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“I didn’t think you’d be interested,” Rob replied, and walked over to her, giving her a withering glance. “What have you been doing? You look like hell.”
An expression of pain crossed Francine’s face. “I was grooming the dogs,” she answered tightly.
“You pay people to do that,” Rob snapped. “Why do you insist on doing menial chores?”
Francine ignored her husband’s words and crossed to Matthew. She introduced herself and shook his hand. As Matthew gazed into her eyes, he saw pain. For years she had competed for Rob’s attention, and Matthew could see from the defeated look in her eyes that she was wondering if the struggle had been worth it.
She patted the poodle’s head and said, “So you’re the New York attorney. I heard you’re very good in a courtroom.”
“Thank you,” Matthew said, not sure how to respond to her. He had a feeling Francine Townsend was close to the edge.
“Are you going to make the Townsends’ little problem go away?” She leaned in close and whispered, “Makes you wonder, doesn’t it? Why would Mother Townsend be so generous to C. J. Doe? Could it be she was trying to bail her son’s ass out of a jam one more time?”
Francine knew how to be a proper lady. Having attended the best schools, she could walk, talk and choose which fork to use at the dinner table with the best of them. But evidently she had learned some language in less reputable places, too.
“Rob, your wife’s making a fool of herself,” Martha said.
Francine swung around and fixed her eyes on the older woman. “Well, Aunt Martha, dear, if anyone can recognize a fool, you can. Look at the way you fawn over your sister’s husband.”
“That’s enough, Francine,” Rob ordered.
Francine turned to face him. “I want my children home for the summer, Rob.”
“The kids are staying in boarding school,” he replied.
“You’re making a sissy out of Robbie, and our daughter’s becoming so wild no one can do anything with her. They need discipline, not a free rein like you give them.”
“Rob,” she pleaded, a note of desperation entering her voice.
Rob ignored her plea. “Go get cleaned up, for God’s sake. You look like the hired help.”
At Rob’s criticism Matthew saw a flash of unmistakable pain on her face again, but she quickly masked it. “I want my children home,” she stated angrily.
“They’re staying in school.”
“We’ll see about that,” she replied, and turned toward the door. “Nice to have met you, Mr. Sloan,” she called over her shoulder.
As the door closed, Rob apologized. “My wife’s been having a rough time since the kids went away to school.”
“Ha,” Martha retorted.
Rob shot her a quelling glance and then focused his attention on Matthew. “Now, Matthew, I hope you have some good news for us.”
Matthew shoved his hands into his pockets. How could Rob treat his wife so heartlessly? Couldn’t he see she was hurting? Dealing with the Townsends was going to be harder than he’d imagined—for more than one reason. He brought his thoughts back to Rob’s question. “No, I don’t.”
Rob’s eyes narrowed. “Why not? Surely she didn’t turn down a million dollars.”
“Afraid so.”
Rob walked around the desk and sat down, a patently false smile on his face. “Damn, she’s smarter than I figured.”
Matthew frowned. “What do you mean?”
“She’s holding out for more money,” Rob replied. “Okay, we can play that game. Offer her two million.”
Matthew held up his hands. “Wait a minute. She’s not after more money.”
Rob spared him a dark glance. “Then what the hell does she want from us?”
“She’s made a counteroffer.”
“A counteroffer,” Rob said with a laugh. “What does she have to offer us?”
Matthew took in the skeptical faces. Slowly he answered, “She will release her claim on both the land and the money on one condition.”
A tense pause followed his words, and Matthew could almost hear the frantic heartbeats in the room. They had a right to be anxious, he thought. C. J. Doe was about to rock their world.
Finally Rob asked, “And what would this condition be?”
Matthew glanced from Rob to John Townsend. In his best courtroom voice he said, “That you and your father take paternity tests.”
Martha gasped and Rob brought his fist down hard on the desk. “No way, Matthew. No way in hell is that ever going to happen.”
“She has agreed that if it does, if you both get tested, she will relinquish any claim on the Townsend estate.”
“She’s thought of everything, hasn’t she?” Rob muttered. “But we refuse to give credence to those stupid rumors she obviously believes.”
“Well, it’s the only way you’re going to get the land back without going to court.”
“Everybody has a price. Offer her three million.”
Matthew gave a frustrated sigh. “Money means nothing to her, I’ve told you that. You can offer her ten million and she’d still turn it down. She only wants to know who she is.”
“She is not a Townsend.” Fists clenched, Rob got angrily to his feet. “She—”
“The girl must be crazy,” Martha broke in. “John is in no condition to go through such stress. He’s recovering from a stroke.” She sat next to John Townsend’s wheelchair and rubbed his arm affectionately.
Matthew shrugged. “It’s a simple blood test. As your lawyer I have to say it’s a good offer.”
“You’re not suggesting we do this?” Rob bellowed.
“No, it’s your decision, but it’s the only offer you’ll get from C. J. Doe.”
Rob tapped long fingers against the desk for a moment, then said, “Offer her three million. Money has a way of changing people’s minds.”
