"Matthew, come over here for a minute."
"Just a second. Let me get this salad tossed."
"Come here, please, son."
Matthew turned around and looked at his father's serious expression. He knew something was wrong. Slowly, he walked to him.
"Matthew, I want you to look at something. Promise me you'll keep a straight head."
"Dad, what's wrong?"
Conner turned the photos around to face his son. Matthew picked up the paper and sat down in the chair. Conner watched his son's brow furrow and jaws tighten while every word was read.
Matthew got up and took the roast out of the oven. He sliced a piece for his father, gave him some potatoes, carrots, and salad, and then calmly carried the plate and sat it down on the table. He shut the stove off and then walked out of the door without a word. Matthew went down to Sherry's office and asked to use her computer. He pulled up his and his father's account and saw the cash deposit of fifty thousand dollars. He called the twenty-four hour banking center and inquired about the deposit. There wasn't an error. The depositor was Chloe Burlington. He calmly hung up. Next he called the dealership and asked to speak to the manager. The last contest they held was over New Years. He walked out of the office and thanked Sherry. Opening the passenger side of the new truck, Matthew got out all the paperwork. Chloe Burlington was on all the signed papers. He found the proof of insurance, good for five years, and the policy was signed by Chloe Burlington.
Matthew walked back up to his apartment and wrote out a check for fifty-thousand dollars, payable to Chloe Burlington. With the truck key in his hand, he walked down the hall and knocked on the door. That's what strangers do.
Chloe was just getting out of the tub when she heard the knock. It couldn't be Matthew, he had his own key. Whoever it was would hopefully go away. She wanted to look nice this evening for dinner with Matthew and Conner. She was super excited. She never had a guy cook dinner for her before. She wished she could have watched him prepare it. Her bet was that the cute roofer of hers would look even more adorable. The knocking wasn't stopping. She found a conservative dress that wasn't too short and then stood in the mirror trying to decide how to fix her hair. The knocking persisted. Go away! Don't people get it when no one comes to the door they don't want to answer or they're not home?! Firmly setting the hairbrush on the vanity, Chloe went to the door and flung it open. She was going to let whoever it was have a piece of her mind.
Their eyes met. The look on Matthew's face sent a chill down Chloe's spine. Hopefully Conner was okay. Just when she was about to ask what was wrong, it occurred to her that he hadn't used his key. If something was wrong with his father he would have opened the door on his own. His breathing was loud, his face reddened, and every vein in his neck and temple was visible and throbbing. Seeing him enraged like this was frightening to say the least. Chloe quickly averted her eyes.
"Hello, Chloe Burlington. It's nice to meet ya … ."
"Oh God, Matthew. I can explain-"
"Go back to your mansion, Miss Burlington. I don't need to be your pathetic charity case anymore. On your way out of the projects, get the hell out of my life. Take your damn truck with you." Matthew didn't raise his voice. He calmly placed the apartment key she'd given him, the truck key, and the check on the floor in front of Chloe.
"I'm so sorry! I'm the same person you-"
"Yep, the same person in the newspaper. Go back to your side of the tracks." Matthew closed the door behind him. She heard the old pickup start, and listened as it drove away.
Chloe crumbled to the floor.
∞ ∞ ∞ ∞
She lay in her bed sobbing. The walls were closing in, and Chloe was having a hard time breathing. With trembling hands, she called Becky.
"I don't know what to do!" were the first words she uttered.
"He found out … "
"Becky, it's over. I knew I'd lose him over this, but I didn't know it would hurt so much. I thought I prepared myself. I didn't even get a chance to explain. He returned the money and the truck to me! God, this is the worst day of my life."
"Did you explain why you did what you did?"
"I didn't get the chance. He told me to stay out of his life, and he meant it. I don't even know how he found out!"
"Sweetie, why don't you gather a few of your things and move back, and we can get the rest tomorrow. He knows you live here now so you might as well be in your own home."
"Home? This is my home! I don't belong there, and I never did!"
The next morning, Chloe heard a knock on the door. She flew to it and swung it open, hoping it was Matthew. It was Sherry.
"Is this true?" Sherry had the newspaper page in her hand and opened it up so Chloe could look at it.
