Page 60 of Finding You

“Kevin didn’t think much of it until weeks later when his assistant, someone he trusts with his life, said someone had gotten into unauthorized files. I have no idea how she knew something was wrong, but they did their own internal investigation and found it was the paralegal Maximus had been dating. One of the files she got access to was mine.”

They all listened intently as he explained that, though the paralegal had been employed there for years, some employees are not allowed access to certain files. They go into the position knowing that, and it’s against company rules for them to have access.

“Anyway, when questioned,” Christopher continued, “she made some excuse of why she’d needed the files, and whatever her reason was, it hadn’t been good enough for Kevin. He fired her. That’s when he told me about the breach, which was how he referred to the situation. He assured me they had it under control. From what they could tell, nothing had been taken or photocopied.

“I have used this firm for over fifty years and have never had an issue, and I trust Kevin completely. But after you two left the hospital that day, something was niggling at me besides the obvious. Of course, I was shocked a child who I helped raise would go to such extremes to claim two babies as his own when he knew he wasn’t the father.”

“You knew he was lying,” Raven said as a statement more than a question.

Christopher’s brows pinched together. “Of course I knew. You said Zion was the father. Besides, Andrew looks like him,” he said as if she should’ve known he believed her. “I was stunned by everything that came out in that conversation, and you guys left before I could get my thoughts together. Or come to terms with what I had just learned. I questioned Maximus more, listened to him lie to me, and couldn’t stop wondering why he’d gone to such extremes to prove the babies were his.

“I hired a PI who I use on occasion for business dealings, and I figured Zion would be doing something similar on your end.”

“Why didn’t you call me?” Raven asked, trying to hide the hurt she’d felt but failing.

“I wanted to have answers before I talked to you. I assumed you knew me well enough to know I wouldn’t take anything at face value when it comes to Maximus. I love him, but I don’t trust him.”

“What did your P.I find?” Zion asked before Raven could form the words.

“Long story short, Maximus, with the help of the paralegal he’d been dating, discovered I had changed my will and was no longer leaving a plot of land to him. Seventy acres of land that Maximus thought he’d get. Land that he has determined has oil on it.”

“What does that have to do with me or the babies?” Raven asked.

“You were added to my will months after I met you. As for the twins, when I die, that land Maximus wants goes to Andrew and Zanaya. I updated my will shortly after they were born.”

Raven gasped and her hand flew to her chest. “Oh my God, Christopher. I can’t believe you did that.”

He waved her off as if it were no big deal. When in fact, seventy acres was a huge deal, especially if Maximus was right inthinking it had oil on it. That meant it was worth an unbelievable amount of money—multi-millions of dollars.

Not that Raven would ever give him a pass, but it was no wonder Maximus went through such extremes. He saw the perfect opportunity to still get the land he wanted by using her babies. She couldn’t believe his audacity, but Zion had been right. He’d said men like Maximus were driven by money, greed, and power.

“When you introduced me to those little ones and told me they would grow up knowing me as their great-grandfather, that meant more to me than you’ll ever know. Especially since you were no longer with Maximus and there was no chance of you officially becoming my granddaughter.

“I’ve worked hard to build a legacy, a legacy I’m proud of, and I want to share it with people I love, and that includes you and the twins.

“You and those kids have brought so much joy into my life. It started with meeting you and enjoying the times we spent together when you’d come by, play cards, have dinner with an old man, and even show concern about my health. That was more than most people did, and I came to see you as my granddaughter. So of course, the three of you will always be considered a part of my family even when I’m long gone.”

Raven swiped at the tears that she hadn’t realized had fallen. Knowing that she brought as much joy and light into his life as he’d brought into hers meant everything. “Christopher, I don’t know what to say.”

“You don’t have to say anything. I’m just sorry my asshole of a grandson put you through so much. I promise you that you’ll never have to deal with him again.”

“Do you know where Maximus is?” Zion asked.

“I do. My PI found him early this morning holding up in our family’s cabin about an hour outside of Houston. The authoritiesshould be paying him a visit right about…” He glanced at the expensive platinum watch on his wrist. “Now,” he said when he looked up.

“When I heard what Wiz had discovered regarding the paternity tests, I was disgusted. I knew then I had to step in and handle my grandson in a way he could understand—threaten to cut him completely out of my will. That’s how I’ll be controlling him, even after I’m long gone. In the meantime, he’s going to pay one way or another for his role in the fake paternity tests.”

“Thank you,” Raven and Zion said at the same time, then turned to each other and smiled.

For the next few minutes, they talked about other things like Raven’s accident the night before, and she assured Christopher that she and the babies were fine.

“By the way, you look good, G-Pop. Are you ever going to tell me why you were in the hospital?” Raven asked just before Wiz got ready to disconnect the call, and Christopher grinned and shook his head.

“Little girl, you are a pain in the ass. I told you why I was there.”

Raven’s heart squeezed, and she laughed as tears filled her eyes again. She quickly blinked them away, but he made her want to cry.Little girlwas a term of endearment where he was concerned, and it felt good to hear him call her that again.

“If you don’t want everyone else to know, you can just call me directly and tell me,” she said.

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