elliot says bitterly.
"You have to stop her" I say immediately as I look at Christian.
"Who instigated that?" Meg asks.
We look at her in confusion, "Does it matter?" Christian asks.
Meg nods, "Yeah, it does… we know that Jen keeps trying to cause trouble for Sadie and keeps trying to contact her after everything that happened and heap the blame of what she did on to her mom so if she instigated the meeting with Kate the angle is going to be totally different than if Kate sought her out. Neither of them will be positive but it will be a totally different angle, if it was Kate the negativity will be focussed on you because you are her link whereas for Jen the negativity will be focussed on Sadie as she blames her for what has happened to her".
Elliot nods, "I see what you are saying baby, and you're right" he turns to Christian, "How can we find out?" he asks.
Christian shrugs, "I have no idea to be honest, I'll get Welch and Taylor on it though, to see if they can come up with anything and I might call Gideon and see if Angus and Raul can dig anything up" he says as he is rapidly texting someone.
Elliot thinks for a moment and then sitting down makes a call. I watch him as he waits and then when he speaks its obvious he is calling Carrick.
"Dad… have you heard?" he asks simply. Carrick is obviously answering him and I see relief appear on his face. "Good, thanks dad" he says simply. After another pause he looks up, "Yeah we are with Christian and Ana now, Mia just called Christian and Lucy called me. I think Christian is going to enlist Gideon's help as well so Arash might be calling you if Angus and Raul can find out what's happening as he helped with Sadie previously… yeah I know, we are wondering who made the first move as Meg pointed out whoever made the move will determine how much of a car crash this is going to be and who the main focus of the negativity will be. Personally I hope it was Kate as then the focus will be me and Sadie doesn't deserve any more crap thrown at her she's been through enough… yeah… I will… thanks dad… alright… bye dad".
He hangs up and smiles at us, "Dad knows - Mia told him before she called Christian and he is going to speak to Sadie to see what she wants to do".
I think for a moment and then I reach for my own phone, and call Eva as an idea just popped into my head. She answers quickly with a bright greeting.
"Well hello again!" she says and I smile.
"Hi Eva, the other shoe has dropped" I say simply.
"What? Do you mean Kate?" she asks her tone now serious.
"The one and only" I say bitterly, "Christian is calling Gideon to see if Angus and Raul can help, but apparently Kate has been talking to Jen – Sadie's daughter and we all know how Jen feels so whatever is said won't be good. If she has already spoken to her, we won't be able to stop it like we did on the previous occasions so I think this will be a case of damage limitation, I wanted to give you a heads up about it as you are brilliant with PR and if anyone can shut this down it is you".
"Ok, leave it with me and I'll see what I can come up with. Jen must be desperate for money or something. She left the police before she was pushed and so everything that we had on her was hushed up. What we do have is damning though and paints her to be a lying narcissistic bitch who stops at nothing to get what she wants something which we know for a fact is accurate so my instinct on this is to leak what we have to the media first to discredit her… then there is the video footage of Kate which we were holding as plan b back when she started playing games just after El threw her out. So, what we need to find out is who instigated this meeting therefore who we destroy first!"
I smile at Eva's ruthless thought process. "I think that is what Christian is calling Gideon about, as we had much the same thought and we need to know who we need to take aim at. I don't think we can stop it as I believe they have met but I could be wrong on that".
"Ok sis, don't worry leave it with me I'll talk to Gideon and my dad and see if he can reach out to those police officers who helped us out before and see what we can come up with".
"Thanks Eva" I reply gratefully.
A short while later all the calls have been made and we are sitting eating, there is nothing more we can do now, the family is aware of what is happening and everything possible is being done to find out more information to see where this goes next. A sudden thought hits me and I look up at Elliot.
"Eamon" I say and Elliot pauses his fork suspended in mid air.
"Is Eamon aware? With his media contacts he could help" I say.
Elliot nods, "Way ahead of you sis, I have sent him a message and he is looking into it" he pushes the fork into his mouth and carries on eating.
"Oh ok" I say.
"Don't worry about this baby, everything possible is being done" Christian says looking at me with obvious concern.
I shake my head, "I'm not worried, I'm just still thinking of every possible angle as to how we can stop this" I say.
