Page 53 of Silos and Sabotage

Her mother’s eyes widened. “I did, hon, but I wasn’t in any way suggesting that he was capable of killing your father.”

Ella turned bright red, dragging a chuckle out of her mom.

“You should see your face,” she chortled, pointing one red nail polish-tipped finger at her.

Ella glanced away in embarrassment. “I’m kind of glad I can’t.”

Footsteps sounded on the dock leading to the gazebo.

Her mother reached over and patted her hand. “Relax. I don’t blame you for questioning everyone and everything around you.”

“Do you think he’d have any interest in meeting me?” Ella was half afraid to hear the answer to that.

“I do, but not for the reasons you’re hoping,” her mother sighed. When Ella frowned, she held up a hand. “I’ll explain. He was furious with me when I divorced your father, and not because he was overly concerned about my happiness. I’m not sure the man even believes in love anymore.” Her lips twisted. “But he would’ve taken unholy delight in a merger by marriage between Radcliffe Industries and Bolander & Sons.”

Ella’s lips parted in amazement. “So, evenheknew who my father really was?”

“He had his suspicions.” Her mother’s voice was derisive. “And he went to a great deal of trouble to prove those suspicions during the early days of our marriage. He must have inadvertently kicked some sort of hornets’ nest, because that’s when all the trouble started for Mick and me.”

“What sort of trouble?” Ella’s dad had never breathed a word of this to her.

Her mother stared blindly across the water. “Mick had already joined the military by then, so we were apart for months at a time — first for boot camp, then for airborne training, and eventually for Ranger School. I remained at the university in Spain, studying for my degree. Every time we could squeeze in a visit, though, it was like we were cursed. The hotel we stayed at during our honeymoon in Paris caught fire. There was a gas leak in my dorm during Mick’s next visit. During his visit after that, someone shot the windows out of my car while we were still in it. I was pregnant by then.”

“It could’ve been a series of coincidences.” That sure was a lot of them.

“We thought so, too, until we started receiving written threats. They were made from words torn out of magazines and newspapers.” Her mother lapsed into silence.

“What did they say?” Ella was impatient to hear more before her grandfather showed up. She was surprised he hadn’t made his appearance yet.

Her mother’s eyes brimmed with regret. “That we needed to stay away from each other if we wanted the bad things to stop.”

“And?” Ella begged.

“We didn’t listen,” her mother rasped. “We didn’t listen until I took a bullet in the ribs while seated at an outdoor cafe in Madrid. It was a through and through. By some miracle, it missed every major organ. I almost lost our baby, though, due to the trauma. Both Mick and I were convinced that the bullet was intended for our unborn child, because the police discovered a nick in the table. They said it changed the trajectory of the bullet, deflecting it to a higher angle. I filed for a divorce a few days later. Shortly after that, Mick volunteered for a dangerous mission overseas. I don’t think he intended to come back from it.”

The door to the gazebo opened.

Gage’s voice wafted their way, “There she is, sir.”

“Ella?” A tortured baritone met her ears. “Is it really you?”

Her mother paled and spun around. “Creston?”

Ella turned around to see the white-haired gentleman from the parking lot standing in the open doorway of the gazebo. Gage was right behind him.

“Avery?” the man sputtered, looking taken aback. There was no denying his resemblance to her father.

Dizziness shook Ella. It was like coming face to face with her own father. Or what he would’ve looked like if he’d lived another twenty years. Her voice shook as she greeted him. “You must be my?—”

“I’m your grandfather.” Creston Bolander closed the distance between them, glaring at her mother. When his gaze returned to her, his eyes were glistening with unshed tears. “I was afraid I would never see you again.”

Chapter 10: Ghost Hunt

Ella could feel her mother’s anger simmering as Creston Bolander faced them.

Her own feelings were too tangled to define. “How long have you known about me, sir?”

“A couple of months.” He spread his hands sadly. “It was more of a hunch than a certainty. By then, I figured it was too late. I had no real hope of finding you alive.”

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