Chapter 18

When the press had been informed of the return of the Littrell twins, Brian answered any questions he was fielded and turned some over to Regan. Afterwards, they slipped back inside the gates, and Regan looked up at the house where her entire life lay between Jordan and AJ. Next to her, Brian blew out a breath.

“What’s up?” Regan looked over at him. He had been all smiles with the press, but, now, she could see strain in his face. Worry lines were clearly etched across his forehead, and, despite the setting sun, she could see the blue of his eyes clouded.

“I’m scared,” he began and stopped walking. “I mean, yeah, my kids are home, and I couldn’t be more thankful to God that they’re safe. That Scott didn’t touch them. But something in me tells me that I’m not going to see Sienna again. I think he took my children as a kind of smoke screen. His real intention is to have Sienna. He could just disappear with her now, and that terrifies the hell out of me.” He met her eyes. Saw the knowledge in them. “And you already know this. Why am I not surprised?”

She shook her head. “Brian, you had enough on your plate without my adding this as another thing to worry over, which is what you’re going to do now,” she reminded him. “I can promise you this: No matter what, I will bring your wife home. In fact, I’m planning on gathering up as much information as is available to me about Scott and heading down to Florida soon. Within the next day or so. I’ve stayed out of the way too long, and I need to get into the fieldwork part of it.”

Brian nodded. “Thank you, Regan. For everything.”

“Don’t mention it.”

“I won’t, but I will ask you about how you’re dealing with AJ meeting your son. I know you hadn’t told him about Jordan because I would have heard about it,” Brian told her.

Regan sighed and squinted out towards the dying sunlight. “I don’t know what to do, Brian. I had planned on telling him sooner or later. Preferably later. But my mother decided that Jordan needed to see me, which, of course he did. I’ve missed my kid like crazy, but AJ won’t even look at me now. I’ve lost him, and it’s my own fault.”

Brian rubbed a hand over her stiff shoulder. “Maybe you’re not giving him enough credit. I don’t think he’ll back away from you. At least, he usually wouldn’t. Give him some time to deal with the newest piece in the puzzle for him. You did hold out on him after all.”

Regan sighed. “It wasn’t a matter of not wanting to tell him. I was just afraid that he’d reject Jordan and me because of it.”

Brian stepped back from her. “You care about him, and, yet, you didn’t trust him to accept one of the biggest pieces of your life? Maybe I was wrong about you,” he muttered to himself as he turned to head back to the door.

“Wait, Brian,” she caught up to him. “Just hear me out, please.” He watched her for a moment then nodded. “Okay. I—my life has never been easy enough for me to just assume that someone I care about and who cares about me would accept all the pieces of me. Obviously, I was wrong with AJ, with all of you, but I’m afraid that he still won’t want me back because I lied to him.”

Brian sighed and took her hands, squeezing them lightly. “Regan, if he’s mad, it’ll be because, you’re right, you didn’t tell him. He’ll get over it. Has he talked to Jordan at all?” At her nod, Brian smiled. “See? If he was angry, he would’ve walked out on you and Jordan. Instead, he’s hanging out with your kid. Give him time to calm down enough to talk to you without getting angry. I promise, it’ll work.”

“I hope so,” she whispered.

Brian slid an arm around her shoulders. “Let’s go on in, then. I just want to be with my kids right now, and you should go be with yours. You haven’t seen him in over a month either.”

“No, I haven’t. I’m taking him out for dinner, then I’m having a lovely conversation with my mother. After that, I’m going to spend some time working on Scott’s files.” She ticked off her schedule, and, looking up, found Brian watching her, a look of admiration on his face. “What?”

He shrugged. “It’s amazing to see someone who’s got her whole life planned right down to her free time. I hate schedules, but I think it comes from constantly being confined to one for the past fifteen years.”

“Probably,” she murmured and stepped into the house. Brian went to find his kids, and Regan headed to the back of the house.

The den was empty when she stopped in, so she continued back towards the kitchen. She found Howie, Liv, Kevin, and AJ sprawled across the couches in the family room, watching Nick and Jordan battle each other in a video game that seemed to be getting fairly bloody. Wincing a little at the crack of bone (the special effects were quite something, she mused), Regan walked into the room and settled down on the couch next to AJ. She could feel him stiffen, but she paid no attention to him when Kevin called her.

