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Tris was drowning in work, but he was seeing the rewards too. He’d hired Cara and another guy from our class, Jude, to help with preparation of the podcast for production and a team of media students to look after editing. He’d delayed the launch to help build media attention for it, and allowing the anticipation to build was his best move yet.
I couldn’t believe that the time had finally come for the first season to drop. Ten episodes of the life and lies of Rosa Weatherall were locked in to go to air—one each week from now until the beginning of May. Season two—the truths we discovered—would run from mid-June.
Tarnished Crown was going to turn Tris into a rockstar, and his proteges—Cara and Jude—were already fielding job offers. No one but us knew Tris had signed movie rights for an Amazon exclusive movie and that Cara and Flynn were helping with the screenplay.
“I wonder where Cara is,” I mused, pulling my phone from the back pocket of my jean shorts to call her. I wasn’t used to wearing clothes at home, but the pockets did come in handy.
“Right here,” Cara said as she dropped her beach bag on the cabana with a weighted sigh.
Her smile was strained, but she still looked adorable wearing a floaty-looking floral dress, broad-brimmed hat, and Chucks.
“Hi. Sorry I’m late,” Cara apologized as she came over to hug me, holding on to me extra tight for a moment.
“Better late than never,” Dad murmured quietly, a reverence in his voice I hadn’t heard before. He was staring at Cara wide-eyed, his mouth open and the pulse point on his throat going wild. He slicked his bottom lip with his tongue, wiped his hand on his shorts, and held it out to her. “Monroe Stevens. I don’t believe I’ve had the pleasure of meeting you before.”
“Cara Delaware,” she breathed, a flush staining her cheeks and a nervous giggle erupting from her. She slotted her hand in Dad’s, and they shook, holding on to each other for a fraction longer than necessary. Their gazes held.
Ez slipped in behind me and wrapped his arm around my waist. I relaxed back against him, and he murmured, “Maybe today is the beginning of something else apart from the podcast.”
“I hope so,” I breathed. Dad deserved to find the happiness I’d discovered and experience what true love was like. He’d lost so much, and if I could dream of anything, it would be that Dad found his great love.
*****
“What’s this, Zali?” Dad asked, picking up the gift box I’d placed next to him. We were still outside, the sun having long since set, a quiet descending on the estate. The moon reflected off the water, and stars glittered across the sky. Ry had lit the firepit, and we were gathered around it, toasting marshmallows. Strings of fairy lights hung from the branches of the massive Moreton Bay fig that towered over us.
I swallowed. This was it. I wasn’t sure what his reaction would be, but I’d soon find out.
“Open it, Dad,” I said, sitting down beside him.
He lifted the lid and sucked in a sharp breath. It was the last photograph we think had ever been taken of Asher. Martha’s wife had snapped it only a couple of weeks before she’d died. Ash was sitting on the sand, looking out over the ocean, sketchbook in his lap. The sun was high in the sky on a bright blue day with a perfect ocean in front of him. I could only see his profile, but the longing in his gaze was obvious even from a distance.
He’d changed so much in the months after that bitch had taken him. He looked older, more mature. His shoulders had started to fill out, and his legs were even longer. We could only see the toes of his prosthetic foot, but I’d been overcome with relief when I’d seen it. The thought that Rosa could have been lying about giving him one had crossed my mind, and, for once, I was glad to have been proven wrong.
But it was the hunch in his shoulders that broke my heart, the sadness that hung over him like a spectre that haunted me.
When Martha had emailed the photo to me a few weeks ago, I’d stared at it for a long time, not knowing whether to delete the email so we’d never see it again, or to print it.
“I…. Thank you,” Dad whispered, tears in his eyes. He sniffed and wiped his face with the back of his hand before letting out a huff of breath.
“You all brought him back to me. You gave me a chance to say a proper goodbye to my baby. You found his killer. Now you’ve given me this too.” With the frame still in his hand, he hugged me tight to him, holding on to me like a lifeline. “I love you, Zali,” he whispered. “Thank you.”
I pulled back and opened my mouth to respond, but he shook his head. “I know you’re protecting me from something, and that woman was a coward.” He paused for a moment and added, “Put it this way, if she didn’t kill herself when you confronted her, I’d be okay with that. So, thank you for righting the wrongs she committed.”
I was speechless. I had no idea what to say to that or even if I should say anything. I looked at Ez, Tris, and Flynn standing on one side of Dad, but their carefully blank faces spoke volumes—it was my decision. When I turned to Ry, his face was set in a hard glare, hatred burning from him. He lifted his chin and nodded slightly, squaring his shoulders and sitting straighter. Dad noticed the subtle movements and smiled, satisfaction lighting him up.
When we pulled apart, Dad added to the group, “The first episode is about to hit. I'm here if any of you ever need to talk, and I acquired a punching bag that’s quite therapeutic.” His knuckles were showing it too. It didn’t matter that he had boxing gloves—he preferred hitting it bare.
Dad looked at the photo again and sighed. “I'd give anything for us to have one more moment with him, but I'm so grateful for the memories. I took them for granted until I couldn't make any more. Now they're all I have. I want to cherish even the smallest things. Moments with all of you are my favourite.”
He reached for Ezra, who was sitting on the log next to him, and squeezed his shoulder, still hugging me close. “I’m sorry for the way I reacted when you two told me you were together. I said some awful things, and I didn’t understand how you could possibly love more than one person. But I see it with all of you. It’s obvious just how much you love one another. I’m so happy that you have that love in your life.”
Dad was right. We would do anything for one another.
They were it for me.
My great love story.
My family.
