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“Do you not want to be found because you’re afraid of what Frank will do to you?”
“No. He threatened me, but I asked around. Frank’s been cheating casinos for years and has never gotten caught, but he’s also never done anything violent.”
“So, why are you hiding?”
“I’m afraid my father will ask me for money.” It was the story of her adult life—and would have been the story of her childhood, had she had money as a kid.
“You don’t have any.”
“But you do.”
He raised an eyebrow, the first sign of movement in his face since he’d confronted her. “You would steal from me for your father?”
“I’d like to say no, but…after Aunt Kitty left, it was just my dad and me. His schemes and plans always sounded like a game. ‘Vivian,’ he’d say, ‘this week’s winnings are going into your college fund.’ He knew I wanted to settle down somewhere, get a real job and live a real life.”
“And you believed him about the college fund?” He sounded so skeptical that Vivian wondered if he’d ever believed a family member’s lies because he wanted to, even if his heart knew the truth.
“I had the money I’d earned working. It was enough for four years at UNLV, plus a little extra. I did well on my SATs. I had good grades, even if they were from four different high schools. I was going to make it. And then one day he came home and told me my college fund—the fund that I’d saved—was gone. He’d invested it all in a no-fail scheme. My future was gone before I had one.”
“And still you let your father talk you into cheating at roulette.” His voice was cold. Not distant, but as icy as the wind cascading down the Chicago streets and freezing her to the bone.
“I changed my mind,” she pleaded. She’d changed her mind because cheating meant submitting to the life her father lived. She wanted to stay in Las Vegas, where she had a job, apartment and security. She didn’t want to wander again, living off schemes. This one’s gonna hit it big, Vivy, and then we’ll be living! “Frank gave me this look, and I knew if I gave in this once, he’d use it against me again and again until he owned me.” She dropped her head between her knees. Being punished for something she hadn’t done wasn’t fair.
“Is the baby really mine?”
“What?” Anger burned in her stomach at his question, melting the ice of his tone.
“I know you’re pregnant. You couldn’t fake the doctor appointment, but is the baby mine? Or are we married because you knew you would need someone, and I looked like a chump with money?”
She ignored her own anger and pleaded, rather than yelled. “I know what you must think of me….”
“No,” he drew the word out and it echoed through the apartment. “I don’t think you have any idea how I feel about you right now.”
“But I haven’t lied to you. I didn’t tell you the full truth, but when I told you something, I didn’t lie.”
“Mother of my child or not, I have no sympathy for cheaters or liars.”
“But I didn’t…” She stopped begging when she realized Karl’s face hadn’t softened. “Are you going to kick me out?” God, what a position to be in. To not be able to fight back for fear of being homeless while pregnant.
Karl closed his eyes briefly. “I have to go back to work and figure out how to nail someone who thought they could use city money to enrich a friend’s pocketbook. I’ll think about what to do with you while I’m working.”
She’d rather he decide what to do with her while he was looking at kittens and puppies frolicking in a meadow. “It’s not the same, Karl,” she murmured. “I changed my mind.”
“Pack. By the time I get home, I’ll have someplace else for you to go. Mine or not, you’re still pregnant, and I’m not going to kick you to the street without a roof over your head. It just can’t be my roof anymore.”
He turned toward the front door, then seemed to think better of it. “As soon as that baby is born, we’re getting a divorce. I’ll provide you with money for the baby, but you had better be able to provide me with a detailed accounting of every penny you spend so I know it was all put toward the baby.”
