In a police station in London, Rupert Mannion was cursing his ex-wife.
None of this would have happened if the bitch hadn't gotten pregnant and found the backbone he'd spent years ripping out of her.
Now he was trapped in a neat little corner and no matter which direction he looked, he couldn't get out.
The fucking NDA she had included in the parental termination papers stopped him from using the child against her. Then no matter where he looked there was no sign of her. For months she'd stayed hidden and as soon as she had the club she'd reappeared as though nothing had happened. First she'd put his spies at Richmond on notice, within days of her taking over the club the reports he was getting did not fill him with confidence. Everything she was doing pointed to her cleaning house and there was nothing he could do to stop it. Then she had the sheer audacity to call his leadership mediocre.
To the press!
He thought he had her, at the benefit but Rebecca hadn't risen to any of the bait he dangled.
She'd been coached and propped up by someone and while he had his suspicions, he couldn't prove anything.
He almost had his foot back in the door when he gave Bex the cash to buy the Milk sisters club shares but then the fucking Yank Gaffer came along and humiliated him at darts. He would have seen it coming if he hadn't been so focussed on punishing Rebecca. Looking back, Lasso's move was obvious.
Rupert wondered if Rebecca had only had only had to fuck him once to get Lasso onside.
Now though, he had a crown prosecutor breathing down his neck.
It was her own fault, why couldn't she just have cried like he expected or maybe yelled at him with tears in her eyes. That would have been beautiful, watching her crumble as he twisted the knife to rip her heart out but he was missing something critical in all of this.
Now he was stuck in London while some other fucker was trying to encroach on his turf. He had no idea what had gone down in Dieppe, all he knew was that the place had burned, costing him millions and his main entrypoint from the UK into the mainland.
With a deep sigh, he nodded at his solicitor. He needed the Crown and the Yard off his back.
"My client agrees to plead guilty to the lesser charge of common assault. He'll honour the non-molestation order set for 12 months from the date of the incident, and pay the fine. He gets to stay out of custody unless he breaches the non-molestation order."
Watching in the monitoring room, Sean McAllister grinned.
The start of the season was rapidly approaching and Nelson road was coming alive again.
With Rupert not allowed to approach her until the following April, Rebecca finally started to truly accept the freedom she now had to take Addy wherever she pleased.
Addy was a regular visitor at the club, coming with her at least twice a week, cheering the boys on from her office window.
With the return of the players came the return of the press and while Rebecca didn't hide Addy from them she tried to keep her away from any roving reporters.
Lloyd was the first member of the press to see the toddler. Addy was riding down the hall on Issac's shoulders. He did a double take at the little girl who was oddly familiar and when he asked the team captain about it he got an answer that confused him even more.
"I kicked the ball furthest bruv, so I got dibs."
Two days later Marcus spied her chasing Keeley down the hall away from the stairs to Rebecca's office..
But it was Ernie who saw Rebecca putting Addy into the back of her car that night. He wasn't quick enough to get a photo, so he staked out the car park early the next morning. He was disappointed when Rebecca arrived alone.
Taking out his phone he sends a message to a number that has given him a number of tips over the years, especially information on Rebecca Welton.
Is it possible your ex-wife has a child?
He doesn't get a reply.
Late the following afternoon Sarah follows the sounds of a child crying and watches as the mysterious Coach Beard carries a little girl towards the admin office. Rebecca meets them halfway and lets out an "oof" as the disconsolate toddler throws herself out of the coach's arms and into the owners.
"Mummy…."
Shrugging at the Coach, Rebecca swayed back and forth patting the little back and murmuring something Sarah couldn't hear.
Rebecca heads back up the stairs to her office and Sarah turns around to walk back to the press room, just in time to see Ernie pulling his phone out in a second attempt to get a photo. Knowing she'll pay for this move, Sarah steps between them and all he gets is a picture of her middle finger.
"We're sports reporters, we don't stalk babies" she scowls as she walks past him.
