He's My Husband

Thirty One

"Calm down Em. You need to keep your cool if you want me to go with you"

"Listen to your friend honey. You need to calm down" Max placed his hand on her shoulder to comfort her but she shrugged it off. It wasn't the fact that she didn't want his comfort but how she looked at him that told him this was going to be a long and hard fight.

He could already see the regret in her eyes. He knew her too well to know what she was thinking. That coming back to him had been a mistake. It made his heart break further to know that she didn't even have to say it out loud. He understood her that much. They loved each other but when things got rough, they somehow found themselves on opposite directions. He wasn't in any way trying to defend Lisandra. But for Emilia to just decide she was the culprit because they didn't like each other was wrong.

His father had taught him to be a just and fair man. Pointing fingers at someone without evidence, he knew first hand how that could destroy a person's life. He'd made the mistake of accusing one of his employees without evidence and he'd paid the price for it. All he wanted was for Emilia to understand that actions had consequences. One wrong move could cost another innocent person their life. But even though he was standing right beside her, there was a distance between them. Let alone giving her an explanation, she wasn't even willing to listen to him.

It made him wonder how much their relationship could withstand before breaking completely. During these hard times, could she let herself lean on him? Or was she going to distance herself further? She hadn't even bothered to ask how Gwen was. He knew that they hadn't liked each other at the beginning but they had been getting along lately. The least she could do was ask if his sister was okay.

"Can we talk" Thea asked pulling him aside.

"What is it?"

"Em is angry so don't hold it against her. All these years, Zander is the only person who kept her going. He's basically her world. I hope you understand why she's acting that way"

"I know and I'm not holding anything against her. I just wish she would let me be by her side"

"She'll come around. The reason I wanted to talk to you was because we know who took Zander"

He straightened up "You do? Have you told the police yet?"

She snorted "I am the police"

"Who was it?"

"The people you refused to work with. Actually it was my idea to break off the deal with the shipping company. Take this as Emilia's love for you. We investigated every deal you made just to make sure you didn't fall into the wrong hands. Em always said that she was protecting Zander's inheritance but I think it was because she didn't want you to do business with criminals" she said and any other day, Max would have had a reaction. Not today though. He couldn't care less what they did or didn't do. He just wanted his son back.

"I don't understand you"

"The shipping company belongs to the Petrovs. It wasn't easy finding that connection but we did which was why we stopped you. Since he wants payback for not keeping your word, he took Zander. Although I think he's safe because Petrov promised not to hurt him"

"So you're telling me that some Russian guy kidnapped Zander?"

She shushed him "Keep it down. I don't want anyone else to find out. I trust that TC will handle this matter"

"What can he do? He's just a bodyguard. This is my son's life we're talking about here. If need be I will call out favors and bring in Swat"

"And here I was commending you on being calm. If you want to see Zander again you'll keep your mouth shut. And TC is an undercover agent that's been working on the Petrov's case for longer than anyone. He knows how they work. He's the only one who can bring him back safe"