Chapter 9:
"He broke, Ana. That little bastard broke and is spilling the beans…."
I look at my second in command with confusion. "Who broke?"
"Jack Hyde, the other one who had Trista's profile on the dark web. We have the whole bunch now. Elena Lincoln, her ex, and her step-son, Robert, Jr. The whoe fuckin' bunch is going down as we speak."
"How? When?" I asked as glee and hope sprouted in my heart. Trista will finally be safe if we can round up this crew of deviates.
"Last night, Hyde started talking. He ratted out the whole bunch."
"Wait a minute, Hyde is in on this also. He was one of the men at the "boy's night out".
"Yes, I know. He was working with the Feds to save his own ass…. not that it will do him any good. He is looking at 20 to 25 for rape and attempted rape."
"Who in the hell is Jack Hyde?" Christian asked bewildered.
"He works for Lincoln, Sr. or he did. He was arrested for attempted rape of his assistant." Ross answered. "He knows everything about the Lincolns, and he gave them up." Ross was nearly giddy as he danced about in joy. "You know what this means, Ana? Your daughter is safe now. The whole ring is going down. We did it."
I leaned against my desk. "Thank the fuck!" I wiped tears from my eyes. My daughter, my precious niece, was safe! Maybe, life would go back to normal now. "And, what about Lincoln, Jr.? Has he confessed?"
"He started singing when he learned about Hyde." Ross looked down at his watch. "Lincoln, Sr. is probably being detained as we speak for his crimes against humanity and his bitch ex-wife is having even more charges pressed against her. Their criminal organization is being dismantled as we speak." He gave a gleaming smile. "Jr. also admitted to killing Rory. He gave her the 'hot shot' that killed her and he and his father are also being charged with tampering with evidence. He is looking at life in prison instead of the death penalty for murder since he confessed."
I couldn't help it, but I began to cry. Tears of joy and relief rolled my face. Trista was safe! My sister's murderer will be brought to justice! "Oh, god…all these months of worry, it is finally over." Ross is holding me as the tears fell. "It's finally over!"
"Just the sentencing." Ross offered. "I am confident that they all will be prosecuted to the fullest degree of the law." He stepped back and looked me in the eye. "Ana, it's done. We and the Feds did it. We brought down one of the largest black market human traffickers in the world."
A part of me is almost sad that I didn't have a chance to bring them down myself. I wanted so much to have the chance to physically give these bastards a bit of my own justice. Personally, I wanted to line them up and slowly torture them for all the lives that they had ruined through the years. I know it is wrong, but they killed my beloved sister and they put my child in danger. As a mother, I wanted revenge in the worst sort of way. I already had plans to take these assholes out one at a time if the legal system failed me. Now, I can sit back and watch with clean hands. Of course, I still have plans…by the end of the day, Lincoln Timber and Industries will be under my command. I had already set in motion the hostile buyout of Robert Lincoln, Sr.'s assets. I even managed to get the part that GEH had in their stock portfolio. As of now, Lincoln didn't have a pot to piss in nor any means to bail himself, his son, or anyone else out of jail or even get decent legal representation. I already hacked into his overseas accounts and hijacked his assets and money. The Lincoln's had nothing!
"Does this mean that I am no longer under suspicion?" Grey asked softly.
"I guess it does." Ross answered lowly. "However, don't leave town. I am sure your name will come up and you will be questioned by the authorities."
"As for SSE, we no longer have reason to believe that you were involved in these heinous crimes." I added. "But I said earlier, I can no longer protect you if more evidence arises or if Elena Lincoln outs you as a sexual dominant."
The next few weeks, I decided to take time off and be with Trista. We left town and lived out every child's dream of Disney World and Disney Land. I don't know how much she will remember, but we have photos and I have memories of her laughter and glee. We returned home to find that the Lincoln's were scheduled for their court hearings and all three were pleading not guilty. It looked like a long, drawn-out process that was going to cost the taxpayers a great deal of money. Jack Hyde pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 25 years with no possibility of parole. The women of Seattle were at least safe from this one sexual offender. I will sleep better at night knowing this.