The first blurry photos are printed in the Sun two days later.
Rebecca refuses to leave her house for 3 days and it takes the combined efforts of Keeley, Ted, Beard, Sassy and Emily to draw her out again and even that isn't completely successful as she refuses to bring Addy out in public for another week.
Pouting professional football players do not move her to change her mind at all.
Logically, Rebecca knows it's only a matter of time before either an industrious reporter manages to track down what little public information there is or the whole thing dies down again.
With all this going on, it takes her a few days to notice strange things going on in the press room.
Two weeks after the photos are published she steps in there to watch Ted's press conference and finds it half empty. Of the main papers, only Trent and Sarah remain.
"Ted, quick question?" Trent raises his pen and stands at Ted's nod.
"When are you planning on letting our colleagues from other publications back into the press room?"
This was news to Rebecca, Leslie hadn't told her of any issues Ted had had with the press.
"Well Trent, the thing is, I'm a public figure, so is Coach Beard, the Boss and all our players. When we take a job like this, I like to think we enter into a social contract with you and the press and that is that our photos are gonna get taken and people are gonna write stories about us. Sometimes the stories aren't true and sometimes the photos are manipulated or just taken at the wrong time and sometimes you get it right, but that's the life of a public figure. But the boys came to me, more than a little bit upset because some of your colleagues have been writing untrue stories about someone we care about and others have published photos of an itty bitty baby girl who is not a public figure and without her mothers permission, they plastered her face all over the front page, imagine if someone printed pictures of your baby girl for the world to see without your permission. How would you feel? The boys asked for those organisations to be banned from the press room until they apologise to the Boss, so to answer your question Trent. They'll be allowed back in when a written apology is sitting on Rebecca Welton's desk."
Marcus is back in the press room the next day, within a week everyone but Ernie has been let back in.
No one really expected the Sun to be reasonable.
Sarah took a deep breath and knocked on the door frame. She had been working on this article for months but there was something about it that she hadn't been willing to share with anyone just yet. Not even her editor.
Instead, she was going straight to the subject. This could get her in hot water all around, but at this moment she didn't care. The subject of the article was too heavy and too sensitive for her to allow anyone but Rebecca to choose whether it was published or not.
"Sarah?" she didn't know why but it always surprised her that Rebecca knew her name.
"Ms Welton. Do you have a few minutes?"
"For the press? Never." Sarah doesn't take offence at the biting remark. Not when she's well aware what some others in her profession had put the woman through.
"I've given all the comments I'm going to give regarding the relegation" Rebecca warns "and I also can't comment on the case and I won't comment on anything regarding my private life."
"I know, I'm not here for that" Sarah sits in front of the desk and takes a deep breath and steels herself. Rebecca Welton was not someone you crossed.
"I'm not sure if you're aware but I occasionally freelance for a couple of the news sites. Sports related human interest and so on. When you first took over I was asked to do a piece on you, I wasn't given a deadline or topic. The editors over at HuffPost said they wanted something on the real Rebecca Welton not the woman the trash make her out to be. I told them I'd see what I could do. You're remarkably private and despite how often you're in the news you don't speak to the media about anything but the club so it took me a while to find an angle I was willing to look into."
Rebecca remained stony faced but didn't try to stop Sarah.
"Not long after you hired Ted, Ernie was being a cock and asked you about the latest woman to come forward with a story of sleeping with Mr Mannion during and after your marriage and you responded with something like 'I didn't know men could multitask' do you remember?"
"I do" Sarah gulped at the ice in Rebecca tone.
"Do you know what really stuck with me about that? Your anger, not at your former husband but at us, the press. It was a flash of rage that I don't think anyone else saw and if they did they assumed it was at him. But it wasn't, it was at us and I knew then where I wanted to start. I wanted to start with the press's culpability in hurting people. So I started digging, quietly, didn't get very far but I've been working on this piece ever since, it's evolved and changed over time but the essence of that question is still there. No one else has seen it or even knows I've written it. If you want it to disappear it will. I think you've earned that much." She reaches into her bag and pulls out what she had written and hands it over to Rebecca.
