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Eighteen?
The pieces are falling into place. "This is all about the money my father left me?" I stare at her incredulously. She dumped me and went off the grid to wait her time for...money?
"What else would it be about?"
Unable to stop myself, the little girl in me speaks. "Me?"
My mother chuckles as if I’ve said the most ridiculous thing. "Oh, my dear Lilly, I never wanted children. Yet, fate had different plans for me." Her tone is sugary sweet, and goosebumps appear on my arms. "That's why I chose Henry; he told me on our second date that he was infertile. He was perfect. I would never have to go through that again. He was my ticket out of the life I grew up in."
Again? But she doesn’t give me an opportunity to speak.
"We got married and moved to San Diego to be closer to my childhood friend. Life was normal for the first time. Then, I went to visit Heather at a conference and met Brooks. I didn't see him coming." Her eyes become vacant for a second before they harden again. "He made me feel."
Behind Emily, Gray shifts, and his expression becomes unreadable. I narrow my eyes at the man. She said something that made him react.
Oblivious to the change in her...partner? Accomplice? Whatever he is to her, she continues, "When I found out I was pregnant, I even considered keeping it. But then he told me he went back to his wife. He wanted to make it work with her for his children's sake." She sneers the last words, and I fight the urge to press closer against the barrier behind me.
Her face contorts. "I WAS CARRYING HIS DAMN CHILD!"
I jump at the outburst and fight the urge to wrap my arms around my midsection. Holy hell.
Emily stands up in a jerked motion and starts pacing. I trail her every move while keeping Gray in my peripheral vision. I cannot let my guard down with them.
"But nooo, that wasn't good enough. I wasn't a rich, stuck-up bitch. He would've lost everything if he had left Payton." She suddenly spins and gets in my face. "I had to bide my time. And if he wouldn't come to me willingly, I would at least get what I deserved another way. So...I kept you."
I press the back of my head against the concrete wall. "What you deserved?" I whisper with raised eyebrows.
But she ignores my question. "He wanted you. Did you know that? He wanted to raise you. The red-headed bitch would've taken you in as her own." The smugness in her tone makes the hair on my nape stand. "We couldn't have that now, could we?"
Good Lord, this woman is crazy.
"It was all fine, as long as he was paying his child support, but—"
My snort interrupts her, and her eyes snap to mine. Shit. I didn't mean to do that but can't take it back now. Thankfully, the anger that has slowly been building the more she rants gives my voice the backbone I need. "Child support? Are you kidding me? Twenty-five K a month is not child support. You blackmailed him!" Another puzzle piece is in its place.
Her sudden stiff posture tells me that she didn’t expect me to know that fact.
My mother composes herself and moves on without acknowledging my statement. "He should've just kept sending the money, and everything would've been fine."
My muscles tense. I don’t like where she is going.
"When Gray and Mara were in town one weekend, and Gray noticed someone following me, it was time to show your dear father what it meant to ignore my instructions. I didn't crawl my way out of the life I was born into to be made a joke out of."
I stop listening after Gray and Mara.
Who the hell is Mara?
"So Gray and I came up with a plan." She stops talking, which brings my attention back to Emily. She’s standing in the middle of the room, hands on her hips, and looking at me expectantly. She’s waiting.
Replaying what she has said so far and—oh, no. Please no! I cover my mouth with my hands, whispering, "You killed Payton?"
Her face lights up, and she puts her palm against her chest like she is proud of my deductive skills. "Well, not me, personally. I just gave Brooks the nudge to set things in motion."
Set things in motion. What—? I can feel the crease between my eyebrows grow deeper.
"We made Gray disappear. A dead man could not be prosecuted." She sounds almost chipper.
My eyes flick between the two people in front of me, swallowing several times. I let my gaze rest on Gray, who still hasn't moved. One foot propped against the wall, his arms are crossed over his broad chest. He'd appear bored if it weren't for him clenching his jaw.
