***
Beth crossed one leg over the other, swinging her foot back and forth, wishing she had worn a watch. She had no idea how long she'd been here, but she was getting tired of the same grilling questions.
“Look," Beth said to the man who had accosted her earlier. " I’ve told you already. I do not have any affiliation with Franco Delgado, and if you were a good agent, you would know this already.”
The icy look in agent Merrick's eyes, let Beth know she may have gone too far with words. She gave an involuntary shiver, but kept her eyes glued to his. She wasn't about to let this power-hungry man know he was getting to her. Or the fact she was being held and not allowed to make a phone call.
The sound of the door opening caused Beth’s head to swing around. Her heart raced when she saw Evan walking through the door. Damn he was beautiful, and in love, she had to remind herself... and it wasn’t with her.
“Are you alright?" Evan asked with an emotion in his voice she couldn't define, but it was only a fascade, she reminded herself. She was certain.
Beth snapped out of deep thought, and forced herself to focus on what he was saying next when he asked, "Have they been treating you well?”
She wanted to ask what did he care, ut instead she held her angry tongue and replied with a simple monotone, “Yes.”
She watched as Evan moved farther into the room. Then he looked to Merrick, the agent she thought needed a crash course in politeness, and said, “I need a moment alone with her.”
Agent Merrick looked from her to Evan and then back to her, and then gave a reluctant nod. Beth immediately felt as if she could breathe for the first time in several hours when the harassing man esxited the room, closing the door behind him.
Shooting Evan a cold stare, she asked, “What are you doing here?”
“Oh i don't know," he said and winked. "I thought maybe you could use a good attorney.”
“Yea, do you know of one?” she couldn’t resist, and then on a serious note added, “I suppose Joshua sent you?”
“No,” Evan said taking a seat across from her. “I sent myself.”
He reached across to take hold of her hand, but she pulled back. He looked a bit shocked from her reaction, but his professional demenour superceded. “There’s something I need to tell you before the agents return.”
“Don’t bother.”
“Beth this has to do with your mother. I met…”
His words were halted when both Tanner and Merrick walked back inside the room. This time they were not alone. Franco Delgado in the flesh walked in with them.
“Hello Elizabeth,” the charismatic sound of Delgado's voice rang in her ears.
“I don’t know you.” She looked across to the agents and said, “I promise, I’ve never met this man before in my life.”
“But you have met me. You were too young to remember.” Delgado said, and then looked to Evan. “I take it you haven’t told her about me.”
“Told me what?” Beth looked from Delgado to Evan.
“Senor Delgado is an old friend of your mothers.” Agent Tanner interrupted. “We didn’t learn this fact until earlier. So this new knowledge explains why he set up a healthy trust in your name. We apologize for any inconvenience, Ms. Brawley, and you are free to go.”
“Wait, what?” Beth asked “You drag me down here in the middle of the night. You grill me excessively. I now learn my mother and a drug lord are old acquaintances somehow, and then you ask me to leave? Not until someone tells me what’s going on.”
“Elizabeth, I didn’t want to tell you everything like this. Not until everything was over.” Delgado began telling her his story. A shocking story of a love affair which bore her.
She sat there in stunned disbelif as Delgado finished with, “I saw your mother one last time before she died, and she asked me to make sure you were taken care of. I think I can safely say you will be alright now.”
Beth sat there in silence as she looked at the man claiming to be her father, this larger than life person, this stranger...this drug Baron. A numbness fell upon her and she wasn’t sure if she could feel her body. She was even less sure she believed him, until she turned toward Evan. The look on his face said it all.
“You knew and y-you didn’t tell me?” The words came out broken and low.
“Please, take her out of here,” Delgado interrupted by saying to Evan. Then he looked at Tanner and said, “You have me. So let’s deal.”
Beth picked up the skirt of her gown and walked briskly from the room before the dam broke completely and she made a total fool of herself.
“Beth wait,” she heard Evan's voice right behind her as she made her way down the length of the corridor. “I’m sorry. I tried to tell you, I just didn’t know how without hurting you.”
She pressed the button summoning the elevator, and then whirled around. “Well here’s your chance to tell me everything.”
He looked like a man in deep pain, but she couldn’t concern herself with this fact. He had deceived her about his fiancée, withheld detrimental information about her life, her real life. He had hurt her.
“I never wanted you to find out about your mother like this.”
“That’s it?” She asked as the elevator opened.
“No,” he took a step toward her, but she backed away, keeping the much needed distance between them. “I love you, Beth. I think I always have. From the first night I looked across the room at you in that Vegas hotel.”
“It's too late, Evan. Go back to New York where you belong. I never want to see you again. You were just some guy I used to help me get over Peter. Mission accomplished.”
Out the corner of her eye she could see the elevator door about to close. She moved quickly and made it inside right before the doors slid shut. She thought she heard Evan calling out to her, but like she’d already said, it was too late.
