Page 16 of Mine to Save

“We are, but we’ve had our ups and downs like everyone,” he said, pointing to the note in her hands. “Are you avoiding reading that?”

“You’re intuitive.” Feeling as though some of the anger that had filtered through her system had subsided, she eased back into the chair. “Did my dad tell you I hadn’t seen him since I was sixteen?”

“No. He hadn’t mentioned that.”

“My mom remarried when I was five, and her husband adopted me.”

“That means your dad had to give up his parental rights,” Emmett said.

She nodded. All the emotions she’d felt as a sixteen-year-old settled in the pit of her stomach, threatening to explode. Heat filled her veins, traveling through her body from her toes to her fingertips. Flashes of her past blackout rage bombarded her mind. For brief moments, she understood how people could be pushed over the edge. Of course, her therapist at the time had told her that she’d been using her anger to try to connect to a man she had no idea existed and to punish her parents.

Now, as an adult, she knew that had been true. Her anger had been a manifestation of pain and betrayal. Now that her father had been shot dead, and the police were closing the case without even considering that the killer could be someone else, it made her blood boil the same way being lied to until she was a teenager had.

“My mom got a really good lawyer and later told me that my father had such guilt that he agreed it was best for me to be raised by Ben.”

“How did you find out about your dad?”

“When I was sixteen, he reached out to me after my mother told him not to. He had no idea that my mom had lied to me and told me he was dead.”

“That’s harsh.”

She nodded. “He’d been out of prison for a while, and his probation had ended. He was completely a free man, and he wanted a second chance.” Trinity couldn’t believe the word vomit coming out of her mouth. She was telling Emmett things she barely told her best friend, and she’d known him for all of maybe an hour.

She leaned over and lifted her wine, giving it a good swirl before taking another gulp. A part of her had no desire to read the note from her dad or to dig into his past.

However, a bigger part of her felt compelled to do so.

“He didn’t want to be my father, or so he said, but he wanted to know me. I’d been so angry at everyone that I turned to drugs and became a shitty person. I wanted nothing to do with any of them, and that’s when my birth dad disappeared for good.”

“You and my brother Jamison should have a chat. What he went through is similar, at least in the sense that he found out our dad isn’t his biological father.”

“Wow. Really?”

Emmett nodded. “It was quite the scandal in this town, and my brother was pretty angry for a long time. Especially with my mom, who is currently engaged to his biological father.” Emmett rubbed his temple. “Every time I explain this, it gives me a headache.”

“Do you have a problem with it?”

“No. Not really. I mean, he’s my brother. That hasn’t changed. And it’s not really all that complicated. We all get along now and are one big happy family, but it’s weird to say out loud, as I’m sure all of this is for you.”

She couldn’t argue that point. She raised the paper for a second time, determined to read it. She’d come all this way to find answers. There was no point in avoiding anything.

Trinity.

I’m sorry. For so many things. I can’t change the past, and I want you to know that I take full responsibility for my actions. I live with such regret for what I did. But that is the only bad thing I’ve done in my life. I didn’t do the things I’ve been accused of. I haven’t murdered anyone. And I certainly wouldn’t do it in honor of Paul, as those notes the killer left said. Whoever is killing these people is setting me up. He’s killing men who are cheating on their wives and making it like I’m still holding a grudge. I’m not. The only thing I hold onto from the past is regret for what I’ve done and how it affected you. And now it’s going to hurt you again. I’m sorry to drag you into this, but I don’t know where else to turn. Please don’t let these murders tarnish my name even more. I didn’t do it.

I’ve left you a sketch of a man who has been following me for the last six months. He’s either the killer, or he’s helping him. I need to disappear again because if the police find me, it’s going to be shoot to kill.

Trinity gasped. “He didn’t stand a chance, did he?”

“Actually, he did. I’m sorry, but he walked out of the diner with a gun in his hands. If he hadn’t done that, he might still be alive. I wish I knew why, but he basically ended his life.”

She glanced over the note. “That’s brutally honest.”

“Would you rather I sugarcoat it or lie to you?”

“No. I appreciate you being so upfront.” She blew out a short breath and lowered her gaze.

Find someone you can trust. Someone who can help you clear my name.

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