“Interesting double standard, Ms. Stuart. You don’t find that a contradiction?” the lawyer asked shrewdly.

“Life is full of contradictions, sir,” Kerry answered quietly.

He studied her, a faint smile playing across his lips. “Yes, isn’t it?”

They were definitely different. Ceci watched Kerry under questioning, her body language indicating wary alertness and her answers guarded but straightforward. Had it been Dar up there, a smile touched her lips, Dar would have been all over the lawyer, challenging his questions, and dominating the table with her restless energy.

Just like Ceci herself would have been, she admitted privately.

Kerry, on the other hand, preferred a more low keyed, more reasonable attitude that still used her intelligence to make her points with accuracy. I bet she and Dar make quite a team in the office. The ultimate good cop, bad cop routine, with the natural friction that should have been caused by their radically different styles gentled and diffused by the fact that they loved each other.

A motion beside her made her look up to see the short, brown haired man sitting with Kerry’s family taking the seat next to her.

“Hi,” he murmured.

Ceci’s eyebrow lifted. “Hi.” Was this... Yes, Kerry had said this was her brother, Michael. She glanced quickly at the other side of the aisle, but everyone was paying close attention to Kerry, and Michael’s absence hadn’t been noted. “Something you want?”

“Um.” He glanced furtively around and leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “You’re here with Kerry Stuart, right?”

“Who’s asking?” Ceci decided to play hardball with him.

His eyes lifted and met hers for a brief minute. “I’m her brother, Michael.”

“Really? I understood she was told she had no family here.”

He winced and looked down. “It’s complicated.”

“No, it’s not. You just need to go find a taxidermist and rent a spine,”

Ceci replied. “If you’ve decided not to talk to her, that’s one thing. But if you’re letting someone else make that choice for you, it’s damn sad.”

They kept their voices down, but her last comment caused Michael’s 304 Melissa Good ears to redden and he swallowed audibly. “I just wanted to find out if she’s okay,” he mumbled.

“Ask her.” Ceci folded her arms implacably.

They listened to the questions of the lawyer and Kerry’s even answers for a minute. Then Michael peeked up at her, his long, dark lashes blinking slightly. “Are you related to Dar, by any chance?”

Ceci’s eyebrows lifted. “What makes you ask?”

He didn’t answer, but the corners of his mouth twitched.

“I’m her mother, yes.”

Michael nodded to himself.

“Is there a problem with that?”

He gave a tiny smile. “No, ma’am.”

The lawyer finished his questions and released Kerry from the table, and they watched as she circled it and headed down the aisle back towards them.

“You going to stay here or run back over there?” Ceci asked.

He stayed. Kerry spotted him as she was almost back to her seat and her eyes widened into a look of wary surprise. “Hi,” she murmured softly as he stood up and faced her, then pulled her into a hug. “How are you?”

Ceci watched a smile cross Kerry’s face as she returned the embrace.

She winked at Kerry and got an even broader grin, complete with a wrinkled nose and the appearance of the very tip of her tongue. Her eyes slipped past the two siblings to a hostile gaze on them from across the aisle and she took the opportunity to lock eyes with the burly, gray haired man seated at the defendant’s table. He jerked, as though startled, then looked away and pointedly turned his back on them.

Kerry and her brother sat down and she laced her fingers with his as they listened to the prosecutor call up Angie. “Thanks for coming over,”

she whispered. “I know you’re in trouble for it.”

“Got a spare room down there in Miami? I’ll bring a sleeping bag,”

Michael whispered back, giving her a forlorn look. “Maybe I can get a job washing the beach sand over there?”

“Absolutely.” Kerry squeezed his hand. “Oh, sorry. Michael, this is Cecilia Roberts. She’s Dar’s mom.”

“We’ve, uh, met.” Michael produced a hesitant smile. “Hi.”

“Pleasure to meet you, Michael,” Cecilia responded cordially. “Nice work up there, Kerry.”

“Thanks.” Kerry sighed and leaned back, tucked as she was between her brother and her new friend, she almost could make herself believe this wasn’t going to be so horrible after all. She noticed several latecom-ers entering and turned to watch them, then heard Michael make a hissing noise. “What?”

“I can’t believe they showed up.”

“Who?” Kerry peered at the new watchers, a woman in her mid-forties with well coifed blonde hair accompanied by two younger people, a man and a woman.

“That’s them,” her brother whispered. “The people Dad’s support-Eye of the Storm 305

ing.”

Oh Lord. “Jesus.” Kerry closed her eyes.

Cecilia leaned over curiously. “What’s wrong?”

Kerry sighed. “My father’s other woman just came in with her kids.”

She gave Ceci a wry look. “Sorry—this is going to be a circus.”

“Mmm.” Dar’s mother rubbed her earlobe. “I can’t wait to see the lion act in that case.”


Chapter

Thirty-three

DAR SLUMPED IN the padded chair, alone in the small efficiency kitchen tucked away down the hall. Beside her, a fresh pot of coffee bur-bled, filling the room with its rich fragrance, and a cup sat waiting, already loaded with cream and sugar.

She should feel great, she knew. After all, she’d taken a losing situation and turned it around in her favor, winning down and dirty in a convincing way that even Ankow had no defense against.

Maybe she would feel good about it, after her head stopped aching, and she was out of this damn marble shithouse. A wry smile made its way onto her face. Damn, José. I owe you the biggest Argentinean barbecued steak south of the Mason Dixon when I get home, you little Cuban super salesman.

She tilted her head back against the wall and focused her eyes on the doorway, then blinked when it was filled unexpectedly with a tall, burly figure. “Hey.”

