Chapter 29: Chapter 29
Chapter 29
Chase Jacobs
POV
By the time Carly went upstairs to get some rest, my patience had long run out. Amy Duncan had threatened Michael, and me. Something in me suspected she wanted to keep Carly away from me and Stella because she knew Carly was Stella’s mother. Did she know more than that?
I couldn’t ignore the woman anymore. I needed meet with her and find out exactly what she knew. I couldn’t ignore her threats even if I wanted to, she was the key to finding out exactly who Carly Lewis really is.
Not after learning Carly might have hidden more pieces of her past. We didn’t know when the next clue might come. And I wasn’t patient enough to wait for those clues.
The first clue about Amy should have been her losing her damn mind the second she found out Carly had gotten close to my family.
Something about all of this wasn’t right. It didn’t sit well with me. The fact that a total stranger did everything to help Carly was strange. She put Carly on her insurance, got her a dead end job, a crappy apartment and helped her get into nursing school. Everything about it screamed strange.
I stepped into my office and shut the door behind me, Stella was with my mother for the day.
When I sat down Michael was already waiting for me on our video call.
"You look tired boss." he says.
"Well you look tired when you haven’t slept a wink." I snort.
He nods. "So I got your text and looked further into Amy Duncan." he says.
"And?" I ask leaning back in my chair.
Michael stared at me for a second before sighing. "You won’t believe me but Amy Duncan doesn’t exist..."
I frown. "I figured..."
Michael rubbed his jaw. "No, I mean everything I found before is gone now."
I sat forward. "What do you mean?" I asked.
"Everything is gone, her medical records, employment records everything is gone. If I hadn’t printed out the information myself I would believe I was looking for a ghost. Everything we found just a few days ago, is gone." He says.
"And the hospital?" I ask.
"That’s what I looked into." He picked up a folder. "The hospital Carly was treated at has no record of an Amy Duncan ever working there, I went there personally and checked every department."
"And?" I asked him.
"Nothing." he shakes his head.
"Not even volunteers?" I ask.
Michael shook his head. "No Amy Duncan."
"How the fuck does the woman disappear into thin air?" I ask.
"I even asked around the doctor who treated Carly he’s never met Amy Duncan." Michael continued. "The woman is in the wind. There’s no trace of her. I assume unless she wants to be found we’re not going to find her." Michael says.
"So she’s gone? The phone that phoned Carly last night?" I ask.
Michael laughed humourlessly. "Scrubbed. That phone is no longer in service." He says.
"What now?" I ask. Where did we go from here? Every lead we had started with her. With her in the wind. I didn’t know what or where else to even start looking.
"I’ll keep looking. I’ll trace the pictures we have of her and I’ll ask a contact of mine to check out of the states too..." he says.
I nod.
I thought about Carly, and how this is going to eat at her.
Was Amy really there to help her? Or was she there to make sure Carly didn’t step out of line?
Was Amy really at a nursing conference? Had she gone for something else?
I sat forward. "Can you check if there’s anything else in Carly’s name. Like another safety deposit box? Or anything else?" I ask.
He nods. "Sure. I’ll check Chicago and New York first then I’ll expand the search." he says.
I nod. "Also find her." I tell him.
His laugh was immediate. "I’ll keep trying..."
"No. I want you to find out who she really is..." I tell him.
Michael sighs but nods anyway. "I’ll reach out to my contacts. But it also means I’ll go dark for a few weeks. I’ll call you once I’m back in Chicago. Oh right before I leave I found Miss Harbor’s ex." He tells me.
"And?" At least some good news.
"Honestly the man has so much debt he’s been syphoning money out of Miss Harbor’s accounts for years. Well until she closed her accounts before she left. He is looking for her to help cover his gambling debt." he says.
"How much debt are we talking?" I ask.
"We’re talking millions..." He says.
I frown. I let out a low whistle.
"The bastard racked up that much debt who the hell would borrow a gambling addict that much money?" I ask.
"The Bianco family..." He says softly.
"Jesus..." I rub a hand over my face. "What the fuck is he twisted up in?" I ask.
