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“Jason doesn’t live here anymore?” Cadence asked. When she was Parker’s lady, he and his brother had been practically joined at the hip. Jason had lived with Parker the whole time Cadence had been dating him. Although she knew it was a blessing that Jason would be providing his PI services in the search for Logan, she felt a bit panicky at the idea of coming face-to-face with him after all these years.
She didn’t even want to imagine the look on Jason’s face when he walked into his brother’s house and saw her. It would be a shock, she imagined, since Parker hadn’t divulged a single thing over the phone.
“No, he moved out over a year ago after he got his own place. I didn’t want him to go, but he felt it was time.”
“And how is he? Good?” Cadence asked, trying to fill up the awkwardness with conversation.
Parker’s jaw hardened. “I’m not in the mood for small talk. I want answers. The sooner the better.”
There was no mistaking the edge to Parker’s voice. He seemed to be mere seconds away from snapping under the pressure. Cadence knew the feeling. She felt the same way.
She bit her lip. Parker’s irritation with her served as a reminder that nothing was the same as it used to be between them. She was the woman who’d abruptly dumped him and broken his heart. Cadence had given Parker the impression that there had been another man in the picture, which couldn’t have been further from the truth. She’d lied to him over and over again. And now it was time to tell the truth and pray Parker would believe her.
“There’s nothing greater in this world than knowing you brought a life into this world. It gives new meaning to living.”
Penelope Donahue
Chapter Three
Cadence fiddled with her necklace. She didn’t know where to start. The truth was a perilous road to navigate at times, but it was the only way at this point. Keeping secrets had done nothing but bring her endless pain and guilt. And she had lost Parker in the process. Logan was missing! There was no use crying over spilt milk. In her heart, she could honestly say that the things she’d done had been for a greater good.
In hindsight, Cadence realized she’d had other choices, other avenues to travel down. But she’d been so frightened. So paralyzed with dread. Fear had been such a powerful force back then. Mason had made her believe in no uncertain terms that he was fully capable of harming Parker and her parents.
God, please help me find the right words.
“This all started three years ago…a few months before I broke things off with you.” She ducked her head down and focused on her cross necklace, the one her parents had given her for her sixteenth birthday. It was one of her most precious possessions. In her worst times of strife, Cadence garnered strength from it. She needed it more than ever at this moment.
“I first met Mason because he had business dealings with my father. It was when we first started dating. My father had him over to the house for dinner one night and he seemed like a charming older man who was very savvy in his business dealings. Daddy was very impressed with him, so I assumed he was someone worthy of admiration. Later on that week he called me on my cell phone. I had no idea how he got my number, but he made it clear he liked me romantically. To be honest, I was stunned. He was more than twice my age and a friend of my father’s. I told him in no uncertain terms I was committed to you. He sto
pped contacting me for several months, then he began reaching out to me again.” She shivered. “He started sending me roses and gifts. A diamond brooch. Concert tickets. I rejected every gesture, every invitation. But it just seemed to get worse. He knew where I’d been and the places you and I went on dates.”
“And you never told me any of this?” Parker asked, his tone infused with anger.
“No, I didn’t. I wanted to handle it by myself instead of involving you. And, to be honest, I wasn’t sure if you would fly off the handle and confront him.” She locked gazes with Parker. “I couldn’t run the risk of alienating Mason since my father was counting on working with him so he could salvage his business. As you know, my father ended up losing nearly everything, and it was a chance for him to recoup some of his standing in the business community by working with Mason. Clearly, I made a huge miscalculation. He continued to stalk me.
“Instead of things getting better, they got worse. He began showing up places where he knew I would be. And calling me at strange hours. I was frightened, Parker. When I told him to knock it off and that I was happily involved with you, he made his first threat.”
“What threat?” he asked, his brows furrowed in confusion.
“To send my father to prison.”
Parker frowned. “Prison? For what?”
She bit her lip. She’d never breathed a word of this to anyone. “Embezzlement. He was in possession of information that could send my father to jail for the rest of his life. I couldn’t run the risk of it. And he was making other threats against you as well, Parker.”
He visibly bristled. “What kind of threats?” he pressed.
“To kill you.” She said it as plainly as possible. There was no way to sugarcoat it. Parker wasn’t the type of person who responded to prettying things up. It wasn’t even possible in this situation, she realized. The truth was ugly and brutal and shocking.
Parker let out an explosive sound. “Sorry, Cadence, but this sounds ridiculous. Are you saying he forced you to break things off with me? And to marry him?” His voice rang out with disbelief.
“I never loved my husband, Parker. I married him because of the threats he made against you and my parents. He knew from the very beginning of our marriage that I was pregnant with your child and he said he didn’t care. He would tell me over and over again how much he wanted me, how no one could get between us. I realize now I was his obsession.”
Cadence studied Parker’s expression. She could tell he was skeptical about her story. Her heart sank. She’d waited too long to tell Parker the truth, and now he was doubting her.
“Cadence, this makes no sense. Sure, Mason Price is a powerful, wealthy man, but what made you think he was actually capable of murder?”
“Keith Barstow.”
