She shrugged her shoulders. “That still doesn’t make this make sense. No offense, but your sister is a florist. Unless she’s got some secret millions stashed somewhere, I don’t see why he’d attach himself to her.”
“Because she does have secret millions,” Michael said. “My sister and I were awarded large settlements when our parents were killed. The driver of an eighteen-wheeler fell asleep on the road. I sued the company and put most of the money in a trust. The rest of it I used to raise her and put her through college. On her next birthday she’ll have control of it.”
Vanessa let out a long breath as she put all the puzzle pieces together in her mind. When she was done, she shook her head and raised her hands in surrender. This situation was getting crazier by the minute. Karl was a cheater, yes.Don’t forget an abuser, too.Sheclosed her eyes trying to shut that thought out. Not that she was trying to protect him. No, that wasn’t it. She still couldn’t bear to acknowledge his mercilessness because somewhere deep down, no matter how much she pretended otherwise, she blamed herself for the way he’d treated her.
Shaking herself free from her musings, she was able to focus a little more on the situation at hand. Had Karl really sunk this low?
“Listen, I don’t know what kind of long con Karl is working and I don’t want to. I just know I want no part in it. Whenever I get mixed up with him, I come out worse off for it. I’m sorry your sister’s in his sights, I just can’t get involved. I cannot help you.”
She slid out of the booth and stood up to leave when Michael stood up too, grabbing the picture and forcing her to look at it again. “I know you don’t owe me or my sister anything, Vanessa, just please, I’m begging you to come talk to her. If I show her documentation that he’s a liar, she won’t believe me. But if I have the living proof in front of her, there’s no way she can ignore what I’m saying. Please, help me protect her the way someone should’ve protected you.”
Vanessa’s heart ached with the memory of the one person who shielded her from the pain of the world. Her ma’dea, Doris MacKenzie Jared. She was a smart, fierce woman who had loved Vanessa with her whole heart. And when Vanessa’s father was too busy with work to pay attention to his only daughter, Doris swooped in and loved on Vanessa so hard, all her cares slipped away. That woman had been the only source of light in Vanessa’s life for a long time. And if Vanessa was honest, her death the year before Vanessa married Karl had worn just as heavily on her as Karl’s mistreatment of her did.
She looked into Michael’s pleading eyes, her empathy pushing her to give in to his request. Unfortunately, the thought of becoming involved with Karl again after barely surviving the first time, nomatter how sorry she felt for this man’s sister, she couldn’t do what he was asking.
She was about to say just that, planning to let him down as easy as possible, when something in the picture caught her eye. She stepped closer, pulling the picture to her face to inspect the shiny ring on Cindy’s left ring finger, and fire burned through her veins. “That son of a bitch.”
“What’s wrong, Vanessa?”
“The ring your sister’s wearing is mine. It was my grandmother’s engagement ring. My father gave it to Karl to propose with when he claimed he was too broke to buy me a ring while we were in school.”
“Shit, that’s low. Are you trying to tell me he proposed to my sister with your engagement ring?”
Low didn’t even begin to describe it. Criminal was actually what it was. “I won this ring in the divorce decree. The last time I remember seeing it was when Karl came by the house to get the last of his belongings after the divorce was finalized. That bastard took my ring.”
And the last direct connection she had with her beloved grandmother.
“And gave it to my sister.”
She slid back into the booth feeling slightly unbalanced underneath the cloud of rage and sadness hanging over her. “I promised my grandmother before she died that I would keep that ring in our family. Karl knew that. He was in the hospital with me when I made that promise.”
“That is a real dick move, and you should be mad as hell about it.”
She raised her eyebrow at him again, a gesture she hoped he was interpreting as the civilized “Fuck you” that it was. Instead of cursing him out, however, she painted a fake smile on her face and said, “Thank you for your permission to be angry.”
He laughed a bit. The situation wasn’t funny at all. None of it. Especially knowing Karl had stolen something so precious toVanessa. It wasn’t about the piece of jewelry itself. Although stunning, it wasn’t the most extravagant or expensive piece she owned.
To her mind, part of her grandmother’s spirit was imbued into that ring. And even though she hadn’t worn it in two years, the knowledge that it was tucked away in a safe space near Vanessa gave her comfort she desperately needed when loneliness and pain tried to consume her.
“Look, you can be mad,” he began as he held up his hands palm-side up. “And no one would blame you, least of all me.” He looked around the room in a conspiratorial way, as if he were about to share the deepest, most guarded secret in the world, then leaned in. “Or, you can be better than mad?”
She narrowed her eyes and leaned in slightly too. “What’s better than mad?”
“Getting even,” he offered as his tongue darted out and swiped against his full bottom lip. “Come back to Monroe Hills with me and blow whatever game he’s playing with my sister to hell. You save my sister and get revenge on him all at the same time. It’s a win for you all around.”
She sat up, contemplating his request again. She didn’t want to get involved. She was supposed to be getting her life back on track. She’d promised herself she’d use all her time and energy on herself so she could figure out her purpose without an all-consuming narcissist for a husband to focus on.
Her resolve growing, she couldn’t let Karl steal another thing from her. Especially not something the person Vanessa loved most in the world had wanted her to have. If she was honest, leaving Michael’s sister vulnerable to Karl didn’t sit right with her either. She was a stranger to Vanessa, but even still, no one deserved the pain Karl would undoubtedly inflict on the unsuspecting young woman.
When she looked over her cup of coffee to see the devilish glimmer in Michael’s eyes, her common sense lost the battle.
“Fine, I’ll help you.” She closed her eyes to settle that part of herthat wanted to curl up and ignore anything that had to do with Karl. She shook it off, though, reminding herself of the promise she’d made to herself in front of her therapist. Vanessa would never again let anyone or anything control her. Not even the fear buried deep beneath the surface of her mind, where the mental and emotional scars she bore were hidden, would keep her from taking back what was hers.
When her gaze met Michael’s, she watched a tentative smile bloom on his face. She lifted a finger to stop him from saying whatever it was he felt compelled to share in response. “But there’s one condition. If I go to your little town and talk to your sister, you have to get me my grandmother’s ring. I was very close to her and getting that small piece of her back means everything to me. I’m sure your sister is attached to it, and it’s not her fault Karl’s made her his latest target. That being said, that ring belongs to my family. Karl stole it, and she’s flaunting stolen property.”
She could sense his reluctance to agree by the way he sat back, pulling his shoulders into a straight line. It was probably for the best; she honestly didn’t need to get involved in this mess, anyway. Agreement or no, she would get her ring back. And if he didn’t agree to her terms, she’d be filling out a police report as soon as she left him here.
She thought he was about to walk away from the entire deal when he nodded. “Fine, I’ll get you your ring. When should I expect you?”
