The Last Option
Chapter Forty: Uncovered

Bernard arrived at his apartment still a little upset about the interview with Louis Randall. He couldn't believe the level of cynicism of that man who was now in possession as if nothing of everything that had belonged to his friend, and now belonged to little Nathan. He went to the baby's room to see how he was, as Thomas and Laura had not yet arrived to help him with him, leaving him in the care of Anthony while he went to the interview. When he entered, Anthony had him in his arms looking at the Hudson River through the bedroom window and pointing out things for the baby to see. He stood for a while in the doorway admiring the scene, moved, which served to shake off a bit of the bad mood with which he had arrived. They hadn't even noticed his presence.

"Thanks for taking care of him," he said after a while.

"You don't have to say it," Anthony said, turning to him. "I point things out to him but I don't know if he sees them or not since he doesn't do anything. He's a very calm and balanced baby," he said that last in a joking tone and with a small smile on his lips.

"Yes, he's always been like that," Bernard walked over and when he was in front of them the baby threw his arms at him asking him to carry him, which Bernard did diligently. "I can count on my fingers how many times he has cried or been upset about something."

The baby began to play with Bernard's shirt lapel as he gently sucked on his pacifier. At one point Bernard looked at him and smiled at him, the baby also smiled back without letting go of the pacifier and laying his head on his shoulder. "And he's very sweet and cuddly too," Anthony said.

"Yes, he's very special," Bernard thought of his friend Nathan and the way he was, and he saw him reflected in the baby. He felt sorry again for the fact that he and Norma had never met his son. They would have been excellent parents. "How did your meeting with this Randall go?" Anthony asked, snapping him out of his thoughts.

"More o less. The guy is a cynic and he pretends to be an angel, knowing what he did."

"Well, you're still not one hundred percent sure about that."

"That's true, that's why I want to replace that killer."

"Did he already know you have the baby?"

"He pretended not to know but I told him anyway, although he pretended not to care. I told him that he and Rebecca Hicks didn't have to worry, that I'm not going to try to prove again the baby is Nathan and Norma's, you know, to protect him somehow, and to buy time in the search for the killer. In any case, they must have been assuming it, since two months have passed and I haven't tried anything. Besides, I already recognized him as my son, another reason to leave him alone."

"I think it was good that you did that, so they let their guard down a little or maybe they forget about the baby."

At that moment Thomas and Laura entered the room, greeting them. Bernard had given them a copy of the keys to the apartment so they could come and go freely, especially when they were looking after little Nathan.

"Hi, everyone!" Laura greeted with a smile, which became even broader when she saw little Nathan, who, seeing her, also threw his arms for her to carry him. "How is my little prince? You want granny to carry you, sweetie, right?" She picked up the baby and carried him out of the room, petting him along the way. Thomas walked over to Bernard and Anthony and greeted them.

"Laura can't wait to get up to start preparing her things to come," he told them in a low voice. "The baby has given her more encouragement and energy. I thank you for commissioning little Nathan, Bernard. She looks happier." Bernard put a hand on the old man's shoulder.

"There's no reason to give thanks, Thomas. Remember that she herself offered to take care of him without hesitation. I'm glad she feels better."

"By the way, how did you go with Randall?"

"Things were a bit rough, although we didn't get to argue," Bernard went over to the bedroom window, looking to the other side without noticing anything in particular. "I was telling Anthony that he wants to make himself look like a meek lamb."

"When he really is worse than the big bad wolf," said the old man. "You realize already? I never liked that guy, and on more than one occasion Mr. Nathan warned me about him."

"It's precisely because of what Nathan said about him that I have my suspicions about his involvement in his murder, and in Norma's," Bernard said.

"Why don't you go to the police and tell them that?" Thomas asked.

"I have no proof, Thomas. It's a delicate accusation and I have to have proof of it. Also, that man must have important political ties that-"

Bernard was suddenly silent, thinking.

"What do you think, son?" Anthony asked. "Why did you stay quiet?"

"Now that I think about it," Bernard said, turning to them and realizing why the family court petition had failed, "Randall may know the judge who denied our filiation petition, and that's why we didn't get anywhere." "Do you think that is possible?" Thomas asked innocently.

"When people have a certain amount of power they can do whatever they want," Anthony said, giving Bernard a knowing look, "even the police and their bosses can turn a blind eye. You know what I mean." "Now all the more reason we must replace evidence against that man," said Bernard, "because perhaps with the authorities investigating we won't get justice for Nathan and Norma. They will come to nothing." "Well, we have to put our plan in motion then," Anthony said. "Today is Friday. Monday is the day the notice is placed in the newspaper."

