no reason he needed a wife now to fill the empty hours.
The furious knock at the door with the resulting crazed bark of the dog some time later startled him out of his concentration. Yelling at Max to settle down, Daniel called for the visitor to enter. The door was never locked. He thought everyone knew that.
The man entering now knew it, too, but Daniel supposed Peter was showing an excess of politeness by not walking in on a newlywed couple. Daniel hid his amusement as his brother looked carefully around before entering. He wasn't certain which Peter feared most: walking in on a revolutionary committee or Georgina in dishabille.
Daniel set his pencil down and leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms over his chest as he looked his younger brother over. Peter didn't look like he'd slept in a week. He was still dressed in his normal immaculate suit and starched linen, but an aura of untidiness clung to him. The handkerchief in his coat pocket was crushed, the suit was slightly rumpled, and his thick, dark hair needed cutting. The boy's mind was obviously tackling a problem he hadn't solved.
"Georgina isn't here," Daniel said conversationally when Peter didn't immediately speak.
"It's you I want to talk to." Peter's voice was harsh, but a hint of uncertainty edged it. He glared at Daniel. "I want to know who you really are and what you want. And don't give me any more cock and bull about being my brother. Your grave is in the family cemetery."
Daniel chuckled. "How touching. Did I get a monument? Did I rate an angel and an inscription about being known for so short a time but loved just the same?"
Peter scowled. "Daniel Ewan Mulloney is dead. Did you really think you could walk in here and claim to be heir to Mulloney Enterprises?"
"Hell, I hadn't even intended telling anybody who I was until you pulled your little stunt. But the more I look at what Mulloney Enterprises is doing to this town, the more I think somebody with a backbone ought to step in. Can those pretty suits mean that much to you that you'll allow a family to be thrown into the streets to keep them?"
Peter leaned over the table and grabbed Daniel's shirt front. "Mulloney Enterprises is none of your business. If you know what's good for you, you'll get the hell out of town now."
Daniel grabbed his brother's wrists and applied pressure where it would hurt most. The grip on his shirt immediately slackened, and he shoved Peter away. "This is Georgina's home even if her family resorts to kidnapping to save the family business from our father's clutches." Peter's look of startlement gave Daniel some sense of satisfaction.
He plunged on. "I'm not leaving until Georgina's ready to go. After you leave here, why don't you go look for my death certificate? Then find the midwife who delivered me and ask about the baby with a crooked leg born to the mighty Mulloneys. If you can get that far, then you're ready to talk to your father's attorneys. They have the records showing the checks mailed to St. Louis for every month of my life until I came of age." Daniel rose behind the table and leaned over it. "Then do us both a favor. Go ask my mother if she knew I was alive. I'd like to know what kind of monsters created me."
Daniel caught Peter's furious swing, yanked his arm behind his back, and shoved him toward the door. The huge dog growling prevented any further attack.
Eyes glaring with fury, Peter stopped at the door before leaving. "I'll make you regret this, whoever you are. I'll not let you hurt my mother. She's suffered enough as it is."
Daniel shoved him out and released him, and Peter walked away without looking back. Daniel ran his hand through his hair as he watched him go. His mother was the one missing piece in this entire puzzle. Could the woman who had borne him really have let her first-born son be given away? Or did she even know he was alive?
So far, he hadn't had the heart to find out.
Chapter 27
Georgina entered the office that evening dragging an unwilling Janice after her.
"Janice says Egan means to evict them at the first of the month. What are we going to do about it?"
"We, my dear, are doing nothing about it. You are staying out of it entirely." Daniel stood up and stretched the knotted