Page 24 of Conner's Choice
“When I spoke to him, he said not to worry. He’s keeping a close eye on you and Elizabeth. And he wanted to share this with you.” William pushed a second file toward Conner.
Conner smiled. “Surfer did it, even in the midst of his mission. He found Ray Farmer’s mother and stepfather. Nona and Ronald Harding.”
“Right here in Colorado.” William returned Conner’s smile. “Wish me luck. I’m on my way to see the Hardings now.”
Chapter Eight
Four hours later,William sat in the cozy kitchen of Nona Harding’s home on a wide, open piece of land outside Julesburg, a small town with a population of less than five thousand. She smiled wearily as she handed him a cup of coffee and a slice of chocolate cake.
“I assume this visit is about Ray, Investigator Hughes. I heard the police were looking for him after he nearly killed Beth. Poor girl. I hoped…well, it doesn’t matter now. Did you catch him?”
“Yes, Mrs. Harding, we did.”
“Good. I’m glad he can’t hurt anyone else.”
“I regret to tell you, ma’am, Ray murdered Dr. Terry Parker and his pregnant wife Tanya. His lawyer is Kevin Warner.”
Nona choked on a bite of cake, and she coughed and gasped as her hand flew to her heart. “No! That can’t be! The boys weren’t supposed to know about each other.”
“Mrs. Harding, do you recognize this?” He showed her a copy of her youngest son’s forged birth certificate.
“Yes, I do.” Nona lifted her eyes with a look of resignation. “What do you want to know?”
“Everything, ma’am.”
Kevin Warner, Sr. was Nona’s forbidden fruit. He wasn’t interested in marrying an uneducated, dispirited woman broken by life and the wrong men, including Ray Farmer’s father. She was a pleasant distraction, though. Good in bed, obedient, and undemanding. When she became pregnant, she was no longer useful to him, but he wanted the baby. Warner forced her to bear their son overseas in Germany, where he knew the right kind of people who could forge a birth certificate. Ray was left behind with his grandparents. As part of their arrangement, he gave her a substantial amount of money to let him take the baby and forge Ray’s birth certificate to prevent the boys from ever knowing about each other.
“Ray was trouble, even back then,” Nona explained, “and we were an embarrassment to Kevin. He took our son and forgot about us. And I kept my word to him. I never told Ray about his half-brother.”
“They met at some point, Mrs. Harding. Kevin Warner, Jr., is a well-known criminal defense attorney who took Ray’s case.” William did not want to tell the woman the entire, sordid truth about both of her sons.
Her tired, work-worn face brightened somewhat. “A defense attorney? I’m happy he made something of himself. As you can see, my husband Ronald and I don’t have a television or a computer or cell phones. We prefer it this way.”
“You’re better off, Mrs. Harding. Trust me.” Having learned everything he could from her, William rose to his feet. “Thank you for the coffee and cake, ma’am. It was delicious. I’m sorry for bringing you bad news.”
As she escorted him to the front door, Nona asked, “Is Kevin, Jr., married, Investigator Hughes?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“To a good woman?”
“To a lovely woman. General Bennett’s daughter Elizabeth.”
A ghost of a smile crossed her face. “I’m not surprised. Lydia Bennett and I were pregnant at the same time. Kevin respected and admired the General. Is she as beautiful as her mother?”
“Yes, she is.”
“Does she love my son?”
William kept his expression and his voice neutral. “As far as I know, Mrs. Harding.”
“One last question, Investigator Hughes. Do I have any grandchildren?”
“No, ma’am.”
Nona smiled and patted his arm. “Well, they’re still young, aren’t they?”
William returned her smile. “Yes, Mrs. Harding, they are.”
