Page 43 of Dan

“Oh, my God. That poor girl,” she said, shaking her head. “So, this does have to do with more than just my parents.”

“In a strange way, yes. But that has nothing to with you.” Wilson took in a deep breath, giving a short nod to Antoine. “Finley, were you aware that your mother was an illegitimate child of your great-half-uncle?”

“Wh-what?”

“Her name was Yancy Baker. She met your father, knowing that they were half-related in a very strange way.”

“Do you, do you think that’s why there’s something wrong with me?” she whispered.

“Honey, there is nothing wrong with you. Nothing. You are a brilliant young woman with a mind unlike anyone I’ve ever known. There is not one thing about you that I would change,” said Antoine.

“Me too,” smiled Wilson.

As the sun began to set, they stilled, just watching and listening. They could feel her need to speak but didn’t want to force it. Finally, she opened up, and they just smiled.

“Did you know that the Mississippi River flows about three miles per hour at New Orleans? But the speed changes as water levels start to rise or fall, and when the river widens, narrows, or becomes shallow. Or a combination of all of those things. In fact, it takes about three months for water that leaves Lake Itasca, the entire river’s source, to get to the Gulf of Mexico.” Wilson and Antoine stood, taking her hand.

“Keep talking, honey, but it’s time for dinner.”

“Oh, okay. So, at Lake Itasca, the river is between twenty and thirty feet wide. Not very wide when you think about it. I mean….”

Both men could only smile as she rattled on about every fact known to man of the river just outside their door. When she walked into the cafeteria, still talking, she took off toward the food as both men chuckled.

“Nothing more perfect, brother,” said Antoine. Wilson nodded, slapping his back.

“Nothing.”

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

“Morning,” said Dan, wiping his eyes as he poured himself a cup of coffee.

“Morning,” grinned Ryan. “I see you’re like your mother in the morning.”

“I heard that,” snarled Paige. She kissed her son’s cheek, then stuck her tongue out at her husband. “I’m an angel in the morning. After my coffee.”

“I hear ‘ya, Mom,” smirked Dan, taking a sip of the black nectar. He rolled his eyes, letting out a sigh, and Ryan could only laugh. The doors to the other rooms opened, and the rest of the team walked in.

“Morning,” they echoed.

“Morning,” said Dan. “Anything new on MQAE?”

“Yep,” said Doug. “I spoke to the team back home. MQAE was purchased by Yancy Baker almost seven months ago.”

“She bought it in her maiden name,” frowned Dan. “She knew that it would lead back to them, or at least make her daughter suspicious.”

“I think Ramirez was right. Yancy is the brains behind all of this, or at the very least, the money. As you guys know, Ella was an accountant on the team when we first started in New Orleans. She had a weird feeling about the trail of money and deals, so she went to Jean, and they’ve been working through the night on this.

“Yancy’s mother was a favorite of Baker’s. In fact, from what we can tell, he sent regular child support payments to her up until his death. He left Yancy a sizeable trust that couldn’t be touched even after Faser went bankrupt and was taken over by his brother and turned around.

“They’ve been spending cash like they were printing it themselves. Jean found payments of twenty-five thousand each, more than a dozen times, to a Dr. Arthur Gunderson.”

“Where is he?” frowned Dan.

“Conveniently, he’s located on the southern tip of Whidbey Island. He’s not far from us at all.” Dan stood, but his father gripped his shoulder.

“Not now. We’ll get to him, but first, we get to MQAE.”

“If they know G.R.I.P. is coming, the Xaviers won’t be there,” said Doug. “Whoever we’re meeting with has been instructed to say some very specific things to us, and I, for one, would love to hear what kind of garbage they spew our way.”

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