Losing Control (16 page)

“Well, I won’t then. I don’t think I
want to know details about my parents’ love life. Would you?”

“No, not at all. I’m glad I
discovered it though. The information might help us locate her.”

“Why would I want to? I told you if
she hasn’t come forward by now, she doesn’t care.”

“But Taury, there could be lots of
reasons why she didn’t come back to see you.”

“Yeah, and most of them involve being
paid off. Put the diary away, Fawn. I don’t want to talk about her anymore.
I’ve got too many troubles to deal with as it is. Get some sleep. I’ll call you
in the morning.”

“What about our plans?”

Too late; he had hung up. Fawn burst
into tears. Her pent-up desires needed satiating. And she had a seed of doubt
growing in her busy mind, wanted Taury to prove he loved her every minute of
the day. She felt ugly and useless and selfish and stupid.
Elizabeth
’s words began to haunt her – “once
he realizes that you are merely damaged goods.” What if he thought that way?
She knew deep down inside that he loved her, and he had sworn that it was more
than a physical love but what if it wasn’t? What if he couldn’t handle not
having her for weeks and weeks?

She cursed herself for letting
Richard talk her into those fertility treatments, cursed her weakness in not
being able to have a baby in the first place. Then she railed against her
parents for raising her to be controllable; and swore out loud at Richard for
taking advantage of that. Finally she twisted up into a ball of pain and
defeat, and fell asleep on a damp, tear-stained pillow.

That night Fawn had a dream - she was
lying naked on a gigantic black canopied bed in a bright white room surrounded
by a bank of floor to ceiling windows. Taury entered the room, began to stalk
her – there was a wild, hungry look in his eyes. She stretched herself out
before him like a Playboy model, airbrush beautiful, no scars, or wounds of the
skin, heart or soul. He eased out of a pair of black shorts – he was already
hard - climbed onto the bed, and started to move his hands over her firm,
suntanned body.

She was a vision of sexual delight,
his for the taking; which he did, eagerly. His lips found her nipples and bit
at them while his fingers entered her and skillfully brought out her desires.
He raised his fingers to his mouth and tasted her juices then he slid down her
body and licked at her loins with a fiery tongue. His hips were near her face;
she grabbed him, tasted his sweetness, voraciously tried to devour every last
drop but he shoved her off. He rose above her, a golden god, his hard flesh
pushing into her so unexpectedly and forcefully that she screamed like a
banshee – breaking every window in the room. But they were not fazed; kept at
it until Taury growled like an animal, sending Fawn into a frenetic bout of
orgasms. She woke from the dream, still reeling, clinched her thighs together
tightly to finish the job.

It was morning, yet another gray,
unwelcoming day. Fawn dragged her weakened body to the shower, let the warm
water fall over her face, dissipating the traces of her tears.

“Fawn, breakfast is ready!” June
called from the hall. She didn’t answer her, but went about dressing like a
robot then joined the two women in the kitchen.

“Does it ever stop raining here?”
June asked Brisby.

“Oh, yes, it’s quite lovely most of
the time. Every place has its spells of inclement weather. As do people, I’m
sure. Take our Miss here, she’s feeling the worst of her situation at the
moment, but time heals all wounds. She’ll be fit as a fiddle before you know
it!”

“Are you sure about that?” Fawn
sighed as she sipped her coffee.

“Indeed, my girl. I was in your boat
ten years ago. Of course, I was fifty then, and due for the change anyway, so
it is a bit different.”

“You were Taury’s nanny.”

“Yes, took care of him from the
second he came home from the hospital.”

“Then, you know he wasn’t
Elizabeth
’s child?”

June was shocked. “Fawn, really, what
a thing to ask!”

“But it’s true. And Brisby must have
been aware of it.”

Brisby rose from her seat; took a
strawberry muffin from a plate on the butcher block counter.

“Yes, you’re quite right. It wasn’t
spoken of, certainly, but I knew. I assumed the Trahern’s had adopted the boy,
until I saw her blue eyes staring up at me from the babe’s sweet face.”

“Her? You mean Inger?”

Brisby eased back into her seat.
“Yes. Inger Sjostrom.”

“How did you know her?”

“I met her at the employment agency. We
sort of hit it off, I suppose, because we were both new to
America
, and somewhat frightened of our
surroundings. It was through her that I came to know Jim Trahern. He said she’d
suggested me for the child’s nanny.”

“What happened to her?” June wondered.

“Yes, do you know where she went
after Taury was born, and why?”

“I can’t say, Miss. I’ve often
worried over those questions.”

“Did
Elizabeth
have some hold over her? Some past
mistake she could blackmail her with?”

“Again, I can’t say.”

“Do you have any information about
her then; where she was born or the names of her relations?”

“I thought she told me once she was
from a town called
Lund
or Lind. I can’t be certain of the
spelling.”

“Why all the questions, Fawn? What
are you planning?”

“I need to find her, Mom. Taury
thinks she abandoned him for money, but I’ve read her diary, and I know better.
She was thrilled when she realized she was pregnant. She loved him terribly.
I’ve got to call Stephanie! She’s looking into it for me!”

Fawn inched her way to her room,
reached for the cell phone. It rang before she could pick it up.

“Hello?”

