Page 114 of Silent Partner (Pine Falls 3)

We all took a seat on the leather furniture arranged near the bar and fireplace. Brock and Brant made sure to sit on either side of their mother on the couch. As stoic as she had been before and during the conference, the events of the day had begun to weigh on her. She kept wiping at her eyes, not letting the tears that brimmed fall. Today was the end of an era for their family. Brock and Brant dutifully took turns hugging her and patting her hand.

Dani and I took two chairs next to one another. We held hands like those two snow angels forged long ago as we watched the men in our lives care for their mother. If the saying was true that you needed to see how a man treats his mother because that is how he will treat you, Dani and I were both in excellent hands.

After several minutes, John walked in and paused to look around his office. An office that he would soon be vacating. I had noticed some of the packed boxes in the corner earlier. His desk was already bare. But his gaze didn’t linger on the past; he looked at his family, the holders of his courage and his future.

John took a seat on the coffee table in front of his wife. He hesitated to reach for her hands, not knowing if he should or if she would allow it. But once he grasped them, he held on for dear life. His eyes bored into hers. “Thank you,” he whispered. “Thank you for coming today.”

Sheridan nodded. I didn’t think she could speak at the moment. It was as if her heart might burst if she did. I knew that feeling.

“Thank you all for coming,” John addressed the rest of us before kissing his wife’s hands and standing. He walked to the bar, grabbed a bottle of bourbon, and poured himself a shot. “Anyone else want something to drink?”

We all declined. He downed his shot in one gulp. That had to burn. He closed his eyes as he swallowed. He set the shot glass on the counter before facing us all again, shaking his head as he let the alcohol do its thing.

“I wanted to talk to you all and give you an update.” John let out a heavy breath. “As you know, I already handed over all the evidence I had to my friend, Senator Mac Isaacs.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “There will no doubt be an inquiry. If it goes the way I think it will, once the President gets wind, he will appoint a commission to investigate. No doubt Edward will do his best to make sure the President appoints someone Edward owns to lead the commission. Mac will do his best to see that there is no bias, but that is hard to come by in Washington. He’ll also remind the President that this situation calls for transparency and will request that Edward be removed from all of his duties. All we can do now is hope and pray for the best and let the evidence speak for itself. I have a team of lawyers already headed to DC,” he added.

Brant was involved, though they thought it best to keep him out of the fray for now. He would do what he could from here. He was already preparing his father’s defense in the event it went to a criminal trial, which was more than likely.

A look passed between Dani and me that said, “Is this for real?” It felt like we were living in an episode of The West Wing, an old show Grandma and Grandpa used to watch reruns of. I think Grandma had a crush on Rob Lowe. He was pretty dashing.

John paced in front of the magnificent stone fireplace. “Edward won’t go quietly,” he warned. “He doesn’t like being bested, and my guess is that the press conference today has blindsided him,” he said with an air of satisfaction. “That said, I still have a few aces up my sleeve if he decides to stir up trouble for any of you. Last night, my security team apprehended Jill’s henchman, who’s been following Brant around. He’s also the man who broke into Dr. Paulson’s office. For the right price, he’s willing to testify against Jill if we need him to. And Jill is Edward’s Achilles’ heel.”

Like I said, this was surreal. We had moved from The West Wing to Days of Our Lives. I was waiting for the evil Stefano to come back to life for the tenth time and reveal his diabolical plans, before making clones of each of us and stranding us on a deserted island. It was obvious, though, that John knew how to play this game, and, by all indications, he was good at it. I didn’t know whether to be impressed or appalled.

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