Written in 57 minutes.
Scott exhaled slowly and shook his head. âNo, no. I donât know where he moved BetsyâI thought she was stillââ He looked over at Mac before returning his attention to Spinelli. âHeâs been paying her expenses, though. Can you track that?â
âI can,â Spinelli said evenly. âAs long as no one asks me how I did it.â He clicked away at a few keys on the laptop, while Scott shoved himself to his feet and started to pace the conference room.
He felt like such a goddamn fool. Heâd defended Franco, he thought theyâd had a relationship. He had tried like hell to get his daughters, Serena and Christina, to develop a relationship with him. He wasnât the man they thought he was, he kept telling the world.
But Franco was that man. He had always been that man, and now someone elseâs son was in danger because of it.
âItâs not your faultââ
âHeâs my blood, Macââ
âHeâs a sociopath. And from what Spinelliâs been telling us, thereâs a hell of a more we didnât know. This plan? He didnât think of this this morning when Elizabeth broke up with him.â
âNo, he didnât.â Mac looked back at Spinelli who was frowning at his keyboard screen. âCloning phones. How hard is that?â
âNot that hard,â Spinelli said absently as he continued to type. âIf you know how to do it. Still canât be done in a few hours. So maybe he didnât plan for this today but he definitely had something planned. Explosives arenât easy to come by either.â
âYou said Drew and Sam were talking to Anna?â Mac asked. He pulled out his cell phone. âIâm calling in my own WSB contact.â
âYou two do that. Iâm going to go see about Elizabeth and the boys.â Scott pulled open the door and left the conference room.
â-
Down the hall, in the surgical waiting room, Jason and Diane were having a heated argument about something in the corner while Joss bit nervously at her nails.
How much longer was it gonna take for them to find Cameron? And why wasnât anyone looking more upset? More worried? Cameron was missing. Even Oscar had merely shrugged when Joss called him crying. Cam had probably run away, her idiot boyfriend had said. Everyone knew Cam hated his momâs boyfriend.
Well, now Oscar was her idiot ex-boyfriend. See how he liked that.
âHow long does it take to find one stupid woman?â Joss demanded. âFind Betsy. Get Cameron back. Dump Franco off a cliff. Why is this so hard?â
âGod, you are my kid,â Carly muttered. âLook, I know youâre worried about Camââ
âHeâs been my best friend since we were kids. Heâs the only one who gets how crazy all of you are. And I justâI need him to be okay. I really need that.â
âI get itââ
âAnd what about if his mom dies? What happens to him and his brothers? Thereâs no one left who gives a damnââ
âWell, first, you donât have to worry about Elizabeth dying,â Carly said, with a grimace. âSheâs like a cockroach. They never dieââ
âOh, my God. Youâre such an embarrassment sometimes. I donât get why you hate Camâs mom so much.â Joss jumped out of her seat and stalked across the room to Jason and Diane.
She poked Diane in the shoulder. âHey. I need to know whatâs going to happen to Cam and his brothers.â
âJossââ Carly hissed, following her.
Diane looked down at her shoulder where Jossâs finger was still touching the silk white sleeve of her blouse. âExcuse meââ
âJoss,â Jason began, looking on the other side of the room where Jake and Aiden were sleeping on one of the long sofas.
âI want to know what happens to Cam and his brothers if their mother isnât okay.â Joss folded her arms. âIâm the only person here who actually gives a damn about Cam, and I think that qualifies meââ
âJocelyn Jacksââ
âShut up, Mom. You donât have anything to do with this. You donât even like Elizabeth.â Joss turned her back on her mother.
âAh, well, thatâs what weâre sorting out now. Elizabeth doesnât have a legal, adult next of kin anymore,â Diane said as she cleared her throat. âNormally, the hospital is obligated to call Childrenâs Services who sort things out, butââ
âWell, thatâs bullshit,â Joss muttered.
âLet her finish,â Jason said with some irritation. âIâm worried about Cam, tooââ
âYeah, now. Where have you been while his mother lived with a freak?â Joss demanded. âYouâve been back for four months. Why isnât Franco wearing cement shoes? God damn it. Whatâs the point of being in the mob if you canât get stuff doneââ
âI didnât hear that,â Diane said, delicately. âAs I was saying, the hospital located a durable power of attorney for Elizabeth that was outdated, and there wasnât time to consult with me.â She held up a folder. âI have Elizabethâs living trust which she updated a few months ago.â
âSo?â
âAs I was telling Jason before I was interrupted, Elizabeth had to update the trust once there were two Jason Morgans in the world. Unless Lucky Spencer or his parents contest the trust, custody of all three boys is left with you and you are her healthy proxy.â
Joss blinked, and Carly scowled. âOf course you are. She never misses the chance to sink her claws into youââ
âMom.â Joss said before Jason could jump in. âGo away. Go sit over there and wait until someone something to say to you. I donât have the time for your ridiculous hatred for Cameronâs mother, and I highly doubt Jason does either.â
âJossââ
âCarly,â Jason said sharply. âThank you for your help. Go over there.â He pointed to the same chair Joss had indicated.
