Steeling a Dream:
Part 3: House of Steele (R)
Part 3: House of Steele (R)
Steeling a Dream:
Part 3: House of Steele
Part 3: House of Steele
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Steele Holting On
Chapter Sixteen: The Setup
Monday, 29 November 1988 -- 35 weeks, 4 days
Remington paced Laura’s office as they bantered ideas back and forth for the coming week. They each
had to cram a week’s worth of work into Monday and Friday to free up the three days for their sting
operation. They’d come in together that morning and had been hard at it for nearly three hours already.
Sometimes Laura forgot exactly how much they could accomplish together when they both put forth the
effort. The reminder always put a smile on her face.
The phone buzzed. Remington leaned over to answer the intercom. “Yes, Ian?”
“There’s a gentleman who says he’s Siobhán’s solicitor on the line, a Mr. Jonathan Andrews.”
“Tell him I’ll only be a moment.”
Laura looked up. “Carlisle’s solicitor?” They’d only received a brief letter of introduction, along with
contact information, since Siobhán’s adoption had been finalized.
“Apparently.” Remington wasted no time getting back to his office to take the call. In the meantime,
Laura retrieved her messages from Ian and checked in with the other detectives to pick up case files to
review. With a stack of files in hand, she retreated to her desk to return the two calls.
Some thirty minutes later, Remington came back in, his expression a little too cool for her comfort.
“Is everything all right?”
“Ah, perhaps. It appears that Mr. Anderson has won Siobhán the right to retrieve a few personal items
from Carlisle’s house--her clothes, photographs, papers, mementos and the like.”
Laura leaned back in her chair. “Is that unusual?”
“It can be. Her solicitor seems to be rather sharp, in any case. The court will have its representative on
hand, of course, to ensure she doesn’t depart with anything unusually valuable--but Anderson leads me to
believe anything considered ‘reasonable’ for a fifteen-year-old to have will be allowed. They’ve already
inventoried the house, so I’m sure we’ll have to tread carefully.” He slipped a toothpick into his mouth
before continuing. “There’s more.”
Laura’s eyebrows flew up at his obvious discomfort. “Yes?”
“Obviously, O’Callaghan hasn’t left anything to Siobhán, knowing she wasn’t his; but apparently, Erin
has a handful of items that belong to Siobhán. Anderson’s been unraveling the details of that aspect of
inheritance as well. There won’t be any money or property from that side, but he’s located a trunk of
things that belonged to Siobhán stashed away in that bloody castle.”
Laura took a deep breath before blowing it out. “When do we need to go get these things?”
“Ah, there’s the rub. We have only the next two weeks.”
Her jaw dropped. “Now? But I can’t fly.”
Remington came over to lean against her desk. “Siobhán and I can leave Friday morning. She’ll have to
miss a few days of school, but we can be in Dublin by early Saturday morning. The representative will
meet us at Carlisle’s estate. We’ll have Saturday and Sunday to pack what she wants to keep. Monday
we’ll fly to Cork to retrieve Erin’s things. Tuesday we’ll catch a plane home.”
Uneasy about the whole situation, Laura asked, “What about the media?”
“We’ll give them the three days--Tuesday through Thursday. If we haven’t caught the bugger by Friday,
I’ll ask you to stay with Frances this weekend. I don’t want you alone, Laura. Not now.” He drew his
fingers along a lock of her hair.
She drew her brows together and picked at her nails. “But Ireland?” she said softly without looking at
him. “Are you ready for that?”
“No.” Looking up, she saw his troubled expression. “I wasn’t sure if I’d ever go back--not to Johnny’s,
not ever to Cork. Maybe not even Ashford Castle.” He shook his head.
“Perhaps--” she started, but he cut her off.
“Don’t even think about it, Laura. I’m not risking you by putting you on an airplane for twelve
hours--even if you found an airline you could bamboozle into letting you aboard. It’s going to be a short,
hard trip for both of us. I’m sure Siobhán will be exhausted by the time we get back.” He rubbed the
back of his neck, waiting for her response.
