Two Lips, Indifferent Red

Chapter 10

Chapter 10

I didn’t need the time it took to drive to Promise Hospice to consider why I’d felt so betrayed by Ham—by Mr. Wyndham. It had seemed as if I were about to get my heart’s desire: someone who wanted me for myself. That foolish fantasy was torn from me; my only use was as a pawn in Sir’s business plans.

“We’re here, Mr. Llewellyn.” The driver sounded nervous. Because he was afraid I’d refuse to have him drive me again? No one had ever been afraid of me before. I didn’t particularly care for the hollow feeling it gave me.

After paying the fare and tipping him, I had forty-five dollars left. I’d have to find an ATM once my visit with Granddad was done. I’d also have to find a place to stay. I didn’t bother considering the Saratoga Trunk. It was the most exclusive—for exclusive, read “expensive”—hotel in the area. The Alden Arms was owned by the Aldens, and while it was no longer the five-star hotel it had once been, it was still out of my price range. And it wouldn’t be Sir’s house, since that was no longer home, and I couldn’t rely on being welcome at Silver Birch, Granddad’s home, either.

It looked like I’d be spending the night at the local Y. Would they let me check in without luggage? I’d been in such a hurry to get to Promise Hospice, I’d totally forgotten my duffel. I pictured myself storming Llewellyn Manor to get it back, and shook my head. As if that would happen. I did know when Sir would be at his office and when Higgins was likely to be away. I’d call Mrs. Wales, and hopefully, she and Pierce would be able to get my duffel and laptop to me.

However, depending on Granddad’s condition, I might wind up needing an apartment. If that was the case, college would be on hold and I’d have to find another job. Maybe Hunter knew someone in the vicinity of Martinsburg who’d be willing to hire me.

I walked into the spacious foyer of Promise Hospice. Late-afternoon sunlight streamed through the windows with their plantation shutters. Potted plants and vases of fresh flowers gave the area a feeling of welcome, and if there was a scent of illness elsewhere in the building, there was none here.

“I’m here to see Bradley Martin,” I said to the receptionist at the front desk. “I’m Kipp Llewellyn, his grandson.”

“He’s in the garden.” Her smile was filled with compassion. “Mindy, please take Mr. Llewellyn to the garden.”

“Sure.” The girl who came to the desk looked vaguely familiar. She was a pretty brunette wearing a beige shirt and slacks, with an amethyst scarf threaded through the belt loops at her waist. “Hi, Kipp. It’s nice to see you. Come on, it’s right this way.”

“Um…” I followed her down the corridor, trying to peer unobtrusively at the name tag clipped to the breast pocket of her shirt. It just read Mindy, which I already knew.

“I guess you don’t recognize me. I’m Mindy Richardson. You were a few years ahead of me in high school.”

“That’s right. Daniel’s sister.” It must have been the family resemblance—the gray eyes and light-brown hair—that made her seem familiar, because I didn’t remember her from high school at all. “I guess you’ll be graduating next month,” I murmured for want of something better to say.

“Actually I graduated in January. I’ll be getting married in June.”

“Congratulations.”

“Didn’t you know?”

“No. Sorry. I’m not much in touch with what goes on in town.” I’d never been good with the social niceties. It was just as well I’d turned down Mr. Wyndham’s proposal. He would have been disappointed with me as a spouse. And I had to change the subject. “You’re volunteering here?”

“Yes. Mummy says I should. She said your mother used to be involved in all kinds of volunteer work.”

Mummy? That was kind of cute. Not something I’d ever have called my own mother, but somehow it suited Mindy. “Your mother knew mine?”

“Oh, no, but you know how everyone talks in Martinsburg.”

“That’s the truth.” I didn’t know how I’d lucked out with the fiasco with Daniel never coming to light.

“Anyway, after your Mum passed, Mr. Llewellyn wouldn’t let anyone else take her place doing all the things she did.”

“Yes.” As the wealthiest man in our city, Sir had a say in everything, and I knew that after my mother died, no one woman was permitted to run all the charities she had.

“And I shall!”

“Shall what?”

“Get to be responsible for all the charities.”

“Uh…you can do that?” I wasn’t going to ask how she expected to, since she was only eighteen.