“How’d it go out there?”

Regan sighed. “The media’s enthusiastic, and Brian’s not. He knows Thompson’s not going to hand Sienna over on a silver platter like he did with their kids. I just have to keep working at all the angles and try to poke holes through Scott’s profile. Hopefully, something will pop.” She glanced over at Liv, who was feeding her son. “Have you thought of anything more you might possibly know about Scott?”

Liv looked unhappy. “I keep wracking my brain over it, and I can’t come up with anything. I mean, he dated my best friend for a year and a half, but I didn’t know too much about him. Sienna didn’t really like him as much after a while, so I just stopped caring about the guy, too. I wish I’d paid more attention.”

Howie squeezed her shoulder. “Don’t worry, Livvy. I don’t think I would’ve done anything differently. Besides, there is information out there somewhere. Regan will find it.”

“No pressure,” Kevin added, smiling at her slightly.

“Nope,” Regan shook her head. “Absolutely none.” She glanced over as Nick moaned and Jordan began to dance around him.

“I win! I told you I was the best!” he shrieked with more joy than Regan had seen him show at one time in his whole life. Well, hell, she thought. If it takes the Backstreet Boys to bring my kid out of his shell, then I better stick around. Her eyes met AJ’s briefly then he looked away, leaving Regan to mask the fresh hurt.

“Hey kiddo,” Regan called Jordan over. “Ready to go out for that dinner I promised you?”

Jordan frowned and looked back at Nick and the video game. “Is it okay if we stay here for dinner? Nick promised he’s got another really cool game that he’ll teach me to play. Howie said we could have spaghetti that he’ll make, too! Please, Mom?”

Her little boy’s heart belonged to the men in the room already, and Regan couldn’t help but feel out of the loop. Looking into his grinning, eager face, she knew she couldn’t deny him anything. He was her child, and she’d do anything to make him happy.

“Okay,” she said finally. “We can stay in, but I’m going to head over to see Gran. I need to talk to her, so behave while I’m gone.”

“Nah,” Nick piped up from the floor. “Behaving is for other people. We don’t have to behave, especially if we’re going to be playing another fun and violent game. If your mom approves, of course,” he added quickly, seeing the look on Regan’s face.

She rolled her eyes. “Yeah, yeah, yeah. My kid’s seen enough violence to be able to handle a video game. Right pal?” She ruffled Jordan’s hair.

“Yeah,” Jordan grinned hugely. “Mom’s got a gun, and she knows how to use it. We went to the target practice place, and she rocked.” He went back to Nick’s side and grabbed the controller again. “Best two out of three,” he challenged Nick.

“You’re on, little man,” Nick agreed.

“Cool mom skill,” Kevin smiled as he turned to Regan. “A little unorthodox, but really cool.”

“Introducing your child to violence early on. You’re a real role model for other moms,” AJ said quietly.

The way he said it made her feel ashamed, and, uncomfortable with it, she pushed aside the pain. “Jordan knows what I do for a living, and he knows what I can do. I’ve never actually used my weapon, and Jordan understands that he’s not to touch it,” she answered him in the same quiet tone, her eyes locked on his. “I didn’t want my kid to be surprised one day at what his mother is capable of, so I showed him. If that makes me a bad mother, then so be it.” She turned to the others, knowing that AJ’s eyes were still on her. “I’m going to go find my mother, but thank you for entertaining my son.”

Howie waved it off. “It’s no big deal. We came here to see Brian and his kids, but this is also good. Besides, I should probably start on that dinner soon, too.”

Regan smiled at him, grateful. “Thank you still. I’d better get going. I’ll see everyone later.”

As she headed out, Kevin turned to AJ, frowning. “What the hell crawled up your ass? You know she’s a good mother, and you love her. What are you doing antagonizing her?”

AJ shrugged. “I’d never introduce my kid to weapons—ever. I just can’t understand a mother who would. Even with the profession she’s in, it’s still not right.”

“You can’t judge what’s wrong or right for another person, Alex,” Liv spoke quietly. “If you love her, you need to accept her.”