She stood, pacing and rubbing her arms to indicate her discomfort. “I don’t like it, Rei. I’d rather be
with you if you have to go.”
He came up behind her, sliding his arms around her middle. “I know. I’d rather have you with me.”
She leaned her head back against his chest. “Rei, this is the only time I’ve resented being pregnant. I
don’t like this. I need to be there for you. I need to be there for Siobhán. This won’t be easy on either
of you.”
“I know, love, but right now, I need you to take care of one child while I take care of the other,”
Remington said simply.
Laura dragged her hands through her hair before turning in his arms to look into his blue eyes. “That
was well put.” She tugged his head to hers to kiss his lips. “I can do that. Just promise me that we’ll
talk when you get back. No closing me out for my own good.”
“That I will promise.” He landed another kiss on her mouth, drawing it out with sweetness. “Now that I
have absolutely no desire to work at the moment, may I take you to lunch, Mrs. Steele?”
“I wasn’t aware you ever had the desire to work, Mr. Steele.”
“Oh, occasionally. On the odd Wednesday afternoon when there isn’t anything playing at the cinema.”
She laughed. “I’ll remember to schedule you then.”
Remington and Laura worked late that night. Remington had picked up Siobhán and brought her back to
the office after school. They stopped at a little steakhouse Laura preferred for dinner. Over dessert,
Remington told Siobhán about the phone call he’d received from her solicitor.
“Johnny hired someone to do that?” She seemed surprised and straightened in her chair.
“Mm … yes. My apologies. I thought I’d mentioned it to you.”
Siobhán shrugged and toyed with an uneaten mushroom on her plate. “I don’t remember. Do we have
to go?”
He gave a short nod. “It’s your only chance, a stór. It’s likely that a great many things of Johnny’s will
be sent to auction. If there is anything precious to you, this is your only chance to retrieve it. Besides,
there’s a trunk of your things your mother saved for you. You might not want to let that go.”
After a long silence, she asked, “When do we leave?”
“Friday morning. You’ll miss school, but Laura’s already cleared it with the principal. We’ll come back
on Tuesday.”
Siobhán threw Laura a nervous look. “Mom? What about you? I want you to go.”
Remington watched as Laura drew in an uneasy breath. “I know, sweetie, but I can’t fly this close to
having the baby,” she said. “The change in air pressure can cause problems. Da will be with you.” She
lifted her hand and stroked Siobhán’s hair, much as he often did with her. “Think of it as an adventure.
I imagine you two will breeze through the packing and have a chance to have a little fun.”
Siobhán slumped in her chair, giving her fork a little shove so that it clattered on the plate. “I don’t want
to go back.” She pushed her chair back and bolted for the front door.
Remington exchanged a quick look with Laura, acknowledging that he would be the one to talk with the
girl, before going after her.
Siobhán walked along the entryway of the restaurant, holding herself as tears tracked down her cheeks.
“Please don’t make me go, Da,” she said when she saw him.
He wrapped her up in a warm embrace, and she unfolded to cling tightly to him. When she calmed, he
asked, “What has you frightened, a stór? Surely you don’t think I’ll leave you there?”
Her breath hitched. “You promise?”
Remington took her by the shoulders. “What part of ‘you are mine’ do you not understand, Siobhán?
You are my daughter now and always. Nothing and no one will change that. I will not leave you.”
From behind him, Laura added, “If he did, I’d come get you. We could murder him together. I know of
a couple of great places to hide the body.”
Siobhán’s horrified snicker broke up her distress. “Mom!”
Laura cocked her head. “You really don’t want to go?” The girl shook her head. “Then don’t go. But
your Da will be stuck going through your things by himself. He’ll probably steal all your cookbooks and
leave every precious photograph behind.”
“Photos?”
