Their Wicked Wedding by Ember Casey

Author:Ember Casey [Casey, Ember]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2014-11-25T07:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER TEN

CALDER

Joe Osborne is useless.

For as much as he charges for his investigations, I expected better. So far he has only managed to confirm things anyone might have discovered with a thorough internet search: that Patricia Harker is a real person and that she has a son named Taran of about my age. Or at least she did. Apparently she died two months ago.

Taran Harker, he tells me, lives up in Cincinnati, and he worked as an insurance broker up until last fall, when he was fired for unspecified reasons. He’s done nothing remarkable since then. As far as Joe has been able to trace, Taran has been down here for a week, and up until two nights ago, he had a room at a large chain hotel near my office. That fact isn’t particularly surprising to me, but it’s still unsettling. What worries me more, though, is that Joe can’t seem to discover where Mr. Harker is currently staying. He learned of Mr. Harker’s stay at the hotel after the man had already checked out; he had no chance to follow him to his next location, and his inquiries at other places around town have turned up nothing. He tells me he suspects Mr. Harker returned home after I refused to speak with him, but I know better. I wouldn’t have called Joe Osborne for an update at all if I hadn’t received another call from Mr. Harker this afternoon. I didn’t pick up, but in spite of my determination to ignore the matter, I couldn’t resist listening to the voicemail he left me.

Mr. Cunningham, I think I’ve been more than patient. I’ve given you every chance to hear me out, but if you insist on ignoring me, then I have no choice but to force you to listen. If I don’t hear from you within the next twenty-four hours, then I’ll be forced to bring the law into this.

The law? Is the bastard serious? The first time I listened to the message, I laughed at the very idea. If anyone should be bringing the police into this matter, it’s me, because if he keeps this up I’m sure I have grounds for a harassment charge. But now that I’ve had a chance to think about it, a different possibility occurs to me.

Is he bringing lawyers into this? Threatening to sue me or force me to acknowledge him as part of the family? Is this some ridiculous attempt to get some part of the inheritance-that-doesn’t-exist?

It’s a bluff—it has to be—but I’ve taken the necessary precautions anyway. I’ve passed on what information I can to my lawyers, just in case Mr. Harker actually does move forward with the matter. This bullshit grows deeper by the day.

One thing remains the same: I still refuse to engage him. I will not give this man a minute more of my time. Still, it’s infuriating to know so little, to sit back and wait for Joe to uncover the truth.

I know the truth, I remind myself.

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