Jim sat at his desk, wishing he weren't the one about to reveal his findings to Talia. Not that he thought she didn't have the right to know. She deserved the truth. He only wished she weren't going to be alone when he told her.
He'd put it off long enough. Too long. Taking a deep breath, he dialed.
"Hey, Jim. How were the Islands?"
"Hi, Talia. They were good, thanks. I didn't want to come back."
"I don't blame you."
There was a long, uneasy pause between them. At first, Talia thought they'd been disconnected.
"Jim? You still there?"
"Oh, yeah...still here."
"Everything okay, Jim? You don't seem like yourself tonight."
"Yeah, I'm good. Just tired. Ummm...do you have dinner plans?"
"No. Nothing on for tonight. Why?"
"Have you ever been to Lucia's place?"
"You mean that fancy expensive restaurant on Grant Street?"
"That's the place."
"I love it there! They make the best pizzas and spaghetti, and meatballs."
"So, how about we split a pizza? I'll pay, of course."
"Sure. I'm still at work, though. What time should I meet you?"
"What time are you off?"
"About forty-five minutes. I'll need a shower and fresh clothes."
"No problem. Shall we meet at seven?"
"Sounds great. We'll go Dutch on dessert, okay?"
"Okay. See you soon."
Talia rang off, wondering what was on Jim's mind. The minute her workday ended, she raced home.
Talia found Jim sitting at a small table in the back of Lucia's. There was a glass of untouched white wine in front of him. He stood up when she got to him, but didn't smile.
"It's great to see you, Jim."
"You, too, Talia." Jim started wringing his hands. "You may not be so happy to see me when I tell you what I found out. You were right, Scott Heswig is scum."
"So, tell me something about the guy I don't know."
Jim's revelation left Talia in shock.
"What did you say, Jim?"
"Scott Heswig is your half-brother, Talia. At least, he claims to be. He was released from federal prison earlier this year. It seems your parents took him in because he had nowhere to go."
"Let me guess, he was imprisoned for fraud?"
"You guessed it. He was extradited to the United States from Switzerland in March. He's been loafing at your parents' house ever since."
"Where the hell did all the money come from?"
Jim's next answer infuriated Talia.
"He posed as an investment advisor and convinced your Great-Grandparents to invest in some fake Swiss company. Then, he transferred the money into a secret account in Zurich and started sending it to your parents."
"Poor Granny! Why didn't she ever tell me about Scott? Or about the money?"
"As for telling you about Scott, Talia, I don't believe your parents ever told her about him. So, she never knew. At least, not that he was her half-Great-Grandson. Telling you about the money that was transferred between accounts, she was probably ashamed of it all."
For a brief few seconds, Talia covered her face with her hands. Then, she regained her composure and looked Jim dead in the eyes.
"Jim, is it still possible to prosecute the scumbag? I have to get that money back for Granny. They're going to pay for this."
"I've already started looking into it. I think we've got a good chance of getting even."
"I'll drink to that!" Talia smiled slyly. Jim's face finally broke into a big grin, and he motioned for the waiter to bring two more glasses of white wine.
They spent the rest of their evening joking and laughing and toasting each other over a sumptuous meal of spaghetti Bolognese. Dessert consisted of strawberry cheesecake drizzled with dark chocolate sauce. Jim refused to let Talia pay for any part of the meal. As they were leaving the restaurant, he bought her a box of pastries to take home.
"Thanks for a great meal, Jim. I had a great time. And thanks for this." She held up the envelope stuffed with papers from his investigation.
"Hey, anytime, Talia. We'll do it again sometime soon. I had a great time, too. Call me when you're home so I'll know you got in safely, okay?"
Talia promised to call, and they said goodnight.
Talia lay awake for a long, long time. She couldn't bear to tell Granny that she knew about Scott Heswig. At least, not at that moment. The time would come.
And Talia had a feeling Granny would savour every moment of her Great-Granddaughter's planned revenge.
Talia could hardly wait to let the cat out of the bag.
To be continued.
