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“Yes ma’am.”
Ryder walks her to the door then turns to face Graham and me.
“Dial me in. What am I missing? Something about that timeframe is significant.”
I forget Ryder wasn’t always with us during that last year. He doesn’t know everything that went down.
“I think we just found out the real reason Brooklynn told me we no longer had a future together.”
“That’s what she told you that day?” Ryder asks. “Damn. Nee told me something was up with the two of you, but she never said what. The next thing I heard was you two weren’t together any longer.”
“Yeah. That’s not the half of it,” I add.
Ryder and Graham have a silent conversation as I reach for the files that are left on the table.
“What’s up? I have a feeling something more is going on that you haven’t shared.”
In response to Graham’s statement, I nod.
“There is. If what I’ve learned is true, I have a daughter. A daughter I wasn’t told about. I have a sinking suspension as to why that was. I’m going to go to the source for that one.”
“Shit. Are you serious?” Graham runs a hand over his bald head before he snaps his fingers. He does a rhythmic snap when he has an idea, or he figures something out. “That’s why you want to see the file. You want to find out if she lied to you that day.”
“Fuck Man, that’s heavy. She lied to you about the kid. She knew she couldn’t go. Knowing Blaze, she wasn’t going anywhere if she knew her grandmother was sick,” Ryder adds.
“No way in hell would she have let you stay with her when she knew everything you ever wanted was right there,” Graham finishes.
“Yep.” I sniff then blink a few times, trying to fight the wave of emotions coursing through me. “Dammit.”
“That girl fucking loved you.”
“I fucking know, Man. Shit.”
I turn to face the wall as close my eyes. It takes me a few minutes to collect myself. The guys don’t say anything until I turn back to face them.
“You good?” Graham asks.
“One down. One to go. I need to know what the hell happened the day of the fire and in the days that followed. Brooklynn has been in dark for a reason. I need to know why.”
Ryder and Graham pull up a chair and pour through to files with me. They also make phone calls. We don’t leave Hampton until we have a clear understanding of what the hell went down a year and a half ago.
Savannah, GA May 11– Thursday afternoon
Answers. I have them. I have a lot of answers. My brain is full of them. Still, I sit alone in my house. I told Ryder and Graham I needed time to digest everything. I gave everyone the day off so it’s just me and all the answers floating around in my head. Of course, I didn’t take the time to think of what to do after I chose to go digging.
I did check on Brooklynn’s business. Met the assistant in Hampton and here in Savannah. It was good to see what she’d built. I could see how Moonbeam and Rehab Center an, Hope Foundation, and JDJ could work together. It’s good to have a new vision but I don’t know if it’s a possibility.
The previous feelings I had towards Brooklynn have flip flopped a lot over the last week. Now there’s guilt that dances beneath everything else.
I’ve tried keeping busy. Lose myself in work. Answered phone calls with short and concise responses. Didn’t work.
Now, my favorite movies are streaming on the big screen in my living room. It’s as I’m doing this that Hope joins me.
“I should’ve known you andJack Sparrowwould be hanging out,” she says.
“What do you know about my love ofPirates of the Caribbean?”
She makes this kind of snickering sound then gives me an incredulous look.
