The messages he found on the iPad were chilling because in addition to the fact that Marcella was speaking to Donald, something she had not shared with James, she was also privy to information he would’ve moved mountains for. Not only that, but it was also clear from what I read that she’d been in possession of that information for a while. The backstabbing, two-faced bitch knew his daughter’s name and had never said a word.
On top of that, she and her brother had kicked around ideas to have James change his will so that Marcella was the only beneficiary. There was talk about how to get my power of attorney revoked, or what would need to happen to have James declared not of sound mind. Eventually, those options were deemed too difficult.
Now, they were figuring out how to blackmail James into agreeing to invalidate the prenup Marcella signed when they married. If he gave her half of his fortune, they’d tell him where his daughter was.
Donald’s only concern was that Kerri not find out she had a sister. “Mila Brown from Hicksville isn’t welcome in this family,” he’d typed. “However you do this, Kerri must never know. She’s all that matters.”
When I finished reading it all, I looked up and met James’s gaze. I understood why he looked and sounded the way he did. The blow that had been dealt was life-altering. On one hand a prayer had been answered because he finally had a name. On the other hand, the woman who’d been his wife for more than twenty years had shown herself to be cruel beyond measure.
I wanted to burn the fucking world down and throw the ashes to the wind, but I needed to take my cues from James. His life was the one that had been turned upside down. Yes, I was pissed, but that anger was on his behalf. I couldn’t imagine how I’d feel if I found out my goddamn wife had been keeping the very thing she knew I wanted most from me for God only knew how long.
“What do you want to do?” I asked. “Tell her to pack her shit and get the fuck out, I assume.”
Resting his elbows on the desk, he steepled his fingers and leaned forward.
“I need you to talk to Brecken Kane and tell him that after all these years, we have a name. I’ll pay whatever it takes for him to drop everything and devote all his time to this.”
I nodded my understanding. “Of course.”
“While you’re doing that, I’ll be getting my house in order,” James continued. “Until my daughter is located, I can’t afford to give up the access I have to Marcella’s devices. For that reason, she’ll be blissfully unaware that I know what a traitorous, two-faced bitch she is.”
I knew it was the smartest play, but fuck, did it burn to think of James being stuck with her for another moment. That being the case, I’d be putting extra pressure on Brecken to resolve the situation sooner rather than later. James had waited more than two decades for answers. It was past time for him to have them.
It fucked my plans for spending the weekend with Allie to hell and back because there was no way to know how long it would take to find his daughter. There was also no telling what kind of person she’d be. The silver lining was that I knew Allie would understand everything once I was able to explain it all to her.20VaughnI’d expected it to take four or five days, but Brecken called me with news on Wednesday morning.
“You’re going to need to prepare James for what I found,” Brecken said bluntly. “That cock and bull story he was given about her being adopted by a wealthy couple was a goddamn fantasy. With his recent health issues, I’m worried about how he’s going to react to the truth.”
Hearing that made me feel like I’d been drop-kicked in the gut. Brecken was a no-bullshit guy, so I knew he was giving it to me straight.
“How bad is it?”
“Mila is in Chicken Pen, Wyoming, where she lives at the Green Creek Mobile Park. Adoptive parents were Sally and Franklin Brown. Franklin was a drunk with more DUIs than I’ve ever seen one person have. His record was also littered with domestic violence arrests and a fuck ton of other charges that all point to him having been a douchebag. He bit it back in two thousand four when he choked to death on his own vomit.”
“Sally Brown is the town pump,” Brecken continued. “She’s been arrested three times for solicitation, and she served a two-year sentence for her part in a credit card and check stealing scheme back in twenty thirteen.”
“Where did Mila stay while Sally was in jail?”