“When Sally was bedridden after Ethan, you told me it was normal for a woman to suffer from melancholy.” The realization that rushed into my head chilled me to the bone. I crossed my arms over my waist and resisted the need to run from the room. “In the last entry of Sally’s diary, she said she hated the twins because they’d stolen her joy. Is that why you hate me? Did I steal your joy?”
She took a step back, shaking her head. “You are mistaken. I never said that, nor did Sally mean it. She loved those children, and I will not have you spreading lies about her.”
“I simply told you what she said. I have no intention of telling anyone about the diary, and I resent the fact you think I would malign her character.” Her accusation was like a slap in the face. All the years she’d been cold to me made sense. My birth changed something inside my mother. The cycle continued with Sally. Would I be cursed with the same fate?
“You have no idea what you’re doing.”
“I know exactly what I’m doing.” Horrified by the thought, I turned and rushed from the room.
“Give me the diary, Amelia.” She rushed after me and grabbed my elbow, trying to halt my momentum on the landing. Her fingers dug into my arm, a frantic gleam in her eyes. “Itdoesn’t belong to you, and if it falls into the wrong hands, our family will be ruined.”
“It doesn’t belong to you, either,” I yelled back, unable to fathom how Mother could be so cruel. Sally was gone, and all she thought about was her reputation. She’d always been hostile toward me, but I had always assumed she loved Sally. Apparently, I assumed wrong. “It belongs to Noah.”
“No, he can’t know of her shame. Of our shame,” Mother said.
A movement in the hallway past Mother’s shoulder sent my heart to my feet. Noah and Father were standing there, both men wearing grim expressions.
“We heard shouting,” Father explained, looking from me to Mother. She blanched, her fingers visibly shaking.
“Where is the diary?” Noah asked, fury blazing in his eyes, along with dread.
“Noah, please—” Mother begged.
He held up a staying hand, his lips pressed together in a tight line. “You have been lying to me, and I deserve the truth.”
“Oh, Amelia, what have you done?” Mother ran from the room, her sobs flowing behind her. Father went after her, calling her name.
I stood rooted to the spot, debating whether I should give it to Noah or not. Mother was right. The diary was very damning. The glare he cast in my direction made me reluctantly reach into my skirt pocket and retrieve the slender volume. “I bought it for Sally as a gift.”
He stared down at it but didn’t flip open the cover.
“I’m sorry, Noah,” I said, tears choking me.
“How long have you had this?” he asked out of clenched teeth.
“Since before the wedding.” I made to lay my hand on his arm, needing to make him understand.
He stepped back, bitterness darkening his eyes. “And you thought to keep it from me?”
“To save you heartache.” I needed him to understand. “Sally was very troubled, more than either of us knew. You must trust me when I beg you to leave well enough alone and not relive the past.”
“That’s the rub, Amelia. I don’t think I can ever trust you again.” He strode from the room with a curt nod, taking my heart with him.
Chapter Thirty-Three
