Healing Inc. Read online

  He couldn’t hold back his own smile as the girls handed her off to him then took their place beside her as bridesmaids. The head chef occupied one of the chairs on Evy’s side of the aisle with the hotel manager and his wife occupying the two on Tyler’s side. With everyone in place, the ceremony began.

  “Dearly beloved...” Reverend Rizzo started. He continued through the ceremony in the traditional manner. Tyler held his breath, casting a wary glance at the head chef when the reverend asked if anyone protested their union. The head chef squirmed in his seat but withheld judgment on the matter.

  “I now pronounce you man and wife. You may kiss your bride.”

  Evy felt her knees give from the kiss Tyler laid on her. She couldn’t have been happier than she was at that moment. The small crowd was overjoyed with the union and the parts they all had played in making it happen. Evy was here to stay. They would see her at least once a year from now on and they were ecstatic about it.

  Everyone had already eaten dinner so they celebrated with champagne, hors d’oeuvres and dancing late into the night. The Chef had made a small wedding cake that Tyler and Evy graciously cut and fed to each other before serving pieces to their guest.

  No one was more elated than Tyler. She was now his wife, Mrs. Moriatti. All his. He reflected on their journey from the time they met to the present and how hard he had worked to turn her head. He couldn’t get past the fortuitousness a box of clothing left by his daughter had brought him.

  The friend at the Embassy had done most of the work for them but they would have to wait until Monday to try to get her name changed. Until then, he would spend the weekend consummating his marriage. Needless to say, he looked forward to it.

  Chapter 11

  The Monday before Thanksgiving brought more cold rain to Oklahoma City. Nita rode in the back of Tyler’s limo heading for the airport. She liked the comfort of the limo. She liked the courteous driver that drove it. What she didn’t like right now was Tyler. I am so sick and tired of that gringo fucking with my life! She thought. First he takes my best friend away from me, which I know I encouraged but I miss her like hell all the same. Then the bastard goes behind my back and convinces my brother that we should only contact her through him. To top it off, he has the audacity to go and marry her without us, her only family present. And then he demands that we not tell anyone! Now, of all things, he has me running my ass off to meet some new partner of his because his ass is too lazy to fly back here and do it himself. Does he think he’s the only one with work to do? An undeniable scowl permeated her beautiful face.

  “Mamabicho!” she mumbled audibly, no longer able to keep her disdain in her head. “Who the fuck does he think he is! His ass may think he owns her now but he doesn’t own me! Gringo got my hair all frizzed out from this goddamn rain!” she screeched.

  Luckily, the glass shielded the driver from most of her private tirade. In all honesty, she was glad to be able to take her frustrations out on Tyler instead of the true root of her ire. Tony had canceled Thanksgiving, saying he had an important business trip to take. She still planned to go home Wednesday for the holiday but it wouldn’t be the same without him. She had spent the last few weeks going over what she and Evy discussed. Tony had rejected their offer of coming to work for Healing Inc. and was in the process of accepting a partnership with someone else. She was afraid that she had put him off for too long and now she had lost him forever. She refused to cry over it. She wasn’t the crying type.

  “Fuck him then! Pendejo!”

  The limo parked in the area allocated for picking up travelers. The driver opened the door for Nita who rushed in the building trying to avoid further damage to her hairdo. The only information she had on the new partner was a sign handed to her by the driver which read ‘Moriatti Real Estate Partner’.

  Her imagination kept entertaining different outcomes from this scenario. For all she knew a serial killer could walk up to her claiming the sign was for him. She’d get him all the way to the designated condo Tyler had rented for him just to have him kill the limo driver and get his ass thoroughly kicked for fucking with her when she was in such a foul mood.

  She stood in the lobby holding the sign, feeling utterly ridiculous. She was wet, tired and mad as hell but she managed to hide it behind her well established business smile. As she started to scan the crowd for anyone wearing the same uptight attire Tyler preferred her gaze fell on a sign on the other side of the lobby. Her eyes grew wide when she noticed that it had her name on it. Reluctantly, she made her way over to the young man holding it.

  “Hi, I’m Anita Vasquez. Why are you holding a sign with my name on it?” she asked, acknowledging that the sign bearer was way too young to possibly be Tyler’s new partner.

  “Ma’am I’ve been instructed to bring you to the V.I.P. room as soon as you arrive.” This sudden change in venue caught Nita off guard. “I’m also supposed to take the sign you’re holding from you.” He held out his hand for her to pass it to him.

  Eyeing him carefully, she handed it over, the serial killer scenario still fresh in her mind. Cautiously, she followed him to the V.I.P. room sizing the five foot ten escort up the whole way just in case she did have to fight this man. She thanked him as he held the door open for her to enter the room.

  Turning into the room she received the shock of her life as her eyes came to rest on its solo occupant. Anthony Sparrow, the love of her life sat in a plush lounge chair before her holding a single white rose. He rose from the chair, slowly making his way toward where she stood in the center of the room. He caressed her cheek with the delicate flower conjuring memories of a similar encounter that took place long ago. She closed her eyes and shuddered as her nipples hardened from the touch of the rose and the memories it provoked. An audible moan tried to escape her but it was captured in his mouth as he closed it over hers. The kiss was long and sweet.