"I’ll keep digging."
I nod.
The call ends.
I sat alone in the office. I knew I should go to bed to sleep, but I couldn’t sleep, not with everything swirling in my mind. Romeo Bianco wasn’t someone who would borrow money to a man who couldn’t pay it back.
I needed to set up a meeting to find out who exactly is going on.
The fact that Amy Duncan was now a ghost bugged the hell out of me. She threatened me and then disappears. It pissed me the fuck off.
She vanished into thin air, as if she’d never existed. The thought of her being out there and I didn’t know where waiting for her to strike. That wasn’t my style.
I wasn’t going to wait, I was going to find her and she was going to give me the answers I needed.
My phone ringing brought me out of my thoughts.
My lawyer’s name appeared on the screen.
God what now?
I answered immediately. "Tell me you’ve got good news."
The man chuckled. "For once, I actually do."
I stood looking out at the drive way.
"What’s up?" I ask.
"It’s finally done."
My grip tightened on the phone. "What is?"
"Your divorce has been finalized."
For a second I just stared out at the driveway, I couldn’t believe it was finally over. I was a free man. Not that I was emotionally connected with Amelia. We were married and I stayed with her for Stella’s sake.
Realizing the man I idolized for years was wrong about Amelia. He believed she was exactly what I needed. My mother might have pushed harder for us to get married than my father. She’d known Amelia’s parents.
I barely paid attention to Amelia growing up. God now I wish I had. If I’d known exactly who she was. I never would have married her.
After nearly two years of fighting, paperwork, lawyers, negotiating, court appearances and threats.
It was finally over. The marriage was finally over...
No more dealing with Amelia and her little shows.
"You there?" My lawyer Marco Redford asks.
"Yeah. Sorry just I can’t believe it’s finally over. I don’t have to pay you anymore..."
He laughs. "Yeah, I don’t think the she devil is done yet. Keep me on the payroll. Oh yeah Congratulations."
I almost laughed. "Yeah. I hope she moves on with her life now..." I tell him.
"Yeah well she doesn’t seem like she’s done with you. Especially after what you said she did at your place two days ago."
I let out a breath. We talk about the details and also about Amelia before ending the call.
Finally felt like a door I wanted close forever was closing.
My phone rang again.
Jesus I was popular today.
This time it was Amelia.
I stared at the screen with a frown on my face.
I declined the call. I didn’t want to speak to the woman.
When it rang again.
Again I decline, that goes on for four more times.
I rolled my eyes before answering the call.
"Jesus can’t you take a hint?" I ask.
Amelia ignored me and completely exploded. "Are you happy now huh? We’re finally divorced so you can be with the nanny?"
I closed my eyes. Why the hell was she bringing Carly into this? She had nothing to do with the divorce. Hell I didn’t even know she existed when I filled for divorce.
"Amelia I filled for divorce because you were putting my daughter in front of the paparazzi." I remind her. "We’re over."
"No! No, it isn’t over. We’re not over!" she screams.
"Amelia it’s over. We’re officially divorced..." I tell her.
"You can’t do this to me!"
"Amelia I’m not doing anything to you. I just want to live in peace with my daughter... I want her out of the media." I tell her.
She’s quiet, before she threatens me. "You’re going to regret this Chase I promise you."
"Amelia threatening me won’t make me go back on my word. Though I want to remind you You’ve been dealing with my good side until now. Threatening me is a mistake Amelia..."
"No." Her voice cracks. "I gave you years, Chase. I married you with the expectation that I’d day Amelia Jacobs."
She gave me years? She spent all those years chasing fame and fortune. She was in front of cameras telling the world we were happily married, she was telling them Stella was birthed by a surrogate and I let her.
"You don’t get to walk away from me." she threatens before hanging up.
I stared at the blank screen and a bad feeling settled in my chest. My gut twisting with tension.
I knew Amelia wasn’t going to let this go, even if I wanted her to stay the hell away from me. She wasn’t going to give up.
I should have known it would take more than a divorce to keep her away.
