Page 83 of Single Mom's Undoing

I can’t afford to wait to be rescued. Bill is determined to get my son. He’ll do that with or without my permission.

25

CARTER

Ifind Margot in her office at Lockwood Industries.

It’s almost completely dark, with the exception of the light from the setting sun coming through a half-open window. She sits behind the desk, a glass of whiskey with a ball of melting ice within her reach. She looks pale, worried.

“I was hoping I’d find you here,” I say as I come in and close the door behind me.

She gives me a startled look. “Who let you in?”

“Your assistant. Don’t hold it against him. He’s genuinely afraid of anyone named Lockwood,” I reply, half smiling. “We need to talk, Margot. But first, I have to ask…what’s going on here?”

“Here?”

I motion around us. “Yes, here. Since when do you hide in your office like a hermit? I thought board meetings and press events were your thing, not sulking in the late afternoon with a glass of whiskey. So what’s going on with you?”

“Did you know?”

For a moment, I find myself confused. “Know what?”

“Why Clara ran off years ago.”

Her question is unexpected but an interesting turn, nonetheless. I figured I’d have to lay out the whole story, then pray that Margot believes it before I asked for her help. It appears someone has already beaten me to it, however.

“What do you know about that?” I calmly ask as I slowly cross the room.

Margot gets up and takes a swig of her whiskey before setting it back down. “Did you know, Carter?”

“I’ve only just learned the truth myself. But my version and your version of the truth might be different, depending on whom you learned it from. So, I’m going to ask you again, Margot. What do you know about Clara and why she left five years ago?”

She gives me a hard look. “Clara told me everything.”

“Everything? When? Where? Where is she?”

“This is where it gets a little dicey, Carter.”

My blood boils to the point that a red haze comes over my eyes. I take a deep breath as I advance toward her desk. I try to keep my temper under control as I begin to make new connections in the back of my head.

Margot knows where Clara is.

“I know you and I have had our ups and downs, Margot,” I say. “But you are my sister. I love you deeply. And I care about us, about our relationship. However, if you keep me from finding Clara and my son, from bringing them back tosafety, I swear to God, I will treat you as an enemy from here on out.”

“They’re safe for now,” Margot replies. “Though she isn’t happy about it.”

“Where is she?”

“Our father has her.”

“Yeah, I picked up on that when I caught two of his goons on camera abducting them from a Baker City motel. The old man positioned himself on the wrong side of the law here, Margot. I’d like to get my woman and my son back before he does something worse.”

She sighs heavily and takes another sip of her scotch. “He’s probably moved her already, given that I saw her there.”

“Where?”

“The winery estate. I’m telling you, Carter, they’re probably not there anymore,” she says just as I’m about to turn around and walk out. “They could be anywhere at this point. Our father is anything but stupid.”