Page 37 of Embattled Return

John rocked back in his seat, frustration gnawing at his guts. It wasn’t very often that he was unable to unravel a mystery, but this could possibly be one of them.

For three days he’d been milking every resource he had to find Logan Vance’s family, and he’d hit dead end after dead end. There were people with the same name, of course, and he’d actually resorted to cold-calling a few, but none matched the exact details Logan had given him. The kid was coming to the office in a couple of hours, and he didn’t know what to tell him.

He looked up at a knock on his open door. Aiden stood there, frown marring his lean face. John smiled. “What’s up, brother?”

Aiden’s face eased into a matching smile, but within seconds the worry returned. “Do you remember Shannon having a lot of morning sickness?”

Nodding, he swiveled to the left to the coffee machine Shannon had brought in a few weeks ago. He plugged a K-cup into the reservoir and watched the coffee stream into the clean cup. When it was done, he added some creamer and handed it to Aiden. “Yes. For the first three months it seemed like she lived in the bathroom. Not always throwing up, but nauseated. Angela still struggling with it?”

Aiden nodded. “She’s lost more weight than she should. The baby is growing, but it’s almost like it’s eating her from the inside.”

Grimacing, John turned back to the desk with his own cup of coffee. “It’s a stereotype for a reason. Ginger Ale and saltines. That’s all I can tell you. I bought tons of the stuff for her. If Elizabeth thinks she’s losing too much weight they’ll hospitalize her. Shannon’s mother also made her ginger rice, which seemed to help.”

Aiden pulled his phone from his pocket. “Do you have the recipe or is it something I can find?”

“I think it’s on the net,” John said slowly, turning to his keyboard. “Yep. I’ll email you this recipe. It has almost five stars. Ask Shannon on your way out. Maybe she’ll have a variation, too.”

With a few keystrokes he sent the link to Aiden’s email. “I wish my other cases were that easy.”

Brows raised, Aiden settled into the chair across from his desk, coffee cup balancing on the arm. “What’s not going well?”

Sighing, John looked down at the notes on his desk. “This Logan Vance thing. I’m trying to find this kid’s family but I’m really striking out. I’ve checked the newspapers, the PVA, the DMV, every public access option I have. I’ve logged onto the public library system to scan their older microfiche, which has not all been computerized yet. I even called in a favor from a friend looking for Christopher Vance’s military record and there is none. I’ve completely tapped out my options. I don’t know what else to do, or where to search.”

He handed the file he had over to Aiden and watched as his brother flipped through page after page of information. “Are you sure the old family name is Walter?”

John scowled. “That’s the name he gave me. A few other things popped up for other names and I researched them a bit, but I didn’t deep dive yet. That’s my only option left.”

“I feel like...” Aiden frowned, and his mouth skewed to the side, “it’s not Walter. It’s something else. Walken. Walker. Showalter.”

John jotted the notes down, having learned that his brother’s gut feelings were often on the money and not to be discounted. “I’ll check those out. I have nothing to lose. I feel like I’m disappointing this kid, and I don’t like feeling like that.”

“None of us do,” Aiden said softly, handing the folder back to him. “As soon as I get back to Arlington, I’ll try the ginger rice.”

Damn. He’d forgotten Aiden was leaving tonight. He’d come out to Denver to pack up Angela’s apartment. They were both working at the Silverstone Collaborative now, with Wulfe and Fontana. They were trying to develop a program for the men that were recovering from the illegal testing the company had put them through. Aiden had wanted to be here to see the paperwork signed on the new partnership, though, and to catch up with everyone for a bit. Angela had chosen to stay in Arlington and let Aiden pack up the apartment for her. She must really be sick, John realized.

“The sickness should ease the further along in her pregnancy she is,” John told him hopefully.

“I know. That’s what everyone has said, but she’s six and a half months now. I don’t know if it’s because it’s my baby and there’s something... not right, or...”

John wheeled around the desk to look his brother in the eye. “You know that’s not the case.”

Aiden shook his head, looking down at his clasped hands. “It could be. There have been no other babies born to any of the Dogs of War. How do I know that the ayahuasca in my body hasn’t done something to the baby?”

John flinched internally. This had been a concern Duncan and Alex had brought up at one of the meetings, but no one had wanted to voice it to Aiden. Instead, Alex had called Elizabeth, Wulfe’s wife and the new owner of the Collaborative. She was a doctor and had personally taken over the care of the former prisoners.

Elizabeth had already been preparing for the issue, stocking the Elton Recovery Building with everything they might need for a baby, including an on-call OBGYN. Duncan felt like Angela was under the best care possible.

That didn’t ease the worried father’s mind, though. John reached out, resting a hand on Aiden’s shoulder. “It will be okay,” John said bracingly. “He’s going to be a Palmer, kind of. There aren’t twins, are there?”

Aiden went pale at the thought and swayed in the chair. John held on to him just to be sure he didn’t topple over, truly alarmed. “Aiden, I was joking. They would have seen it on the ultrasound. She’s had one, right?”

His younger brother nodded, eyes devastated. “Yes, they have. Several of them.”

“Then she’s probably okay. The morning sickness is just one of those things that goes along with pregnancy.”

Aiden sighed. “I know you’re probably right. I just worry. She’s led a healthy life, but I’ve had so much shit pumped into me over the years. I don’t know what I might be cursing my child to.”

John’s heart ached for the guy. “But you’ve recovered from everything. Literally. If anything, I think this kid will be stronger than any of us,” he laughed.

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