“Accept her? She kept the fact that she had a child from me!” he hissed in a voice low enough that Jordan wouldn’t hear. “If she cared about me, she would’ve told me about him when I talked to her about my personal life. But, no, she let me do all the talking and didn’t tell me about something that’s obviously such a central part of her life. So you tell me how the fuck I can accept that!” Not bothering to wait for an answer, AJ stormed out of the room, leaving Kevin, Howie, Liv, Nick, and Jordan to stare after him.

“Is he mad at me and my mom?” Jordan finally broke the silence in a tiny voice. “Because I don’t want him to be. I really like him.”

Nick ruffled his hair. “He’s not really mad. Just confused. He and your mom are really close friends, but she didn’t tell him about you, and he wants to know why. That’s all. He’s not really mad.”

“Does he love my mom?” Jordan wondered.

Kevin knelt on the floor at eye-level with him. “AJ does love your mom, but she doesn’t know it yet. So, keep it a secret for him, okay?”

“Is he going to marry her and take her away from me?” Jordan’s voice quavered, making Kevin’s heart ache for him.

“Oh, buddy, nobody is ever going to take your mom away from you. I don’t know if he’s even thought about marrying her yet, but, if he does, it’ll be because he loves you and your mom. AJ doesn’t do things halfway,” Kevin told him.

Pondering this for a few moments, Jordan nodded. “Okay. I’ll keep the secret because I like him. I like his voice and his hugs. It feels nice.” He turned to Nick. “Can we play again?”

“Sure,” Nick replied, surprised at how quick the kid bounced back.

Kevin sat back on the couch next to Howie and sighed. “AJ’s got a long way to go if he wants Regan.”

“I think he can do it,” Howie said.

Kevin ran a hand through his hair wearily. “I hope so. I think they’d be good for each other.” He stood again. “I’m going to go find Brian, so I’ll see you guys in a bit.”

Howie nodded then turned to his wife and son. “I’m going to get started with dinner. I’ll be in the kitchen so holler if you need anything,” he told her, kissing her lightly.

***

Brian held Luke in his arms and watched as Serena and Kara reacquainted themselves with their nursery and their toys. Serena sat playing with piles of building blocks, while Kara delightedly pressed the different buttons on her toy computer. Brian knew he’d eventually get tired of hearing “Red balloon” and “Blue circle” repeatedly, but, at the moment, he was too deliriously happy to have his children safe where he could keep his eye on them.

Mac Jenkins had examined the twins and announced that they were perfectly fine, too. They just needed to be bathed and fed properly again. So, the first thing he’d done after the press conference was to send his mother home, so he could take care of his children on his own. He felt selfish but didn’t want to share them with anyone else at the moment. He had lost them and now needed badly to spend time with them.

“I just need your Mommy back,” Brian murmured to Luke as he set the baby on a blanket with a bouncing ball. Luke was more than happy to watch the ball bump around on his legs and let out a gurgling laugh.

Brian grinned at the sound of all three of his children giggling, but it vanished when he wished that Sienna could be there with them. Where was she? Was she safe? Questions plagued him, and he tried to avoid thinking of the things she might have suffered in order to protect their children. Had Scott harmed her? If he had, Brian knew the man was likely to walk the earth less than an hour before Brian killed him. Homicide or not, it was what the man deserved for terrorizing his family. For causing any of them even a moment’s fear.

“Is there something wrong with the kids?”

Brian whirled around to face Kevin standing in the doorway. “Huh?”

Kevin gestured towards the children. “You were frowning at them, so I was just wondering if there was something wrong with them.”

Brian shook his head. “No, no. There’s nothing wrong with them. I was thinking about Sienna. Where Scott could have her.”

Kevin sat on the floor next to his cousin and placed a hand on his shoulder. “She’ll come home safe. Regan’s one determined FBI agent, and she’s not going to stop until Scott’s slapped behind bars where he can’t touch anyone else.”

“Prison’s too good for him,” Brian muttered. “I just have this really sick feeling at the pit of my stomach. I feel like there’s something really horrible happening to Sienna, and I can’t protect her from it because I don’t know where to find her. I keep pinching myself, hoping this is one of those nightmares where you keep trying to find something just out of your reach. Except, when I pinch myself, I realize I’m already awake, and Scott’s disappeared with my wife.”