  “So, you’re Tyler’s new partner, huh?” Her face reddened slightly as her most recent thoughts of Tyler came back to her.

  “That I am.” He moved closer to her, taking her in his arms. “I was hoping that now I can claim you as my partner as well.”

  “Wha, wha, what do you mean?” She couldn’t explain why she was suddenly nervous.

  “Well, you wouldn’t come back to Chicago, so I decided to move here. Tyler and I have been talking since last summer. Once he started pursuing Evy I knew he had good taste and was willing to take the gamble of becoming partners with him. We plan to keep the loan business going in Chicago with my brother but want to open a branch here as well.” Nita was reeling from his words. “So?”

  “So what?” Confusion was clear on her face.

  He chuckled. “So, will you be my partner?”

  “Your partner? I thought Tyler was your partner!”

  “No, not that kind of partner.” Nita turned to the sound of the door opening. A violinist came into the room followed by the man who had guided her there who was now carrying more white roses and a pillow with a large diamond ring on it. Nita turned back to Tony to find him before her on one knee. “Will you marry me and become my partner for life?”

  “Iye, Tony!” Nita’s eyes grew wide in disbelief. A single tear slid past her tough resolve. “Of course I will. Just don’t ask me to quit my job.”

  ***

  Meanwhile In London, England…

  “…and Cecile this is Evy, now my wife.” Tyler finished introducing the two women, enjoying the look of astonishment displayed by Cecile.

  “Your wife?” she asked with more enthusiasm than she intended to. Now she wouldn’t be able to give him a hard time about having sex outside of marriage.

  “So nice to finally meet you,” Evy stated as she stepped forward to give her new stepdaughter a hug.

  She was blown away by Cecile’s beauty. She had her dad’s royal blue eyes and straight nose but her lips were fuller and her skin much darker. Tyler had told her that Abby was very light skinned, almost comparable to a white girl with
a slight tan. Cecile was more of a light mocha color. Her hair was the same texture as Evy’s but she had it styled in long dreadlocks that reached the middle of her back. A small diamond adorned the indent of her left nostril. She wasn’t much shorter than Evy and they were very similar in build. The two women took an instant liking to one another.

  After gathering Cecile they made their way to Tyler’s hotel in London. Upon settling everything in Venice they had spent the time since then journeying to England, stopping in Switzerland and France along the way. Although they had grown to love the staff in Venice they were happy to spend time alone as husband and wife. They were now ready to get semi-settled again amongst people they knew and were relieved when the driver pulled up in front of the hotel.

  “Thank you Arnold. You handle the London traffic very well,” Tyler complemented. This didn’t escape his daughter.

  They made it to their suite which was a bit smaller than the one in Italy. The sitting room was identical with beige and white as the colors and much smaller furniture. The two bedrooms shared a bath and Tyler’s office consisted of a desk against one of the walls in the larger of the two bedrooms. Cecile wouldn’t be staying with them during the week because she had classes. She had made sure to keep her schedule clear for tonight and Thursday evening so she could join them for Thanksgiving dinner, despite being in a place where the holiday wasn’t recognized.

  They quickly changed clothing while Cecile’s mouth was going a mile a minute, catching them up on her college life. In celebration of their new union they took her to one of her favorite restaurants.

  “I wish I could have been at the wedding. I bet you were a beautiful bride.” She was sincere in her statement, thankful that her father had finally found someone she deemed worthy of him.

  “Oh, she was indeed.” Tyler assured her casting a love filled glance at his wife who returned the look. The waiter came over and refilled their wine glasses. “Thank you Charles.”

  Cecile was no longer able to hold back what she was thinking. “You know Dad, I’m glad we have Evy in the family now but if I had known that having sex would have made you more polite I would have pushed for it a long time ago.”

  Tyler nearly choked on his bread while Evy covered her mouth to avoid the attention her amusement would surely draw. “Come on Dad, don’t give me that look! All the times I’ve tried to get you to be nice to other people.” Her eyebrow rose as her head shifted side to side with attitude. Evy knew right then she would love this girl as if she were her own flesh and blood.

  “My sex life, young lady, is no longer any of your business,” Tyler scolded, glaring at his daughter. “We need to discuss why you’re refusing to go to your mother’s for Christmas.”

  “Is she still tripping about that?”

  “Yes, she is. And she will not leave me alone about it. I need you to talk to her directly. I have a wife now, information I choose not to share with your mother because I don’t want to deal with it while I’m on my honeymoon. It’s not fair to Evy to have my ex-wife calling me every day about our adult daughter,” he stated putting emphasis on the word adult.

  “I’m sorry daddy but I don’t feel comfortable around her by myself. There’s something wrong with that woman. I don’t know what you were thinking when you got with that one.”

  “Some respect young lady, she is your mother.”

  “She ain’t my mama,” Cecile mumbled, burying her face behind a dessert menu thinking Tyler wouldn’t hear her.”

