“From your observations, how would you describe their relationship?”
“The manager and that guy?”
“Yes, the manager and Robert Ban,” Agent Texas clarifies.
“They seemed really friendly. Like they’d known each other a really long time.”
“What did you think of him?” Agent Farris asks.
“He left me alone—never tried to touch me—so I liked him,” I mutter softly, taking a sip of my now-chilled tea. “Plus, when Finn and I were making our escape, we were backing out of the house, and he opened the door behind us.”
“So, he helped you and Xavier Finch leave?”
“Yes.”
“Had you ever seen him prior to your kidnapping?” Agent Texas asks.
“No, never,” I answer, before asking, “Why do you want to know so much about him?”
“We believe he is James Mayer’s business partner and helped finance Executive Hospitably Limited,” he tells me. Reading the confused look on my face, he adds, “The house you were held in.”
“Do you think he knew who I was?”
“We believe he did.”
“Then why would he have originally invited Peter to meet him there?”
“We can only guess,” Agent Texas says. “But, having women there of their own free will is one thing. Kidnapping your stepdaughter and keeping her prisoner there is, well, to be blunt, a liability and bad for business.”
“They think that guy you were there with—” I begin telling Finn.
“Robert Ban?”
“Yes. That he is the asshole’s business partner and helped finance the house.”
“Fuck,” Finn mutters. “Really?”
“Yeah. Why?”
“Fuck. Keep the movie going, but I have to make a quick call,” he says, jumping up from the couch where we are cuddled up, half watching the rest of the movie I missed last night—we’ve both seen it numerous times. I was also telling him about my day and the interview with the FBI.
After I told them about Robert Ban, they seemed to have a million more questions. Mostly about the other men who had visited the house in Hong Kong. They seemed happy when I was able to point out several of the regulars from photographs they showed me. They then asked about Mayer and everything I knew about him, which I realized wasn’t much, considering I’d known him my entire life. I had plenty of my own questions, especially about my mother’s possible involvement, but they had very few answers they could or would give me.
They did allow me to see my father’s real will. I couldn’t help my eyes stinging with tears as I read his true wish—that I would take over the company. The FBI finally let me go, with no stipulations on who I could or could not spend time with. Before Mr. Templeton and I walked out of the room, Ms. Davis pulled me aside.
“I know it’s not something you want to think about now, but I think it would be helpful for you to talk to someone about what happened to you,” she said softly, pulling out a business card from her pocket. “Call me if you need anything.”
“Thank you.” I took the card and tucked it into my back pocket.
As we got off the elevator, Finn was there waiting for me in the lobby, along with Aunt Kitty and JoJo. He drove us back to the hotel, just long enough to pick up our luggage, then dropped us off at Peter’s townhouse. Since Mayer was denied bail (he was deemed a flight risk) and I’m now safe, JoJo will be leaving on a late flight back to Washington, DC tonight. I’m going to miss her.
During our lunch, Peter called to let me know that my mother would be at the FBI all afternoon being interviewed. If I wanted to get anything from my childhood home and avoid seeing her, then this would be my chance. Aunt Kitty, who had driven down from Vermont initially before flying to Paris with Peter, used her SUV to take me home—to the place I grew up. It felt strange entering the house after being away so many months. And knowing the asshole lived here. It no longer felt like the safe haven of my childhood, when my father was alive.
After taking the extra key from the fake dog poop, I unlocked the back door and stepped inside. The house looked and smelled the same, but it made my skin crawl. It was no longer home. Aunt Kitty and I quickly went up to my room. The last time I lived there, I was a naïve virgin. I was no longer the girl who slept in that room and dreamed of finding the perfect man.
“Make sure you take everything that’s important,” Aunt Kitty said gently. “Until you’re ready to see your mom, you won’t get a chance to get back here.”
I nodded and got to work. Taking the wooden jewelry box my father brought back from Hawaii, with Hibiscus flowers carved into the lid, the vestiges of a memory suddenly teased my mind. I set it down on the bed. Opening the cover, I picked up the tray holding an assortment of earrings and rings. Several bracelets and watches lay beneath.
“Auntie,” I cried, pulling out an old forgotten envelope. “It’s real.”
“What is?”
“The letter from my dream.” I held it gently in my hands, my own name staring up at me in my father’s messy script. “How could I have forgotten about this?”
“What is it?” she asked, shoving a pile of clothes into the suitcase and coming over.
“It’s the letter Dad gave me on my fifteenth birthday.” I looked up at her and smiled through my tears. “He told me to wait and open it when I turned twenty-one. How did I forget about it?”
“I don’t know,” Aunt Kitty said, and I could see her eyes were misty as well. “Are you going to open it?”
“Not here,” I said, taking my purse and tucking it inside. “When we get back to Peter’s.”
“Okay, sweetie.” She gave me a one-armed hug and went back to helping me pack up the things I wanted to take with me.
I took out my phone and quickly texted Finn, wanting to tell him what I’d found.
Lily: Found a letter from Dad.
Lily: The one from my dream!
Boss Man: What does it say?
Lily: Going to read it when I’m done packing my room.
Boss Man: Pick u up at 6.
Lily: Xxx
It took a while, but we were soon dragging the suitcases down the stairs and out to her SUV. Earlier, Finn had made it clear that I would be staying with him at his condo, which was perfectly fine by me.
Sitting on the couch at Peter’s, I read my father’s short letter over and over again, my eyes filled with tears.
Lily,
I love you, my sweet girl. I have never been happier than the day you were born and placed in my arms. I am so proud to be your father. Everything I’ve built is for you. As you turn 21, it is now yours. I know you will make me proud and continue the promises of MacKay International—integrity in practice.
To the moon and back,
Dad
Aunt Kitty and I spent the remainder of the afternoon, before Finn picked me up to head to his condo for the night, remembering my father and trying to come up with my plan for the future. Registering for the next semester is my number one priority, along with finding a therapist. As much as I don’t want to talk to someone about what happened to me, I know Aunt Kitty is right, and it’s something I need to do.
Finn picked me up and brought me back to his very-sparse condo—I’d say he was going for a Scandinavian esthetic if I didn’t know better. His housekeeper had dinner waiting for us. As we ate our delicious cheeseburger and homemade French fries, I told him about finding the letter and let him read it. Finn reminded me that Dad gave me the letter only a few months before he died. It sent a chill through me to think that my father knew he was going to be killed and wanted me to know his wishes for the company at the right time.