Page 48 of Finding You
“I hate you!” she cried and shook her fist at Maximus. “I hate you! Whatever sick mind-games you’re playing, you’re not going to get away with it! I will kill you before I ever let you near my babies again.”
“Hey, hey,” Zion said, setting her down and turning her to face him. He cupped her face between his hands, and it twisted him up inside at the hurt in her teary eyes. “Just calm down,” he said only loud enough for her to hear, then he pulled her to his chest, and wrapped his arms around her.
When she started sobbing, he wanted to strangle Maximus for hurting her.
Zion glanced over Raven’s head at Christopher, who looked more tired than he had when they first arrived.
“I have a feeling you already know your grandson is a lying piece of shit.”
Without waiting for a response, Zion looked at Maximus and hoped the man saw all the rage he felt toward him.
“You have fucked with the wrong person,” he growled. “I don’t give a damn what that document says because I know the truth. Soon you and your grandfather will too.
“In the meantime, I suggest you stay far away from my woman andmykids. Otherwise, you’re going to regret ever coming for what’s mine. I promise you that.”
Chapter Twenty-Two
It had been almost forty-eight hours since her encounter with Maximus, and Raven still felt numb. She’d known he was a horrible human being, but this? Claiming her kids as his own? He had crossed the line, and when she and Zion exposed him for the liar he was—because they would—she hoped Maximus rotted in hell.
She and Zion had arrived back in Chicago last night, and their first stop had been to pick up their babies. If Zion hadn’t vetoed the idea, Raven would’ve allowed the kids to sleep in bed with them even though she’d known it was a bad idea. After a few hours of just holding and loving on them, her anxiety had settled some.
Now they were in Zion’s truck heading to a private investigator’s office to get some help with Maximus. Raven wasn’t sure what the PI could do, but she was open to any help they could get to shut Maximus down.
After leaving the hospital the other day, the hours that followed had been a blur, at least for her. She’d been discombobulated, feeling as if she was walking on uneven ground. She hadn’t been able to eat or sleep. She still couldn’t wrap her brain around the fact that Maximus had somehowgotten his hands on a paternity test. Not one, but two tests with her babies’ names on them. There was no doubt in her mind they were fakes, but the documents had been enough to capture Christopher’s attention and give him pause.
The way he had looked at her after reading the information on Maximus’s phone kept playing through her mind. Raven had seen the questions in his gaze. Granted, he might not actually believe his grandson, but Maximus had presented Christopher with enough information to create doubt in her story.
Raven wasn’t sure what hurt the most, Maximus’s betrayal or the fact that Christopher might not believe her.
Definitely the latter. Maximus was a low-down jerk, and she wouldn’t put much past him. But Christopher was important to her. A friend she could call on for anything. Now she wasn’t so sure. She didn’t want to lose him, but if he believed his lying grandson over her, then she’d have no other choice but to move on.
She glanced in the backseat where the twins were napping and released a quiet sigh. They had the right idea. She leaned back against the headrest and closed her eyes, allowing the smooth jazz playing through the speakers to calm her nerves. That with the smooth ride, the comfortable, soft as butter, leather seat, and the woodsy fragrance inside the truck, she could totally doze off.
If only.
She couldn’t shut her brain down long enough to stop thinking about the situation. A situation she was glad she wasn’t going through alone. What if Maximus had pulled this stunt before she’d found Zion? At least, with Zion around, they could prove to a court that he was indeed Andrew and Zanaya’s father. That was yet another reason why she was so grateful the stars had aligned, and she and Zion found their way back to each other.Thank God.
Zion was under the impression that Maximus probably hadn’t considered him being back in the picture. The guy could go to court if he wanted to, but now the truth would eventually come out.
There was no way Raven would’ve survived the last couple of days had it not been for him. He’d been livid after leaving the hospital, but he’d managed to keep his cool. He’d been her rock during a couple of crying spells, and it was because of him they’d managed to get her apartment all packed up. There’d been a lot to do in a short amount of time, but they’d got it all done.
Her man was definitely a keeper.
She opened her eyes and turned to look at him, surprised when their gazes met. He smiled, and she couldn’t help but smile back. In that moment, it was on the tip of her tongue to tell him she loved him, but the words didn’t come.
Soon. She’d tell him soon.
Splitting his attention between the highway and her, he reached over and linked his fingers with hers. A calmness seeped into her as they rode that way for several minutes without speaking, until she said, “I’m so glad you’re in my life.”
He brought the back of her hand to his lips and kissed it. “Me too, baby. There’s no other place I’d rather be, and like I told you the other day, we’re going to get through this.”
“I know. We have the truth on our side.”
“True, and it wouldn’t take much to discredit Maximus’s claim, but I want to find out how he managed those paternity results. Even if he swabbed the babies without you knowing, his DNA and theirs wouldn’t give those results. Someone manipulated the tests. Which is why I’m getting Wiz involved.”
“That’s the P.I?”
“Yeah, his real name is Cameron Miller, and he’s the best of the best. He’s also one of the owners of Supreme Security-Chicago, and they have another office in Atlanta. He and hisbusiness partner, Malik Lewis, oversee the office that’s here in town. If anyone can get answers, it’s Wiz.”