Her father padded inside and turned a chair around, sat on it backwards, resting his arms on the back. “Hey, Dardar. You all right?”

“Yeah.” Dar rubbed her eyes. “Just unwinding a little.”

Andrew regarded the tall form sprawled across from him. “Headache?”

Dar nodded.

“Used to get me them, too. Base doctor always told me t’cut down on stress.”

Dar smiled. “Yeah.” She rested her head against her fist. “I was getting them every day there for a while.” She was reluctant to talk about the board meeting. “One more session and we’re outta here, I think.”

“Mmm.” Her father grunted. “You done hollerin’ then?”

Dar felt a moment of surprise and she hesitated, taking in a careful breath. “You heard me?”

“Sure.” Andy didn’t look distressed. “Had the pictures shaking in that damn office, matter of fact.”

The coffee finished and Dar reached over to pour some in her cup, then used the distraction of stirring it to give herself some time to answer.

“Yeah, well,” she muttered, “I wasn’t really sure I wanted you to see that Eye of the Storm 307

side of me.” She sipped the hot beverage, as her father waited patiently for her to continue. “It’s not very pleasant most of the time.”

“Paladar, it’s a damn proud thing for a father to listen to his kid stand up for herself, and everyone else like that,” Andrew told her seriously. “’Specially when folks were saying some of the stuff them bastards were saying.”

Dar smiled grimly. “That son of a bitch.” She shook her head. “I think what made me maddest was the fact that he was going after Kerry.”

Her nostrils flared. “I don’t know, Dad—maybe that idea of starting my own business was the right one after all. I don’t know how much more of this crap I want to put up with.”

“Wall, everything that lives takes a dump, Dardar. You’re always gonna hafta deal with some of it.”

Yeah. Dar stood up and handed him the coffee cup. “Here. Let me go get this over with, then we can get out of here. I hear a stuffed sweet potato calling my name.” She put a hand on her father’s shoulder and walked past him. “Hope Kerry’s having a better day than I am.”

Andrew turned around and propped a foot up on the chair next to him, sipping the coffee thoughtfully. “I think you’re doing all right,” he murmured to the empty room. “That was some of the best verbal ball kicking I heard since boot camp.”

Footsteps coming down the hall made him look up, but he remained where he was as a tall, good looking man entered. The newcomer gave him a surprised look, then brushed by and grabbed a paper cup from the stack near the water cooler.

He attempted to fill it, but the spigot wasn’t cooperating and after a few tries, he cursed and kicked the machine viciously, making the water slosh in its glass bottle.

“Y’know,” Andrew drawled softly. “Y’d have better luck with that there thing if’n you’d turn it on.”

A pair of narrow, angry eyes looked around at him. “Shut the fuck up.”

“Jest trying to help.” The ex-SEAL took a swallow of coffee and waggled his foot.

“Are you cleaning staff? Don’t you have something you need to be doing?”

“Ahm on a coffee break.” Andy held up his cup. “That there power switch is behind that white doo dad, by the by.” He studied the man carefully, a quiet, almost playful smile shaping his lips, which didn’t reach the cold blue eyes above them.

Ankow switched the device on, and it hummed obediently.

“Thanks.” He tossed over his shoulder, visibly still annoyed at the scruffy, older man sprawled comfortably on the chairs.

“Mah pleasure.”

“Jerk,” Ankow muttered softly under his breath, as he grabbed his cup, put it under the spigot, and turned it on sharply. The top popped off and a fountain of ice cold water hit him in the face and he yelled, releas-308 Melissa Good ing it and slamming a fist against the device in fury.

It toppled over, sending the glass water tank crashing to the ground and a spray of glass and liquid out, dousing him thoroughly. “Son of a bitch!”

Andy chuckled.

The drenched man turned. “It’s not fucking funny, so shut your mouth, old man.”

“Wall, sonny, I ain’t the one standing there all wet then, am I?” Andy sipped his coffee, completely at his ease. “You oughta watch that temper now. It’ll get you in trouble one of these fine days.”

Ankow brushed the front of his jacket off, walked over to the seated man and stood over him with an aggressive posture. “You think so?” he asked softly.

“Yeap.”

“I think it’s you who’s asking for trouble, old man.” Ankow’s eyes glinted dangerously. “Your break’s over. Get lost.”

Andrew put his cup down on the table and folded his arms. “Testy little feller, ain’t ya?” He chuckled. “What’s the matter? Some girl tweak yer shorts?”

“Oh. I am just in the mood for someone like you.” Ankow snarled, lunging forward and reaching for the very welcome outlet for his temper.

Andy hooked the younger man behind the knee with his propped foot and yanked him forward and off balance. Then he coiled his other leg up and lashed out, catching Ankow in the gut with a vicious kick that sent him sprawling back onto the ground. “See thar? You just got to watch that temper, boy,” he drawled, resuming his comfortable posture.

Ankow rolled with the motion and got to his feet, then grabbed a chair and lifted it over his head.

“Ya’ll don’t want to do that,” Andrew warned.

The chair descended, hitting wood and steel as the older man slipped out of the way, ducking gracefully around his antagonist and waiting for him to go past. Then he whirled and executed a perfectly timed roundhouse kick that nailed Ankow in the side of the head and threw him against the wall.

He stumbled back and turned to see Andrew waiting for him, balanced over slightly bent knees. “I think I need to call security.”

“Ah think you need to change yer diapers.” Andy came at him, grabbed him before he could move and took him down with a powerful twist of his body. He landed on top of the younger man, pinning him down and landing a knee firmly on his genitals.