Suits & Aces (#3)

35 // Secret Meetings

His life was unexpectedly starting to feel like an episode of 'How To Get Away With Murder'. All the scheming, lying, and pretense.

He never thought he would become an accomplice in a premeditated murder. The worst part was that he did not feel bad or guilty about it. He was only anxious because he had to make a deadly move to ensure that everything was put into motion.

He actually anticipated seeing his father take his last breath.

"Son, is everything okay? You look distant."

He looked up at his companion, he still could not believe that he had a mother. He spent his entire life listening to his father talking about how she abandoned them. He forgot to mention that his mother was never a part of his life, that he r***d his former best friend's wife.

It was painful at first when he discovered that he was a result of a s****l assault, he hated himself and abhorred his father from that day.

"I'm okay, mom," he finally said, forcing a smile.

She knew he was lying, for someone who has known him for over two years, she knew him even better than he knew himself, but she never tried to push her hand in his life.

"Are you sure no one followed you?" Sandra asked.

"Mom, stop worrying too much, he's literally in his deathbed, he won't do anything to us."

"I don't think anything he does could ever top this."

That much was true, he already kept them apart for twenty-one years, whatever his father did now would not make much of a difference.

"I'm going to speak to the real estate agent soon, I'll have the house transferred back to you in no time."

"About that, I–" he started, but was interrupted by a knock on the door.

They both exchanged a panicked look because they knew neither of them was expecting anyone.

It was not that they were ashamed about their relation, but they were not ready for the world to know their story yet. Aaron had a plan on how everything was going to work out, he did not want them to be suspected of murder.

It could not be room service because Sandra ordered food before he arrived.

"Are you sure no one followed you?" Sandra asked, Aaron glared in response, and Sandra raised her hands. "Fine. I'm going to check who it is, go and hide in the bedroom."

Aaron did not ask any questions, he dashed to the bedroom and waited there.

He heard Sandra's footsteps and her opening the door, but he did not get to dwell on it as his phone went off, and he was forced to answer without sparing a second looking at the caller ID.

"Aaron McEnroe speaking," he answered in a jubilant voice, trying not to be too loud just in case they had a guest.

"Junior."

He smiled tightly as if she could see him. "Miss Billings... how can I help you?"

"A little birdie tells me that you are planning a surprise party for your father."

Aaron sighed. "It is not news yet, it is not final."

He hated how all his plans always seemed to leak, no matter how he was loyal to his staff, there was always someone loyal to themselves.

"Oh, but it is now. You are going to make this happen, and I'll make sure of it. You have a week."

"MJ, how am I supposed to organise a huge event in a week?"

He was starting to wonder if he made a mistake by completely giving in to MJ's motives.

The party was not final, yet. It was just an idea he had to get people's energies on a high so that no one could see the end result coming or even suspect him.

He had not even told his mother about his plans, he was afraid of what she would think of him. What if she saw him as a murderer more than her son, what if she saw no difference between him and his father; what if she thought he was a monster just like his father? He could not bear living with that thought.

"You are just going to have to. I'll give you the necessary contacts to get it done."

Of course! He thought. "What's in it for you?" He asked, already knowing she needed something in return.

"I thought you would never ask. I want you to invite a few friends to the party."

"Consider it done." He was about to bid her farewell when she said something that chilled his blood.

"One more thing, we can't have your father showing up at the party looking like a corpse. Try using this week to give him false hope, maybe switch the medication you've been using for his prescribed medication. A week should be enough for him to gain some strength and colour."

How did she know about that? He did not even get the chance to ask his question because she hung up.

"Dammit, Dammit!" He yelled, his grip tightening around his phone, it took him everything not to throw it against the wall, he did not want to alert his mother.

He tried to think of a great excuse to leave as he went back to the lounge, Sandra wanted to spent some quality time together, and he hated letting her down again, but he needed to go.

Everything he had been practicing in his head vanquished the moment he walked into the room and found that Sandra was not alone, and the panicked look on her face worried him.

He could not understand why such a little girl would leave his mother rattled, but for some reason, she left him feeling rather unsettled too. He could not help wondering where he had seen her before, but she looked quite familiar.

As if reading his mind, she stepped up to him, with her hand forward. "I see you trying to remember where we met, I'm Esparanza Montero," she said in such a charming voice, however, her eyes spoke volumes, she was danger trapped in a teenager's body.

"Aaron McEnroe." He shook her hand, his mind still trying to link her frame to someone, and his eyes widened when he final remembered her.

She had been at the company a few months ago, she came with Javier Mendoza and had stood in for his father's assistant after she fell sick. Now that he remembered, she was only there for a day, and it was the day Jorge Billings and MJ Billings were in the building. He never saw her again after that until now.

What was she doing here?

"Well, this all looks cozy and all, mother and son finally catching up after years of separation. But I wonder how long it is going to last," she mused, her eyes moving between Aaron and Sandra calculatedly, baiting for their reaction. "I hate to break it to you, but MJ's right hand man is in the country, he's currently a few blocks away in a club as we speak." His mother's face mirrored his in horror. "I wonder what's going to happen when she discovers that her adoptive father's widow is the mother of the son of the man she believes to have killed her adoptive father." She waved her index finger between them, her eyes shining in satisfaction at their spooked faces. "It was great seeing you guys, I hope we do this more often." She winked at him and left the room.

He turned to his mother, his head ringing as he finally realised that he was screwed and would pay a heavy price for jumping into bed with the devil, he only prayed that his mother would not succumb to his wounds.