Limited Time Offer - Kelly Jamieson Page 0,79

I know you all blamed me for the investigation I had to do. But we cleared you, Mr. Granderson. I wasn’t out to get you. I just wanted the truth.”

Dad nodded, his mouth a grim line. “I understand. That didn’t stop the neighbors from believing I had something to do with it. People I thought were friends turned their backs on me.”

Sloane’s eyes widened and her hand went to her throat. At fourteen, she’d been devastated about all the losses she’d suffered. She hadn’t even realized that was something Dad had endured. And yet…she did remember now, little things that had happened, like when her friend Olivia’s mom wouldn’t let Olivia come over to play…but then they’d moved away.

“I’m sorry you all went through that,” the detective said quietly. “We’ll keep you apprised of any new developments. Unfortunately, this probably isn’t going to give you the kind of closure you need.”

They showed the detective out, and then all returned to the kitchen. They sat silently for a long time.

“Do you want to see her, Sloane?” Dad asked.

She swallowed past the thickness in her throat. “No.”

Viv spoke up. “Maybe you should.”

Sloane’s head jerked around to look at her stepmother. “What? Really?”

Viv nodded somberly. “Maybe that would be the closure that you need. To see her face-to-face. To finally ask her why. How she could leave her children and never come back.”

Sloane’s face got tight, pressure building behind her eyes. “I don’t think I could do that.”

Viv nodded. “I understand. It’s not something you need to decide right now. This has all been a huge shock. As time goes on, you may find yourself wondering. Hurt. Or angry. I can’t even imagine.”

Sloane nodded.

Then Viv looked at Dad. “Do you want to see her, Art?”

Sloane’s breath caught. She saw the look in Viv’s eyes…the apprehension. The fear.

Viv was afraid Dad still loved Mom.

God. Sloane squeezed her eyes shut and curled her fingers into her palms. It had been so hard when Viv came into the picture, not replacing her mom as a mother, but certainly replacing her as Dad’s wife. He’d moved on. And that had been difficult to accept. But now…the idea that Viv thought Dad might still care, that he might even want to go back to Mom, made Sloane want to vomit.

“No,” Dad said immediately. He reached for Viv’s hand and looked into her eyes. “I do not ever want to see her again.” His tone was firm and clear. “I love you, Viv. I’m sorry this happened. You didn’t sign on for this.”

“It’s not your fault,” she whispered, lifting Dad’s hand to kiss it. “It’s okay. We’ll get through this.”

“Yes, we will. This changes nothing for us. Nothing that matters.”

Their love for each other was the brightest spot in this dark fucking nightmare. And at that moment, Sloane missed Levi so much it was like a physical pain shafting through her core. She needed him there, his big broad shoulder to cry on, his strong arms to hold her and his caring to soothe her.

Oh sweet loving Lord. She should never have gotten involved with him. Now she thought she needed him.

Viv ordered pizza, even though nobody was hungry. They made tearful calls to Becca and Eric. Becca wanted to be with them, so they planned that she would come home this weekend and they could all get together.

And Sloane drove back to Chicago with another couple of hours alone to think about things. She couldn’t make sense of much of it. Long ago she’d come to terms with her mother’s mental illness. She knew it could make people do things they normally wouldn’t. Her mom could have wanted to leave—what mother with three kids didn’t have days when she felt overwhelmed?—but to start a whole new life for all these years? Didn’t she care at all about the lives she’d brought into the world?

Viv was right. Sloane was pissed. Pissed way the fuck off.

She walked into her condo, dropped her purse and headed out the back door into her courtyard. She swallowed hard as she took in all the beautiful plants and flowers she’d nurtured and tended, thinking this was some kind of spiritual connection with her mother. Even in the dark they were lovely, the big white hydrangeas glowing in the moonlight, the shrubs all textured shadows.

She stomped over to a fountain of lilies, grabbed hold near the base with both hands and ripped it out of the ground. Dirt hit her in the face and she

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