Page 53 of Keeping Her Safe

“Words. So many words,” Evie said, but she was smiling.

“Sorry,” Zephyr whispered more to the door she had closed then to her sister.

“You and Della can just talk around things all day long,” Zoey said, and Della grumbled from the front seat.

“Is your name really Zephyr?” Zoey asked for beside her.

“Yes. She thought it went nice with Zoey.”

“It doesn’t,” Della stated.

“What’s your middle name?” Evie asked after shoving Della’s shoulder slightly.

“Same as yours.”

“Connor, then. At least she gave you that.” Zoey turned towards her. “Do you just go by Hart or Connor Hart? Della and I go by Connor Hart. Or I used to.”

“Just Hart, I guess. I don’t really have a lot of people calling me that.” As Zachary said, she hid from the world and was successful at it.

“What do they call you?” Evie turned in her seat to look at her.

Zephyr shrugged. “Nothing. I don’t go out much.”

“What do you do then?” Della asked, but didn’t turn to look at her.

“I am a writer.” Della pulled up to the mansion. She saw that there were cop cars everywhere. The sight made her realize she had to leave soon. She had brought this upon her sisters, and they did not deserve it.

“Have I heard of you?” Zoey asked.

“I don’t know. I don’t know what you read.” Zephyr hedged.

“You have to tell me I am your favorite big sister. And yes, I am finally a big sister!” Zoey laughed, putting her arm around her new little sister as they went up the stairs into the house.

“I don’t know if you are my favorite.” Zephyr joked.

“So, did mom spill the beans on who my daddy was?” Zoey let her go.

“Yes.” She bit her lip.

“Who? And who is yours?” Zoey asked eagerly.

“Mine is Charley, and yours is a man whose name I can’t remember.” Zephyr hedged as she followed the others towards the back of the house to the kitchen. Her mother had once told Zephyr when she was drunk who Zoey’s father had been. Though her mom had said a lot of things when drunk, she had only spilled the beans about her affair once.

“You know his name. I know a Hart who’s lying to me.” Zoey squeezed her shoulder.

Putting her arm around Zoey, she pulled her close and whispered, “Don’t you think it’s weird that your brother and sister are married?”

Letting Zoey go as the woman stood stock still in the office area of the law firm, Zephyr went into the kitchen with the other two. She’d let her sister process the information. Sitting down at the table, she watched her two older sisters getting coffee cups and starting the machine to make the bitter brew.

A stunned Zoey came in and sat next to her. Zephyr knew that she had never thought the younger sister knew the answer to her question. And she was having a hard time processing it.

“Zephyr, I finally found you!” All heads turned to see Ken Jackson hurry into the room from the office area. Where had he been when they came in?

“Ken, what are you doing here?” Zephyr recovered first. She had last seen her editor last week, and so much had changed since then.

“Zephyr, I have to get you out of here. I thought that Wainwright would keep you safe, but that’s obviously not true,” Ken stated as he stopped just inside the doorway.

Getting up from the table, she saw the concerned faces of her sisters. “It’s okay. I need to be here for a while longer.”

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