She gave a little bounce. “You see, my grandmother was an earl’s daughter, so she knew all those things. Mummy learned from her, and she’s been teaching me!”

“And Sir is letting you?”

“That was Geoff’s idea. He insisted.”

“Geoff?”

“Yes. He likes to say that after we get married, I’ll be first lady of Martinsburg.”

I started choking. “You’re marrying my brother Geoff?” Why hadn’t Sir mentioned this? Why hadn’t Geoff called to tell me himself, or emailed me the news? If Sir hadn’t called me home because he had something he wanted of me, would I have ever been informed of my brother’s wedding?

“Didn’t you know?” she repeated.

“As I said, I’ve been kind of out of touch.” I’d also been raised to keep family secrets in the family, and I wouldn’t say anything else to Mindy.

“I know how that can be. We haven’t heard much from Daniel in more than two years.”

“Oh?”

“Yes. He and Daddy had the world’s worst row when he came home from college that first Christmas. Daniel said some horrible things, and Daddy said even worse.” Her pretty mouth took a downward turn. “I wanted Daniel to come home for my wedding, but Daddy wouldn’t hear of it.”

“I’m sorry.” I hadn’t been in touch with Geoff at all since I’d left for college, so I could hardly look down on Daniel for not staying in contact more with his mother and sister.

“No, it’s okay. For our honeymoon, Geoff’s planning on a layover in Boston. I’ll get to see Daniel then.”

“That’s right; he always said he intended to graduate from Harvard Law.”

“Yes. He starts law school in a year. I—” She opened a French door. “And here’s the garden. It’s pet-therapy day, and Sunshine is with your grandfather.”

Granddad was sitting on an upholstered chair, and in spite of the balmy May weather, he wore a coat and had a throw tucked around his legs. An oxygen tank was positioned behind him, and he had a nasal cannula fitted into his nose. His eyes were closed. At his side was a golden retriever, whose head rested on his lap, and he ran his hand through the silky fur of her neck.

Beauchamp sat on a bench beside him, reading aloud from a paperback.

“Zhenshchina?” He knew that voice, although the deadliness in it now had never been directed at him.

“Yes, I’m here.” The warmth radiating from her body was like a benison in this cold place.

“Sorry.” He couldn’t stop himself from shivering. He’d been stripped and beaten and…“Didn’t want to let them use me to get to you.”

Her hands were gentle as she stroked back his hair. “So you allowed them to brutalize you?”

“This is nothing,” he managed to get past split lips. “I’ve had worse done to me.”

“Yes, I know. In that other place.” She ran her fingertips over his ribs, and in spite of the gentleness of her touch, he couldn’t help hissing in pain. She leaned close to his ear. “I will get you out of here. Trust me.”

“Always do.” He’d be inclined to laugh if he didn’t know how much it would hurt. Someone was about to learn just how dangerous this woman could be when she was crossed!

Mindy cleared her throat. “You have a visitor, Grandfather.”

I jerked around. Why was she…oh, of course—she’d be marrying into the family.

“Yes. Melinda?” Granddad opened his eyes, and they lit with pleasure. “Kipp!”

Oh, God, he looked so worn and old.

“Granddad, I’m glad to see you again.” I crossed the space with rapid steps, dropped to my knees beside him, and put my arms around him. It scared me how thin and fragile he felt.

“I’ll go now, sir.” Beauchamp rose and placed the paperback upside down on the bench.

Dangerous When Crossed? The woman on the cover was a leggy blonde whose black jumpsuit seemed painted on her lush figure. In one hand she held what appeared to be a scalpel, while in the other was a gun that looked like it could take down an elephant. Behind her was a man, also blond, also in black, with a semiautomatic in each hand.

I swallowed a laugh. Since when had Granddad developed a taste for lurid spy stories?

Beauchamp met my eyes. “Mr. Kipp.” We’d never been particularly friendly, but now he seemed pleased to see me. “I beg your pardon for slipping earlier.”

“That’s all right. Higgins still calls me ‘Master Kipp.’”

Beauchamp frowned. “In that case, I’m doubly sorry.” There had never been any love lost between him and Sir’s butler.

Granddad didn’t notice. “Thank you, Beauchamp,” he said. “For everything. You’ll follow my instructions?”