Over the last several weeks there has been much speculation around Rebecca Welton and the young child we have started to see with her around Nelson road. No comment has been made by any of the potentially involved parties so we have been left to wonder.
Many of my colleagues in the media have questioned the paternity of Welton's child given her approximate age; the current belief is that she was conceived at the tail end of her marriage to Rupert Mannion. So why has she been hidden all this time?
One part of the answer I believe lies with my profession. For a woman who was hounded and vilified by the media keeping a young child away from this is completely understandable but I have to question if there is more to this.
From all evidence we've been able to uncover, Rupert Mannion is not listed on the birth certificate, he does not pay any form of child support and has no relationship to speak of with the child. There are two conclusions we can draw from this. The first is he is not the father. The second is much more worrisome, that Welton purposely cut him out of their lives.
This thought festered for quite some time, as I tried to work out why someone would do this. What could cause one parent to completely cut the other out of their child's life?
Now there are going to be those that will bring out nightmare divorce stories where the relationship has become so toxic that children are used as bargaining tools and relationships with the other parent are sabotaged. Where parents can't put aside their animosity and use the child to hurt their former partner and these things do happen but that does not appear to be the case here.
Rupert Mannion has never hesitated to use the media to his own ends in the past and if this were the case the child would have appeared long before now. He'd be on every front page, playing the victimised father to Welton's evil mother.
So I spoke to a number of parents, at all different stages. Single, married, divorced, and I asked them all the same question.
What would it take for you to completely cut your child's other parent out of their life?
Overwhelmingly they all said if the other parent was a danger to the child.
We know Mannion cheated on Welton and this was widely reported to be the cause of their split but what if there was something darker at work?
Did you know 1 in 4 women in the United Kingdom experience domestic violence during their lifetime.
Of the 97 professional football clubs 96 are owned by men and 90 of those men are in relationships. Statistically 22 of their partners have suffered some form of abuse at home.
With this in mind, I went back over everything I knew about Rebecca Welton's marriage to Rupert Mannion and tried to look at the facts through a different lens. A lens that wasn't paid for by Mannion.
We know Welton wasn't seen in public for at least a month before she was sighted at her solicitors. In fact the very last time was at a Richmond faithful pub where witnesses report other than speaking very briefly to a couple of players she sat alone, drinking tea before leaving with an unidentified woman. While no one would tell me anything more, the look they get when they speak of seeing Welton that day tells me there was much more to the story than they are willing to say.
The next sightings were brief shots of her coming and going from her solicitors. Between November and July of the following year she was not seen at all, we can assume it was during this period she was pregnant and gave birth. This was nothing new, when you look closely at the years of their marriage there was a pattern of Welton disappearing from the public eye for weeks at a time
It was also during this time the public attacks against her started and they have yet to stop.
Randy Rebecca, Ice Queen, unstable, an alcoholic, you name it she was called it. The tabloids were brutal in their treatment of a woman who has done little to deserve it and I have been able to find no evidence to support these claims and accusations. Welton did not respond with anything other than a no comment. She still won't comment on the continued attacks in the media against her.
What went on during her marriage behind closed doors I do not know. I can speculate but have no proof, perhaps her silence on the subject is proof enough.
A source at Scotland Yard did confirm for me that while Mannion initially fought the charges of assault that were laid against him there was little doubt in their mind that the altercation was anything but a misunderstanding. They described seeing CCTV footage from Welton's office of the event. Footage that shows Welton sitting at her desk, absolutely no threat to Mannion when he attacks her.
"I don't see how anything about it can be misconstrued as a misunderstanding." my source said.
Is this the first time or is it just the most recent in a long line of offences Mannion has committed. Offences that people are too scared to come forward with.
Perhaps one day we will find out the truth, perhaps not.
