died instantly.”
Ryan had moved to her side, his hand was on her shoulder, comforting her. She needed to know the details, to know if Beckett had anything to do with it. Dozens of thoughts crashed down on her at once. She also had to think of an excuse to get her sister and nephew out of town and far away from any threat.
Of course everyone would assume he’d been hitting the bottle again. It wouldn’t be the first time he’d relapsed. No one would believe her if she denied it. And yet Lisa knew he’d been clean. There was always a pattern. He was on an upswing. Lisa forced back the flood of tears threatening to overwhelm her. A few streamed down her face anyway.
“Do they know for sure Dad was drinking? Did they perform an autopsy?” she pressed. She’d seen on TV that the coroner could screen for alcohol level.
“Why would they do that? Isn’t that for, like, people who are murdered or something?” Lori’s voice rose with her panic levels. Her grip on Lisa’s hand had tightened to the point of pain.
Lisa gently urged their fingers apart.
“Oh, sorry. This is just happening so fast. First, what happened to you yesterday morning. Then Daddy later that afternoon.” Lori broke down in a sob. “I’m scared, sis. He’s gone and I didn’t know if you’d—”
“I’m here,” Lisa reassured, fighting back her own emotions. She’d always tried to be brave for her little sister. “I’m not going anywhere.”
“I know. It’s just all...surreal or something. Everyone keeps saying that bad news comes in threes and I keep waiting for the other shoe to drop. It’s crazy. I mean, who would want to hurt you? You’re like the nicest person. Everyone loves you. You’re a kindergarten teacher for heaven’s sake. Who would do this to you?”
“Random mugging, remember? I have just as much chance as everyone else. It’s like lightning striking,” Lisa said even though her heart wasn’t in the words. When it came to lying, she fell on the same side of the scale as Ryan. Her father’s drinking binges had always been preceded by lies. In bad times, she and her sister would be hauled off to stay with a relative. In the worst cases, they’d end up in the foster care system for a few months until their dad straightened out.
Even though she hated lying, she had no choice. She had to protect what was left of her family. “Where’s Grayson?”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t want to bring the baby here. I know he’s still little, but I thought he might be afraid if he saw you like this,” Lori said. The words gushed out. She always spoke too fast when she was a nervous wreck.
“You did the right thing, sis,” Lisa said in her most calming voice.
“He’s with Dylan and Samantha. Maribel’s keeping an eye on him. She calls him her little brother. It’s cute.” Lori broke into another sob. Dylan and Samantha were longtime friends. Maribel was Dylan’s three-year-old daughter. The three of them made a beautiful family. Grayson would be safe in their care. “I know he wasn’t always there for us, but he was our dad. And now he’s gone.”
“I loved him, too.” It was surreal to speak about him in the past tense. “It’s okay to cry.”
“No, it’s not. I should be more like you.”
“Calloused?” Lisa said quickly before she shattered into a tiny thousand pieces. The only thing worse than holding on to her horrible secret was seeing her baby sister in pain.
“I was going to say brave.” Lori leaned into Lisa and sobbed.
With Beckett’s father being hunted, this might be the right time to expose the family for the monsters they truly were. And yet she hadn’t reported the crime fifteen years ago. Could she come forward now and accuse Beckett? Would anyone believe her?
Maybe Ryan knew about Beckett’s family. Hadn’t the Alcorns tried to take his father’s land? Then again, if she asked him too many questions he might just figure out she was hiding something and force her hand. He was more persistent than a pit bull searching for a bone when it came to finding the truth. She’d also seen how dedicated he’d been to his brother when Justin had been in trouble. Would he do the same for her?
If anyone could understand or help, Ryan could.
He’d been devastated when his own mother walked out on the family. He’d acted tough on the outside, but Lisa saw past the front he’d put up. She’d seen the pain buried deep down because it was just like hers.
Lisa knew pain.
On second thought, exposing Beckett now was a bad idea. First of all, he’d take away everything she loved. Then he’d kill her. Or worse, he wouldn’t.
She needed to figure out a way to keep her family safe without alarming them. The Alcorns’ number was almost up and she’d be on the front row of the court trial when it happened, cheering when the sentence was delivered.
Until then, she had to figure out a way to keep her family safe.
Every fiber in her being urged her to warn her sister about what might come next, that she and Grayson could be in grave danger. But what if no one believed her?
She lay in a hospital bed with possible head trauma. She had no evidence for an accusation against Beckett. Most people believed him to be a good person and felt sorry for him after news broke about his father.
Lisa had to weigh her options carefully. If she told Lori and Ryan the truth and they questioned her, the risk would only increase. Beckett’s attack on her family wouldn’t be straightforward, either. He’d watch Lori. Hide. Strike when she least expected it. Considering she had a baby on her hip most of the time, she’d be an easy target.
Doing nothing was a pretty lousy option.
There had to be something she could do to keep her family safe. Lori and Grayson were all Lisa had left and she’d trade her life for either one.
* * *
LISA’S EMOTIONAL PAIN hit Ryan far deeper than her physical bruises did. He didn’t like those, either, but experience had taught him the stuff on the outside healed. The marks on her heart wouldn’t go away in a few weeks. He fisted his hands and then shoved them in his pockets so he wouldn’t punch a hole in the wall.
The promise he’d made to Lori to keep quiet about their father had been sitting sourly in his stomach since Lisa’s eyes opened. Ryan had wanted to be the one to tell her what had happened, but it wasn’t his place. The news about her family needed to come from her sister, not from him. All he could do was be there to help pick up the pieces.
Seeing her lying there, helpless, had stirred more than a primal need to protect a friend.
Instead of acting on it, he’d watched her sleep as he’d held back from stroking her rosy skin as it shone even under the harsh fluorescent light. Her long brunet hair with light streaks that caught the sun seemed brighter.
Listening to the pain in her voice as she spoke to her sister was the second time he’d nearly been done in. He shouldn’t allow his past feelings for Lisa to cloud his judgment. Because if they had their way he’d be in that hospital bed with her, holding her until she stopped shaking, comforting her until she felt safe again. It was obvious that the attack had left a serious mark. The
