Spencer-3 (12 page)

She found Meggie in the kitchen telling her aunt the story about the cooking disaster from this morning.

~CHAPTER 13~

“How much do you know about shopping? Because I have to tell you, kid, I know next to nothing. I know how to buy my underwear and stuff, but I know diddly about buying for a little girl,” Cait told the little beauty in the back seat.

The mall here in Columbus was huge and according to the map in the front entrance, was well equipped for just the kind of shopping they were there to do.

Problem was, neither Cait nor Meggie knew that much about fashion.

“Okay. Here’s the plan. We’ll sit in the food court and make notes on what you like and don’t like. We’ll be on a kind of stake-out. You see something you like; we’ll note it—colors too. I don’t know about you, but I’ve heard that some people can’t wear certain colors. And, of course, we will snack like crazy.” The two of them sat at a large four top table, ate their way through every restaurant, and wrote down all the things Meggie liked. Cait even saw a few things for herself. Two hours later, equipped with full bellies, notes on clothes, and names from shopping bags, they hit their first shop.

“I don’t know about this one, Meggie. It looks a little odd, don’t you think? I mean, is it supposed to hang like that?”

Meggie had picked out a bright green shirt thingy. It had a tie-dyed t-shirt under this vest/sweater thing that twisted into a knot in the front. It looked neat on the mannequin, but neither of them could figure out how to put it on a real person.

“I think it’s broke. And how the he...heck is a person supposed to get into it if you wanted to dress yourself? Maybe we should skip it and try something else.

If we can’t figure it out here, your dad is never going to get it.”

“Want some help? Come here, sweetie, let me show you both.” Morgan stood behind Cait and had nearly startled her into pulling her gun. She turned slightly and looked up at her from her position on the floor.

In two moves and a simple twist, Morgan not only had the thing looking like it should, but also better than it looked on the doll. Cait was still on her knees in front of Meggie and as soon as Morgan was finished, Meggie stepped closer to Cait and put her arms around her neck. Cait held her to her. She never thought of herself as a hugger, but Meggie could certainly make it worthwhile.

“Did Grant send you here to check up on us, Mrs. Grant? I told him that I’d watch over her. He didn’t need to make you come out.” Cait could hear the hurt in her voice and felt herself blush with it.

“He didn’t. I had no idea you two were going to be here today. The boys need some summer shorts and shirts and while they’re at preschool, I thought I’d get it done. If Spencer had a problem with you watching Meggie, you wouldn’t be here with her. And my name is Morgan.”

“I’m sorry. I’m not...I’m not very good with this stuff. I don’t know anything about kids and less about...thanks for your help. We were just finishing here and moving on to the store at the other end of the mall. Then we were going to get some more lunch. Would you like to meet us there? I mean, if you don’t have…”

“I’d love to. Margaret is supposed to meet me here at three. Would it be all right if she joins us? She has some things to pick up and we meet for lunch whenever we can.”

Cait turned to Meggie to see what she wanted to do. Both women had signed when they spoke. Cait did it out of habit and she was glad that Morgan seemed to have no problem with it either.

“Okay. Meggie and I will meet you at the restaurant at three o’clock.” Then Meggie and she went up to the counter to pay.

They would not take Spencer’s credit card, stating without him there and the amount she was spending, it was against company policy. So Cait paid for the shopping spree. Smiling as she put her credit card away, she was thinking about ways to make him pay her back—all three hundred and fifty dollars of it.

The next store had more frilly things than either female was comfortable with. The entire store looked like a vat of pink paint had been spewed on the walls and clothes and even the carpet. Meggie made the comment that they would need to wear sunglasses if they ever came in again and Cait agreed.

Meggie was looking at a pink wind breaker when she suddenly stiffened and whimpered. Cait immediately gathered her into her arms and stood. A beautiful woman stood just behind them and when Cait took a step back from her nearness, she took one forward.

“What the fuck are you doing with my daughter? I want you to give her to me right now or I’m calling security. Meggie, come with me right now.” This must be the infamous Shannon Grant.

Meggie gripped Cait’s neck tighter and cinched her legs around Cait’s chest wound. She would worry about what she had done to the area later. She was more concerned about the fear Meggie had for this woman.

