She guides us to a living room with an overworn brown couch, the pillows askew.“Sorry about this.”Hannah tucks the cushions back in place.“My daughter’s going through a fort phase.”
Jaeger smiles and sits on the couch.“Actually, your daughter is why we’re here.”He takes a deep breath, tension rolling off his stiff posture.“Kate told me we had a child together.She said you’ve been given temporary custody.”
Hannah stares without blinking for a solid minute.“Mark!”she yells without breaking eye contact, her pitch escalating at the end.“Come in here, please.”
A man in his early thirties walks into the living room from down the hall, wrapping a tie around his neck in a knot.His gaze goes straight to his wife, then touches on us.“I didn’t know we had guests.”It’s a statement, but there’s a question in his voice.
“This is Jaeg,” Hannah says.“Kate’s ex-boyfriend from high school, and his girlfriend Cali.”Her tone is terse, but I don’t think it’s directed at us.“Please tell my husband Mark what you just told me, Jaeg.”
Jaeger clears his throat.“I’m here because Kate returned to town and informed me we have a child together.She said you and your wife are caring for our four-year-old daughter, but she wouldn’t give me your number or specifics about the child, and I wanted to find out more information.”
“What?” Mark’s voice is loud like a bark, his tone dark.
A little girl runs into the room and grabs her father’s leg.She has straight blond hair pulled back with flower barrettes, and green eyes.She could pass for Jaeger’s daughter with her coloring, as long as no one saw her next to Mark.She’s the spitting image of her father, right down to the dimple in her chin.
“Sweetheart”—Mark crouches and faces his daughter—“special treat this morning.”He smiles, but there’s a touch of tension in his voice.“You can play with your dress-up clothes before school.”
The little girl frowns briefly, possibly picking up the edge in her father’s tone, then seems to realize her coup.Squeals ensue and she runs out of the room back down the hallway.
Mark sinks into a chair next to his wife, his hands gripping the armrests.“What the hell is going on?”
I’m tapping my foot and squeezing Jaeger’s hand to death.This is so not right.These people have no idea what we’re talking about.
Somehow Jaeger remains calm.Even the contours of his face have softened.“I’m here to find out if I have a daughter.”
“Well,” Hannah says, “I don’t know ifyouhave a daughter, Jaeg, but I can tell you that my daughter came frommybody, not my sister’s.”She smiles sardonically.“Childbirth is one of those things a woman doesn’t forget.”
“Okay.”Jaeger nods.“Good.”He shifts in his seat, his brows bunching in thought.“You said you aren’t close to Kate, but do you know if she had a child?”
“I don’t keep in touch with her, but my parents do.They would have known if she’d been pregnant.She’s close to my mom.”Bitterness seeps from her tone.“Mom puts up with Kate’s crap.”
Jaeger rubs his forehead.“So there’s no way that the little girl I just saw or any other girl you’ve taken care of in your home is my child?”
“There’s only one child we’ve raised,” Mark says.“And there is no way she is yours.Kate lied to you.”
Jaeger takes a deep breath and leans back.“Okay.Okay—thank you.I’m sorry to have bothered you this morning.”He squeezes my hand and stands.
“Jaeg,” Hannah says, “before you leave, tell me what’s going on with Kate.My mom hasn’t spoken to her in weeks.I don’t care what Kate’s up to, but it sounds like she’s getting into trouble again, and my mom should know.We thought her problems were behind her after her boyfriend went to prison two months ago.If she’s fabricating lies about having a child…” She looks to her husband.“I’m worried for our daughter, Mark.Maybe we should call the police.”
“On it.”Mark pulls out his cell phone and walks away.
Jaeger and I exchange a look.
“She’s living at my house,” Jaeger says.“She said we needed to show a stable environment in order to regain custody of our child.I didn’t trust her from the moment she walked back into my life, but I didn’t want to tell her to leave in case she was telling the truth.Didn’t want anything bad to happen to the little girl.”
Hannah nods.“I understand.You did the right thing.You always were too good for my sister.I’m sorry she used you.We’ll tell the police what’s going on and help you in whatever way we can, but our first priority is to keep our daughter safe.”She shakes her head.“What if Kate had kidnapped her to use her?My sister is sick.I don’t want her anywhere near my daughter or my family.”
Jaeger nods and pulls out his phone.“If you don’t mind, I’d like to call my parents.My father hired a lawyer and I want to tell them what we discovered.”
Hannah stands.“Of course, go ahead.Can I get you anything to drink?My husband and I will go in to work late today—or maybe I’ll stay home.”She looks toward the hall.“I don’t want to be away from my daughter with my sister making dangerous claims.She’s selfish and irresponsible, but I never thought she’d do anything like this.”
Jaeger exchanges phone numbers with Hannah and her husband before we leave.He gets a call from them on the drive back to Lake Tahoe.They’re filing a restraining order against Kate.Jaeger also spoke to his father and found out the lawyer his dad hired is having a thirty-day legal notice delivered to Kate to vacate Jaeger’s home.She’s claiming a right to occupancy, which technically she can, since Jaeger allowed her to move in.
We’re stuck with her for thirty more effing days.“What if she destroys your house or steals stuff?”I ask as we pull into town.
“My workshop is all I care about, and it’s locked tight.We’ll swing by, though, and I’ll remove important documents and my computer.Mason will hold everything until I get Kate out.”
He looks over.“I’m sorry, Cali.For putting you through this.”
