Page 44 of Savage Truth

“And your parents? Did they help you?” Phoenix asked.

“No.” Steel infused her voice. “And I never asked about them after I ran away. One day, when Ronan was visiting and playing with Riley, who was a few months old, I went out for a walk.” Her face softened. “I met your dad. The rest of the story, you know.” She shuddered. “Nick found me and beat me so badly that I almost died. Ronan and some of his guys found me in time. Then a few days later, he staged my death. They filed a death certificate and held a small service. So although I married him, it was complicated. Because who I was back then is dead.”

“But he found out you were alive?” It was crazy. I never could have made it up even in my wildest nightmares.

“Yes. An acquaintance of his saw me and relayed the news to him. Nick… didn’t learn that Riley was alive until she was thirteen. He’s been searching for us more intensely even than when he thought it was just me.”

I had no words. Her story was a nightmare. But something else bothered me, and I shifted my focus to Dad. “And you? Weren’t you already married to Mom? I would have been a few months older than Riley then.”

He grimaced, and I knew I wouldn’t like what he had to say.

“I don’t want you to think badly of your mom. She loved you both, so remember that.”

I had no doubt about her feelings toward Damon and me.

“Linda and I never dated in college. Her sister”—he notched his head in Phoenix and Shane’s direction, indicating their mom, Aunt Cece—“was dating Joe Wrenshall”—our cousins’ dad. “Linda and I were together one night after a party. I’d just found out I was invited to the draft, and we celebrated hard.”

It was the first time Dad had mentioned the NFL draft. Damon and I’d heard about it from Mom on the weekend she killed herself.

“When Linda told me she was pregnant, I had some things to consider seriously. She and I always struggled, having barely known one another before we married, but that first year and a half were hardest for me. What probably made the situation worse was that I questioned everything, whether I’d made the right choice by passing on the NFL, going for my law degree, then opening the firm. Then I met Raelyn… and knew instantly that she was the one for me.” He shrugged. “I don’t know how to explain it. I’ve just always known.”

I shifted uncomfortably in my seat. Because I did know. Riley had the same effect on me. It helped a little to understand the chaos that had always existed in our family and why.

“But your mother… I couldn’t leave her. She wasn’t always… stable.”

Silence fell. Things finally made sense, and I could put it to bed. “And Nick? Does he have any legal claim to her?”

Raelyn shook her head, but Dad was the one to answer. “No. I’ve filed so many charges against him that he’ll live out the rest of his days in a prison cell. There’s no legal proof she’s his daughter.”

He’d been charged with attacking Riley and me, breaking and entering, and who knew what else Dad had thrown on top of that. But his lawyers, bribes, or both had gotten him out once. It worried me that he could do it again.

“Is there any other news?” Phoenix leaned forward, elbows to knees, and got us back on track. “We should go search for her too.”

As soon as Dad gave us the location and any other details, I was there.

“She’s out there somewhere. He’ll want her alive.” Raelyn trembled, and her face took on a pale-greenish shade. “She’s property in his mind, and he plans to use her to further his power in the syndicate.”

“What the hell does that mean?” I lurched to my feet, not liking the direction of this new twist one bit.

“That he’ll marry her”—she swallowed audibly, her voice shaking—“to whoever will give him the most in return.”

It was a gut punch. “Who does that in this day and age?” I felt powerless. “We need to get to her. I’m tired of sitting around and doing nothing.” I swung my gaze to Dad. “Where was her phone found? We can start looking there.”

“There’s more.” Dad glanced at Raelyn. “Shots were fired at a motel. They investigated, and the reports match Nick’s description.”

Raelyn’s phone rang, and she tapped it then whipped it to her ear. “Ronan?” It came out as more of a cry. “Are you okay?”

Dad stood and went to her, gently taking the phone and hitting the speaker button. “Lucas Savage here. Have you found Riley?”

“No, but I know about where she’ll be.” Ronan rattled off something about some woods behind a motel. He said she would’ve gone deep into the woods and, once it was safe, tried to find a road.

“We’re coming.” Raelyn sounded invigorated as she rushed out the door.

Dad finished the call, and we all raced after her. I exchanged a look with my brother and cousins. I didn’t need to say anything. They were with me. Damon and I piled into his SUV, and Phoenix and Shane took one of theirs. Then we were off, not far behind Dad and Raelyn.

If I’d had questions about my feelings for Riley before, I had zero doubts left. She was it. I just worried I might be too late, and she would forcefully be given to another.

CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

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