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Here. Where four of his daughters were, his mother, and his brother's family.
No. Arthur knew. This was going to end badly.
He was going to get his daughter out of the way. All of them.
All he had ever wanted was for his girls and Geena to be safe. That was all he hadevertruly wanted.
He killed the engine to the truck. “Call the police, Geena. I hope it'll be enough. We need to get Devaney back. And find Dylan and the other two.”
“He has my baby. And my girls. My girls are inside here. No. No he won’t. Not my girls.”
And then his wife did the last thing he ever would have expected her to do.
She opened the truck door and hopped out. Almost ran, faster than he would have ever thought she could.
And followed the man who had almost killed her twenty-three years ago inside.
Inside the inn where most of Arthur's family waited.
57
Sean was aboutto hit the dining room of the inn for dinner when his phone rang. It was his boys, and they were upset. They were struggling, especially his eldest, to get along with their mother's new husband. Sean thought the man was too rigid in his ways—he was a great deal older than Sean's ex—and wasn't a good fit for his boys. He'd been intending to address that with his ex when he returned home.
He did not want his boys growing up in an isolated, rigid environment like this man was trying to establish. The man was far too harsh when he punished the boys, as well.
But how to fix it, Sean hadn't figured out just yet. But he would. Those boys were his life, after all.
The dining room was only open a few hours on Tuesday nights, he had learned. After what had happened with Dusty, everything was subdued around the inn, as well. Part of that could be that it was early in the week and the inn only had a few rooms occupied. But Sean felt it was more than that.
Dusty and her sisters had less vibrant expressions on their faces now.
But she was apparently recovering from her ordeal quite well. The few times he had seen her since she had been brought home from the hospital, she had had that man with her.
Ben. His name was Ben. He was Bruce Tyler’s nephew.
Sean had had a colleague of his run the young man through the system. He'd been impressed by what was found. Ben had had an exemplary record with the army, then an honorable discharge. He'd built a career writing mystery novels—novels Sean had read and enjoyed a great deal in his free time in various hotel rooms—and Ben was stable and responsible. It was also obvious that he cared about Dusty a great deal. A great deal.
Fred and LaDonna could do far worse for a son-in-law, if that became an eventuality. Sean had spent the last day learning everything he could about the Browns'—aka Talleys'—older daughters, and he was happy to see that they had thrived with their family in Masterson County.
That was all he had truly wanted to learn.
Now, though, he had been ordered to stay there. To find out what was going on with Morris Preston and the men who had worked for him—before giving the all clear for the Browns to return to Masterson County.
But Sean could say with all honesty, that the Brownsshouldbe able to return to their previous lives. Not many in the program could ever say that. It would be a good ending for LaDonna's case. One that gave Sean a proud feeling to be a part of.
But it would take time, and there would have to be somethingdoneabout what Fred and LaDonna had done to their daughter Dusty, first. Sean would honestly have let Fred face the consequences on his own, but LaDonna had been involved.
And she deserved better.
The heavy doors to the inn pushed open.
Two people came in. An older man, around his own age.
And a young beautiful woman. For a moment, Sean thought it was Fred's niece Meyra. Then he looked closer.
And realized...
Devaney.
