Page 42 of Shrouded Past

At this point she wanted to know everything. Even if it meant learning her father had killed her mother and her uncle. Even if she was his next target.

???

Piper needed to stretch her legs.But mostly she just wanted a break from the intensity of the search for answers. The Hope Island Securities team was good at what they did, and she was grateful for their help but also fearful at what would be eventually uncovered.

She’d excused herself, saying she needed a break. The woman who looked just like her was foremost in her thoughts. Marina appeared to be a gentle woman. Why would anyone want her dead? In the one memory she had of her mother, she’d been baking something. Piper had no idea what or how old she’d been, but she was certain from the way her mother had been laughing in the memory that they’d had fun.

She went into her bedroom, sat down on the edge of the bed, and tried to recall something about the woman whom she resembled, yet nothing came.

Someone knocked on her door. “Come in.”

Bryce stuck his head in. “How are you holding up?” He came into the room and closed the door behind him.

“I don’t know anymore. I have so many questions, and my biggest regret is not knowing Edmon was family.” She shook her head.

Bryce sat beside her. “You had no way of knowing, Piper. He chose to keep the truth of his relationship and who your mother was—what happened to her—secret for a reason. I’m guessing he knew the person who killed her, if she is in fact dead, and he thought he’d protect you from the truth.”

She leaned her head against his shoulder, and it felt just as natural as taking her next breath. “What if I find out my father is a killer? What if I find out he killed your wife?” She couldn’t look at him.

Bryce put his arm around her and held her close. “If he killed Jenna then I’ll finally know the person responsible for her death . . . and I’d tell you that none of what happened, no matter what, is your fault.”

A sob escaped, and she buried her face against his chest. She marveled at how he saw the good in her when she had no idea if it were true.

“But what if I was responsible?” Piper swiped the back of her hand over her eyes and sat up straight. She searched his face looking for some sign of blame or disgust.

“You aren’t, Piper. You’re a victim, just like Jenna, only you’re alive. You can’t let guilt tear you down. One day, you will have your life back, and when you do, you can’t let what others did keep you from living it.”

He reached over and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, his hand lingering near the bandage covering her facial wound. His touch sent a shiver from its contact.

“Oh, Bryce, you’re such a good man.”

His hand froze then he dropped it to his side. “I’m not. Far from it. Because I couldn’t let go of something that was impossible, Jenna paid for it with her life.”

She couldn’t let him blame himself. “You were doing your job. Trying to stamp out drugs from your county.” She touched his face.

Bryce clasped her hand and held it. “I was obsessed with it. I was going to do what the prior sheriff hadn’t been able to do, and I didn’t care who got hurt in the process.”

“But what if this doesn’t have anything to do with drugs?”

His brows rose. “You think it was all because of the man who came looking for you?”

She shrugged. “What if it was my father who came looking for me at the shelter? Maybe he believed Jenna was lying about not knowing where I was and so he took her to force her to talk.”

“That doesn’t add up. Tessa, my informant said she knew the man who was bringing in the drugs and she could help us bring him down.”

“Unless he told her to say that to get you there. Maybe to force Jenna to talk.”

The surprise in his eyes confirmed he’d never considered as much. “I always wondered why she came forward. Tess told us she was tired of being manipulated by the man and wanted him brought down only . . .”

“She was setting you up. She must have thought Jenna would have reported what happened to me to your office. He might have thought that you knew where I was even if Jenna didn’t.”

“I can’t believe I never questioned Tess deeper,” he said in shock. “I was just so determined to bring him down that I never thought to question her connection to him.” He reached for his phone.

“Who are you calling?”

“Eric. I’m going to see if he can do some research on Tess and see if we can find some connection to the man who killed Jenna.”

“The man who might be my father.”

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