Kitchen Promises (Riverside Trilogy, #3) (The Riverside Trilogy) (20 page)

I threw it as far as I could out into the water. At least now, Denny was defenseless. I wasn’t sure if he made the call or not, or just threatened to, but I wasn’t giving him the upper hand anymore.

“You’re stupid. You think I only have one gun?”

Shit. I hadn’t thought about that. I was filled with rage and adrenaline walking back up here that I hadn’t even contemplated that he’d have more than one gun.

“Fine. Just do it, Denny. Shoot me. Just get it over with,” I challenged him. And then I noticed that the crowd around us was getting quieter. I was being heard.

Well, too late to go back now.

“Do it!” I screamed louder, challenging him once again. “Shoot me!”

“Ma’am, is there a problem?” I hear a soft voice from behind me.

I suspect it’s a staff member, so I replied, “I’d move out of the way, if I were you, unless you want my guts splattered all over you.”

And then it was like wildfire. Two armed men came out of nowhere and grabbed Denny, cuffing his hands behind his back. My phone slipped out of his hand out of his reach. I quickly grabbed it before anyone could take it.

“Where’s your weapon, sir?”

“In the river.”

“He has another one,” I interrupt.

They tackled him to the ground, patting him down.

“He’s clean,” I heard one of them announce.

“No, that’s impossible,” I muttered.

“Ma’am, we’re almost to land. Why don’t you stay with us up front?” She began grabbing my arm, but I yanked it away.

“No, I have to get my daughter first.”

She escorted me down to the bathroom where I knock and called out, “Stella, it’s mommy. You can let me in now.”

I didn’t hear anything and knocked again. “Stella! It’s mommy. Open up!” I wiggled the doorknob and it opens right up. “Stella? Oh my god, she’s gone!”

“Ma’am, just calm down, please.”

“Calm down? My daughter is gone! She’s missing!”

I pushed past her and ran back up the stairs to the dock.

“Where is she?” I yelled, not even caring that I was making yet another scene.

“You didn’t think I’d come alone, did you?” He flashed a cocky grin.

“I swear, if you hurt her!” I ran at him, pushing him with as much force as I could. I was filled with adrenaline and rage.

And apparently too much.

I pushed him right over.

-----<>-----

Drake

The pain didn’t come. And neither did the blood. Well, not my blood
, at least. My body crashed to the ground, but not because I was in pain, because I was pushed.

I looked up and saw my driver. He was holding a gun in his hand pointed directly at Mr. Madden. He was covered in blood, not moving on the ground.

“Holy shit,” I muttered.

“We have to go. Now!” he yelled. He placed his gun back in his pants and began running
toward the car. I looked around before getting up and running behind him.

We both got in the car and slammed the doors shut. The tires squealed as he turned around. I needed to get to Molly, but I had no idea where she was.

I called her cell, but as I figured, straight to voicemail. I called the house number, hoping Shirley had some answers for me.

“Stagliano residence,” she answered.

“Shirley, it’s Drake. It’s an emergency. I need you to tell me if you know where Molly is. Is she home? Did she say where she was going?” I rambled off, later realizing I wasn’t giving her a second to speak.

“Mrs. Stagliano is not home, sir.”

“Did she say where she was going?”

“She took Stella out on the boat.”

Fuck.

“Thank you.” I quickly hung up, knowing exactly where she would’ve gone. When her parents visited, we took them on a sunset cruise, so I was almost positive she was there now.

I told my driver where to go. I gave him all the details on the situation as he drove. I knew he was panicking inside about what he had just done, but it was his job—his job was to protect me as well.

I jumped out as soon as I saw the sign for the boats. I ran over to the ticket booth, begging for information on when the boat was supposed to arrive.

“I’m sorry, sir. It was supposed to dock fifteen minutes ago. Hence, the line.” He waved a hand over to the crowd that was very long and by the looks of it, getting very anxious.

“Something’s wrong. My wife is on there. She called me from the boat. Someone is on there to hurt her. You need to call for help.”

“I’m sure everything is fine, sir. They would’ve called if something was wrong. Sometimes this happens. Someone gets sick or there are too many boats in the weighing area.”

“No! That’s not it!” I shouted, slamming my fist on the counter.

“Sir, I’m going to have to ask you to leave now. Or I’ll call the cops.”

“Yes! Call the fucking cops! Tell them someone is on that fucking boat to hurt my wife!”

The girl gave me a suspicious look, as if she didn’t fully believe me, but believed me enough to call.

“Fine, I’ll call. But that’s all I’m doing. Now go.” She waved me off.

