Page 41 of Double

“It’s beautiful there,” I said, thinking of the island that was not far from Grenada.

“It is. We like it very much so far. It suits your auntie.”

“Is that where the boys are as well?”

“No, they’re on Saint Aurore.”

“What about Faylise?” I had to ask about my bestie as I slipped into my underwear. “Has anyone heard from her? Is she okay? I called Velvet & Vintage, but she didn’t answer.”

“From what I understand, Gillespie has not set his sights on her to harm her. She was found with the rest of the victims at Gretchen’s home, so she was never suspected to be involved. I did hear that they have her under very strict surveillance, though. They know that she’s somebody on the island you would contact.”

“Oh.” My spirit fell with that information. “I guess I shouldn’t try to contact her again then. The last thing I want to do is bring scrutiny to her, or anxiety. It has to be so stressful, being watched like that.”

“Definitely give it a while before you try to reach out. It’s only been a month. Let the heat die down.”

“And what about Gretchen? Did Sterling Gillespie make good on his threat to eradicate our entire bloodline on the island?” I held my breath as I waited for him to answer. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to hear that Gillespie had killed her or that he had spared her.

“He didn’t kill her, but he is making her pay for the fact that he didn’t get you as a bride. She’s been charged with some kind of fraud. They’re holding her in jail without bond—not that she could make bond—until the trial.”

I, for one, didn’t feel bad for her at all.

“Gillespie seized the company in a hostile takeover. Campbell Paper Holdings is no more,” he continued. “The company both your father and mine gave all their attention and love to is gone.”

“That’s too bad.”

“Eh.”

In my mind, I could see him shrugging his shoulders, and I smiled. I was fully dressed and only needed socks. I crossed the room to the dresser and pulled out a pair of no-show footies.

“Enough about that. How are you, niece? How are you holding up in America?”

“It’s been good, Uncle. You and Auntie made a good decision in sending me here. Lynne’s family is very sweet to me. They’re accepting and kind. They’ve embraced me and made me feel very welcome.”

“And your new husband?” I could hear the smile in his voice. “Has he been sweet and kind? Is he welcoming?”

I couldn’t help the laugh that escaped me.

“She’s giggling when I ask her about the new husband, Lianna. I think she likes him,” I heard him say in the background to my aunt.

“I do like him. He’s very kind. We were supposed to go to dinner last night, and somebody . . .” I didn’t want to upset him or Aunt Lianna, so I kept the slap to myself. “Somebody took a liberty with me. The entire family jumped to my defense, but Double looked like he wanted to spit nails. He was so angry on my behalf. I was worried that he would do something reckless to the person, but he didn’t. That’s not really his personality.”

“Well, I’m glad everything is working out for you. That will take a load of worry off of my shoulders. I’m going to get my day started now. You take care, niece. Lianna and I love you.”

As we were wrapping up, there was a light knock on my door. I knew it was Double, so I hustled over to it and opened it for him. “Thank you so much for calling me and letting me know you’re okay, Uncle. Tell Auntie that I love her, and I love you too.”

“Good morning, wife,” Double said once I’d ended my call.

“Good morning, husband.” I grinned at him for several reasons, the first being that he was so handsome. The second reason was because I felt good. “That was my uncle. He and my aunt are doing well on Oriana Cay.”

“That’s what’s up.” He nodded.

“Faylise is doing okay, but Sterling Gillespie has people watching her constantly. I feel so bad. I wish there was a way you could rescue her, too. But it’s too dangerous to even contact her at this point. They’re probably monitoring her phone calls in and out. I’m not trying to put her on their radar, so I’m going to relax on reaching out to her.”

He nodded again.

“My aunt is in jail.” I gave a giggle, even though I didn’t mean to. “And Sterling Gillespie took over my family’s company.”

“How do you feel about that?”