“Your father saw me that night,” I continue. “As soon as he spotted me, I ran back to the cabin. I packed a bag, but he caught up with me. He threatened me. He paid me off, but it’s not like I had any other choice. I could either walk out of town with enough money to start over some place far away or I could die, because I was a witness to Stephan’s murder.”
“God…”
“I’m not proud of how I reacted that night, or how I failed to react. I was scared out of my mind. I was just a kid. I spent years chastising myself over it, punishing myself, keeping my distance. And you know what, Margot? I wasn’t even aware that I was pregnant at the time. It wasn’t until I got to Portland that I figured that out, but the damage was already done. I’d lost everything. My brother. The man I loved. My life here…all I had was Matty.
“And now your father expects me to leave him behind, too,” I say, tears flowing freely.
“What proof do you have of what happened that night?” Margot calmly replies.
“A simple independent autopsy on Stephan’s body would tell you everything you need to know, even now,” I say. “I’ll sign off on an exhumation order, if needed. I’m sure a good cop will know what to look for in the evidence box, too. Your father’s got the sheriff in his pocket. They ruled Stephan’s death as inconclusive, a possible accident or suicide, but they insisted that there was no foul play. I know what I saw,Margot. Stephan was already dead when your father and Emmanuel shoved him back in his car.”
“I think I’m going to be sick,” she mumbles and looks away.
“What happened to Emmanuel? Where do you think he vanished to? That is,ifhe vanished.”
Might as well go for the whole nine yards and plant another seed of doubt. Knowing Bill, I may not be too far from the truth, anyway.
“Or did Bill dispose of him, too? Maybe Emmanuel threatened to expose him. How was their relationship before he disappeared?”
“I can’t listen to this anymore.” Margot steps back.
I can’t let her escape reality again. I have to get a message out to Carter, at least, so I grab her by the wrists. “Please, Margot. I beg you. Don’t let your father do this again. Don’t let him get away with any of it. Matty ismyson. He’s my baby, my child. Please, just tell Carter where I am. He’ll find us. He’ll help us.”
“No, I can’t get involved,” she gasps and yanks herself free from my grip. “You stay away from me. This can’t be real; this can’t be happening.”
“It is real. It is happening. Please, Margot, just tell Carter?—”
“Shut up!”
Margot runs back into the house, the frantic echoes of her heels lingering in her wake as I stand on the terrace, my knees shaking, wondering if I managed to get through to her for once.
I know she loved my brother deeply. She once said that he was the only man she ever truly loved. Maybe that still means something. Or maybe it doesn’t.
I look around. Laura is watching us from the other side of the garden, her eyes narrowing with suspicion, one hand resting on the holstered weapon on her belt. I turn away from her and go back to the bench, struggling to keep my composure in front of my son.
Matty gives me a worried look. “Why are you crying, Momma?”
“I just miss your dad, baby, that’s all.”
“You promise?”
“Yes,” I reply with a soft smile. “Oh, that’s a really cool sandcastle, Matty. What else are you putting on it?”
He thinks about it for a moment, then picks out a couple more plastic molds from his beach toy bucket. “Animals! I’m gonna put animals all around it to keep the princess safe, Momma. And you, too.”
“My sweet, sweet boy,” I sigh and give him a playful wink. “I’m always safe with you, little man.”
“I have dolphins and octo…octo…what is this?”
Matty holds up one of the molds.
I laugh. “Octopus. That’s an octopus.”
It takes a little while, but Matty manages to pronounce it before showing me another animal. “And I’ve got stars, too!”
“We need all the stars for our sandcastle,” I say as I kneel beside him.
His innocence is the only thing that keeps me from falling over the edge at that moment. I’m hanging by a thread, still looking for a way out of this place. Margot can’t be trusted. Everyone else is paid to keep me here.