For the first time in my life, I felt helpless. There wasn’t enough time for me to do anything.

“How much for a little boat?”

“Excuse me?”

“How…much for a little boat? To rent? To go out on the lake?” I clarified, holding my wallet out, ready to pay anything.

“Sir, we don’t have anything like that. We only do tours.”

“Are you fucking kidding me? Get me your manager, please,” I said sternly.

“Is there something wrong, sir?” An older gentleman came into view, looking completely harmless.

“I need to rent a boat. Any boat.”

“We don’t offer those kinds of services, sir. I’m sorry.”

“I’ll pay you ten thousand dollars.”

“Sir, I really don’t—”

“Twenty thousand.”

I watched as he scratched his head, mumbling something to a worker nearby.

“You can take the staff boat, sir.” I watched as he walked out of the employee hold and nodded me over.

I followed him down, shrugging my suit jacket off. He gave me instructions as he started the boat.

“Thank you,” I said, rushing him off. I could drive a fucking boat.

“Are you staying or going?” I snapped, ready to go.

“Please be careful. If you get hurt there’s a liability issue and—”

“I promise not to sue. There, happy?”

He nodded and reluctantly got off the boat. I didn’t waste anytime cranking the handle, gaining speed. I had no idea where I was going, but as soon as I was passed the weighing station, I bounced off the waves until I saw the company’s boat charter.

I could tell that it was held up. It wasn’t moving. Something was wrong.

“Molly!” I screamed. It was a long shot, the boat was loud, but I screamed anyway. “Molly!”

A couple of staff members saw me as I drove the boat up closer. “Sir? What are you doing?” a woman gasped.

“My wife is on this boat! Where is she?”

“Drake?” God, the sound of her voice was like pure Heaven. “Oh my god! You’re alright?” she gasped.

“I’m fine, baby!” I grinned wide at the sight of her smile. “Why is the boat stopped?”

“Passenger overboard!” a staff member yelled back. “You need to get back, sir.”

I put the boat in reverse, but I was not going much farther back. I was going to get my girl off there.

I felt my phone vibrate against me and was relieved to see Molly’s name pop up.

“Molly, what’s going on?”

“Drake, he’s here. Denny’s here,” she cried.

“I know, sweetheart. Tell me, where is he?”

“He’s the one that went overboard. They’ve been searching for almost a half hour. They called for help, but so far, nothing.”

“Where’s Stella?”

“I locked her in the bathroom and when I went back to grab her, she was gone! I confronted Denny who said he didn’t come alone. Now the whole boat is on lock down. They won’t let me go search for her.”

“You’re fucking kidding me,” I wailed out. How could they torture a mother like that, knowing her child was out of reach? I was furious.

“Stay right there, sweetheart. I’m coming to get you.”

-----<>-----

Molly

I watched as Drake
shifted the boat up to the front. I heard someone yell that it was Mr. Stagliano. Apparently, one of his staff members worked a second job on the boat and recognized him.

By the time Drake reached me, I was a sobbing mess. He rushed toward me, wrapped his arms tightly around me. He dug his head in the nape of my neck, crying with me.

“How did you know where to find me?” I asked.

“Where’s Stella?” He ignored my question. “Where is she?”

He wasn’t asking me. He was demanding answers from all the staff members that were now huddled near us.

“Find her. Now!” he yelled. “We’ll find her.” He brought his attention back to me, rubbing his knuckles over my wet cheeks.

“I feel like the worst mother, ever.”

“Stop it.” He tilted my chin up. “This is not your fault. You understand me?”

I nodded, letting his strong arms carry me. A staff member rushed to our sides letting us know Stella had been found. We broke apart and found Stella walking up casually with food in both hands.

I raced to her and knelt down to her level. “Where were you?” I gasped.

“I got hungry,” she answered, nonchalantly.

“Stella! I told you to stay in the bathroom, remember?”

“I did. Someone kept knocking and yelling. They had to use the potty.” The innocence in her voice was making it too hard to be mad at her, so I just grabbed her and squeezed her instead. I didn’t care anymore—she was safe in my arms.

We finally made it back to land where cops and ambulances were lined up on the block.

“Shit,” Drake mumbled, escorting the three of us off. “Let me take care of this, okay?”

I nodded, holding Stella’s hand as tightly as I could without it hurting. There was no way I was letting her out of my sight.

I let Drake handle the cops, giving them his side of the story. I wasn’t even sure what his side was at the moment, but all I cared about was that the three of us were safe. We were on land…and safe.