“Meggie is with me. And she’s not going anywhere with you without Grant’s permission. Who are you anyway?” Cait knew, but figured she would keep that to herself; Meggie looked a great deal like the woman.

“Shannon Grant. Spencer is my husband and he told me to pick her up today here. How else would I know you were going to be here if he hadn’t told me?” She started to reach for Meggie again and Cait twisted around so that she could not touch her.

“You reach for her again and I will have you arrested. I’ll call Grant and ask him. Now, you’ll back the fuck up or I’ll back you up.” Cait pulled out her cell and looked for the number Spencer had put in her phone. She knew immediately which one was his; he had called himself Granite Hard Lover. She pressed send and waited. Frowning when she was told the number was incorrect, she tried again. Same. Damn it.

“He didn’t give you his number? Oh that’s perfect. Well, since you can neither deny nor verify my claim on my own child, then I’ll just take her.” Cait didn’t know what do to. Meggie obviously didn’t want to go with her mother. Cait had no doubt that she was who she claimed, but that could be for any number of reasons. But Cait knew in her gut that Meggie was not supposed to be with Shannon. Thinking about the consequences, she took a chance on erring on the side of caution and pulled her weapon out while she pulled Meggie behind her. And waited.

She didn’t have long. Shannon started screaming at the top of her lungs the moment she saw the gun. Screaming that Cait had kidnapped her daughter, and that Cait had tried to rob her, anything to get attention on them—and attention was just what they got and what Cait needed.

When the mall security showed up, Cait dropped to her knees and presented her weapon to them. She held it with her thumb in the trigger guard and it hung loosely down. Neither man would approach her. Which was fine by her. It was according to standard procedure as she was armed and they were not. Meggie was also still hanging on to the back of her shirt and looked as if she was not going to let go anytime soon. The police arrived five minutes later. They had no problem approaching and taking her weapon.

“I’m a Chicago Homicide Detective here on medical leave. My badge is under my shirt and I have another weapon on my left ankle. This woman is claiming to be this little girl’s mother and is trying to take her from me.”

“You couldn’t work it out any other way than to draw your weapon, Detective? You know, talk it over like friends? Anything else? You know I have to take you in and verify this...”

Shannon started yelling about stupid cops and ignorant lawyers, how just anybody could carry a gun and that she was going to sue everyone standing there. The officer turned back to Cait with a wink.

“Ah, I see now. You thought your way might be safer. Probably right. Okay, gents, load’em up. We’re all going downtown.”

Cait smiled when she heard Shannon cursing the officer who was trying to lead her to the car. Cait had pulled her weapon so she was handcuffed, but so long as Meggie was close, she really didn’t care. When they put her in the back seat, Cait watched the younger officer try to reason with Meggie.

“She’s deaf. If you lean down where she can see your mouth, she’ll understand you. Ask her mother to translate for you if that doesn’t work,” Cait said, trying to be helpful. Meggie was sobbing and trying to get to her.

“I have no idea what she’s saying. I never learned that crap. If she wants to talk to me then she’ll learn how to talk like a real person. With all of Spencer’s money, he should have had her fixed by now.”

