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Silas followed him, leaving her and Matthew in the living room.
Taking her hand, he tugged her down onto one of the two couches that stood on opposite sides of the room, facing each other.
“Diamond’s here,” came from the kitchen as Silas carried two cups, handing one to Matthew.
Alanna waited breathlessly for the knock, terrified Mrs. Bates would tell her that they would try the case in Ohio, where Elizabeth had been kidnapped, or that she was given a court date. She knew she was innocent, but proving it with so much evidence against her wasn’t a forgone conclusion.
Silas opened the door at the knock as Isaac came out of the kitchen.
Alanna stood when Diamond walked in the door, with Elizabeth walking in behind her and a deputy whom Alanna recognized at Rod MacNeil.
Deputy MacNeil closed the door.
Alanna didn’t know how to react to the unexpected sight of Elizabeth. Then Elizabeth saw her and broke into tears, running toward Alanna.
“I’m so sorry I lied,” she sobbed. “I was so afraid …”
Alanna immediately broke at seeing the woman she had loved from a young child. Reaching out to hug her, Alanna patted her back, trying to get Elizabeth to stop crying so hard. “I knew you were.”
“I should have told you that Mom contacted me when we moved to Ohio. That’s why I moved out. I didn’t want to take the chance she would hurt you.”
“It’s okay.”
“No, it’s not. Please forgive me?”
“Of course.” Alanna soothed her as she looked toward Mrs. Bates. “Does this mean …?”
Diamond nodded. “We just came from the sheriff’s office, where Elizabeth gave a statement of what really happened when she was kidnapped by Owen.”
“I told the sheriff you had nothing to do with my kidnapping, that Owen forced me to give him your realtor code for the homes you were showing.”
A buzzing sound had everyone looking around.
“Excuse the interruption.” Silas took his cell phone out of his pocket, leaving the room to head into the kitchen as he put the phone to his ear.
Alanna felt a huge weight lift off her shoulders. “You knew who Owen was when you were kidnapped?”
Elizabeth pulled out of her arms. “I’m sorry I lied when you would ask me about him. Mom threatened to never let me see you again if I did.”
“I wish you had told me. I would never have let you go back to her. I shouldn’t have, anyway.” Self-recriminations were filling her as Silas came rushing in from the kitchen.
“That was Gavin on the phone. The school bus that Fynn was on was run off the road by a speeder who didn’t see the stop sign out when Greer’s nephew was let off. The bus rolled down the mountain with the kids on board!”
Silas snatched his car keys off the table. Isaac stood up from the table, as well as Matthew.
“Matthew, you stay here with Alanna and text Jody and Jacob to leave the job they’re finishing. Isaac, you take Matthew’s truck to round up Ezra and Moses.”
Matthew tossed Isaac the truck keys, which he caught while rushing out of the dining room.
“Call as soon as you find something out,” Matthew called out to them as they left.
Deputy MacNeil’s radio started beeping. Alanna and the rest of them listened as the sheriff’s voice came through the radio, calling the deputy and Diamond to the station so the car could be used to block the traffic coming up the mountain.
“Roger. We’ll be on our way.” The deputy opened the door. “We need to leave. Mrs. Bates, Ms. Easton.”
“Of course. Alanna, I’ll motion for the charges to be dropped, and you should have that contraption off your ankle by the afternoon.”
“Thank you,” she said to their backs as Deputy MacNeil ushered them out of the house.