I'm sure you've noticed, not once have I mentioned the child's name, nor have I included any photos. If Rebecca Welton wants that information to become public knowledge, I am sure she will make an announcement in due course. But let us go back to the original question. Why would Rebecca Welton go to such lengths to hide her child? Given everything I now know it's quite simple, she was keeping said child safe.
Safe from whom, I cannot confirm but I will say this. The print media has a lot to answer for in their treatment of her to the point where I am wondering if we have enabled an abuser to continue their torment of someone and if this is true how many others are there?
How many times have we gotten it wrong?
Rebecca reads through the article twice before laying the sheet of paper on her desk and leaning back to regard Sarah while deep in thought.
"Are we off the record?" She finally asks.
"Yes of course." Sarah agrees, using all of her considerable self control to not squirm under Rebecca's steely gaze. Finally a well manicured finger reaches out and taps the paper.
"This is the closest anyone in your profession has actually gotten to the truth."
Sarah's eyes widened at the admittance she never thought she would get.
"You can publish this with two provisos. One, when you reached out to me regarding the article I refused to comment and two I'm going to give you the names of a couple of organisations I support. Include them as a resource for people needing help to escape violence at home or a group to donate to should people be moved to do such." She quickly scribbles two websites onto a post-it and hands it over.
Not wanting to push her luck, Sarah stands and makes for the door. Just before she reaches it Rebecca calls out.
"Sarah, one day I'm going to call you with an exclusive, I would suggest you don't miss my call."
It's two weeks before Sarah emails the link to the published article to Rebecca.
There have been a few minor changes, cleaning up the structure and the grammar etcetera but the overall heart of it remains the same.
She forwards the article to Keeley straight away and waits for the phone to ring.
She is surprised when instead several minutes of silence pass by only for her office door to slam open and Keeley to nearly fall inside.
"Right, I've called Ted and Beard, they're on their way up. Roy didn't answer, neither did Sassy, but babes we'll handle this."
"There's nothing to handle" Rebecca is genuinely confused by Keeley's reaction and her comment brings the younger woman to an immediate stop.
"Nothing to…?" Keeley isn't used to this kind of reaction from Rebecca when it comes to the press.
"I don't understand?" Keeley drops to the couch, head cocked to the side as she studies her friend.
"Just between you and I, I knew about the article before she published it." Rebecca lowers herself to sit next to her friend.
"Sarah asked for my permission to print it and I gave it as long as my official stance was no comment."
"Oh"
"Hey Boss" Arlo wanders over "Why does Addy growl every time someone mentions Kent?"
He frowns in confusion as Keeley falls into Rebecca laughing. Biting the inside of her cheek Rebecca decides flagrantly lying is the best course of action.
"He growled at her a few weeks ago and she found it so funny she growls at him to get his attention… or when she sees a picture or as you've found out when someone says his name."
The first game of the season is in 3 days and the 'Picnic on the Pitch', dutifully dubbed by Ted, is in full swing.
He wasn't lying when he claimed she would love Beard's chicken wings, Rebecca had already eaten 4 and was on the hunt for more. She spies another tray being carried around and slips away from Arlo before he can ask any more questions and grabs 2 more.
Looking around the gathered players and staff, her heart starts racing as she can't catch sight of her daughter.
Seeing the distress cross her face, Beard steps closer and lays a gentle hand on her arm.
"What's wrong?"
"I can't see Addy…" she gasps slightly as the panic starts to rise higher and higher, her head swinging around, trying to catch a glimpse of her daughter.
"Hey, I'm sure she's with someone." Beard tries to calm her, but pulls his phone out and pulls up the group chat.
Whoever has Addy needs to make her visible to the Boss NOW he types out and sends to all the players.
Seconds later, a giggle breaks through the rest of the noise and the tiny blonde is lifted into the air and onto Zoreaux's shoulders.
Rebecca's knees give out slightly at the sight of her happy girl.
