“Don’t worry about it. I’ll be okay. Say hello to your mother for me. I can’t wait to meet her. She sounds like such a neat lady.”
“She is. I know you two will hit it off.”
“I‘ll call you as soon as I know anything. I Love you.”
“I love you too. Later!”
Chapter 21
Kane arrived at noon on the dot. Evelyn’s mansion is in the historic section of Old Brooking two blocks from the knoll that Hampton Manor is built on. Her three children were raised in the house. Kane had fond childhood memories, with a with a few minor exceptions, namely his two sisters, Melanie and Bridget. As an adult he felt genuine affection for them, but it took him until the age of eleven to rise above the tyranny of the two as they conspired daily to make his life a living hell, as sisters often do. It all changed one day when he finally reached his limit and decked Melanie with a right cross to the jaw and after that they never bothered him again. Evelyn went through the motions of admonishing Kane, at the time, giving him a stern lecture about never hitting women, but deep inside she knew that Melanie had gotten what she deserved.
They settled down in the Florida room. It was tastefully decorated with colored wicker and bamboo furniture. Kane sat at one end of a wicker sofa with floral patterned overstuffed cushions, his mother at the other end. They agreed on Thai food which would be delivered within the next half-hour. He looked around the room at the dozens of picture frames, mostly holding pictures of his two nieces and two nephews over a span of a half-dozen years. There were a few of him from his college days; nothing more recent.
“Gosh, those kids are sure growing up fast.”
“Yes they are. Much too fast! Both Jason and Colby are starting to sass me back when I correct them. By the time they grow out of it, the other two will start up. I love being with those kids but I’m always relieved when they go home.”
“Methinks you protest too much,” he said, watching to see how she would respond.”
True to form his mother smiled and said, “You’re right. I really do enjoy having them around. They make this old spirit feel young again.”
While they waited for the food to be delivered, Evelyn poured two glasses of Riesling. Kane was pleased with her choice of the wine.
“Here’s to you and your young lady. What was her name again?”
“Marcia.”
“Okay, here’s to you and Marcia. May you both find the happiness you so richly deserve.”
They clinked their glasses and took a sip of the wine.
“This Riesling is a delightful white wine,” he said.
“I’m glad you like it. I started drinking it at the Club about a month ago. It’s very mellow. Now, tell me about your date last night.”
Before he could begin telling her, the food arrived. During the next half hour they dined in silence on the Pad Thai Tofu noodles, Thai prawns covered with a seasoned pineapple sauce and Thai stir fried vegetables. When the last noodle disappeared from Kane’s plate he sat back with his glass of wine and filled her in on his date.
“Then this morning, while we were on the road, I spotted a blue car following Marcia. He stayed with her, making every turn, for about fifteen minutes. Finally I got in front of him. I’m sure he recognized my car and we made eye contact for a brief moment. I guess he decided that it was wise to back off, because he got off at the next exit.
“You think Adam Hampton was behind it, don’t you?”
“I don‘t just think it, I know. Who else would care?”
“That seems a bit over-controlling, don’t you think?”
“Well, there is more to it. It turns out that Marcia had a couple of dates with him.”
Evelyn got silent. The look on her face mirrored her disapproval. “It wasn’t very smart for her to get involved with her boss, especially Adam Hampton.”
“She knows that, now. It was only two dates and she decided to end the relationship a while back.”
“Around the time you came on the scene,” she astutely observed.
He smiled as he replied, “I do have that powerful animal magnetism. I think I got that from you, but actually she says she decided before I made the scene.”
“This is no laughing matter. You’re messing with a very dangerous man. I warned you about that family when you first told me that you would be working with them. You should never have agreed to such an arrangement. You weren’t obligated in any way. You should have just walked away from the company.”
“I know, mother, but I felt duty bound to look after my employees and some of our vendors. They’ve been with us a long time. I know many of them personally. I’ve visited with them and met their families. Besides, I never would have met Marcia if I hadn’t stayed.”
“I’ll give you that, but I’m also a firm believer that if it was meant to be, it would have happened, somehow.”
“Perhaps! Right now I just want for us to get far away from Hampton Industries as quickly as possible.” He set his cell phone down on the cocktail table. “I asked Marcia to call as soon as she turns in her resignation to Hampton. She’s giving him two weeks’ notice.”
“Under the circumstances, why doesn’t she just walk out? That’s what I would have done.”
“It’s different with company officers. Vice-Presidents are bound by an unwritten code of conduct and usually by employment contracts. Normally the time frame would be a months’ notice or until a replacement is found. She feels that because of his outrageous behavior she is justified with the two weeks’ notice. Marsha wants to get out of there as soon as she can. Trust me.”
“That’s fine for her, but what kind of code does that man live by?”
“That’s beside the point. Marcia feels strongly about this. My only hope is that he will act irrationally and fire her on the spot. I’m keeping my fingers crossed.”
“I hope you’re right.”
“So, in the meantime, what have you been up to, mother? I haven’t seen your name in the gossip columns in a long time. Are you deliberately keeping a low profile on the social front?”
“Not everything I do makes the papers, you know, but if you’re really asking if I’m seeing anyone since I got rid of Donald? No, I’m not. I think four husbands is my limit. I’m getting too old for this romance stuff. It’s the big seven-oh coming up for me this year, you know.”
“You don’t have to marry them to enjoy their company. There must dozens of seniors who would enjoy being in the company of a sophisticated lady, such as yourself.”
“What would I want with a senior? If I took up with anyone, he’d be a young buck. I’ve still got a lot of life left in me yet, you know.”
He laughed. “Mom, you never change. On a related subject, Marcia was asking me about my family and she found it strange that I didn’t know anything about my father. It got me to thinking. I’ve got plenty of time now. I’m thinking about putting out a trace on Peter Masterson. I may actually meet up with him. I’m curious as to why he would leave you when you were carrying me. I want to see for myself what kind of a man would do that? I’d like him to tell me the truth, to my face.”
Evelyn turned ashen. Her voice was faint as she asked, “Why would you go and do that now, after all these years? Obviously, that man never cared about you.”
“Perhaps so, but suddenly there is something that I feel inside that is urging me to find out about him. I’m about to make a major commitment in my life. I’d like to clear up that one question before I do. Besides, what’s the harm? If I find him, he may even refuse to talk to me. What can you tell me about him?”
Evelyn didn’t answer him; she couldn’t. Tears began pouring down her cheeks. She opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out. She started sobbing and averted Kane’s gaze. “I don’t want you to speak with Peter.”