“Don’t worry about it, Liz. The time in a cell might do me some good, help me figure out what I’m going to do with my life.”
She looked as if she’d like to shake him. “God, you’re so much like your father.”
And she should know—she’d slept with both of them. “I appreciate you coming all the way out here, Liz. But I don’t expect a miracle.”
A knock on the door sounded, indicating their consultation time was over.
Wes pushed to his feet.
She reached forward and grasped his hand. “Give me something to tell the Secret Service. Is there more money, or did you spend it all?”
“I’ll see you out there.”
He walked to the door and turned back. Liz looked distraught, and he felt sorry for being the cause of it. She was only trying to help.
“By the way, Liz…after you told me the kid isn’t mine, I never thought to ask. But…who is the baby’s father?”
“You don’t know?”
“Should I?”
“I just assumed you’d heard. It’s…Jack Terry.”
Wes scoffed. “Really? Wow, okay. I guess that explains why Carlotta has been acting so weird lately.”
The guard opened the door. “Time’s up.”
Liz stood. “You still have time to change your mind, Wes. You should save yourself. Randolph would.”
Wes pursed his mouth. “Then maybe I’m not as much like my father as you thought.” He turned and walked out, feeling an ounce lighter.
Chapter 16
“THAT WAS LIZ,” Carlotta said, ending the call.
“How did Wes’s arraignment go?” Peter asked.
She sighed. “Not well. He was denied bail.”
“That seems harsh.”
“Remember he was already on probation. Liz said things would go better for him if he’d tell where he got the money.”
“He won’t say?”
“He says he got it in an illegal poker game, but even Liz doesn’t believe him. The bills are brand new, and sequential.”
“So we go back to Atlanta Saturday, and Wes stays here?”
“Looks that way. He’ll be in jail until there’s a trial.”
She swallowed a groan of frustration. She’d been counting on Wes’s help if she were able to move their mother and sister to Atlanta. She looked at Peter—she wanted to tell him everything, to be able to rely on him, but she couldn’t shake her feeling of distrust after the overheard phone conversation. It had put a wall between them—she could feel him distancing himself from her, too.
“This isn’t turning out to be much of a vacation,” he said.
She managed a little laugh. “That’s an understatement.”
“I’m sorry I have to work again today—these clients need more hand-holding than I expected.” His mouth curved up, but the smile didn’t quite reach his eyes. He seemed on edge this morning, had checked his phone several times.
“You can say it. My father’s return has made investors nervous.”
“The market’s been crazy lately—it doesn’t take much to make investors nervous. And Walt’s illness hasn’t helped. Some of these clients of his have been investing with Mashburn & Tully their entire lives.”
“How is Walt?”
“He’s, uh, recovering.”
Like Randolph, if the reports were to be believed. It was ironic two of the founding partners of the firm were in similar circumstances, albeit on opposite ends of the spectrum where reputation was concerned. The fact that Randolph and Walt had been best friends early in their careers made the situation even more tragic.
“Peter, you once mentioned rumors of a suicide note when Walt overdosed—did you ever hear anything else about it?”
“No. And Walt Tully is such a stand-up guy, I can’t see him doing something like that to his family.”
His staunch defense of Walt surprised her. Before, Peter had insinuated he hadn’t always seen eye to eye with the partners. What had changed?
He checked his phone. “I have to go,” he said abruptly, picking up his briefcase. When he reached the door, he turned back. “If you get an update on Randolph’s condition, I’d like to know.”
“Okay.”
The door closed behind him.
“Bye,” she murmured.
How many people were monitoring Randolph’s condition?
And hoping he’d…die?
The demise of Randolph “The Bird” Wren would certainly tie up a lot of loose ends. The D.A. in Atlanta could close the case. Her mother could come out of hiding. The tension between her and Peter would be gone. Much of the tension between her and Jack would be gone. Randolph’s victims would be relieved. The people who worked at Mashburn & Tully would be relieved.