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“And their uncle,” I added.
Her face tightened. “Yes, especially him.”
I nodded toward the other photo on the fridge. “What about your other child?”
“Anonymous sperm donor,” she said. “Once I had a child, I figured I might as well give her a sibling. I thought it might compensate for the single-parent household.”
“Do they get along?”
She smiled. “Yeah, they do. Michael is Wendy’s biggest cheerleader.”
“Sounds to me like you’ve created bonds of love that can’t be broken,” I said. “I wouldn’t worry about losing your daughter to the miracles of the fae realm.”
She wiped away a tear. “Thank you. Hearing it from someone else helps a lot.”
A single word lodged itself in my brain. “Did you say her name is Wendy?”
“Yes.”
My gaze returned to the photograph on the fridge. My pulse sped up as I recalled the sprightly young woman who’d captured the likenesses of Anna’s attackers.
“Does she work as a sketch artist for the police?”
Sarah’s smile radiated maternal pride. “She does. She’s extremely talented.”
“Another artist,” I said. “The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.”
“Right? You’d think creativity would be nature, not nurture.”
“The fae are an artistic bunch,” I said. “It’s possible your family has traces of fae blood, you know. Fairhaven has been integrating supernaturals into its community since its inception. It isn’t unreasonable to suggest that one of your great-grandparents was a fairy.” That could explain their impressive family pedigree.
Sarah examined her hands. “Wouldn’t that be something? Fairy blood in my veins, too.” She laughed. “Who knows? Maybe I’ll live to be over a hundred.”
Her comment triggered another memory that I debated whether to share. In the end, I decided it was best to tell Sarah and let her choose her response.
“You should know that your brother is sick,” I said. “He has months to live.” Unless he was able to extend his life by other means, of course, but I omitted that part.
She met my gaze. “Sick?”
“Cancer.”
“Am I supposed to feel something?”
“No, just thought you’d want to know.”
She grunted. “I can only imagine the experiments he’s running right now in the hope of outsmarting the inevitable. I’m glad he never got his hands on Wendy. I shudder to think the experiments he would’ve conducted on an innocent child.”
It seemed Sarah knew her brother better than I thought.
“Would you mind if I was the one who broke the news to Wendy? It seems wrong to hear the truth from strangers, even if one is her brother.”
I gave her my phone number. “Call me when you’re ready, and I’ll drive Sian over. Just to be clear, he won’t try to take her against her will. The decision is entirely hers.”
“I appreciate you saying that. From everything you’ve said, he seems like a good guy. I’m sorry he might be ill.”
I took a moment to let that reality settle in. “Yeah, me too.”
CHAPTER 18