Kevin couldn’t think of anything to say, so he sat with Brian and watched the babies tire themselves out and fall asleep within a half hour.

***

Regan knocked on her mother’s hotel room door. After a moment, Rebecca Daniels opened the door, and Regan gave her a deadly look before stepping into the room.

“Regan, honey, I didn’t expect to see you tonight,” Rebecca began, sitting down on the lone bed in the sparsely decorated room.

“Spare me the crap, Mama,” Regan said, shaking her head and dropping into a chair. “You know what you did was wrong and compromises my ability to focus on the case, don’t you? For God’s sake, Mama, you were the wife of an agent for a long time, but you still didn’t figure it out!”

Rebecca held up a hand. “Do not shout at me, Regan. I am your mother, and, as such, I still have some say in your life and how you raise your child. Which does not include leaving him with me to disappear for over a month.”

“He’s not your child to raise. And I think I’ve done a pretty good job with him,” Regan replied.

“I don’t doubt that, but it’s not fair to Jordan to wait around every day, wondering if his mother’s going to come home today. He misses you every time you leave on an investigation. Don’t you feel any pain at all?”

Her anger drained because she knew Rebecca was right. Regan sighed. “I miss him, too. All the time. I hate being away from him, but this is the life I chose. He understands that, most of the time.” She knew her mother was watching her disapprovingly and realized she would probably disapprove of herself, too. She sighed again. “Are you just going to leave him here and go back home, then? What about his school work?”

Rebecca shook her head. “Don’t worry about his work. I spoke with the school, and they gave him his work for the next two weeks. And, yes, he will stay with you until this case is completed. You owe it to your child to be there for him. He needs his mother.”

Regan nodded. “I know, and I need him, too. It’s just that things are a bit more complicated with this case. It’s not so cut-and-dried anymore.”

“AJ McLean,” Rebecca prompted her daughter.

Regan gave her a surprised look. “Well, I—yes,” she admitted. “I am involved with him. I couldn’t help myself, Mama, and I’m pretty sure I’m in love with him.”

“It’s been a month,” Rebecca reminded her.

Regan shook her head. “I think when it’s right, it’s right. AJ and me, we feel right. But I didn’t tell him about Jordan before you arrived today.”

“Uh oh.”

“Yeah,” Regan murmured. “He’s not speaking to me. Although, I found him having a conversation with Jordan. Jordan adores AJ already. In fact, he loves all of them, which is why he’s still at Brian’s house instead of here with me.”

Rebecca smiled. “You have raised him right, honey. I just want you to be around for him because I don’t want either of you to miss out on time with the other. And if this thing with AJ is meant to be, it will be. He seems like a good man with a good heart,” she thought aloud.

“He is,” Regan assured her mother. “I just don’t think he was ready to find out that I am a mother. His own wants me to be careful not to break his heart. She thinks AJ wants to marry me, but I think I ruined all of that. Which is just as well because I couldn’t stay anyway,” Regan added.

Rebecca looked confused. “Are you telling me that you have a wonderful man by your side, but you don’t want a future with him? Honey, what’s stopping you?”

Me, she thought. Instead she said, “Like you said, it’s only been a month. I can’t be sure that something like this will last after only a month. I have Jordan to think about, too. I can’t plan a future with someone without thinking first of my son’s wishes.”

“True,” Rebecca began, but she was cut off by Regan’s cell ringing.

Regan threw an apologetic glance at her mother then answered the phone. “Hello?”

“Agent Daniels, this is Captain O’Brien. I’m calling to let you know that we will be unable to send you any reinforcements for at least the next ten days. Unfortunately, you’re on your own. However, I’d like to congratulate you on your successful endeavors to recover three of the four abductees. Good work.”

“Thank you, sir. I’m sorry about the reinforcements, but I’m going to be leaving Lexington to head down to Florida and see what I can find there because Thompson’s last call was from Orlando. There may be some evidence left over around Tabu. I’ll fill you in as soon as I’ve made any further progress.”

“Of course. Thank you, Agent Daniels. Your hard work will be duly noted and properly awarded. Good bye,” and the captain hung up.