He nodded. “I was rather hoping you would have baby pictures somewhere.” His heart ached as he
watched her struggle with the decision. As much as he half hoped she would refuse to go, he knew he
would have to fly to Ireland regardless. But confronting his own demons without Laura there gave him
the jitters. Leveling his gaze at Siobhán, he added, “I haven’t stepped foot in the house in nearly three
decades. The idea makes me a little nervous, Siobhán. I’d rather not go alone.”
“You? Nervous? You’re not afraid of anything.”
Remington said nothing to that, only met Laura’s darkened eyes as he tugged Siobhán into another tight
hug.
Late that evening, long after Siobhán should have been asleep, she wandered into the home office where
her parents sketched out an agenda for the next three days.
Da paced the small office while Mom sat at the huge desk with a notepad and pen. “You’ll be in disguise
from Tuesday afternoon until Thursday morning except for the brief meeting on Wednesday with the
museum,” her mom was saying. “What will you dress as?”
“Wouldn’t you like to know?” he quipped.
“Mr. Steele--”
Siobhán eased into the room. “Mom? Da?” They looked up, surprised, it seemed, that she was still
awake. She took a deep breath. “I’ll go to Ireland. I guess there are a few things I’d like to have.”
Only the ticking of the clock could be heard for a few seconds. “Are you all right with that?” Mom
asked.
She nodded. “I am.” It took another few moments to dig up her courage. “I don’t … I don’t really
think you guys would leave me there. It’s just that … I really like it here and … and I don’t like thinking
about what it was like before.” She hardly realized she was twisting a lock of hair until Da reached over
and tucked it behind her ear.
“We understand that Siobhán,” he said. “We won’t force you to go, but I won’t deny it will be a great
deal easier if you do.”
“I’ll go. I think I should.”
Da nodded, and Mom pushed up out of her chair to put her hands on either side of her face. “You’re
sure?” She nodded. “Good. I think you should go too. But I’ll be very glad when both of you come
home.”
Feeling better, Siobhán nodded, kissed both of her parents on the cheek, and then wandered off to bed.
7 November 2009
Chapter Seventeen: Execution
Monday, 29 November 1988 -- 35 weeks, 4 days
Remington paced Laura’s office as they bantered ideas back and forth for the coming week. They each
had to cram a week’s worth of work into Monday and Friday to free up the three days for their sting
operation. They’d come in together that morning and had been hard at it for nearly three hours already.
Sometimes Laura forgot exactly how much they could accomplish together when they both put forth the
effort. The reminder always put a smile on her face.
The phone buzzed. Remington leaned over to answer the intercom. “Yes, Ian?”
“There’s a gentleman who says he’s Siobhán’s solicitor on the line, a Mr. Jonathan Andrews.”
“Tell him I’ll only be a moment.”
Laura looked up. “Carlisle’s solicitor?” They’d only received a brief letter of introduction, along with
contact information, since Siobhán’s adoption had been finalized.
“Apparently.” Remington wasted no time getting back to his office to take the call. In the meantime,
Laura retrieved her messages from Ian and checked in with the other detectives to pick up case files to
review. With a stack of files in hand, she retreated to her desk to return the two calls.
Some thirty minutes later, Remington came back in, his expression a little too cool for her comfort.
“Is everything all right?”
“Ah, perhaps. It appears that Mr. Anderson has won Siobhán the right to retrieve a few personal items
from Carlisle’s house--her clothes, photographs, papers, mementos and the like.”
Laura leaned back in her chair. “Is that unusual?”
“It can be. Her solicitor seems to be rather sharp, in any case. The court will have its representative on
hand, of course, to ensure she doesn’t depart with anything unusually valuable--but Anderson leads me to
believe anything considered ‘reasonable’ for a fifteen-year-old to have will be allowed. They’ve already
inventoried the house, so I’m sure we’ll have to tread carefully.” He slipped a toothpick into his mouth
before continuing. “There’s more.”