*   *   *

It’s been six days since the boating incident and Denny’s body still hadn’t been found. Stanley informed Drake that Denny had told him once that he can’t swim, which made me wonder why the hell he would’ve gone on that boat in the first place.

“It was all a set up, Molly,” Drake reminded me as I kept trying to figure this whole thing out in my head.

“Set up for what? I just don’t understand why he was after me in the first place?” I sat on the sofa, folding baskets and baskets of laundry.

“He felt threatened by you. He recognized you
at the engagement party and knew you must’ve recognized him too when you reacted. I’m sure he thought you’d tell me right away and that his cover would be blown,” Drake reassured me, trying to help me put the pieces together. It made sense out loud; I knew that, but why? Why was he so hell bent on revenge when I hadn’t done anything to him…
ever
.

Drake and his team of lawyers spoke with the police and explained everything to them. Drake’s driver got off on saving Drake’s life—defense of another person—and I got off with self-defense—with no intention to harm. I’m sure if Drake hadn’t shown up with a half a dozen top attorneys, the situation may have played out differently, but the important part was that there was no legal charges.

“Molly, the man was sick. There’s just no other way to explain a man who has done the things he’s done. He has no sense of morals, no common sense, and no compassion for people.” He knelt beside me, tilting my chin up so we were eye level. “This is not your fault.”

I didn’t feel bad for Denny’s missing body. I felt incredibly guilty when Travis died, but this was a different kind of grief. I had been responsible for both of these incidents—even if one deserved more than the other. However, besides feeling
grief that I pushed him in, I felt relief. Relief that he was finally gone—out of my life—he couldn’t hurt me anymore.

“I just need to know that this is over,” I whispered. “I can’t live in fear anymore.”

“It’s over, baby. I promise.” His face was sincere and his tone soft.

“How can you know?”

“Denny was after one thing—
you.
He used his connections from prison to get to you and use them against you, but those are all gone now. The police know everything about his background and who he worked with. They are taking care of it. The threat is gone,” he promised.

“Thank you.” I cupped a hand over his face, letting it melt against him. “Thank you for always being there, for always knowing what to say, and for being…you.”

“It’s the only thing I ever want to do, Molly. Protecting you and our family is the only thing that matters to me.”

I leaned in and kissed him gently.

“So I’ve been thinking,” I paused, grabbing his attention. “I don’t want anymore secrets. Nothing that can be held against me or anyone.” He wrinkled his nose, waiting for me to continue. “I’m going to tell Stanley. I’m going to tell him everything.”

He backed up a bit, raising his eyebrows at me. “Really? Molly, you don’t have to do that. The threat is gone now.”

“I know. But I think it’s the right thing to do. I’ll tell my parents beforehand that I plan to tell him and as long as Stanley hears it from me, there won’t be any publicity scandal.”

“Only if you want to. Please don’t feel pressured. But know that I’ll support you either way.” He smiled, rubbing small circles over my palm.

“I want to be able to announce it at the banquet. I think it’ll be a good opener for the charity, the real reason I founded it.”

He smiled again, this time it reached his eyes. “I think that’s a great idea.”

*   *   *

Even after I had the babies, and then had gone back to working on
Project Anchor,
Michael continued to help me. I think he secretly enjoyed helping people, even though he wore this tough, insensitive persona on the outside to many other people, he was always compassionate and caring to me. 

It was nice that Michael and I had a project together, something that reconnected us. My life had changed so drastically over the past couple years. Michael and I weren’t together as often.

“So, how’s all the party planning going?” I asked Michael as I set a basket of laundry on the table. “Anything I can do?”

Michael
loves
hosting a party or event. I knew he wouldn’t let me help, but I at least wanted to offer. I knew he had it all under control though.

The charity event we were hosting for
Project Anchor
was to thank the sponsors for their contributions and to showcase some of our success stories. We even had a parent-daughter duo reunited that was willing to give a speech on how successful our charity had been for them.

I planned on telling Stanley before the event, but announcing it to everyone during. I knew it would come as a shock, but I really felt like giving the investors background information and letting the public know the reason for this charity, it will help it stand out from all the other corporations.

“No, thanks, mama. I got it all under control. Just show your pretty face and do your speech thing and I’ll handle the rest.” He smiled, looking through his calendar. I glanced over it, and I saw tons of highlights and scribbled in notes.

“That I can handle,” I smirked.

Explaining everything to my parents was hard. Especially because I had to tell them each separately and explain the whole Denny situation
twice
—me recognizing him, the text messages, the set up—they were furious but understood my reasoning to tell Stanley. I wanted it out in the open instead of lingering over me like a dark cloud ready to strike me at any moment.

