I threw back a chug of coffee, shaking with nerves as my pulse raced. Because now that the idea was in my head … I knew myself well enough to know that I was going to do something about it.
Even if itwascompletely and utterly illegal.
5.Murray
It turned out a judge needed verifiable evidence before putting in the emergency arrangement order. While my private investigator was hard at work trying to find that evidence, I had the agonizing task of returning Kelly to Jill.
My daughter was so distraught by this news, I decided to treat her as an adult and explain that if I didn’t return her, it would hurt my chances of getting sole custody. I relayed what I was trying to do and my hope that she would only be with Jill for another week or so.
“I could tell the judge what’s happening. Surely that’s proof?” Kelly had asked, her lip trembling like she was fighting not to cry. In that moment, she sounded her age. She might think she was all grown up, but she was a child, and it wasmyjob to fix this.
My chest felt shredded then and now as we pulled up to the large house Jill paid for with the money she raked in from my company. It was a renovated Edwardian in an affluent neighborhood on the outskirts of Edinburgh City.
While Kelly understood why I didn’t want her testifying, I knew she was frustrated with me for taking that decision fromher. I just … I knew what it was like to carry guilt over a parent, and I didn’t want her to go through that mental anguish.
Thankfully, Jill had not been contacted regarding my application for the order, so I still had that advantage. As much as I didn’t want Jill leaving Kelly alone, if the private investigator recorded her departing the house and not returning for a long period, it would be all I’d need to get Kelly back.
“I’ll be okay, Dad.” My daughter squeezed my hand, comfortingme. “We can do this. She’s going to do something stupid to slip up.”
I squeezed my eyes closed, hating that my fourteen-year-old had been drawn into this custody war and was talking battle strategy with me.
“You just … you focus on school and your friends and let me deal with this.”
My daughter gave me a patently patronizing smile like I was the naive one and got out of the Discovery. I followed her, my stomach sick with dread. We’d departed from Leth Sholas at seven in the morning. The journey to Edinburgh took just under five hours and we’d stopped for breakfast in Oban and a break at the halfway point. It was now two in the afternoon, and if I wanted to get the last ferry back to Glenvulin, I couldn’t linger.
The powerlessness, the frustration, practically choked me as I got Kelly’s small suitcase out of the SUV and rolled it across the long drive into her mother’s house.
I couldn’t even look at the garish, lavishly decorated home as I followed Kelly inside. I left the suitcase in the grand entrance and let Kelly’s voice guide me into a massive open-plan kitchen and living area.
The gold accents and ornaments everywhere were almost blinding.
Jill was on a stool at the kitchen island and there was some bloke on the opposite side of the marble-topped piece offurniture. His oily grin was focused on my daughter as Kelly stood awkwardly in front of her mother who assessed her appearance like she gave a fuck.
“You need to stop letting her eat like a pig when she’s with you.” Jill stared past Kelly to me. “She’s put on weight.”
“Like hell she has,” I seethed.
Kelly hurried over to me, eyes suddenly dull. “I’m … I’m going to my room, Dad.” The lack of hope in her expression fucking broke me. “I’ll … see you soon.”
I pulled her into my arms and whispered, “So soon, m’eudail. Promise.”
She nodded, her breath hitching with her struggle to contain her tears.
“For goodness’ sake, she’s not a baby anymore, Mur. Let the girl go to her room if she wants to.”
Reluctantly I released my daughter, pressed a slow kiss to her forehead, and promised her again I’d see her soon. Kelly marched from the room, and I glowered at my ex-wife.
It seemed impossible to me that there was a time when I not only found Jill attractive but that I once held affection for her. After we had Kelly, I even thought I loved my ex.
Now I knew it was merely the bond over having a child.
Jill grew quickly bored with motherhood once Kelly was walking and needed more of her attention.
For years, we’d drifted apart, and I was ashamed to admit I’d stayed in the marriage for as long as I did, not just for Kelly’s sake, but for the company’s sake, knowing this viper would take a cut every month. A cut of something she had put no energy into.
When I met Jill, I’d fallen for her sad, ‘abandoned by her father, neglected by her mother’ kid act. She’d told me her father had taken all of her mum’s money and valuables when he left, leaving them with nothing. It was an excuse for her trust issues,for the need for a prenup. She told me she was just looking for a home, a safe place, and the protector in me couldn’t help himself. I’d signed away my business to prove she could trust me, naively assuming I could trust her.
I had no idea I’d let a conniving, selfish, entitled brat into my life.