"Yes, Sherry, it's true. I didn't want you all to find out this way. I may have lied about my last name and my wealth, but who I am and my love for Matthew, my feelings for you and Conner … .all of that is real!" She stared at the older woman's eyes. "You don't have to say anything, I'll gather my things."
"Honey, I'm not here to throw you out. There are always two sides to every story. Why don't you start from the beginning?" Sherry sat down at the kitchen table and lit a cigarette.
∞ ∞ ∞ ∞
Chloe stopped eating and drinking. She hadn't showered or brushed her hair since the day her life crashed around her. She called Matthew over and over again, and not one call was returned. She stopped talking to everyone, including Becky. Chloe wanted to knock on Matthew's door, but didn't want to look at Conner and see the pain she'd caused him. He trusted her not to hurt his son. If only she could explain.
The loud pounding on the door made her lift her head from the pillow. Chloe stayed in bed with the blinds closed and stopped caring if she ever saw the sun again. The pounding continued, followed by the shaking of the doorknob.
"Chloe I know you're in there. Open up or so help me God I'll drag every guard I can get my hands on to bring your ass home! Open the door!!"
Slowly she walked to the door and unlocked it, and then promptly went back to her bed.
"Okay, this is enough!" Becky opened every blind, then went to the kitchen and filled up a glass with water. She held it to Chloe's mouth. "Drink!"
"Go back home, Becky."
"I'm not leaving here until I know you're okay. I'm definitely not leaving today. Drink the water or I swear I'll take you to the hospital." Becky put a slice of bread in the toaster.
Chloe sipped on the water and nibbled on the toast. Becky dragged her out to the balcony and spoke firmly to her friend. She wasn't about to let Chloe sink lower.
"I'm staying with you for a few days and don't even think you have a say so. I'll do whatever it takes to make sure you're going to be okay. I know your heart's broken, and you've never lost a guy you were in love with before. Trust me when I say you'll get over him. You should allow yourself to feel the pain, but you can't let it destroy you."
"Becky, it hurts losing Matthew. More than I thought it would. I'm mostly devastated knowing he and Conner are over there still struggling. They don't even have enough food. Did you know that Conner isn't even getting decent medical treatment? He could die, and he's all the family Matthew has left."
"Look, you have to give guys time for things to sink in. In the meantime, you have me."
∞ ∞ ∞ ∞
Becky continued to ask a million questions and had become her shadow. It was getting irritating. Chloe was eating, drinking, going outside, and had planned to go back to work the next day. Five days of being babysat was enough.
"I'll go, but you have to promise me you'll answer the phone when I call you and you'll take care of yourself."
"Thank you, Becky. You can call and check on me anytime you want."
After Becky left, Chloe took a long hot shower and decided to refuse to go down without a fight. Her mind was spinning, trying to come up with a plan … If I can get Matthew to love me again, he'll accept my help.
Chloe had no idea how complicated that would become.
Chapter 7
Lois knew where Chloe was living and that she was involved with someone. She'd followed Becky one evening to some old apartments in the Detroit projects. Instantly she was tempted to haul her back home, but when she saw her with a smile on her face while holding hands with a young man, a relief settled in. At least she could have a chance at a normal life outside of the estate gates. The thought of Chloe having to escape to find love and friends was eating away at her soul. She'd spent her share of time pacing the mansion halls trying to find a way to help the heiress. For some people, wealth and power meant happiness. Chloe wasn't one of them.
Trying to be a mother figure and nurturer all of Chloe's life wasn't easy. She worked the hardest at trying to keep the young woman's spirit up. Lois knew she could never fill the shoes of a mother, but there wasn't anyone else who'd try. She knew she'd probably lose her job, but was willing to risk it, especially since Chloe seemed to be standing on her own two feet. She set her alarm for one-thirty in the morning and then walked to the phone.
∞ ∞ ∞ ∞
Sylvia Burlington took one last look at herself in the mirror before heading to the dig site for more photographs. What she really wanted to do was go back to bed. Standing out in the heat all day with a thousand bugs and foul smells was sure to make her photograph poorly. She couldn't seem to keep the scowl off her face. There wasn't a single quiet place she could go to get some peace and unwind some. Outside the windows she could hear children running around which made her think of her daughter, and that's the last thing she wanted to do. The phone began to ring loudly in the other room. Her last nerve was breaking.