Читать книгу Mr. and Miss Anonymous - Fern Michaels - Страница 11

Her nerve endings twanging all over her body, Lily was about to exit her villa when she heard Pete and Zolly. It sounded like they were right outside. Unashamedly, she pressed her ear to the door and listened to the muted conversation she could barely hear.

Zolly scratched at his bald head, his brow furrowed. “Boss, is something going on here I don’t know about? You know the rules, so let’s hear it. I also want you to tell me, do you and the lady inside this villa have some kind of history together? It reads like you do.”

A history. Well, that was one way of putting it. Lily pressed her ear harder against the door to hear Pete’s reply.

“In a manner of speaking. A very short-lived history. It’s personal, Zolly, so don’t go reading something into this that isn’t there. Lily and I met by accident at the airport, and since we were going to the same fund-raiser at our old alma mater, it made sense to invite her here so we could catch up on… This is none of your business, Zolly.”

“Everything you do is my business, boss. Don’t fight me on this, or we’re going to have sharp words. Like I said, you know the rules. I’ll stay out of your way. Just to keep you in the loop, I ran a background check on your friend.” The security guard jerked his head in the direction of Lily’s villa to indicate she was the one he ran the check on.

On the other side of the door, Lily heard Pete groan.

“Boss, the good news is, I think it’s safe to say she isn’t after your money, chance meeting or not. She’s got quite a pile of her own. A really, really big pile. She’s not in your league, but she’s damn close. Her kids’ clothes, they call them her ‘dee-zines,’ win prizes in the garment business. Her creds are five-star.”

“I don’t care about that, and you had no business doing that check without my authorization. She’s a friend. I hate when you pull this shit, Zolly. Dammit, what if she finds out?”

“I was discreet, boss. The rules say I check everyone you come in contact with.”

Grinning from ear to ear, Lily jumped away from the door when she heard a rat-a-tat-tat knock. She moved farther into the room and shouted so her voice would carry through the door. “Be right there!”

Lily stepped out into warm, golden sunshine. Winston sidled up next to her, hoping for a pat on the head. She did better than that. She dropped to her haunches so that she was eye level with the huge dog. She rubbed his belly, his rump—the only place he couldn’t scratch himself—and tickled his ears. Then she nuzzled him, nose to nose. When she was upright again, she knew she’d made a friend for life. A four-legged friend.

Winston was in love.

Pete smiled and smiled as he ushered her forward to a black Chevy Suburban that was waiting under the portico. “We have to do this, switch up vehicles, from time to time when the press gets obnoxious.”

Lily didn’t know what to say, so she just nodded as she climbed into the huge vehicle.

“Where are we going?”

Pete threw his hands in the air. “To that place you and I spent hundreds of hours in a lifetime ago. The Berkeley Library. We’ll use their computers.”

“Great idea. Any updates?”

“No. We’re going to have to make our own updates. All I need is a computer, and if there’s something out there, I’ll find it. You aren’t having second thoughts, are you?”

She rather thought she was having second thoughts, but her answer didn’t betray that indecision. “No, not at all. Maybe we should get a newspaper. Do you have the power to authorize a stop at some convenience store to get one?” Lily let loose with a giggle to show she was teasing. She tried to remember the last time she’d giggled over anything. In the end she gave up, then laughed outright when the Suburban pulled to the curb.

Zolly hopped out and was back within minutes, his arms full of newspapers. Winston took that moment to unbuckle his seat belt to barrel to the back, where he sat at Lily’s feet to gaze up at her adoringly.

Lily stroked the big dog’s head as Pete divvied up the papers. “We can read them in the library. I think my dog likes you. He hasn’t been around women much except for my housekeeper. Up till now I would have said the only people he likes are me and Zolly.”

The GPS on the dashboard came to life as it told Zolly where to turn and where to park. Pete leaned toward the window. “It looks the same,” he said quietly.

“Nothing is the same,” Lily said flatly. “Nothing,” she said adamantly.

There was nothing for Pete to say, so he remained quiet. The moment the Suburban came to a stop, he hopped out to hold the door for Lily. He offered his hand. She took it and jumped to the ground.

Suddenly she was surrounded by a group of men that Pete seemed to know. Security.

“See you, big guy,” Pete said, tussling with the shepherd for a minute.

Winston growled to show his displeasure until Lily turned to hug him. He settled down immediately, to Pete’s chagrin.

They moved off, one of the security detail staying with Winston, Zolly in the lead. Once inside the library, he would discreetly move away, the other security scattering to keep their eyes on the boss and his companion.

