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Mandy
Thank God the test came back negative or I think I would have had to kill my father. The way things are now, I honestly don’t know what I’m going to say to him the next time I see him. Probably nothing. Trey’s expression lightened up following the good news from Jürgen, but after receiving a text message the stress lines are reappearing across his forehead. I wish I could do more to help him.
I reach for his hand. “We’ll get this all figured out.”
He looks up and gives me a reserved smile. “I know. I’m just a little overwhelmed at the moment. My lawyer needs to send the detective a copy of the documents that I purchased from Jake. If we don’t deliver them by Monday, they are proceeding with the case against me.”
“God, that sucks.” I take a sip of my coffee and look to the sky hoping for a source of inspiration. “What if Dad has letters from Silvia?” I ask as the sought after inspiration strikes.
“What would that do?” His expression changes from concern to confusion.
“It would be evidence of an ongoing affair between them,” I explain, my mind is going into overdrive trying to figure out how to use this puzzle piece.
“And that would solve my problem how?” Trey replies sarcastically.
“Don’t be a prick. I’m trying to help you here.” I bite down on my lip and concentrate on how my father could redeem himself for what he has done. I don’t want Trey to think he is a complete schmuck, even though right now he definitely looks like one.
“I’m sorry. I’m just tired and I don’t understand where you are going with this,” he replies, refilling his coffee one last time.
“Okay, just for the hell of it let’s pretend that Jake got ahold of some old letters that proved that Dad and Silvia were having an affair at the time of your birth. Now let’s pretend he was threatening to use them against you,” I explain, trying to paint a picture for him.
“Those would be some pretty important documents, especially if they ended up proving that Tyler and I weren’t actually Dad’s kids.” His eyes light up as he instantly jumps onboard with my line of thinking.
“Your dad was engaged… and maybe Jake was threatening to sell those letters to his new fiancée? She could’ve used them against you in an estate settlement down the road. What would those documents be worth to you?” A tingle races down my spine as I begin to realize that I may have just solved another major issue for Trey.
“Oh my God, Mandy! My inheritance is over six billion dollars, so paying Jake a hundred thousand for those letters would be a no-brainer,” he reasons, becoming completely enthralled with the idea. “You are a fucking genius!”
“Let’s just hope that Dad has some old letters or something like that,” I add, not wanting to get ahead of ourselves.
“And that he will turn them over to us.” The furrows re-emerge in his brow.
“After what he just put us through?” I gasp. “He is going to give me anything that can help you!”
Trey smiles and I can tell his wheels are turning as the waiter returns with our breakfast. He breaks the yoke of his eggs and begins dipping his almond croissant into them. I refrain from saying anything despite the fact that he is completely ruining one of the most deliciously decadent examples of French pastry. He is so lost in his thoughts, that I don’t even think he realizes what he is doing.
“The only thing I can’t figure out is, why would I send them to Jürgen?” he asks, briefly looking up from his croissant adulteration.
“That’s a good question, but it has to fit somehow.” I drag my croissant through the melted ice cream from my crepe. “He’s your mentor right? Maybe you were seeking his advice or trusting him to hold them for you.”
“No, that’s lame,” he replies, as if he is trying to write a titillating novel. “Maybe I wanted him to check their authenticity?”
“That might work, assuming he has a way of doing that.” I take part of the crepe and pair it with a piece of croissant before dipping it in the ice cream and sticking it in my mouth. Oh my God, I’ve died and gone to heaven!
“Could I get you some high fructose corn syrup to drizzle over that? Or maybe I could get a bag of glucose and you could just inject it directly into your bloodstream,” Trey mocks after witnessing the extent of my indulgence.
“Hey, sugar makes my brain work at the highest possible level of efficiency.” I smile broadly. “At least I’m not ruining mine with egg yoke.”
