“I have everything I could want, now.” She let the statement lie there and sink in. Once again, a jab at the fact that she didn’t consider me to be worthy of her motherhood.
“You must be very proud of Linc, despite the fact that another woman raised him.” I went for her throat.
“What have you come to give me?” she asked, sidestepping.
“A chance to earn back your position in the community. I can make you acceptable in the right circles. You can resume your place.”
She laughed. It was a ragged sound, and I noticed an echo of Linc’s own sarcasm in her voice.
The room felt warm and it wasn’t the sunshine streaming through the windows. It was the heat of debate and I fought to keep my cool.
Mother was dressed in a tangerine cotton dress, sleeveless and slim-fitting. She wore a string of beads about her neck; a pseudo crown for the one that wasn’t available for her head.
I sat down, Ford on my lap. I didn’t put him down on the floor. I needed him in my arms in case a hasty retreat was called for.
“Why would you help me, of all people? You said I was the one who held you back all these years,” she speculated with derision.
“It’s not out of love, I can assure you that.” I took the honest path. “It just happens that helping you aligns with something I want more.”
“And that is?” she queried me, watching my face for a telling look.
“That is my business,” I responded, keeping the tone of my voice mysterious.
This made her smile. “Little Auggie, finally learning to keep her mouth shut and her eyes open. I wondered how long it would take,” she speculated, her sadistic comment hitting its mark.
“I had an excellent teacher,” I parried and realized we would have to stop this fencing if we were to accomplish what I’d come for.
She recognized the same thing and finally asked, “What do you want from me?”
“In all truth, I want two things. I want you to treat me like an adult and respect what I’m doing, and secondly, I want you to get to know your grandson. I will be around here a great deal and it would be appreciated if you’d help to look after him.”
“The baby?”
“Well, of course, the baby.”
“Don’t you have a nurse?”
“Mother, this is a part of a bigger plan. I’m going to have my work cut out for me to get you back into society with even a shred of respect. It would help tremendously if you showed some sort of maternal feelings toward your only grandson. After all, you have a history of abandonment.”
She said nothing, but her lips were drawn in a hard line. I knew she was fighting her natural instinct to say something dismissive and make a dramatic exit. That might have worked when Dad was around, but here she had no audience. She finally nodded and held out her arms. “Bring him here,” she ordered me.
Overlooking her tone, I carried him to her and was amazed to see she didn’t even know how to hold him. I realized in that instant that I’d given her even more credit than she deserved. She had given up Linc because she wasn’t able to love anyone but herself. The only reason I escaped the hatchet was my dad. I was sure of it.
I had sudden reservations about allowing her to influence Ford. Indeed, he began to cry. “Take it away, take it away,” she ordered and handed him back to me as if he was a bag of feed. There have been few times in my life that I’d ever met anyone who was totally unredeemable, but she was one. Sadly, I turned and left her audience, intent upon the other aspects of my plan. I would find a nanny to look after Ford.
CHAPTER TWELVE
Worth
I had no idea why Auggie was behaving the way she was. Maybe it was some sort of hormonal response after giving birth. I made a mental note to call one of my former associates, an OB/GYN from medical school. Maybe he could shed some light on things. In the meantime, I had more imminent problems on my mind.
Linc was continuing to impersonate me. What began with the shopping spree at the men’s clothing store was now extending to bar bills all over town and even a few gambling casinos. I realized that he was probably wearing contacts to cover the give-away green eyes and if he dressed like me, could easily pass. It would only be when we were side by side that someone would suspect anything.
I visited each of my banks and had additional security added to my accounts using my fingerprint. I did the same with my electronic devices and changed passwords on everything I owned. I wouldn’t even tell Auggie about this. It would be too dangerous for her if he knew she had that information.
I thought about calling Bill and having some sort of restraining order put on Linc, but that would call attention to the entire mess, which wouldn’t help in the least.
I felt as though I was being hunted and the perimeter was closing around me. It was important not to lose my cool. He’d be able to sense this and get even more and more erratic in his behavior. So far it only involved money, and I had plenty of that. It was time for more drastic measures.
I decided to add a new counseling service at my main clinic in Louisville. It was aimed at singles who wanted to find companionship without the use of the Internet or matchmakers. It had to do with pairing their psychological radars; those subliminal markers of attraction between people. I knew this would be very popular if handled well and my office location in Louisville was perfect. There was an overwhelming number of single professionals who were ready to settle down.
I told Jessie I wanted her on hand to help and observe, then promoted it broadly. It would be a tasteful affair set up as a preliminary open lecture explaining how the program worked before letting guests mingle and try out what they learned. I also knew it would be catnip to Linc.
Auggie had been gone for several days, texting me that her dad wasn’t feeling well and she was staying with him to look after him and the farm. I didn’t look any deeper into her story because I knew Ford was safely with her and she was going through something… whatever it was, and distance might help the issue. I also didn’t need her interfering in what I was trying to set up.
It was scheduled for a Thursday evening and people began arriving two hours beforehand. I had suspected it would be popular, but this was overwhelming. As expected, Linc showed up. To mock me, he wore one of the sport coats he’d “stolen” from the men’s store using my identity. Beneath it, he wore a white shirt open at the neck. I had to admit how much he resembled me.