Lily looked around. Pete was right, she’d spent hundreds and hundreds of hours in the library. It looked the same, and yet it looked different. Possibly it was the shrubs and the trees on the outside. Maybe it was the ivy growing up the brick walls. She shivered when she entered the quiet building. How young the students looked, bent over tables, books open in front of them. A long time ago she had looked just like them. Once she had loved this place. So long ago. She sniffed the familiar smell of books, waxed floors, and dust on the windowsills. A lifetime ago, just for fun, she’d traced her name in the dust on one of the windowsills. For one wild moment she felt like doing it again. That, she told herself, would be regressing, and she really needed to move forward.

To Lily’s surprise, no one so much as looked at either her or Pete. All this macho security, and none of the students cared about Pete Kelly. Shrugging, she followed Pete to the computer area. He logged them both on, then nodded to the newspapers, indicating Lily should go through them. She moved off to the side of the long table to spread out the papers. Nothing on page one. That was strange. Normally the media ran with anything involving children. She quickly scanned the rest of the papers to find the story relegated to page two in most of them. Beyond strange. Two young boys gone missing, eleven others dead, and it was on page two! She stared down at a small picture of the two missing boys. No mention of parents.

Lily leaned over and whispered her findings to Pete. “Page two?” he hissed. Pete frowned. “I bet the FBI put a lid on it. That’s the only thing that makes sense to me.”

“Yes, page two. No mention of parents. Two boys missing, and it’s four lines. Two very, very small pictures of the missing boys. I don’t get it. Have you had any luck?”

“About the same as you. It was a massacre, and they’re playing it down for some reason. I suppose it could have something to do with the missing boys, but I don’t understand what it could be. No, it’s got to be the FBI in charge. They like to be in control and keep things close to the vest. They aren’t saying if the shooter was one of the kids or a stranger. Maybe a disgruntled staff member. If it’s not the FBI, then there must be some big money involved in the academy to keep it this buttoned-up. Let’s see if we can find out who owns the California Academy of Higher Learning. I’m not hopeful we’re going to find out anything since we don’t have the proper software. I’m going outside to call my office. See what you can find out about the working staff.”

Lily nodded as she flexed her fingers. While she wasn’t as proficient on the computer as she knew Pete was, she knew her way around the Internet.

An hour later Lily sat back in disgust. So much for her computer expertise. Other than the names of some of the staff, she was unable to come up with telephone numbers or addresses. She didn’t discount the fact that maybe the staff lived at the academy since it seemed to be a boarding school of sorts, and from what she’d been able to gather, the students lived there, too. She was about to get up to search for Pete when she saw him striding toward her. She threw her hands up to indicate she’d had no luck.

“Marty’s on it. So, if you’re up to it, let’s hit the town hall and see who owns what. As in the clinic and the academy. We’ll probably come up dry, but what the hell, it beats standing around here sucking our thumbs. My notebook is on the way. One of my guys will pick it up when the flight gets in. I want to find a TV, too. You okay with this, Lily?”

“I’m okay with it. Let’s do it.” But she wasn’t okay with it, and she knew it. She wished Winston was with her, so she could hug him, and she didn’t know why she suddenly felt the need to have someone close to her even if it was an animal.

Thirty minutes later, Pete and Lily entered the hall of records.

“It smells almost like the library, but I can also smell coffee brewing somewhere,” Lily said.

She was struck again at how young everyone looked. It was obvious that those with the gray hair, glasses, and potbellies were the ones in charge. All of the others looked like part-time Berkeley students. Everyone looked harried, and the lines for assistance were out the door. Both Lily and Pete patiently waited their turn.

Two hours later, the couple looked at one another in disgust.

“Corporations within corporations, holding companies within holding companies,” Pete said. “Everything is over the top and out the kazoo. We need a map just to follow all the companies involved in that academy and the clinics. In the end, it will be some group of wealthy investors offshore or someone in Switzerland behind it all. It must be a bigger cash cow than I first thought.” He shrugged.

Lily’s heart fluttered in her chest. She could tell Pete was starting to get angry. Her voice was a bare squeak when she said, “For someone to go to all that trouble… They must be hiding something, and for some reason I don’t think it’s just money. That’s my take on it anyway.”

“I’ll put Marty on it. He’s better than a junkyard dog. The guy never gives up until he has the answer he’s looking for. If anyone can find a bona fide name or legitimate corporation, it’s Marty. I say we cruise by the clinic. We might as well get everything that we can done while we’re here. I’m all for going in and announcing myself and rattling some chains. What’s your feeling, Lily?”

Her feeling was she wanted to run like hell. “Let’s do it, 8446!” Good Lord, how brave that sounded.

