Page 93 of No More Secrets

“Not possible.” He shakes his head, recalling the day he left to go after his father. His mother’s fear was tangible.

“She’s a manipulator, Lucas. You know that.”

He sits back and rubs his hands on his thighs. “This is going to take time to digest.”

“We think she left because I’m back,” Lily explains. “She didn’t have to go. I don’t have anything on her other than a conversation Ioverheard fourteen years ago, which wouldn’t be admissible in court, and she can easily deny it. The worst thing the three of us can do to her is cease contact.”

“Seems like she’s done that to us already,” Lucas says.

Olivia picks at her fingers. “I might be able to do one better than that.”

“How so?” Lily asks.

“I have the murder weapon.”

“What?” Lucas and Lily exclaim in unison.

“I think I do. Benton was stabbed. And if memory serves, Mom was cooking dinner when she went looking for Dad that night. She took the chef’s knife with her.”

“Stop.” Lily grabs her arm. “You saw her murder him?”

“I’ve had a recurring nightmare my entire life. My therapist thinks it’s a memory, and it’s become clearer since we’ve been working together. I followed Mom to the beach.” She takes a beat as they gape at her. “I also have their old knife set. Blaze held on to it when I wanted to get rid of it. I didn’t like them in my house. I’ve since turned them over to the authorities. Not sure if they can do anything with them. It’s been over thirty years. But they have them. Gave them a statement, too. I also tipped off Benton’s widow in Texas. She can work with the police to reopen the case if there’s enough new evidence. But they did issue a BOLO to bring Mom in for questioning.”

“Holy shit.” Lucas can only shake his head.

“You’ve been busy,” Lily says.

Lucas rubs his jaw. “This is our mom we’re talking about. You’re telling me she’s the murderer.”

“I know this is a lot. It’s not easy on any of us,” Olivia points out. “I love her. I probably always will. But she lied to us, Lucas. She lied to Benton’s wife, the police. Everyone. She took a man’s life. Our sister’s dad. I can’t let her get away with that, not after the way she played us against each other. And she’s been doing it our entire lives.”

“I know. I just meant this is our mom. We came from that.”

“It doesn’t mean we’re anything like her,” Lily says. “Took me a long time to realize I’m not like her either. None of us are.”

“She’s right, Luc. We’re better than our parents. Their poison ends with us. We have that power. Our kids will never have to deal with what we experienced.” She grasps his hand. Her palm is warm in his, her skin smooth against his calluses. “We’ll help you however you want. Just say the word. But this time we’re sticking together.” She glances at Lily for confirmation.

“Every step. And Lucas.” Lily grasps his free hand. “You have nothing for me to forgive. But if you want to hear it, I forgive you. I turned out okay. Better than okay. I have an amazing son and the best fiancé who loves me to the moon and back. My career... wow, I don’t know where to begin except to say that if I hadn’t run away, I doubt I’d have achieved what I have today. Being on my own forced me to succeed. I had no choice.”

“You’re a celebrity.”

“There is that.” Lily laughs, but her forgiveness means more to him than she might ever realize. It flows over him and sinks in, washing away years of guilt and regret like a spring rain cleansing the ground of dust and oils, bringing new life. He feels lighter, free of the burden he’s carried half his life, and above everything, awed. Spilling his secrets has been one of the most difficult things he’s done. He didn’t know how his sisters would react. Would they hate him? Shun him? No. They opened their arms for him. Their acceptance of him, their understanding of what he’s endured and the mistakes he’s made, and their love despite it all, have rocked him to his core. He doesn’t regret taking this long to share everything with them, and he can’t regret having not reached out to them sooner. He wasn’t ready. But going forward, he won’t keep such closely guarded secrets about himself. He sees now how destructive that can be, how bottling up guilt and shame and regret can fester untilit dictates how he behaves and reacts. How he lives. And does he ever want to live.

Olivia smiles tenderly. “You were a shit as a kid, Luc, but we love you.”

He chuckles, his laugh waterlogged. He has a long road to recovery, today being only the first step. But it’s one in the right direction, and he won’t be traveling alone.

Rising to his feet, he pulls his sisters up with him and bear-hugs them, dropping kisses on their heads. After refusing to feel anything for so many years, he can’t describe how good it is to have them back. To have their forgiveness. To start forgiving himself. To allow himself to touch and be touched. To feel.

“What next?” Lily asks when they break apart.

Lucas looks over the water. “I love the bay, but I need to move.”

“Where to?”

“California City. I want to put an offer on a multiuse building. It’s got apartments and a market.” And he’s installing a security camera first thing. Just the thought of returning brightens his mood, which tells him it’s the right thing for him. “It’ll be good for me.”

“Good, because we want to sell this house,” Olivia announces.

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