Laura’s eyebrows flew up at his obvious discomfort. “Yes?”
“Obviously, O’Callaghan hasn’t left anything to Siobhán, knowing she wasn’t his; but apparently, Erin
has a handful of items that belong to Siobhán. Anderson’s been unraveling the details of that aspect of
inheritance as well. There won’t be any money or property from that side, but he’s located a trunk of
things that belonged to Siobhán stashed away in that bloody castle.”
Laura took a deep breath before blowing it out. “When do we need to go get these things?”
“Ah, there’s the rub. We have only the next two weeks.”
Her jaw dropped. “Now? But I can’t fly.”
Remington came over to lean against her desk. “Siobhán and I can leave Friday morning. She’ll have to
miss a few days of school, but we can be in Dublin by early Saturday morning. The representative will
meet us at Carlisle’s estate. We’ll have Saturday and Sunday to pack what she wants to keep. Monday
we’ll fly to Cork to retrieve Erin’s things. Tuesday we’ll catch a plane home.”
Uneasy about the whole situation, Laura asked, “What about the media?”
“We’ll give them the three days--Tuesday through Thursday. If we haven’t caught the bugger by Friday,
I’ll ask you to stay with Frances this weekend. I don’t want you alone, Laura. Not now.” He drew his
fingers along a lock of her hair.
She drew her brows together and picked at her nails. “But Ireland?” she said softly without looking at
him. “Are you ready for that?”
“No.” Looking up, she saw his troubled expression. “I wasn’t sure if I’d ever go back--not to Johnny’s,
not ever to Cork. Maybe not even Ashford Castle.” He shook his head.
“Perhaps--” she started, but he cut her off.
“Don’t even think about it, Laura. I’m not risking you by putting you on an airplane for twelve
hours--even if you found an airline you could bamboozle into letting you aboard. It’s going to be a short,
hard trip for both of us. I’m sure Siobhán will be exhausted by the time we get back.” He rubbed the
back of his neck, waiting for her response.
She stood, pacing and rubbing her arms to indicate her discomfort. “I don’t like it, Rei. I’d rather be
with you if you have to go.”
He came up behind her, sliding his arms around her middle. “I know. I’d rather have you with me.”
She leaned her head back against his chest. “Rei, this is the only time I’ve resented being pregnant. I
don’t like this. I need to be there for you. I need to be there for Siobhán. This won’t be easy on either
of you.”
“I know, love, but right now, I need you to take care of one child while I take care of the other,”
Remington said simply.
Laura dragged her hands through her hair before turning in his arms to look into his blue eyes. “That
was well put.” She tugged his head to hers to kiss his lips. “I can do that. Just promise me that we’ll
talk when you get back. No closing me out for my own good.”
“That I will promise.” He landed another kiss on her mouth, drawing it out with sweetness. “Now that I
have absolutely no desire to work at the moment, may I take you to lunch, Mrs. Steele?”
“I wasn’t aware you ever had the desire to work, Mr. Steele.”
“Oh, occasionally. On the odd Wednesday afternoon when there isn’t anything playing at the cinema.”
She laughed. “I’ll remember to schedule you then.”
Remington and Laura worked late that night. Remington had picked up Siobhán and brought her back to
the office after school. They stopped at a little steakhouse Laura preferred for dinner. Over dessert,
Remington told Siobhán about the phone call he’d received from her solicitor.
“Johnny hired someone to do that?” She seemed surprised and straightened in her chair.
“Mm … yes. My apologies. I thought I’d mentioned it to you.”
Siobhán shrugged and toyed with an uneaten mushroom on her plate. “I don’t remember. Do we have
to go?”
He gave a short nod. “It’s your only chance, a stór. It’s likely that a great many things of Johnny’s will
be sent to auction. If there is anything precious to you, this is your only chance to retrieve it. Besides,
there’s a trunk of your things your mother saved for you. You might not want to let that go.”
After a long silence, she asked, “When do we leave?”