Carly glared at the two of them but did as she was askedâclearly recognizing the stony glint in Jasonâs expression.
âThatâs good, though, right?â Joss said to Diane. âChildrenâs Services donât have to get involved, and Laura Spencer already said sheâs not able to come back from England.â
âWell, Lucky has to be contacted, but yes, itâs good.â Diane exhaled slowly, looked back at Jason. âShe thought you were her best chance to keep her boys together after her grandmother passed last year.â
âWell, sheâs right.â Jason turned when the door opened and so did Joss. But it wasnât Griffin coming in with newsâit was Spinelli.
Spinelli shook his head. âI just wanted to let you know I set up a bunch of searches but I havenât been able to find Betsy yet. Mac is calling Robert Scorpio, so I wanted to know if Drew or Sam had called back yet about Anna.â
âNo, no.â Jason folded his arms. âScott didnât know where Betsy was stayingââ
âNo, butââ Spinelli looked around. âDidnât he come in here? He said he wasââ He scowled. âDamn it.â
âWhere did Baldwin go?â Jason demanded as Spinelli turned on his heel and rushed out of the conference room. Jason started to follow, but turned back to Joss.
âJoss, stay here with the boysââ
âGo find Cameron. I got this,â Joss promised.
â
Betsy Frank had moved only three towns over, but Scott hadnât wanted to tell Spinelli that. He wasnât sure why heâd kept the information to himself.
But the tumor had come back, maybe that was why Franco was doing all of this. If he could just find his son, if he could just bring Cameron Webber home safely, it would be okay.
He could get Franco help. They could get rid of the tumor againâstay on top of it in the future.
Scott couldnât lose another son. Not like this.
He pulled into Betsyâs driveway, turned off his engine and sat back in the seat. He reached over to the glove compartment, pulled it open, and drew out a handgun. He tucked it in the pocket of his suit jacket. He opened the car door, and went up the front walk.. The lights in the house were all off, but that didnât mean anything.
He rang the doorbell.
After a minute, a light switched on and the door opened hesitantly. Betsy Frank, Heather Webberâs old friend and partner in crime.
Her mouth looked pinched at the corners and she didnât open the door more than an inch. âWhat do you want, Scott?â
âSomething bad has happened to Bobby,â Scott said carefully. âIâm worried about him. Everyoneâs looking for him, but theyâre pissed, and I needâwe need to find him, Betsy. We need to protect him before it gets worse.â
Betsy sniffled, then stepped back to open the door more widely. âHe was here,â she said in a hushed whisper. âHe was so angry. Everything was ruined, he said. He was screaming at me. I had to keep him a secret. I had to keep the door locked.â
âWhat door?â Scott said, stepping over the threshold. He closed the front door behind him. âBetsy, did Franco come here alone?â
Betsyâs eyes were wide as she pressed her lips together. âBobby said I couldnât say.â
Which meant he hadnât. âOkay. What door did he want you to keep locked?â
âBobby said I couldnât say.â
âAh, forget this,â Scott muttered, dismissing the crazy old bat and stalking past her, up the stairways. Once on the second floor, he started throwing open doors. A bedroom, a bathroomâ
He threw open the last door, but it was another empty bedroom. Scott scowled. What door did Franco want locked? As he turned to return to the hallway, he caught sight of a door inside the room. He pulled on the knobâbut it didnât turn.
Locked.
âCameron?â he called softly. âCameron?â he said a little more loudly. He heard something rustling inside, a sound like a grunt, and then something thrown against the doorâas if Cameron had shoved his weight against it.
âStep back, Cam, Iâm getting you out of hereââ
Scott tugged on the lockâit was one of those old locks and with a bit of brute force, he was able to pull it open.
Cameron was in the room, his dark blonde hair messy, his eyes red, his cheeks swollen from crying. Duct tape was stretched across his mouth, and his hands were behind his back.
âThis is gonna hurt,â Scott said. He ripped the tape from the kidâs mouth, and Cameron hissed. Quickly, Scott untied him. âWe gotta get you out of here and back homeââ
âOh, itâs too late for that, Dad.â
Shoving Cameron behind him, Scott turned around to face his son as Franco stood in the doorway, blocking their escape.
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