"What plan?" Thomas asked. "Don't exclude me from whatever you're planning; I also want justice for Mr. Hicks."

"Don't worry, Thomas, we have a plan to replace Nathan and Norma's killer, and you'll help us."

Duncan quickly responded to Louis Randall's call, surprised he was summoning him back to his office. Sitting across from him at his desk, I watched him think, visibly annoyed, without saying anything. When he told him that he hadn't authorized him to treat him on a first-name basis or treat him as his formal partner, he did not take it well, and he felt a little annoyed as well.

"What's the matter, Mr. Randall?" he asked after a while and making an effort not to call him by his name. "Why did you make me come?"

Louis looked at him for a few seconds. Hearing him call him by his surname again and being formal, he thought that perhaps he had been a little harsh with him when he claimed him for taking powers he hadn't granted him on a personal level. He considered apologizing, but maybe he would later, now the important thing was Bernard Sullivan and his threat. That had him really unsettled and upset.

"That guy threatened me!" he finally exclaimed under his breath, exasperated. He seemed to Duncan like a little boy giving gossip, and he tried to keep his cool. "Can you believe it? He threatened me!"

"How did he threaten you? What did he tell you? Does he know something?"

"He doesn't know anything! He only suspects I ordered it, and he told me if he found out that I was responsible he would send me to prison, although he also sounded like revenge. I don't know!" "And what do you plan to do?"

"I don't know, going head-on against him would be a huge risk, especially with the police snooping around."

"We already agreed once it wasn't convenient for you to do anything to him, at least for now."

"And now he has that brat! That makes things worse."

"Does he have Nathan's baby?" Duncan was somewhat surprised; Louis's suspicions were true, and it was the driver who had the son of his enemy dead. "With that child involved, the situation is a little more complicated."

"Tell me something I don't know!" Louis got up from the chair and turned his back on him, looking through the window again towards the buildings in front. He had taken that out of habit when he thought deeply about something. Duncan was also thinking about what Louis was saying to him; if it were up to him, he would go get his rifle where he had it hidden and hunt down this Bernard, all to protect Louis and rid him of his worries, whom he was realizing he loved madly, but because of his attitude he didn't dare to tell him.

"Sooner or later we'll have to eliminate him," Duncan told him quietly. "There will be no other solution."

Louis didn't notice Duncan's "we'll have", turning back to him.

"He said if he found out I was responsible he would make me pay, that means maybe he is going to try something, I don't know, maybe he's doing his own investigation. The guy was a military man, maybe he has a knack for that." "Military, not police," Duncan clarified. "I was also in the military, and although we have our skills, none of them is to make us the police or detectives."

Duncan crossed his fingers in front of him, resting his elbows on the chair; the sleeves of the shirt he was wearing rolled up a bit and Louis saw again the tattoo he had near his wrist.

"For God's sake, get that awful tattoo removed! I told you I don't like it!"

"And I told you it's the only memory I have of the only woman I loved before I became homosexual. That there was no discussion about it."

Duncan adjusted his sleeves, re-hiding the little devil tattoo he wore on his wrist. At that moment his cell phone rang.

"Who could be calling you?" Louis asked him. "It's assumed you no longer have clients and that number doesn't have anyone else."

"Only a very small group of people have it," Duncan said as he took the cell phone out of his pocket. "People I blindly trust, like you."

Somewhere in the Bronx, a Jamaican man running a small grocery store was making a call from the grocery store's phone after the two uniformed police officers had left.

"Brother, I have bad news for you," he said, once Duncan answered him on the other side, "the police are looking for you."

Duncan paled and was speechless. He looked worriedly at Louis, who took notice.

"Are you sure?"

"One thousand percent, brother," the Jamaican said. "A couple of cops showed me your photo of when you were a kid, assuming you would be bald or shaved by now. They didn't tell me why they're looking for you and I didn't want to ask either, I just said I didn't know you and had never seen you around here. I haven't seen you in a long time, brother, and we've been quiet until now, that means I should forget about this number. When you're sure, come back here and give me the new one. I wish you luck, bro, and I hope you'll be fine."

The Jamaican hung up the phone, leaving a worried and apparently exposed Duncan on the other end of the line.

"What did they tell you?" Louis asked, intrigued. "You are pale. What's the matter?"

"I have to disappear for a while," Duncan told him as he got up from his chair, "the police are looking for me."

"They are looking for you? You were supposed to be "invisible" to the police. Why are they looking for you?"

"Maybe somehow they related me to your cousin. When it's safe I'll contact you again."

Duncan went to the door and left without saying anything else, leaving Louise confused.

And besides, he left him with the feeling of being alone.