Christian shakes his head, "I don't believe we can stop it if Kate and Jen have already talked. What we can do is throw everything we have got at it in the form of damage limitation to discredit them and show them for what they are. But we will know more when we manage to get more information".
"How did Lucy find out what was happening?" Meg asks suddenly.
Elliot sighs, "Jen called her and basically told her what she was doing. That is what she does now, Lucy has blocked her from calling Sadie so she calls her instead just to hurl abuse, threaten and heap blame on her".
"She was so brave, she amassed all that evidence and came up with that plan to get Sadie out of that life she was living. I don't think Jen has forgiven her for getting one over on her and coming up with the plan which set everything in motion. She took a huge risk knowing that if it didn't work they would be in a worse situation, and they are so happy and settled now… it makes me so angry" Meg says.
Elliot reaches over and squeezes Meg's hand, "Don't get upset Meg, it's not good for you or the babies, I promise you they won't get away with this" he says gently.
Meg nods, "Sorry, it just hits a bit of a nerve that's all" she says.
Elliot nods, "I know baby, I know".
"Lucy is a smart girl, if we ask her to record any further conversations she has with Jen that could help" I say as I recall how our recording of Kate's words brought her down.
Both Elliot and Christian look up at that comment and then at each other. Elliot immediately reaches for his phone and placing the call on speaker calls Lucy.
"Hello" the quiet sweet voice comes across the line and fills the room.
"Hey sis how are you doing now? Just to let you know everyone is on board with this and the entire family are in action doing what they can in the form of damage limitation… just one thing, Ana suggested that if Jen calls you and starts with you, can you record it as evidence?" Elliot says.
"I've already been doing that, since I blocked her from calling mom and she turned her attention to me. Every time she calls me I record it and I have got reams and reams of screen shots of the abusive text messages she sends me… do you think it would help?"
We all smile at this, "Clever girl" Christian mutters with obvious admiration.
"Lucy you are unbelievable" Elliot says, "I am in awe of you, yes it will definitely help and it will also give us an angle as if we can get dad to put in motion charges against her for harassment with the obvious evidence you have collected; along with everything we have from when you guys came to Seattle, we can hopefully shoot Jen out of the water". Elliot pauses and its as if we all have the same thought at the same time.
"Ask her if she knows who instigated the meeting" Meg says.
"Does she know who instigated it?" I say at the same time and I look at Meg and we both giggle.
"Luce did Jen give you any details about who instigated the interview with Kate… did she approach Kate or did Kate approach Jen?" he asks.
"Oh she was crowing that she had looked into you Elliot and discovered about Kate and who she was and she openly told me that she looked her up and made the first move. She also said that Kate was delighted to hear from her and told her how badly she had been treated by the Grey family. She basically made it sound like between them they were going to try and destroy everyone… but I have it all recorded".
There is a stunned silence at that, and then Christian leaps into action.
I am just astounded that the information we needed was right there. I lean forward, "Lucy this is Ana if you could gather together everything you have that would be great".
"Hello Ana, and yes I will," she pauses and sighs. "She needs to be stopped as it's getting stupid now the way she is behaving and I won't allow her to try and destroy you guys after everything you have done for us".
"Why didn't you tell us things were so bad Lucy?" Christian asks.
"Is that you Christian?" Lucy asks.
"Yes it is I apologise, you are on speaker so we can all hear you" Christian says.
"Oh ok, well I didn't say anything because… well mom didn't want me to say anything. She still believes that because she settled so willingly and didn't press charges against dad after everything you guys, Mr Grey and Gideon's lawyer did that she had no right to complain about this… because the way she sees it she let you down after all the work you put in and she believes that you wouldn't want to bother helping her again because of it. I tried to tell her that wasn't the case, and I've also tried to tell her that something like this could possibly happen because Jen wasn't giving it up and was still harassing us… which is why I've been quietly gathering evidence as I feared Jen would probably do something big as she just hates to lose".
"Ok well don't worry any more if you could gather everything you've got and we will organise something where we can get everyone together and hash out a plan to put a stop to her once and for all" Elliot says and then tips his head, "…and Kate as well" he adds.
"I will, and thank you all for everything" Lucy says gratefully.
"No problem, and you have no need to thank us - you are family" Christian puts in with a firm finality.