Before Regan could recover from the surprise of the call from her superiors, the cell in her hand rang again. Glancing at the caller ID, she answered.

“Hey, Howie. What’s up? Did Jordan do something?”

“No, not at all,” Howie’s voice sounded excited. “I just thought you should know that Liv remembered something about Scott. Something important. I think you should get back here, so she can explain it to you in person.”

“That important, huh?” Regan wondered what it could be and hoped it was the missing piece she was looking for. “Okay, I’ll be there in fifteen minutes. Tell her not to forget until I get there.”

“I’ll do that,” Howie promised, and Regan hung up.

She gave her mother an apologetic smile. “Sorry, Mama. I have to go. I think something important is about to happen, so I need to get back. When are you leaving?”

“Tomorrow morning, honey. I’m sorry I can’t stay longer. You’ve got your investigation, and I’ve got a deal to close the day after tomorrow on a really big estate,” Rebecca explained.

Regan nodded and hugged her mother. “Thank you for bringing him,” she murmured. “It’s good to have him with me.”

“Anytime,” Rebecca told her. As Regan opened the door, her mother stopped her again. “Honey, if he makes you happy, don’t do anything to jeopardize it. Love’s hard to find. Don’t give it up.”

Regan fought to keep steady and nodded. “I’ll try my best.”

***

When she walked into Brian’s house, Regan followed the loud, excited voices back to the kitchen. She found Jordan sitting at the kitchen table with Nick, eating spaghetti and watching the adults talk. Liv was explaining something to Brian, but Kevin and Howie kept interrupting to add something more, until Liv spotted Regan.

“Regan! Listen, you have to hear this! It’s gotta be that missing link you were worrying over,” she spoke, excitedly.

Regan slid a notepad out of her pocket. “Okay, tell me. What did you remember?”

Liv took a deep breath. “Scott was adopted, but you know that. However, when his adoptive parents died, they left a hell of a lot of money and properties for Scott. He never switched it under his name, which, by the way, is different from theirs. That’s why the only property that pops under his name is the one in New York. I think I remember him saying something about there being an estate in Charleston, Lexington, and one in Florida somewhere. He’s got to be hiding out at one of them!”

Regan nodded calmly though the scent of the hunt had her blood racing. “I’ll see what I can do with this information. It might be the key,” she told Liv. “If it is, you may just have rescued Sienna from the devil himself.”

Brian slid an arm around Liv as Regan hurried out of the room. “Thanks. You saved my wife.”

Jordan looked from one adult to the next. “This is a good thing, right?” he wondered.

Howie sat next to him. “Oh, yeah. This could mean that your mom will be able to find Brian’s wife.”

“She’ll find her,” Jordan assured the older man in a certain tone. Howie could only hope that he was right.

Regan brought up the files on the deceased Mr. and Mrs. Carter Lawrence. They’d died in a car accident nearly ten years earlier. Scott would have been just over twenty years old and more than able to understand how to work with the massive fortune his adoptive parents had left for him. But why hadn’t he had the deeds changed to his name? Out of respect? Maybe. Or maybe he had planned something for the money all along and didn’t want it traced back to him.

Regan went with the second choice and scanned the list of properties. Indeed, Lexington and Charleston were on the list, along with a condominium in Boston and a penthouse in Los Angeles. Carter Lawrence had been a major stockholder in four Fortune 500 companies and his wife had been the only child of an old money family. They had certainly done well for themselves, she mused. Then her heart jerked as she read the last of the properties.

Daytona, Florida. Two hours east of Orlando. Close enough to make the drop-off for the twins, but far enough to be safely away when the cops arrived.

Maybe, she thought. It had to be either Daytona or Charleston. But she was betting on Daytona. No one would expect to find them at a busy beach, and Scott was not, despite current evidence to the contrary, a stupid man. The best place to hide was a crowd, Regan knew. Scott Thompson was either taking full advantage of it, or she would end up eating her own shoe.

Glancing down at her watch, she knew it was too late to leave for Charleston that night. Besides, she needed to spend time with Jordan. She would explain the situation to him and leave in the morning. She’d alert the police in both Charleston and Daytona, and, just in case, have searches done on the other properties, too. She could easily get the warrants for them and set about to do just that.

***

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