*   *   *

Two weeks after the Denny incident, his body was finally found. It floated up the river and was found by some people who were walking the river trail.

The news hit newsstands everywhere—his background story, his time in jail, his threats—it was like a whirlwind of events that spiraled out, finally, so everyone knew. Except Stanley. I had yet to tell him the truth of it all.

“Hello, Violet,” I said in a calm tone as she answered the door. If I were going to do this, I would do it in person.

“Molly, what a…surprise,” she responded.

“Yes, sorry. I should’ve called, but I just need a moment with Stanley.”

“Um, sure,” she hesitated. She backed up, allowing me in. Violet and I were acquaintances and nothing more, but we still were respectable when necessary.

She called for Stanley who was in his study. I felt jittery as I waited for him. Drake offered to come with me, but this was something I needed to do alone. I was about to tell this man some very important, and probably unbelievable news.

“Molly, dear. How are you?” he greeted me. Stanley was a tall man. He typically had to lean down to kiss my cheeks. He was a gentleman and very compassionate outside of the office. Drake was the same way though, always putting their game faces on when it came to work.

“I’m good, Stanley. How are you?”

“I’m doing good, thank you. What can I help you with?” He motioned for me to sit down with him. I took the chair across from him, taking in slow breaths.

“Well…I have something to tell you. It’s about me. And you. And well…I just need to say it.”

“Okay…” He crossed his ankles, looking straight at me.

I breathed in slowly again, closing my eyes as I mentally prepared myself.
Yes, I can do this.

“Um, okay. This is kind of a personal question, but did you ever donate sperm when you were younger…say… 25 or so years ago?” I watched as he squirmed in his chair. I could tell he didn’t see that coming. “Again…I’m sorry for the personal question. I swear that it’s not for an article or anything.” I chuckled nervously.

He laughed right back. “Yes, yes, I did actually. Back then I wasn’t as well off as I am today. I was desperate.” I swallowed, my face feeling flushed. “Why do you ask?”

“My parents used a sperm donor because my dad couldn’t have children. My mom was desperate to get pregnant and after reading a file, picked a donor.”

His eyes widened. “You…you think they picked me?” He motioned to himself.

“Yes,” I answered bluntly. “The nurse accidentally spilled the information. At the time, my parents didn’t think anything of it because you weren’t well developed in your career, yet. And they were so eager to get pregnant, they promised to not say anything that would get that nurse in trouble.”

“Wait…so you’re telling me, they picked my…application. And got pregnant. And now…now you’re here?” He was stammering all over the place. It was a far-fetched story I know, but I already felt better about telling him the truth.

“Yes, sir.”

“H-oly shit,” he muttered. He brushed a hand through his hair and just stared at me.

“I know, it’s a lot to take in and I wouldn’t blame you for not believing me—”

“Is this some kind of joke?” His tone surprised me as he interrupts me.

“No. No, of course not. I—”

“I’m sorry. You can’t be here right now. You have to go.”

I sincerely nodded in his direction and stood up. I made way to the door and held in the tears until I was in the hall. I don’t know why I reacted like that; I wasn’t looking for anything from him besides to tell him the truth. I didn’t want a
daddy figure
or any kind of attention. I just wanted the truth out there.

However, I should’ve figured. It’s a lot for any person to understand, especially when you’re the one being told you’re the biological father.

I get to the elevator and press the call button. As I waited, I wiped the tears off and got myself back together.
It’s going to be okay…
I told myself over and over.

Just as the elevator rang and the doors slid open, I heard Stanley yell, “Molly, wait!”

I clenched my eyes tight, holding in the tears that are now continuously falling down. I don’t want him to see me like this.
This is ridiculous,
I muttered to myself.

“Molly, please. I’m sorry.” I could tell he was directly behind me now. He grabbed the inside of my arm pulling me back and spinning me around to face him. “Oh god. I made you
cry. I’m really sorry.” His face is beat red, and I could tell he regretted his previous decision to kick me out.

“I’m not crying because of that,” I lied, wiping them away once again.

“Listen, I’m an ass. I shouldn’t have asked you to leave.”

“I don’t blame you. It’s okay.” I chewed my lip as I refrained from keeping eye contact with him.

“No…it wasn’t okay. C’mon. Please come back in.”

“There’s nothing more to say, Stanley. I understand.”

“Molly,
please.
Just come talk to me.” The look at his face was a blend of sincerity and regret. I could tell how his earlier behavior was affecting him.

“Okay,” I muttered.