Page 6 of Requital

When we reached US soil, Constance and her husband Marcus welcomed me into their home here in Virginia. They didn’t have any children of their own, which is why they both worked as aid workers. With their love and support, I changed my name and started the healing process.

They kept me safe and well-informed on the well-being of my family back home. They also played an instrumental part in my becoming a US citizen. Once that happened, and with my momma’s blessing, they adopted me as their daughter.

They are also the reason I became a psychologist.

If it weren’t for my adopted parents, I wouldn’t have become the person I am today, and it’s what they did for me that drives me to help others.

About four years ago, Marcus and Constance were killed in an automobile accident. It is believed that a drunk driver swerved onto the wrong side of the road, crashing into them head-on. I wanted to believe Antonio was behind their deaths, but Mandi, my associate with the CIA, couldn’t find any links to support my suspicions.

Ever since my admission to Hawke, he has made it his mission every time he travels to Colombia to check on my momma and Camila.

I want to go home, but I won't while Antonio and Andres are still a threat.

I have no doubt Hawke can protect me; it’s just that I know them better than he does, and if there is any chance that they can get to me, they will.

I pray that Hawke stays safe on this mission and comes home to me. I don’t know what I would do if anything happened to him.

CHAPTERTHREE

Hawke

“Good evening, sir; how can I assist you?”

“Reservation under the name Lawrence,” I tell the young girl behind the desk.

Without even a second glance, she proceeds to ask for my credit card as she checks me in. It’s not until she hands me back my card and the room key that she looks up at me again. I consider asking her where Jimmy, my usual concierge is but the look of disinterest on her face makes me decide against it, so I just smile and thank her instead.

For the past year, I’ve brushed off Sumner’s insistence that I stay with her and Tatum during my visits to Brooklyn. She doesn’t understand my desire to stay here at The Tillary Hotel, but it’s something I’ve always done, including when Antony and his wife Sarah resided here. The location is convenient, and I like to stay here because of Jimmy.

For a man in his seventies, he’s as spritely as any man you’d ever encounter in his twenties and has quite the attitude to match. We’ve spent many hours at the bar discussing anything from the weather to what his grandchildren are doing, and I’ve grown quite fond of his company.

This visit, though, focuses on Sumner and Tatum’s upcoming nuptials. I pleaded with Emily to join me and make a vacation of it, yet she was swamped this week and couldn’t reschedule all her patients. Between her private clinic and the work she does for the CIA, that girl is on call nearly twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. She desperately needs some downtime but refuses to take it as it keeps her mind busy. My upcoming mission has her on edge, more than we could have anticipated.

“Hello,” I answer as Sumner calls my cell phone.

“blub bub grl goo,” a tiny voice babbles on the other end.

I can do nothing more than laugh when Sumner’s voice echoes down through the cell, “Abigail O’Neil, what on earth are you doing now?”

Realizing whom her daughter has called, Sumner laughs, “Oh my God, dad, this child won’t leave anything alone now that she has learned to crawl.”

“The joys of raising toddlers, darling.” I laugh in return. “While I have you, do you want me to come to you, or are we dining out this evening?”

“Tatum has been doing his adolescent psychology internship at Kings County Hospital and coming home late,” she informs me. “It may be easier for you to come here.”

“I’ll leave now and help you with Abi until he gets home.”

Thanking me, Sumner hangs up but not before getting my little granddaughter to gurgle her very own goodbye. They may be my adopted family on paper, yet to me, they are my very own flesh and blood. Including Sumner, Abigail, and Emily in my life has changed me in a way I never thought possible. Em and I have briefly broached the subject of starting a family of our own, but I just don’t know if I can give her what she wants. I promised we’d discuss it further upon my return from Bojayá.

“Excuse me, Miss,” I interrupt another young girl, different from the one earlier behind the counter.

“Yes, sir,” she greets with a smile. “How can I assist you?”

“I was wondering where Jimmy is today?”

“Oh, do you know Jimmy?” she inquires.

“I’ve been a frequent visitor over the years and have gotten to know him well,” I reply.

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