Page 122 of Perfect Pitch

“Never.”

“Then I swear this. If you make me give up this baby, it will be the only time I get pregnant. I swear I will never have another baby. Ever.”

Abomination.

“I’ve been called a lot of things by the ‘good’ people of Kensington but never knew that was on the list.” My mother’s eyes dilate. My nausea amps up as I clutch my mother’s fingers. I’m certain I must be crushing them because she winces. “Gramps really said those things to you?”

“Baby, I never meant for you to know any of that. Those were words he said because he was furious I’d been careless.”

“Are you sure about that, Paige?” This comes from Carys.

“Of course I am. He’s my father—Austyn’s grandfather. He’s loved her from the moment he first held her. You have no idea the things he’s done for her. So much more than her biological father ever has.”

“Like what?” Ward challenges.

“In the early days, he helped simply by giving me a place to raise her. I grew up well-to-do. I’m sure you know that.” At her chin tip, Mama continues. “But he could have cut me off, making it impossible to finish my education. Instead, I got my degree and went to one of the best medical schools for audiology in the world.”

“What made you choose audiology?” David asks, subtly changing the subject.

She manages a smile before pulling her hand away to run it over the shell of my ear. “This one. She had a number of ear infections as an infant. I was in my early years of med school, debating if I wanted to go into obstetrics, and I became fascinated by the entire process of audiology. Now I just embarrass her by offering people earplugs at her shows.”

I squirm as the tension in the room lessens slightly when Angie giggles. David smiles before ducking his head back into the file.

“Why obstetrics?” Carys asks.

“As an homage to my mother. She passed away due to an infection she contracted when she was pregnant with me. Overall, I think I made the right choice as my specialty is working with young children.”

Carys makes a noncommittal sound before querying, “David?”

“Investigation, yes. Same firm as the one in our files, but the data’s incomplete. They had his social security number, knew he was writing and being paid for his early compositions, but didn’t provide the information about his permanent residence? That was either shoddy work or...”

“Deliberately incomplete,” Carys finishes grimly.

David nods in concurrence.

“What are you trying to say?” I finally cry out when nothing is said for several long minutes while David compares my mother’s files to the ones he holds.

David closes the file my mother gave him before handing it to Carys. “What your mother gave to me was an investigation conducted by the firm your grandfather hired to look for your father. Either the information was incomplete at the onset—which was then passed along to your grandfather—or your mother was never given the full report.”

“That’s all the information I have. I swear it,” Mama whispers faintly.

“Paige...,” Carys begins.

“No. You don’t understand. My father searched for Beau. Beckett, damn it. My father did that so he could stop paying his parents!”

Carys pushes to her feet and leans toward me. “Most of what you’ve been told is only partially the truth.”

My mother recoils. “What evidence do you have to substantiate that?”

I can’t speak. I clutch my mother’s hand in support as she confronts these snakes in their nest.

Carys rests her hands against the stack of files next to her. “I hired my own investigation firm to look into the past—Hudson Investigations. They found everything you just showed me, plus a lot more. What I need to know is how much do you want to know the truth?”

“How can I trust this Hudson Investigations?”

I tug at her arm. Oh god, that’s Mitch’s firm. This keeps getting worse. Trying to get her attention, I whisper, “Mama.”

She’s so focused on Carys that she doesn’t hear me. I know Hudson Investigations’ reputation—not just Mitch, but the other cases they’ve worked on. These are people of honor and integrity. I am certain beyond a shadow of a doubt whatever is in that report won’t be lies.

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