“Of course, sir.” Beauchamp touched Granddad’s shoulder, stooped to pat the golden retriever, said, “Goodbye, Sunny,” and walked out.

“Do you want to keep Sunny with you, Grandfather?”

“Yes, Melinda. Her handler won’t be here for another half hour.”

“All right. I’ll just leave you two to catch up.”

“Thanks, Mindy.”

“Yes, thank you.” Granddad waited until she left, then ran his hand over my hair. “I imagine you’re aware Geoff is marrying her.”

“Yes, although until she told me just now, I’d had no idea. I haven’t spoken to Geoff in a few years.”

“So it wasn’t just me?”

“Granddad, that isn’t fair. You never answered my phone calls—”

“And when I finally decided to, you felt it was only fair play to not answer mine?”

“What? You never called me!”

“I did. It was just after I was diagnosed the first time. I told Marcus I wanted to mend fences with my grandson. He said he’d have to talk to you first. It was a week before he finally got back to me and said you refused to allow him to give me your number.”

“Oh, Granddad, since when has Sir allowed anyone to refuse him anything?”

He squeezed the bridge of his nose. “After everything he’s done, why did I believe him?” The golden nudged his hand, and he stroked her head. “I’m sorry, Kipp.”

“So am I, Granddad. I’ve missed you so much.” I rested my head against his shoulder. The odor of illness clung to him, and I could have wept. “If I’d known you were ill, I’d have come right home.”

He gave a heavy sigh and began to cough, a deep, ratchety sound, and he pulled out a handkerchief. When he took it away from his mouth, it was stained with blood.

I jerked back, horrified, and landed on my butt. “Should I call a nurse?” I felt like an i***t as I righted myself.

“No. She’ll just give me a shot of morphine, and I’ll get fuzzy. I want to stay alert to talk to my favorite grandson.”

“Thank you, Granddad, but if you need something…?” He shook his head, and I settled myself on my knees and studied him. “So tell me what’s been going on. Beauchamp said you’d been sick for two years.”

“It will be two years this coming August. They took my colon. The prognosis wasn’t good—it had already metastasized. They didn’t want to tell me, but I made them.”

“You always wanted everyone to do things your way.” I leaned up and rubbed my cheek against his shoulder, not wanting him to see my tears. “What kind of treatment did you have?”

“I refused chemotherapy. You never knew your grandmother…”

“No.” She’d passed away before I was born, but I’d seen pictures of her. Mama had had her coloring—blonde hair and blue eyes, just as I did, although my hair was a good deal lighter.

“…had breast cancer,” Granddad was saying, “and what the chemo did to her—I was willing to accept radiation therapy. It was just supposed to be palliative, but it actually seemed to send the cancer into remission. Now, however…”

It was back, and from the looks of him, he didn’t have much longer.

“If I’d known you were ill, I would have come, no matter what.” I wanted to make sure he knew that.

“You always were my good grandson. Geoffrey hasn’t come to see me since my cancer recurred. Does Marcus think it’s catching?” he muttered under his breath, but I was close enough to hear him.

Oh, Granddad…

“I’m sorry I gave you such a hard time when you told me you planned to become an interior decorator. That was so…” He shook his head.

Had he been about to say it was so gay? Well, that only made sense, since I was gay.

“How did you know I was home?” I asked, deciding it might be better to change the subject.

“It’s the talk of Martinsburg, your wedding to Hyde Wyndham.”

“I’m not marrying him.”

“You aren’t? Well, why ever not, boy?”

I rose to my feet and walked away from him, curling my fingers into fists. “Please don’t call me that.” I didn’t flinch, not even when I inadvertently dug the nails into my palms.

“I’m sorry, I know…Kipp, Wyndham’s a good man. And he’s ten times richer than your…than Marcus. So what’s holding you back?”

“Hyde Wyndham doesn’t want me. All he wants is a way to eventually gain shares in Sir’s company.” I opened my hands and stared at the crescent marks I’d left in the skin. “I met him almost a year and a half ago. He never told me who he was.”

“He never struck me as the sort of man who’d marry for anything but love, especially considering—”

“Well, apparently he is. And what do you mean, ‘never struck you’?”

“I know him. I’ll tell you another time.”

I thought he should tell me now, but he had other ideas.

“Now, come back and sit beside me, and tell me what happened.”