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Marc got two, wishing it were later in the day and he could offer Lina that wine she’d mentioned. She’d sure as hell need it in a few minutes.
Lina settled herself on one of the settees, looking surprised when Casey sat down beside her. Given the fact that all the tub chairs were unoccupied, as was the second settee, it seemed odd that Casey would choose to station herself close beside Lina.
Casey didn’t wait for her to ask about the mother-hen action.
“We need to talk to you about something important,” she said. “It’s pretty complicated and it’s pretty overwhelming. It’s going to be tough to absorb. But I’m counting on you to be strong. And you can count on us to be right here by your side.”
Lina’s eyes widened. “Is everyone okay? No one’s sick, are they?”
“Nothing like that.” Casey sensed Marc lowering himself into the tub chair closest to her, a tangible statement of his support for Casey and for Lina. Bless Marc for always being her right hand.
“I think it best that we not be interrupted,” Casey continued, gesturing at Lina’s purse.
“Okay.” Lina pulled out her cell phone and turned it off. Her glow had dimmed and she was starting to look a little scared.
“I’m honestly not sure where to start. So I’ll just start with the most important part, the part that’s absolute, indisputable fact.” Casey drew a deep, preparatory breath. She’d never had the chance to buffer this life-altering news with Gia and Dani, who’d already made peace with it when they came to Forensic Instincts. This time she did. She wasn’t going to blow it.
“This revelation is going to be a shocker, but in some ways, it’s really a wonderful one.” Casey took Lina’s hand between hers. “You’re not an only child, Lina. You have two sisters.”
“I have… what?” Lina’s glass crashed to the floor, sending water and shards of glass everywhere.
“Two sisters. You’re identical triplets.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Lina looked as confused as she did thrown. “I’m an only child. I don’t have any siblings, much less identical sisters. I have no idea where you got your information. But it’s wrong.”
“It’s not wrong,” Casey told her gently. “It’s right. You’ve been misled.”
“By whom, my parents?” Lina shook her head adamantly. “They’d never do that to me.” She snatched her hand away from Casey’s and fumbled for her purse. It was clear she was about to bolt. “I don’t know why you’re doing this…”
“We’re telling you the truth, Lina,” Marc inserted in that calm, quiet voice that both soothed and made people believe. “We know this is hurting you, and we’re very upset about that. We’re on your side, whether or not you believe it. But what Casey just told you is hard-core fact. You have our word.”
Lina released her death grip on her purse and just stared at Marc. “I don’t understand,” she whispered. “This is impossible. I’m twenty-seven years old. How can I have sisters I never knew about? How can I be a triplet? My parents only had…” Her voice trailed off. “You’re saying that’s all a lie?”
“We don’t know where the lies begin and how comprehensive they are,” Casey replied. “Not yet. What we do know is that you and your sisters have been separated since infancy. None of you knew about the others.”
Tears glistened on Lina’s lashes, although doubt still clouded her expression. Her face was the color of snow. “How did you find this out?”
“Through DNA evidence. We’ll show the lab results to you after we’ve talked.”
“I want to see them now.”
“Okay.” Casey signaled to Marc, who reached over to the end table and picked up a thin manila folder. Opening it, he pulled out the page they’d printed before Lina arrived and handed it to her.
Lina stared at it, reading and rereading the contents. “This is just a bunch of medical terms and percentages. There are no names. How do I know I’m one of these”—she squinted at the words—“monozygotic triplets?”
“Because we submitted your DNA sample to the lab to compare to the results your two sisters just got. Again, you have our word. You’re one of the triplets.”
“My DNA sample?” Lina lowered the page to her lap. “I didn’t give you a cheek swab. You don’t have my DNA.”
“We didn’t ask you for a cheek swab because we didn’t want to upset you unnecessarily. We wanted to be one hundred percent certain of the truth before we approached you with it.” Casey was feeling sicker by the minute. “Cheeks swabs are only one way to obtain DNA. A hair follicle can also be used.”
Lina gasped. “Emma,” she managed. “When she pulled that gray hair out of my head… it was all part of your agenda?”
“It wasn’t an agenda. It was a search for the truth.”
“Why? Why?” Lina started to cry. “I was perfectly happy with my life. Why would you do this to me? You’re supposed to be my friends.”
“We are your friends.” Time to peel back another layer. “This all started with an investigation initiated by your two sisters. Whoever’s trying to keep you three apart is threatening them. Their lives could be in danger. And if that’s the case, yours could be, too.”