“Babe, it’s me! I’m so sorry I hung
up on you last night! I didn’t get a minute of sleep worrying about you but I
was afraid I’d wake you if I called back. Are we okay? You still love me?”

“Of course I do. I realize you’re
under a lot of stress right now. I was only adding to it.”

“No, no, you couldn’t stress me out,
unless you stopped loving me.”

“I will never stop loving you, Taury
Trahern. I promise!”

“I’m going to hold you to that
promise for as long as I live!”

“Sounds like a marriage proposal, but
we already went through that.”

“Yeah, but when do we get to the
ceremony?”

“Why can’t we have it here?”

He paused for a moment, thinking.

“I don’t know of any reason why we couldn’t!
The license and everything else is in order. This is a great idea, Fawn! I’ll
grab your dad and a preacher and be up there tomorrow!”

“Can’t you make it sooner?”

“No, we’ve got a big meeting today
with some legal types your dad knows. Hopefully they’re going to dig us out of
this hellhole. But what about our friends? Do you think any of them could make
it?”

“I’ll call the Finches and the De
Paolos. They might be able to fly up. But Stephanie is still in
London
. I was going to call her anyway,
about another matter. I’ll see if she’s okay with not being here.”

“I can send the private plane for
George and Molly and the guys. Let me contact them and set that up.”

“Okay. Oh, Taury, what on Earth will
I wear?”

“How about we go as Adam and Eve?”

She laughed. “God no! I want my
wedding to be memorable but not for THAT!”

“Right. I’ll bring a dress or two
with me. Libby is in town, you know, my sister? She’s done with the royal
routine, is divorcing the duke. I’ll let her pick something out for you.”

“Wow, I’ll bet
Elizabeth
is pitching fits!”

“I wouldn’t know. I haven’t seen her
since she chose sides, and I don’t care to! I’ll get back to you later with
details! I can’t wait to be near you again! It’s like I’m missing a part of my
soul when you’re not here.”

“I know the feeling. Taury come
tonight! Please? We can work everything out tomorrow.”

“I can’t, honestly. But I’ll see you
first thing in the morning. Maybe I can get there before you wake up and bring
you breakfast in bed. Stay safe till then!”

“I’ll try,” she said quietly.

After he hung up Fawn had a sudden
chill. She looked out the window, watched a ghostly swell of clouds smother the
sky. She should have been ecstatic; finally they were going to be married! But
instead she was overwhelmed with a sense of dread so stifling it constricted
her heart. She clasped her chest, slumped to the bed and began to cry.

SEVENTEEN

“Married? Here? Tomorrow?” June
Brennan was a bit shaky. “Won’t there be lots of people? And so many things to
be done! Can we pull it off on such short notice?”

“I guess so. Taury’s flying our
friends in from
Malibu
. And he said he’ll arrange it all,
so don’t get on edge about it. I know you’ve been under a strain, and sudden
changes can seem frightening. I’ve been down that road myself. But it’s going
to be a simple ceremony. You can sit back and enjoy yourself.”

“Well, I have to admit my heart is
booming at the thought of it. I’ve had panic attacks over less excitement. What
will you wear? Have you any ideas?”

“Taury’s sister is bringing me a
dress.”

“His sister?” Brisby seemed
disturbed. “Miss Libra is in
San Francisco
?”

“Yes. Apparently she’s getting a
divorce.”

Brisby’s face turned a paler shade of
ivory. She was silent for a few minutes.

“You okay, Brisby?”

“Yes, Miss, I suppose one gets so
wrapped up in one’s charges that you start to feel a mother’s worry about them
after awhile. Libra was always such a dear child, obeying Mrs. Trahern’s every
whim. I can’t fathom why she would do this now.”

“Maybe she doesn’t really love the
Duke.”

“Well, that’s something I don’t feel
free to discuss. I have some chores to do upstairs. Will you be needing me
before tea?”

“No, go right ahead.”

Once she left the room, Fawn leaned
towards June.

“I’ll bet she’s calling the Queen.”

They listened, could hear her voice
very faintly.

“You’re right. So she’s loyal to Mrs.
Trahern.”

“Apparently. Do you like her, Mom?”

“I suppose. I can’t really get her if
you know what I mean. She seems sincere but there’s something underneath the scruffy
British persona. It’s almost like she’s acting a part in a play.”

“I felt that, too. But Taury thinks
the world of her. He’s usually very good at reading people.”

“If she was his nanny, he probably
clung to her and was blind to any suspicious behavior. Especially since his
adoptive mother is such a … what’s the word I’m looking for?”

“Bitch?”

“I was searching for something a bit
kinder, but I guess that’ll do. Is there anything I can help you with, Fawn?
Should I bake a wedding cake, or make some candies or appetizers? The kitchen
is fully stocked with all sorts of fruits and things.”

“No, I figure Taury will handle that,
too, since he owns a candy factory. He’ll probably bring a truckload of
chocolates!”

“Can’t go wrong with chocolate!”

They laughed.

“I wouldn’t mind if you’d come with
me into the study, Mom. I want to go through all the books, to see if Inger hid
anything else that might help me find her.”

“Sounds intriguing.”

They spent the rest of the afternoon
digging through the bookshelves, and came up empty-handed. Fawn was
disappointed.

“I thought sure there’d be
something.”