“Oh, my God, you remembered my donor number?”

“Yep! And mine is 1114. Do you think we might be expunged from their records by now? It was all a long time ago.”

“Trust me, we’re in their archives somewhere,” Pete said, his voice sounding ominous.

Yes, the big guy standing next to her was definitely getting angrier by the moment.

Lily leaned in closer to Pete and whispered, “What about Zolly and your other security? What are they going to think?”

Pete shrugged. “They’re paid by PAK Industries to protect me, not to think about where I go and what I do. They all signed confidentiality agreements.” He shrugged again, then laughed uproariously when he said, “By six o’clock tonight everyone at PAK Industries will know the boss went to a sperm bank with some chick.”

In spite of herself, Lily laughed. “When we get there, what are we going to do?”

“Be brazen as hell and go for the gusto. I know that was my kid we saw on television. And if we can find him, DNA will prove it. Just so you know, Lily, I don’t plan to hide behind anonymity. At this stage of my life, I don’t care if the world finds out I sold my sperm to get an education. That kid is what’s important. You’re a woman, so it’s different for you. You deal with children in a sense. Am I off the mark here?” he asked anxiously, his eyes sparking dangerously.

This was her out if she wanted out. Did she? Part of her said yes, and part of her said no. She had to stop this ridiculous waffling. She squeezed Pete’s arm and smiled. “No anonymity for me either. Right now the only important thing on our agenda is the two boys.” Suddenly, Lily felt like a hundred-pound weight had been taken off her shoulders.

They were back in the Suburban, with Winston doing his best to get between them. He was like a puppy as he vied for attention from both Pete and Lily. When he finally calmed down, Pete rattled off the address of the sperm bank. Zolly keyed it into the GPS, and they were off.

Lily squirmed under the constraints of her seat belt. She felt so wired, she thought she would explode. They were apparently going to march into the clinic and demand answers, if she understood Pete correctly. She poked Pete on the arm, and whispered, “Do you think we might be tipping our hand by going to the clinic first? Maybe we should have gone to the academy first.”

“I think it’s one of those either/or things. Don’t you think someone at the academy would call the clinic if they’re involved? At this point, we are just assuming the sperm bank and clinic are tied together. We’ll know soon enough once we see their reaction to our demands.”

“I guess that makes sense.”

Sensing her indecision, Winston whined. Lily stroked his big head, and he calmed down immediately.

“Boss, it says here the address you gave me is a sperm bank. Are you sure it’s the right address?”

“I’m sure, Zolly,” Pete said cheerily.

Lily turned away so Zolly couldn’t see her amused smile in the rearview mirror.

Fifteen minutes later, when Zolly pulled the Suburban to the curb, the others falling directly behind, Zolly looked into the rearview mirror. “Ah…boss, is this one of those…?”

“Uh-huh. Stay in the car, Zolly. There’s only one way out of this place, and you’re looking right at it. Give me Winston’s lead. I’m taking him with me.”

“Oh, jeez, boss, I thought…never mind what I thought. Winston, huh?”

Pete couldn’t resist tormenting his protector. “No, it’s not for Winston. I’m taking him for protection. I mean it, Zolly, stay in the car.”

A moment later, Pete, Winston, and Lily were striding up the walkway to the entrance of the sperm bank.

Lily did her best not to look to the left, where the entrance to the egg donor clinic was. It was déjà vu all over again. She swallowed hard and was right behind Pete and Winston when they walked through the door.

This is a mistake. This is a mistake. This is a mistake.

“Pete,” she hissed, as he was about to walk up to the receptionist. “If we do this, our lives are never going to be the same. You know that, right?”

Pete turned around and pierced her with his level gaze. “Yes, Lily, I know that. I have to do this. I really do. You don’t. Right now you can turn around and walk out that door. Your call.” He waited, hardly daring to breathe, for her answer. He reached for her hand and squeezed it. At the same moment, Winston tried to wiggle his way between them.

Lily looked up to see something change in Pete’s eyes. She didn’t know how she knew, but she knew right then, at that very second, that he wanted to kiss her. And she wanted to kiss him.

Winston, sensing the mood swing, slapped two big paws on the countertop. The sound was louder than a gunshot. A sharp woof, then an ominous growl drew the receptionist’s attention.

No more waffling. Lily squeezed Pete’s hand so tight, her knuckles turned white as she stepped up to the plate and stood beside Pete when he spoke to the receptionist.

Lily’s heart fluttered wildly when she heard what Pete was saying. “I’m Donor Number 8446, and this is Donor Number 1114,” he said, pointing to Lily, “and we have some questions for whoever owns this joint.”