  “I heard that Cecile. Why is it so difficult for you to give her a chance? I know she hasn’t been around but she’s trying now.” He was genuine in his attempts to mend this bridge for Cecile’s sake, not Abby’s. He didn’t want her carrying the heavy baggage of her mother’s abandonment and their divorce for the rest of her life.

  “A chance, Dad?” She placed the menu on the table and turned fully toward him to make sure she had his full attention. “Look! Perhaps you haven’t realized it yet but she didn’t leave you… she left me.” She held a hand up to stop him from responding.

  Evy continued to look over her dessert menu granting them an air of privacy. “It didn’t take me long to figure her out after spending time with her prepping for that stupid debutant ball. She left us because she couldn’t deal with having a child that was darker than her. Rumor has it Ralph has another family stashed away that he plans on leaving his money to if anything should happen to him. He won’t divorce her because then he would have to keep her and it would look bad for his blue blood family. She’s only trying to get back in your good graces in hopes that you will do what you’re doing now; convince me to mend our bridges so she’ll have a fall back plan if you leave me your money.” She turned back to her original sitting position letting him know she was done with her speech.

  “Who told you that? That doesn’t even make since, Cecile. Abby’s parents are quite wealthy. They’re worth much more than her husband,” Tyler stated trying to hide his concern over what his daughter just told him.

  “The staff… The staff knows all,” she answered from behind her menu.

  “The staff! You harbor animosity toward your mother, the woman who gave birth to you because of something the staff told you?”

  “Think about this dad,” she said putting the menu down once again to face him. “If she had been spending time with me would I have had the opportunity to gossip with the staff?” They held each other’s gaze for a moment. Evy couldn’t get over how much they looked and acted alike. “She doesn’t like black people, Dad. Why would you think she’d be different toward me?”

  Tyler wasn’t sure how to respond to that. He knew his daughter’s last words rang true. Abby’s mom was white and her father black but wrapped in the same tan skin she had. It never occurred to him that she would be capable of being a bigot toward her own daughter. At that moment, he hated Abby more than he had ever been capable of loving her.

  Evy saw the pain in their eyes and wanted nothing more than to take it away. “I know it’s none of my business but maybe if you accompany Cecile to Abby’s for Christmas you’ll be better able to determine what’s going on. That would give you both the chance to decide if you should continue your efforts to salvage this relationship or if it’s time to turn it loose,” she suggested. She couldn’t believe that anyone wouldn’t like Cecile, especially her own mother. The thought of delivering a nicely gift wrapped can of whoop-ass had crossed her mind as well but that idea she kept to herself.

  “No way in hell am I going to spend Christmas away from my wife!” Tyler ranted.

  “She could come with us Dad. I’d love to rub it in Abby’s face that you found someone much better looking than her.”

  “Cecile!” Tyler snapped, even though he agreed with her. “Please try to mind your manners. I don’t want her to know about Evy just yet.”

  “Then you tell her whatever you want her to know when you pass on word of our impending visit. I won’t go if Evy doesn’t; I’d rather be with her anyway. You don’t have to worry about me telling her anything. That last conversation before my birthday party did it for me. I haven’t talked to her since, nor do I plan to,” she stated adamantly. “Sorry Dad.”

  Reluctantly, Tyler released an audible sigh of defeat. He didn’t want to expose his new bride to his curse which was in the form of his ex-wife.

  “It’s okay. I don’t mind going as long as I’m with you two,” Evy volunteered. Part of her wanted to meet this woman for the potential entertainment value alone. Besides, her presence would help bring this woman’s true character to the surface. If Tyler happened to miss anything bizarre about her attitude toward her daughter it wouldn’t get past Evy’s ever observant eye. She wanted to do that for her new stepdaughter because for some reason she believed everything the girl had told them was true.

  “We’ll talk about it later,” Tyler said wanting the discussion to be over. “Right now we need to decide on dessert before they throw us out of here.”

 
Chapter 12

  As unusual as it was, snow fell in Chicago the Monday after Thanksgiving. Marcus Cole sat behind his desk absentmindedly rubbing his bare upper lip. He wondered how someone could have been tracking his every move without his knowledge and if they would be able to do it again. Upon finding that out, he had put protective mechanisms in place but he knew that was never a guarantee.

  He was glad to finally have Miguel Vasquez helping him and answering his questions, and hoped that it would move the investigation along. However, other than his suspicions that the three men present during the attack on her were out of New York he was no closer to knowing who was after Mindy Johnson, a.k.a. Rachel E. Stoneland, now going by the name of Evelyn Stone. Her various names alone were enough to give him a headache.

  At least he had a good holiday. His parents were more than happy to meet the granddaughter they never knew existed and had invited her to their home for Thanksgiving dinner. Being a detective made it easy for him to find her. He was still reeling over the whole story behind his brother’s death but it had become easier to deal with since they had found his remains and had given him a decent burial. Saying goodbye had brought all those years of pain to the surface, but meeting his brother’s daughter had helped ease some of it.