Wills didn’t have a mother to do that for him. If Stone didn’t fight for him, no one would. But Stone didn’t want to be a father. He was doing trying to get custody of Wills because he had no choice. This baby, my baby, wouldn’t be a burden. It would be a blessing. What Stone had called a mistake, I would raise to believe they were a special gift from God. Chosen by my mother to complete me and bring me joy. I’d keep my heartache and pain hidden.

“I’ll have to fly back to Manhattan. I need to regroup with my attorneys and decide what to do now. I should also check in on Wills to see if he’s okay.”

I simply nodded my head. Yes, he needed to go. And so did I.

He walked over and I stood in front of me. The urge to run to him and hold him in my arms was no longer there. That emotion, those feelings had somehow vanished or were simply shut off by his words. His arms wrapped around me and I hugged him back. My mind told me not to allow this to affect me while my heart hurt so badly it was hard to breathe. The two weren’t on the same page.

I didn’t stop loving him because he didn’t want a child. Not wanting a child simply made it impossible for me to stay with him. Maybe one day I wouldn’t love him. Maybe watching our child grow up would remind me of what could have been. Had he been stronger. Had he wanted us.

Stone

BEULAH HAD WITHDRAWN AGAIN. I had fought against leaving. Then I’d considered calling Gerry and seeing if Beulah could take the week off so she could fly to New York with me. Gerry would have let her of course, but Beulah wouldn’t have been happy with me. She’d be worried about leaving her. I would have had a fight on my hands.

Finally, I decided that I was being paranoid. All this shit I was dealing with had to be messing with my head. Beulah had been more than affectionate all week. We’d fucked all over every inch of the house. This morning she’d seen me upset and ranting and it had startled her. She hadn’t ever seen that side of me.

Leaving was no longer an option—I had to go. My first stop would be to check in on Wills since he hadn’t been available for phone calls all week. Then I was making a trip to my mother’s house. She needed to answer some questions for me. I would have to work to get the truth but I had time. Without her answers, I couldn’t move forward with my life. And now that Hilda was no longer fighting for Wills, I had more work on my hands.

I texted Beulah as soon as I landed at JFK Airport, but she hadn’t responded and it had been over an hour. I arrived to check on Wills and battled if I should call her or check on Wills first. I decided she could be busy and I would give her more time. If she hadn’t responded in a couple hours I would call.

When I reached the front door and rang the bell, I expected the door to open within seconds like it always did. My father’s staff had always been overly efficient. If they weren’t he fired them.

However, after a couple of minutes I was still standing outside. I rang again and waited. Time ticked slowly and no one came to the door. This wasn’t normal. It was so abnormal that I began to grow worried. I pulled my phone back out of my pocket and called the number that would reach Wills nanny.

It rang and then went to a voicemail.

I called the main house line.

Again I got voicemail.

As much as I didn’t want to, I called my father. This was his house and no one was answering the door or phone, and that was so out of character that there was no reasonable explanation for it. My worry was escalating to fear as my stomach roiled. Wills hadn’t been available all week. But at least I had spoken to the Nanny.

This silence was different.

My father’s voicemail was the last warning flag I needed. There was something off. This sudden cut of communication wasn’t just a coincidence. They weren’t all busy. This had been planned. Wills inability to talk to me all week now felt more suspicious than understandable.

I walked away from the house as I dialed my father’s office. He may not be answering but I knew that Richardson Enterprises would be open for business.

“Good Afternoon, Richardson Enterprises. How can I direct your call?” It was Margaret. She was thirty-seven, divorced, had three kids, and was sleeping with Harold from marketing. Harold was married and thirty years old, no kids. I knew my father’s employees. I made it point to know everything about them. Something he never did and that I’d hoped would help me one day.

“Hello, Margaret. It’s Winston. How are you today?”

“Oh, hello Winston. I’m doing great. Thank you,” the smile in her tone was always flirty. Even though she was fifteen years older than me and currently involved in an affair. She liked the attention from men.

“How did Bart’s tennis match go?” I asked remembering she had mentioned her oldest son Bart had a tennis tournament when I had spoken with her last week while visiting the office.

“He was amazing. The kid is going to be a star!” she bragged.

“I’m sure he will be. Sure sounds like it.” I wasn’t sure I believed her. With the way she was handling her personal life, that kid had more drama coming in his future. That would either send him off the tracks or make him want more drama. “Could you put me through to my father, please?”

She paused. “Oh, I would. But he’s in Europe. I assumed you knew.”

Europe? “No, he didn’t mention it. Where in Europe?”

I heard her shuffling around and her voice sounded muffled as if she were covering something up. “Switzerland, I think. He’s taken Wills to get settled into the boarding school.”

He had Wills in Switzerland to enroll in a boarding school. He was six years old. Who the fuck sent a six-year-old to boarding school? “Are you sure?” I asked her still thinking there had to be some miscommunication.

“Yes. I know,” she whispered. “I didn’t think it was even legal to send a six-year-old off like that. But he did. I thought you knew. Wills’ mother knew. She sent over the signed paperwork.”

Hilda knew. She fucking knew and didn’t tell me.

I couldn’t say anymore. I was in shock. There was nothing the man could do to surprise me, but Hilda had let this happen? No concern at all for Wills?

“Thank you.” I forced out the words before ending the call.

I wanted to hit something or to throw the man I had believed was my father against a wall over and over. I wanted to make him beg for compassion. None of that would help Wills now. I had to take a deep breath and not think about how scared he had to be right now. Not worry about his safety where he was. If I did I would go crazy. Wills needed me to be smart and to move quickly.

I never imagined taking my time would lead to this. I was trying to be safe. Make sure when I went after custody of my son that I had the power to win. It wasn’t easy to go up against a man as powerful as Richardson. But now it was time to move. To strike. To fucking get my son back in the United States.

Driving toward my lawyer’s firm I called and let them know I was on my way and that

there was a development that would require immediate action. I’d tell them more when I arrived. While I was on the phone with my counsel, I that about calling Beulah back. Hearing her voice and talking to her about what had happened would help me focus. Now more than anything I wished I had brought her with me. I needed her. Gerry would have understood. I’d talk to her and then tell Gerry. I wanted Beulah here with me.

The phone rang and like all the other damn numbers I had called there was no answer. Slamming my phone down in the passenger seat I focused on the road and went over all my options to get Wills back. Beulah would call me back soon. She wasn’t my father. There was no secret there. Nothing she was hiding. Nothing I had to fear.