time I got my bearings back, you were long gone.” He paused and waited for me to meet his eyes before he said, “I left your room with every intention of seeing you again.”
My mouth dropped open in shock, and my heart hurt for the little girl who would grow up without her mother. Regardless of how I felt about her father—and her uncle—that was a pain no child should have to experience. “I’m so sorry to hear about her mother.”
“Serious as shit, Sloane. I’m tired, and I’m fucking pissed. We’re not going to get anywhere if we’re not honest. It’s beyond clear to me that there’s been a massive misunderstanding between us. So, stop pretending to be surprised and spare me the fake condolences.”
Dropping my feet to the floor, it was my turn to lean in close. “How dare you? That wasn’t fake! I know what it’s like to not have a mom!”
“Enough!” he roared and got to his feet with his hands balled into fists by his side. “Tell me why the fuck you’re doing this or get the hell out!”
“I’m not doing anything!” I yelled back.
“Really? Remind me again. Why were you in Devil Springs?”
“I was looking for Heidi and Paige Coleman,” I swallowed thickly. “Because I had reason to believe one of them was my biological half sister.”
“Then you know what happened!”
“No, I don’t! I only know what happened to Paige. All of Heidi’s information was blacked out or removed from the police reports.” I dropped back into the chair, feeling deflated and defeated. “I just want to know what happened to make my sister commit suicide!”
His face paled while he took a stumbling step back. Catching himself on the bed, he sat down and dropped his head into his hands. “You think Paige is your sister?”
“I know she is,” I countered.
I braced for the argument I knew was coming. However, he surprised me with words I never expected to hear. “That’s not possible.”
“What do you mean ‘That’s not possible.’ Why not?”
“Because Paige’s parents are Walter Coleman and Phyllis Banner.”
“You said Phyllis was dead,” I pointed out.
“I thought she was,” he said simply.
“Bullshit.”
He shrugged. “Paige said her mother was dead. I had no reason to think otherwise until recently but believe whatever you want.”
“Whatever. That part doesn’t matter. Paige Coleman is my half sister, and I have a DNA test that proves she is. Phyllis could’ve had an affair and secretly gotten pregnant by my father. Alternatively, Walter could’ve known he wasn’t the biological father and adopted Paige. I’m sure there are plenty of other possible explanations,” I countered.
“Touché. Walter did adopt Heidi, so I guess it’s possible he adopted Paige as well,” he explained, effectively deflating my moment of pride by agreeing with me.
“What?” I asked in surprise.
“Walter married Adelaide after he and Phyllis divorced. Paige moved in with him, Adelaide, and Adelaide’s daughter, Heidi. I don’t know when or why, but Heidi herself told me Walter officially adopted her after he married her mom, which is why she changed her last name to Coleman.”
“What was her last name before?” I asked out of sheer curiosity.
“I don’t know. She never told me, and I never asked.”
I was in it to win it, and no matter how much it hurt to do it, I asked the question I desperately wanted answered. “Why did she do it?”
Bronze’s shoulders dropped, and he looked to the floor as he inhaled deeply. “I haven’t had to retell this story since the first few days of my daughter’s life,” he said and cleared his throat. “Pay attention, because I’m only telling it one time, and for fuck’s sake, let me get through it before you hit me with fifty questions.”
I sat up attentively and mimed zipping my lips. I could keep my mouth shut long enough to hear what he had to say—I hoped.
“Some of this I knew beforehand, and some of it I learned after their deaths; but, I’m going to tell it to you how it happened so it makes more sense,” he explained. “Paige and Heidi were stepsisters first, then sisters by adoption, and ultimately a couple. Everyone assumed they were married because they had the same last name, which is what they’d hoped would happen. I knew a little more than others because of the relationship I had with them. Paige had a long history of mental health issues. Occasionally, she would stop taking her medications, and Heidi would get her back on track. That’s how this