Christian POV
I heard through the grapevine that Ana and Trista had returned home from their vacation. Ever since the Lincoln's sex trafficking ring was exposed and brought down, I have been living on the edge just waiting for Elena Lincoln or Robert Lincoln to finger me or to out me and my lifestyle. It bothered me so much that Jason Taylor and I spent a weekend tearing out my very expensive playroom. I have no idea what Taylor did with the items, but he assured me that will never be found. I also have the support of my shrink, John Flynn. We speak two or three times a day on our phones, and I see him twice a week.
Under the influence of my shrink's advice, it was time to come clean to my parents about my history with Elena Lincoln. To say that they didn't take the truth well is an understatement. My mother sobbed and my father had tears in his eyes as he gave her comfort. I wanted to reach out to them, but my fear of touch kept me from doing so. I stood to leave but my mother threw herself at me.
"I am so sorry that I didn't see what was going on. Please forgive me." She cried into my chest. I could barely breathe as her body held tight to mine. I felt like my chest was on fire.
"It's alright, Mom. It is me who needs forgiveness for not trusting you and Dad. I am sorry that I am not the son that you both deserve." I stepped away from her. My heart is racing. "I understand if you don't ever want to see me again, but always know, I have always loved you and Dad. I just couldn't demonstrate it."
"Christian Trevelyn Grey." My father's authoritative voice rang out. "I will tell you once and only once that you are our son, and we are damn proud of you. You can't just bow out of our lives; life does not work like that." He stepped forward looking up and down at me. "You are and will always be our son. That is the cold hard truth. You, my boy, can take that to the bank!"
Even though I am a grown man that owns billions, I fell apart in my father's embrace. For the first time in my life, my dad is holding me, giving me the comfort that I so dearly needed. He is the rock that my life has been searching for and I must laugh because it was always within my grasp. I was just too blind to see it.
After the tears dried up, Dad fixed us all some drinks and we sat in his study.
"Christian, is there more to this story." Grace asked as she twirled her gin and tonic in her glass.
"There is, but I don't know how to tell it."
"Just say it, son." My father declared.
"Okay, the girl that was murdered by Lincoln, Jr. was my submissive for a while. She had a child and I learned that this child is mine. She never told me…well, she never could tell me because once I terminate a contract with a submissive, they are never to contact me again."
"We have a grandchild?" My mother's voice was full of joy. "When can we meet her or him?"
I drained my shot of whiskey for courage. "That could be difficult. Aurora's sister has sole custody of the child, and she wants nothing to do with me."
"Carrick, can't Christian sue for his parental rights?"
"Grace, I can't give any legal advice until I hear all the details."
"Aurora's sister is Anastasia Steele, ex-FBI agent and owner of Steele Securities Experts. It was Miss Steele and her associates that brought down the Lincoln Sex Ring. She doesn't have a very high opinion of me." I went to the bar and poured another stiff drink. "When she confronted me with all this information, I denied even knowing Aurora and Miss Steele saw through all my bullshit. She even protected me by clearing out all evidence that I was ever in the lifestyle with Elena."
Carrick was impressed knowing that Agent Steele could be brought up on many charges, but she took the chance to protect Christian and their child. "The first question to be answered is do you want a relationship with your child?"
"Her name is Trista Rose Steele." I drained another shot of whiskey. "I've never seen her nor met her." My parents are silent, and I know once again I have disappointed them. I look up at them and mother is gently smiling at me. "What?"
"Christian, don't you think it's time for you to meet your daughter?"
"Mom, she's not mine anymore or never was. Rory never named me as the father on the birth certificate and when Anastasia adopted Trista, she never named me either."
"But, she has DNA proof, correct?" I nodded to answer his question. "So, once again, Christian, do you want a relationship with your daughter or not?"
"I don't know. I don't think I would be a good father. I'm so fucked up. What good would I be to any child?"