Page 118 of The Wicked

“Authoritative? Yes, he was.”

“We never stopped thinking of you. Until you turned eighteen, we sent the Christmas and birthday cards, but then… We thought you had moved on. Hoped you had moved on.”

“I never received any cards.”

“I always wondered if that might be the case. Maybe your grandfather threw them away, or your uncle? There was no love lost between him and your father.”

“Dad told you that?”

“We were friends. Of course, we told each other many things.” He chuckled, patting the fourth Mrs. Baluch’s hand. She’d barely said a word during dinner. “All the secrets we didn’t want our wives to know. Nothing bad,” he added quickly. “Your mom used to worry about Pete’s cholesterol constantly after her own mother’s heart problems, and he used to appreciate a good medium-rare steak.”

“Every time I mentioned Dad, EJ got annoyed, so I stopped talking about him. Do you know why they didn’t get along?”

“As with so many feuds, it had to do with a woman. I don’t know her name, but Pete found EJ in the back of a car with her when EJ was sixteen. The way I understand it, the woman had been drinking too much, far too much, and EJ was, how should I say…taking advantage?”

EJ had tried to rape an unconscious woman? That’s what Eryk was saying? This was shades of Mandell all over again.

“Pete got her out of there?” I asked.

“He took her home, and he also told his father.” Eryk sucked in a breath. “Who paid off the young lady and made EJ’s life very difficult for the next six months. Pete called it slave labour, but your grandfather called it atonement. EJ never forgave Pete for telling tales.”

Saralisa was looking green, and it had nothing to do with the lighting. “Dad did the right thing.”

“I agree with you, but that wasn’t the end of it. A year later, they were both going to the junior prom, and EJ’s date declined to accompany him at the last moment because she heard what happened in that car. EJ blamed Pete for talking, but it wasn’t him. For better or worse, he protected his family. It was probably the girl herself. Pete said she had a big mouth.”

“Do you know who she was?” Saralisa asked, and her voice had gone quiet, the way it tended to do when she was trying to cope with bad news.

Eryk shook his head. “I don’t believe her name was ever mentioned. Anyhow, EJ had been drinking, and when Pete left with his date, EJ took his grandfather’s car and tried to run them off the road. Ended up crashing the vehicle into a tree. After that, Pete decided to go travelling.”

“The whole family is toxic,” Saralisa whispered.

“Yes, that’s exactly what Pete said, word for word. Saralisa, I’m so very sorry for your loss. When I initially heard about the crash, I’ll admit my thoughts went straight to your uncle. I even contacted the police in case there was a link.”

“But they didn’t find one?”

“I assume they quickly ruled him out because they declared it a tragic accident just a few days later. The detective who came to see me said the weather conditions were poor that night.”

Couldthere be a connection? No, that was farfetched. Pete Forlani had been out of EJ’s life for over a decade by that point, Saralisa had recognised the culprit as Harless, and Claire had written a posthumous statement. Mandell was behind the incident. Wasn’t he?

I’d always thought my family was fucked up, but the Baldwins were in a whole other league.

Eryk raised his glass again. “Enough talk of the past. Let’s drink to the future. And eat! This is sernik, a traditional Polish dessert. It’s said that the king brought the recipe back with him after victory against the Turks at the Battle of Vienna.”

I leaned across to Saralisa. “You okay?” I asked softly.

“Perhaps more okay than I’ve ever been.”

That was my girl. She was strong, stronger than she even realised herself. I was in awe of both her and Gracie for not only surviving the lives they’d been forced to lead but also coming out on top.

In the future, they’d both have my support.

And maybe they’d have the Bad Samaritan fighting in their corner too.

40

SARA

Saralisa’s to-do list:

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