"There's some ground rules" Emily stared hard at her two companions "one, you have to call me Lauren, two we are not law enforcement we'll agree on occupations for you two before we go, three we can't use your real names and four we will be sitting in the owners box and these people take this game seriously. No comments about American football being better" Emily knew she might be being a bit harsh to Morgan and Garcia but if they were going to attend the Richmond versus Millwall match with her they needed to behave.
"Can I choose my own name?" Garcia raised her hand slightly.
"Within reason" Emily agreed "something common and forgettable but we won't forget or get mixed up."
"Will your friend know we're not who we say we are?" Morgan asked.
"Yes, but she won't question it. Rebecca knows my identity and how critical it is to not give us away." Emily reassured her friend.
"Can I just be Penny or is that too close?"
"That's a little bit too close for comfort. Grace? Middle names are easy to remember?" Emily suggested and is relieved when Garcia nods.
"Hank do for me?" Morgan asks.
"Ok, Grace and Hank it is. Now jobs? Something you can talk about with relative confidence. Where you won't get the details mixed up from person to person? Grace, stick with an IT job of some kind, systems analyst maybe and Hank do you want to be a handyman or professional house flipper?"
"You've already thought all this through?" Derek glared slightly "had it all planned out?"
Emily raises her eyebrows not wanting to comment on how dumb a question that actually is.
"What's your cover again?" He sighed.
"Lauren Reynolds, bored American of indeterminate wealth who occasionally works in imports and exports, getting very rare and special items in and out of the country without anyone knowing about it" she waggles her eyebrows "although, the last part most people don't know about."
"Your cover is a gun runner?" The last time Emily had heard Morgan's voice hit that pitch was when a startled victim kicked him in the balls.
"Well, Rebecca doesn't know it's guns. She hasn't asked what Lauren deals with. I don't think she wants to know."
Garcia's gaze darts between them, mouth dropped open. When Emily had finally admitted to them that she had spent time undercover she hadn't really thought about what that would entail.
"Damn it Prentiss. Give a guy some warning next time please!"
"What? Did you think my cover was a dog walker?" She narrows her eyes "you're not that naive."
"No I'm not" he admits with an irritated huff "but I know what some of those guys have had to do to maintain their covers and the thought of you being involved in something like that does not sit right."
Emily tilts her head in thought, she had been worried about this. Morgan had worked covers in the past and his moral compass was solid, she could understand why he would struggle with this.
"Why do you think I left all those years ago? I couldn't do it anymore but the guy I'm after? The reason I brought Lauren back? He's my white whale. I couldn't get him back then, couldn't even work out what he was into but now, thanks to Rebecca we've shut down a chunk of his operations and every day we get closer and closer to him. So if I have to do this to shut him down for good and lock his ass in a cell somewhere I will."
Morgan shakes his head in frustration "you go sell that story to someone who doesn't know you as well as I do. 2 years ago you dropped everything and came here to help a woman you'd met a handful of times? I don't think so, if it was just that I could understand but you have secrets that you don't tell anyone. I need you to know you can tell us, you can tell me. No matter how awful you think it is, you can trust us, trust me." He is so earnest, it nearly breaks Emily's resolve, especially with a teary Garcia nodding along in the background.
"I trust you" she can see the doubt in his face "if I didn't I wouldn't be taking you with me today. Rebecca has risked everything to help us, she's risking her child and I take that seriously and this is me trusting you with them but you're right there is more. There are other people I'm protecting, innocents I'm keeping hidden and I try not to even think about them. I go out of my way to ignore their existence and make sure no one could use me to track them down. If I needed to do the same for Rebecca, I would. I would hide her somewhere and no one would be able to find her. You guys I trust, I just can't risk them." She breathes a sigh of relief as understanding and a modicum of acceptance crosses his face "and I've warned you before about profiling me. You'll never see me coming!"
It's several hours before he realises she never actually answered his question about why she had really resurrected her cover.
END CHAPTER 12