He finally sat back down in his chair as Nate talked, though his eyes now remained glued to the table. He felt stupid for ever coming here in the first place. How had he ever expected this to work at all? He knew what he wanted but had he been so foolish to think he'd ever get it? Especially by coming here? He felt as though Reese wanted to break his will before allowing him to stay...and he was getting closer to the brink of giving up.
"I guess I have little choice in the matter," he finally answered through gritted teeth. "You want to risk your agent's life, go ahead. We'll do what you want." He had to believe Victoria would play along, if only for his sake.
Reese quirked an eyebrow. That easy? "That's more like it." He straightened up as the room calmed down again. "We will play it out just like I described. As far as a backup plan..." He glanced at Victoria, then Nate. "...or getting a hold of Aaron, I'm not actually as dumb as I look. I've got it sorted...on a need-to-know basis. And you two," he gestured to Garret and Victoria, "don't need to know. All you gotta do is fake a trade like I just described."
Garret had a very hard time not standing up again, as his anger bubbled under the surface. "You're not planning on harming Aaron, are you?"
"Says the Agency assassin." Reese smirked. "Aaron kidnapped an innocent woman, has done who knows what to her, along with threatening her life, and what? I'm supposed to take it easy on him?"
"If you just give me a chance..."
"That topic is closed. We leave in an hour." Reese nodded to Nate. "A word, if you don't mind."
Once the two men were out in the hall, Garret bent forward to rest his head on his hands. At least he now was alone with Victoria...and he was too mentally exhausted to even act on it. "I'm sorry," he mumbled. "For dragging you in on this. It's what I wanted...not what you or Aaron wanted."
He lifted his head again and took her hand once more. "Help me get their agent back like they want...then after that you can do whatever you need to do. Just don't hurt anyone...they're a little dense, but they mean well."
In the hallway with Nate, Reese tucked his hands in his pockets as he thought. "I've already called Jason," he admitted. "I know the old road, and there's an adjoining field before a treeline. Jason's going to be there, out of sight, with his long distance rifle. If Aaron tries to pull anything, Jason's got orders to take him out. If he tries to run, Jason's got orders to stop him. And if Garret and/or Victoria try anything...they're going down, too. I'm not willing to take any more risks." He knew Nate wouldn't necessarily like that last part, but he'd made up his mind. "They can think I'm stupid and naive all they want, but it's their necks on the line out there, too. And no - I do not want them to know about Jason. Garret is too keen on keeping Aaron safe for some reason and I don't want him warning Aaron and having the whole thing blow up."
He looked Nate in the eye. "These are my orders. Got it?"
Eric blinked at Rosetta, disbelief mixing in with the shock. "Wait, so...you guys actually think this could be the truth?" He held up the letter. "Coming from Dana?"
“You mean that they’re yours?" Mick shrugged. "Trust me, this was all quite a surprise. We might have taken the babies in regardless, but yeah…assuming they probably did belong to you…that’s why we thought you should come home. We just didn’t want you driving back upset.”
Eric’s jaw muscles tightened. Tossing the letter onto the desk, he shook his head. “Naw… heck, no. You can’t expect me to take this seriously.”
Mick cocked his head. “So…it’s not even possible they’re yours?”
“Dana is a conniving, devious liar.” Eric’s eyes turned into a dark glare. “And you two – and anyone else around here – fell for her little ruse. I cannot believe you called me back for this.”
A bit surprised, Mick glanced to his wife, then back again. “Well…it…seemed rather important.”
“Only if it were true.” Eric’s voice had become angry. “I lost out on a huge job because you guys fell for a scheme where Dana wanted to ditch her kids! As much as you didn’t trust her, I’m amazed you're actually considering believing her now.” He threw up his hands in disgust. “Looks like you’ve got your hands full the rest of the week or however long it is now. Me, I gotta go look for a way to make up for the money I just lost.” He spun on his heel and aimed for the door.
“Do you want to see them?”
Eric stopped at the door and took a deep breath, his back still to them. “Why? They’re not mine.”
Mick pursed his lips. “How sure are you?”
As much as Eric wanted to, he couldn’t say he was a hundred percent sure. But it just couldn’t be true.
“You two were married a few days, right? And, you never…?” Mick cleared his throat. As much as he disliked Dana, she just wasn’t stupid enough to do this without there at least being a good chance. “I mean, I assume you two…”
Eric’s face turned at least three shades of red before he threw a glare over his shoulder. “Shut up! Intimate details of my incredibly brief married life are not up for grabs!” Especially in front of his own sister. “I was told…” He bit his tongue. “Well, that’s none of your business either. I’m not the father. End of story.”
Mick wasn’t convinced. “We did talk about a paternity test, but that’s not our call. We’ll have it done if you want to be sure.”
“What I want is for people to stop trying to run my life!” Eric’s words were spat out in anger. More than that though…he was afraid. He wanted to tell Mick and Rosetta to forget it. No tests, since all of this was just a bogus trick. But he knew as slim as the chances were…this could be real, whether he wanted to admit it or not. And he did need to be sure. “Have ‘em tested. The Elite has my DNA already and I don't trust anyone else. Let them prove I’m right, then at least I can walk away with a clear conscience and people will stay off my back.” Forcing the conversation to a close, he stalked out the door, letting it fall shut behind him with a bang.
Mick let out a low whistle as he looked to Rosetta once again. “Is it just me…or is he terrified those babies really are his?”
Eric’s stride was one of purpose as he went back to his truck and grabbed his duffel bag. Slamming the door shut, his next destination was his bunkhouse. He was angry he’d been called home. Angry at Dana for being so heartless. Angry that he was out a chunk of money he’d planned on. And angry at himself for feeling so angry.
Suddenly a strange sound caught his ear and he stopped for just as moment, turning to look over his shoulder. His eyes spotted Becky just outside Angel’s office, rocking a crying bundle in her arms. And for just a moment, his heart was torn. Starting back towards his bunkhouse though, he caught sight of Jeff out of the corner of his eye, and he held up his hand and kept walking. “Not now,” he growled. He was in no mood. He was too upset, confused and embarrassed. All he wanted was a hot shower and something for his worsening headache.
Jeff had been ready to greet his brother, but clamped his mouth shut as Eric stormed by. He turned back around and almost ran into Stacy. “Whoops, sorry,” he apologized. “I better get those eyes in the back of my head looked at.” Though he smiled, his eyes were full of worry, and he glanced to where Eric had just disappeared into his bunkhouse. “Just a wild guess, but I think that bear is actually Eric in disguise.”
Getting inside, Eric threw his bag in the corner and tossed his ball cap on top of it. His heart was racing, and his hands were shaking. He had so many mixed emotions right now, that he didn’t even know how to sort through them. Not only was he possibly facing a very real and very dramatic change in life, but old wounds were being ripped open as well. He knew his family loved him, but it felt like his life was being laid bare for everyone to gawk at – including the reminder of his stupidity with Dana, leaving everyone’s imaginations to run wild about their short-lived relationship. It was upsetting, and it was embarrassing. If the ground could open up and swallow him right here, he’d let it.
After slipping off his boots, he shed his suspenders before pulling off his t-shirt and throwing it towards the laundry basket. But instead of hitting the shower, he flopped down on the bed to lie on his stomach and bury his face in his pillow. His head as pounding, and his back ached something awful. Maybe if he stayed here long enough, he’d find all of this was just a bad dream.
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