I have good news and bad news for you. First, your birth certificate is indeed a fake and doesn’t come up under any Maui hospital birth records. Don’t fret, we can still look up your mother and go from there. All we need to find is a relative of hers and that will get us started. Second news is better. You missed some steps on the genealogy site. I went through them, and you have a close match, but it’s from an anonymous user. I sent them a message. No need to reply to this message, I’ll let you know when/if I hear back. —Auntie Wang
Wait. Quinn scanned the message again.
Her birth certificate was fake? What did that mean? She was adopted? She was born somewhere else?
She felt dizzy for a moment. Why had her mother disclosed one truth that would lead to so many more questions? Quinn wished her mom would’ve had the courage to come clean much earlier, when there was still time to explore what else she was hiding.
And an anonymous match? Quinn didn’t even know you could participate anonymously. Why would someone go to the trouble to register and then not want their information known?
Once again, something told her that if she could find Carmen, she could find answers. She opened Facebook and tried again to search for Carmen Crowe, this time without adding Maui. Carmen could’ve moved to the mainland too. Or another island.
Way too many Carmen Crowes popped up. Trying to find someone who looked like the same Carmen from a decades-old photo was daunting.
She might’ve married, too, dropping the name Crowe.
It was impossible to narrow it down.
Quinn felt like a failure as an investigator.
She closed her laptop, suddenly glad that she’d given the search over to Auntie Wang. Let the eager woman chase the bread crumbs for a day or so, and then just maybe they’d find something less depressing.
It would be good to keep busy today.
She slid out the door.
“Quinn,” Maria called, her head poking just out her back door. “Come join us for breakfast. Please.”
Quinn wasn’t that hungry now, but Maria wasn’t likely to take no for an answer, so she quickly crossed the small yard.
After a quick meal and some laughter that had turned sour when Alani asked her to attend Pali’s upcoming football game and he groaned with disappointment, Quinn retreated outside, her feelings hurt. She didn’t know why she should care, but she did. She reminded herself that the boy was missing his father and, on top of that, had just found out that they were losing their home.
Out the back door, the shutters were laid out and the sander plugged in, waiting. After her visit with Auntie Wang the day before, they had all worked together to finish scrubbing them, loosening and removing years of grime. With all of them working together, laughing and talking story, it hadn’t even felt like work. Quinn had felt sorry when it was done, and they all retreated inside to get ready for bed. Liam was the last to leave after taking his time to inspect every shutter multiple times, insisting that Quinn keep him company.
When he couldn’t find any more spots to complain about, he had said his goodbyes, and Quinn waved, then slipped into the guesthouse and went to bed.
But the morning was beautiful, and she decided to enjoy the quiet for a bit after breakfast, settling into the chair on her small porch.
Liam chose that moment to come from around the side of the house, a bundle of extension cords in his hands and a huge smile across his face.
“Aloha kakahiaka,” he called out. “That means good morning, in case you aren’t up on your local Hawaiian phrases.”
He winked.
The wink threw her, and she forgot what she was going to say. “Are you always so cheerful?” she finally asked, crossing her arms.
“Pretty much,” he said. “Are you always so grumpy?”
“I’m not grumpy. It’s just early.” Maybe she was grumpy, but she wasn’t admitting to anything.
He paused, his smile disappearing for a second before he recovered and put it back in place. “Fair enough. Let’s get to work,” he said. “I don’t want to get behind on this project.”
“Agreed,” Quinn said, thinking of Ethan and his threats to come over and straighten everything out.
“But”—he looked back at her after picking up the sander—“Auntie Wang called me this morning and insisted I show you some of the island. She said you’re like a lost water nymph with no idea which