Page 56 of Cabin Fever

"You said it yourself, Ollie, when you were telling me all that happened since you came here. He was born in DC. A Fitzwilliam, born in the nation's capital, is from one family."

She took out her phone from her purse. "How old did you say he was?"

"I didn't. I don't know. I guess around our age."

"We're twenty-eight, so he's probably around thirty . . ." she muttered while tapping at her phone.

She gasped, covering her mouth. Bea held out her phone to me.

I took it, not wanting to read what it said. This was going to change things—change how I saw Carter. It was one thing to pretend like it wasn't true, but to see the evidence that it was real had me rethinking the hot chocolate I was drinking.

How Bea painted my relationship with him wasn't us at all. Yet, I knew when I read what she looked up about him, it would appear that way to everyone who found out. Knowing Bea, she would drop hints to all the right people about Carter.

My eyes flickered over the web page filled with different members of the Fitzwilliam family. I saw Dashiell's name and next to him, his brother, former senator Lorne Fitzwilliam. It explained his disappearance shortly after the tragic death of his wife and baby daughter.

I found it hard to swallow as I read the next line. It was about his son. Last seen at age eight, Carter Fitzwilliam disappeared with his father. Both are presumed dead, but some theorists believe he lived in various locations around the world. There's even a theory they were abducted by aliens.

I pushed the phone back at Bea, not wanting to look at it anymore.

"Carter is also a common name. That doesn't explain anything."

Bea lifted the phone. "Considering that this Carter and your Carter are the same age . . ."

"Presumably. I still don't know his actual age. Carter could be forty-five for all I know instead of thirty. Maybe he has really good genes and the mountain air makes him look younger than he actually is?"

"Here's your food. Enjoy, ladies. Oh, and can I say it's wonderful that you found your sister." Debbie clasped Bea's shoulder after placing the plates of food in front of us.

"It is wonderful. It's a relief to have her back."

Both my sister and Debbie gazed at me, their eyes glassy with unshed tears. My cheeks warmed at the attention.

"Bacon." I pointed to Beatrice's plate of food to get her to stop staring. It did the trick. She clasped her hands together and stared at the bacon with affection.

"One more thing before you go." Bea hesitantly ripped her eyes from the food to glance up at Debbie. "Are you from here?"

Debbie put her hands on her hips and with a proud smile, she nodded. "Born and raised."

"Do you know when Carter and his father moved here?"

I was about to lift a piece of pancake to my lips with my fork when I stopped mid-rise. Bea smirked at me. I knew she saw this as some sort of contest. Who was right and who was wrong?

That's not how I saw it. For me, it was everything I thought I knew about Carter about to be flushed away. Maybe I saw him as different because he was a farmer just trying to get by in life. If he was tied to the Fitzwilliams, then his life was more complicated than I could imagine.

I ran from complicated. That world of politics, wealth, and fractured family history brought out the worst in people.

"It was twenty-two years ago." Debbie rubbed at her chin. "Carter was just a boy. I remember because it was the year I bought this place with my husband. He used to curse up a storm. When Carter and his dad would come here to eat, I would tell Jack to keep it down. He upset the boy with all his foul talk. I thanked Carter a few years later. Because of him, Jack doesn't really curse anymore."

"Thank you. You've been helpful, uh . . ." Bea glanced up to read the name tag, "Debbie."

"Anytime. Hey, if you two ladies are still around next week, all the single ladies in town are getting together to do a little bar hopping. You two should join us."

"But you're married," Bea said as a crease formed between her brow.

"I know, but I'm the designated driver. It's fun to hang out with those women, and I feel better knowing they all get home safely."

"We'll keep it in mind." Bea nodded and watched Debbie walk off.

"Twenty-two years ago. That's exactly when Lorne and Carter Fitzwilliam disappeared. It seems your farmer is the long-lost heir to the Fitzwilliam fortune."

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