“Friday morning. You’ll miss school, but Laura’s already cleared it with the principal. We’ll come back
on Tuesday.”
Siobhán threw Laura a nervous look. “Mom? What about you? I want you to go.”
Remington watched as Laura drew in an uneasy breath. “I know, sweetie, but I can’t fly this close to
having the baby,” she said. “The change in air pressure can cause problems. Da will be with you.” She
lifted her hand and stroked Siobhán’s hair, much as he often did with her. “Think of it as an adventure.
I imagine you two will breeze through the packing and have a chance to have a little fun.”
Siobhán slumped in her chair, giving her fork a little shove so that it clattered on the plate. “I don’t want
to go back.” She pushed her chair back and bolted for the front door.
Remington exchanged a quick look with Laura, acknowledging that he would be the one to talk with the
girl, before going after her.
Siobhán walked along the entryway of the restaurant, holding herself as tears tracked down her cheeks.
“Please don’t make me go, Da,” she said when she saw him.
He wrapped her up in a warm embrace, and she unfolded to cling tightly to him. When she calmed, he
asked, “What has you frightened, a stór? Surely you don’t think I’ll leave you there?”
Her breath hitched. “You promise?”
Remington took her by the shoulders. “What part of ‘you are mine’ do you not understand, Siobhán?
You are my daughter now and always. Nothing and no one will change that. I will not leave you.”
From behind him, Laura added, “If he did, I’d come get you. We could murder him together. I know of
a couple of great places to hide the body.”
Siobhán’s horrified snicker broke up her distress. “Mom!”
Laura cocked her head. “You really don’t want to go?” The girl shook her head. “Then don’t go. But
your Da will be stuck going through your things by himself. He’ll probably steal all your cookbooks and
leave every precious photograph behind.”
“Photos?”
He nodded. “I was rather hoping you would have baby pictures somewhere.” His heart ached as he
watched her struggle with the decision. As much as he half hoped she would refuse to go, he knew he
would have to fly to Ireland regardless. But confronting his own demons without Laura there gave him
the jitters. Leveling his gaze at Siobhán, he added, “I haven’t stepped foot in the house in nearly three
decades. The idea makes me a little nervous, Siobhán. I’d rather not go alone.”
“You? Nervous? You’re not afraid of anything.”
Remington said nothing to that, only met Laura’s darkened eyes as he tugged Siobhán into another tight
hug.
Late that evening, long after Siobhán should have been asleep, she wandered into the home office where
her parents sketched out an agenda for the next three days.
Da paced the small office while Mom sat at the huge desk with a notepad and pen. “You’ll be in disguise
from Tuesday afternoon until Thursday morning except for the brief meeting on Wednesday with the
museum,” her mom was saying. “What will you dress as?”
“Wouldn’t you like to know?” he quipped.
“Mr. Steele--”
Siobhán eased into the room. “Mom? Da?” They looked up, surprised, it seemed, that she was still
awake. She took a deep breath. “I’ll go to Ireland. I guess there are a few things I’d like to have.”
Only the ticking of the clock could be heard for a few seconds. “Are you all right with that?” Mom
asked.
She nodded. “I am.” It took another few moments to dig up her courage. “I don’t … I don’t really
think you guys would leave me there. It’s just that … I really like it here and … and I don’t like thinking
about what it was like before.” She hardly realized she was twisting a lock of hair until Da reached over
and tucked it behind her ear.
“We understand that Siobhán,” he said. “We won’t force you to go, but I won’t deny it will be a great
deal easier if you do.”
“I’ll go. I think I should.”
Da nodded, and Mom pushed up out of her chair to put her hands on either side of her face. “You’re
sure?” She nodded. “Good. I think you should go too. But I’ll be very glad when both of you come
home.”
Feeling better, Siobhán nodded, kissed both of her parents on the cheek, and then wandered off to bed.
7 November 2009
Chapter Seventeen: Execution