The General holstered his weapon. “Let’s see your evidence.”
Aldo walked over to a computer console and with a few keystrokes Jia’s files popped up. “DNA never lies.”
The General scanned the files, then quickly checked something on his bracelet. “The DNA matches. She’s Derek’s daughter all right.”
“Damn, how did that happen?” Jake asked.
I snickered. “The usual way. Insert tab A into slot B.”
“Is that how it works?” Jake brushed his lips over mine. “Maybe we could do a little show and tell later.”
“Children,” Father scolded.
Jake winked at me. “Sorry, sir.”
“Do you know where Jia’s mom is?” Inquiring minds wanted to know.
“Her mother was killed in a car accident when Jia was a year old. No family came for her and she was placed in an orphanage,” Aldo said.
“Isn’t that unusual?”
Aldo nodded. “It was. I investigated further and found all of Jia’s mother’s family had been killed in an avalanche.”
“If Uncle Derek knew Jia was his child, he would have come for her,” Jake stated.
I frowned. “Would he?”
“Without a doubt. Derek was touring Europe around the time Jia was conceived. Maybe the condom broke, or they had an argument. We won’t know until we talk to him,” General Jones said.
Hmm. It was also possible a drunk and horny Derek had a one-night stand and Jia’s mother had no way of contacting him when she found out she was pregnant. A sudden thought hit me. “Could Adam be Jia’s son?”
“They are not a genetic match. According to Giovanni’s investigator, Adam is a street kid she adopted,” Aldo advised.
General Jones checked his bracelet. “I want to tell Derek in person about his daughter and I’ve asked him to meet us at the villa.”
And I had a cousin who I really wanted to meet too. “Why don’t you have Ethan and Kizzy come with him.”
“An excellent idea,” the General agreed.
Jake prodded me. “Invite Aldo to the villa. You have a lot to talk about.”
We did. I looked at Father and he nodded. “Please come to the villa, Aldo, I’d like to get to know you.”
Aldo gave a slight bow. “I would be honored.”
Three hours later, we were having dinner at Giulia and they did have the best risotto in Rome. Surprisingly, Aldo and Father got along. The General was quite fascinated by Aldo’s ivory cane. It contained a super-duper spy camera equipped with a scanner that would pick up the frequency range of the museum’s security system. It also had an electromagnetic pulse feature that fried all electronic devices. With one press of a button, the alarm systems, cameras, lights, and communication devices would be put out of commission, permanently.
“I can’t wait to see how Uncle Derek handles being a father,” Jake commented.
“Didn’t he run all the police departments in Arizona?”
“He did.”
“His daughter’s a master thief and God knows what else. It’ll make for an interesting relationship if we ever find her.”
“Jia has the best hunters in the galaxy after her. It’s only a matter of time, before they locate her,” Jake drawled.
“Jia’s a Jones and she won’t come quietly,” the General added.
“And a Dragos. A deadly combination.” I held up my wine glass. “To family.”
Everyone one raised their glasses. “To family.”
The end or is it?
Jia’s and Trayon’s story is coming this winter.
I hope you enjoyed this book. A review is greatly appreciated. For news on the Coletti Warlords and Shenanigans series, upcoming events and contests go to my Facebook page:
facebook.com/Colettiwarlordbooks
Books in the Coletti Warlord series
Vexing Voss
Reality Bites
Just Desserts
Wulf and the Bounty Hunter
Game on Askole
Crossing Quinn
Hothar’s Folly
Sassing Saul
Defying the Relic Hunter
Arresting the Warlord
Paranormal romances:
Catching Dragos
Shenanigans
The Trouble with Tigers
Gail Koger links:
goodreads.com/author/show/1598719.Gail_Koger
Twitter: @Askole
facebook.com/Colettiwarlordbooks
GailKoger.com