The officer holding on to Meggie’s hand looked at Cait. It wasn’t hard to read the expression on his face. He was appalled by Shannon. Without saying a word, he opened the back door to his cruiser again and helped Meggie in with Cait.

~~~

Spencer’s head was reeling. He had just been made head of the History department. Not only did it come with a much bigger office, but he now had a secretary and a small budget for staff. He was sitting in his new office when his phone went off.

“Doctor Grant?”

“Yes. This is Spencer Grant. What can I do for you?”

“My name is Tyler Cort and I’m with the Columbus Police Department. Do you have a daughter? And can you tell me the last time you saw her?” Spencer’s heart skipped several beats and he had to clear his throat several times before he trusted himself to speak. The things roaring through his head were dark, bloody and scary. Meggie, his little girl, was hurt.

“This morning at around eleven. Is she all right? Please tell me. I’m leaving right now; just...please tell me that she’s fine.” Spencer was leaving his office and out the door before he realized that something had to have happened to Cait or she would have called him. “The woman, Caitlynne O’Malley, is she hurt too.”

“Everyone is fine, sir. There was an...an altercation at the mall and Detective O’Malley was brought in for questioning. Your daughter is here with us, but we don’t have permission to let her go with anyone else. Your mother is having a hard time adjusting to that, by the way, and the rest of your family is...I don’t suppose you could come down here and rescue us, could you?” Spencer leaned against his car. An altercation at the mall was not even close to what had been running around inside of his head. He grinned when he thought about his family ganging up on the department, especially his mother.

“Yes, I’m leaving right now. Can you tell me what the altercation was about, Officer? I may want to leave them all there for the night.”

“Seems your wife and your girlfriend had a fight over the little girl.”

~CHAPTER 14~

Cait lay on the bunk in her little cell and thought about what was going on.

Not just with today, but the whole visit. She’d only come here to rest and now she was in a jail cell because her lover’s—no, her married lover’s wife had demanded her child back. In the two weeks since she had been in Ohio again, she had nearly gotten herself killed in a car crash saving Meggie, been operated on, spent three days in the hospital, had sex, gone to the mall, been arrested again. And now here she was trying to figure out if said married lover needed to be shot, castrated, or allowed to explain. Right now, she was leaning heavily toward the first two.

“Detective? Your bail has been paid. You can go now.” Officer Cort had been the arresting officer and also the one who had put Meggie in the car with her. He had grumbled all the way to the station about unfit mothers and their stupidity until he realized that Meggie could see his face. He flushed.

“Thanks. Do you know who paid it? I have to make sure they get paid back, you understand,” she told him when she stood. Cait had been fighting dizziness since she had left the mall. The police had already checked her wounds, at least the one on her ribs, but she knew that the other one, the higher one, had been hurt too. But there was no way she was baring her breast for a bunch of cops she did not know.

“Yeah, Doctor Grant. He’s waiting for you upstairs. That other one, the ex-wife? If she ain’t a piece of work, I don’t know what is. Them Grants, they can stick together like nobody’s business, can’t they? When that older lady showed up, I thought the captain was gonna let you go just to get rid of her. What a fubar.”

Cait agreed, Fucked Up Beyond All Recognition. She turned and looked at the young officer. She didn’t know whether to laugh or hit him. They were in the squad room now and there were several civilians around who could hear every word he said. He either didn’t care, or was trying to make her laugh. Either of which was inappropriate. Before she could comment, a small bundle of little girl hit her in the legs.

Dropping to her knees, she hugged Meggie. She was so glad she was all right that she felt tears prickle at her lids. Cait looked up when a shadow moved over her.

“I’m thinking the mall isn’t safe for you either. Or would that be you aren’t safe for it? Are you okay, O’Malley? You look a little pale,” Spencer asked her.

“I hurt, but I’ll be okay. Do you think you could drop me off at my uncle’s?

I’m whipped and I want to take another shower. Oh, and your car was dropped off at your house earlier. My Uncle Paddy took it—” His mouth covered hers in a quick but powerful kiss. She didn’t know what to say and thought before she said something really stupid like “please do that again, only longer this time,” she kept her mouth shut. But she never stopped clutching his shirt.

“You are going to my house. I’ll drop you off to get some clothes, but after that, you and I are going to talk. The first thing is why didn’t you call me when Shannon approached you? I could have verified that she doesn’t have Meggie and—”

“Now you just hold on one second, buck-o. I tried calling you. You did something wrong and it said the number was not assigned to anyone. And how the heck was I supposed to know you were married? You didn’t mention that part when you had your dick inside of me. I will not be treated like a bimbo, buddy. And I will not be ordered around by the likes of you.” She gave him a hard shove and walked away.

She gathered up her things from the duty officer and stormed out of the station. She was so mad that it took her a few seconds to realize that she had no way home. Grumbling and bemoaning her lot in life, she took off walking. She was perhaps six blocks away when a car pulled up beside her. If it had have been Grant, she would have ripped him to shreds. But it wasn’t; it was Damon who rolled down his window to talk, but did not get out of his car. He was a smart man.