“No!” John Townsend shouted.
Everyone looked at him. The single word was the first he’d spoken during the whole meeting. His blue eyes blazed with a strength of old, and he looked like the powerful John Townsend who could melt a man in his boots with just one word. Even though his legs were weak, Matthew had a feeling John’s mind was as sharp as ever.
“Dad, what are you saying?”
“I’m saying we’re going to take the blood tests.”
“What?”
“Use your head, son. What’s the use of throwing money away when we can end this with a simple test?”
“But, Dad…”
Matthew could see the doubt in Rob’s eyes and there was doubt in John’s eyes, too, but unlike his son he was willing to gamble that C. J. wasn’t a Townsend.
John gazed up at Matthew, his expression fierce. “Let’s get one thing straight, Sloan,” he said. “I want this done discreetly. I don’t want any publicity—in the newspapers, TV or magazines—anywhere.”
“I don’t think she’ll have a problem with that.”
“And even if one of the tests is positive, she will not expect anything from this family.”
Matthew watched the fire in the man’s eyes and had to ask. “If she is a Townsend, can you turn your back on her?”
“In a heartbeat, sir,” he said without hesitation.
Matthew got a glimpse of the ruthlessness that had made this man so powerful. “I see. Okay. I’ll set everything up.”
Martha clutched John’s arm. “You don’t have to do this.”
He shrugged off her hand. “Shut up, Martha.”
For a moment Matthew studied the three people in the room. They had to be the unhappiest people he’d ever met. Just as the old saying had it, money and power really didn’t guarantee happiness. But he wondered why they didn’t seem to have an ounce of feeling for another human being. Victoria Townsend had felt differently. Why? Why was she so generous to C.J.? But it wasn’t his job to solve the mystery between the Townsends and C. J. Doe, he told himself. He was here only to do this job as a courtesy to his dad, then he’d go back to New York and his own world. But the more involved he became with the case, the more it intrigued him.
Clearing his throat, he said, “I’ll get back to you on the place and time.”
“You do that,” Rob said with a curt nod.
Matthew hurried from the room. When he reached the hall, he took a deep breath, trying to dispel the stifling oppressive feeling he’d felt in the Townsend family’s presence.
“DAD, WHY ARE YOU DOING this?” Rob asked a moment after the door closed on Matthew.
“Son, haven’t I taught you anything? When things get rough, play into your opponent’s hand, but always keep an ace up your sleeve.”
Rob shook his head. “What the hell does that mean?”
A wicked smile curved John’s thin lips. “It means we take the tests, but we make sure they come out negative.”
Realization dawned, and a smile spread across Rob’s face.
“Being in high places pays off. You meet people who can help you out in a situation like this,” John told him, a gleam in his old eyes.
Rob watched his father. “Then you’re not sure she’s not yours?”
“Just like you’re not sure she’s not yours.”
The silence grew heavy with tension. John cleared his throat. “You take your love of women after me, son, but we’re not going to let it cost you this election. Understand?”
“Understand.” Rob smiled a secret smile.
John nodded his approval, but he wasn’t through.
“Don’t you think it’s time you got your kids home?”
The smile vanished from Rob’s face. “Don’t start,” he warned.
“Your wife’s falling apart.”
“She’ll adjust.”
“The kids have been gone since the fall. She’s not adjusting. She dresses shabbily, uses foul language and spends all her time with those dogs. She’s not the lady you married.”
“Stay out of this,” Rob warned again. “This doesn’t concern you. Besides, you sent me away to school.”
“It didn’t help your rebellious streak, did it?”
“No,” Rob admitted.
“Then learn from my mistakes, son,” he said. “It took Francine so long to get pregnant. Those kids are extra-special to her.”
“That’s the damn problem,” Rob snapped. “She spoils them. No, they’re staying in school.”
John raised his eyebrows. “Do you want to win this election?” he asked in a low voice.
“Of course I do!”
“Then use your damn head. We need her and her family’s support. The minute the semester is over, get the kids home and spend some time together. Go places—and make sure there’s a photographer along. Plaster those pictures all over Texas. Let everyone see y’all as a loving family.”
At Rob’s hesitation John pointed a shaking finger at him. “If you lose this election, I’ll never forgive you.”
Rob gritted his teeth, then said, “I’ve never done anything to please the great John Townsend. But I’ll win the election and I’ll win in a big way.”
“You’d better,” John told him. “And you’d better get your kids home first.”
Rob inhaled audibly. “I’ll give it some thought,” he promised.
“Good,” John replied, victory in his tone. “Now hand me the phone. It’s time to get rid of the Doe problem.” He laughed harshly. “Never thought the little idiot would make it so easy.”
MATTHEW WALKED QUICKLY down the hall to the foyer and the front door, eager to get back to the office. With any luck this case could be wrapped up in a couple of weeks and he could resume his life in New York. He worried about his mom, though. He couldn’t leave until she was better.
Quietly closing the door, he started down the steps.
“Hello, Matthew.” A silky smooth voice stopped him.
