I’m surprised, though, when I find Cecelia Miles still on the beach, as if waiting for me. I walk over to her, looking back once to see my father being attended to by EMTs. Ellis is already on his way to the hospital to be treated, along with Jamie for his reinjured arm.
“I’m truly sorry,” Cecelia tells me as I approach. “I really had no idea about… any of this.” She motions around us. “And certainly not about my sister’s death. I’ve been in business with a murderer for half my life, and it took a group of Chasers to set things right. I should be ashamed. I should have known sooner.”
I’m not sure how to respond, but I’m not letting her off the hook entirely. “We’re not just Chasers,” I correct. “We’re locals. We’ve lived here our whole lives. You knew Mancini was buying up Cape Hope, and you did nothing to stop it,” I tell her. “And Brent Matthews? He’s involved in the cover-up.”
At this, she winces. “I doubt Brent can be directly linked to anything, of that I’m fairly certain. At least, not in a legal sense. You see, people like him are smart. I’m not saying this lightly,” she adds. “Everyone around him can die or be indicted—but a smart man knows how to make it out unscathed. He’s a virus that stays with you.”
“What will he do to you?” I ask. She laughs.
“Me? Nothing. Brent Matthews works for me. As for Alex, who can say? It’s sickening, really. I’m sure that’s why he went into business with my parents in the first place. He might have killed their daughter, but look? How could he possibly be guilty if they’re working with him? He’salways wanted to be one of us,” she says, shaking her head. “He always wanted that clean money, but to get it, he needed to do the dirty work.”
“Will Mancini get away with it?” I ask. “He has a large family, an entire organization.”
“Oh, no,” she replies, shaking her head. “Alex will do jail time. And when he gets out—if he gets out—his family will welcome him right back. But for now, Alessandro Mancini is gone. I will make sure of it.”
I can’t believe how calmly she accepts this. “And that’s it?” I say. “Life at the Augustus Resort goes on as if nothing happened? Just another hurricane.”
“Of course not,” she snaps, seeming genuinely hurt. “Not at all. You seem to forget, my sister was murdered, and then we were lied to. There will be an entire investigation to navigate. At the same time… someone has to keep steering the ship. Even in a storm. These are imperfect times, Noa. We stop the ones we can, when we can. Sometimes you just have to take the win.”
I can’t believe she’d say that to me right now, standing on the beach in front of what used to be the Surf Shack.
“Sorry, but I don’t really feel like a winner here,” I tell her, nodding toward the wreckage that was my home. Cecelia’s expression falters, and then she takes a step forward to grip my hands.
“We’ll make this right for your family,” she says. “You have my word.”
I want to tell her that her word means nothing to me, except… I believe her. For whatever it’s worth, I believe her.
She squeezes my hands once before dropping them. “Let your father know I’ll be in touch with him tomorrow. And if you need a place to stay tonight, I can—”
“We’ll be fine tonight,” I tell her, not because I know we will be, but because I don’t want to be anywhere near that resort right now.
Cecelia seems to understand, and turns to leave, sauntering slowly back toward the resort.
There is no way to know if things will change. Even if the charges stick and Mancini goes away forever, what about the other Collective? Someone will need to take his place.
Who knows if we’ll end up with worse.
Over the next two hours, I watch firefighters and police record and photograph the scene from the dock, gathering proof of the arson that destroyed the Surf Shack.
I overhear one firefighter say the earlier rain had wet the wood, slowing the fire’s progression. That we were lucky.
Lucky.
The damage to the Surf Shack is extensive. We’ll need to tear it down completely, and possibly our home. But at least a few of my things might still be salvageable inside. Photos of my mother, old memories. I guess that is a bit lucky.
While both Ellis and Jamie were taken to the hospital, I watch as my father leaves with the sheriff to get his statement at the precinct. Alongside them is Matteo, which is pretty strange to see, honestly. But I’m proud that Matteo really is willing to testify against his father. I know that had to be a tough decision to make.
I say goodbye to Tech when his mother arrives to pick him up. Angela rushes over to give me a big hug, crying just as hard as any of us. She tells me she’ll go to the hospital to check on Ellis. She smiles and says it’s good to have our boy home again.
Eventually, everyone is gone. I walk to sit on the edge of the dock with a wool blanket from the EMTs wrapped around my body. My feet dangle over the water. The night is quiet, although I can still hear the crackling of hot embers from my home. There’s the sound of a car turning into the parking lot, and I turn that way. A taxi drives off.
Jamie rounds the corner, back from the hospital. He pauses a moment to survey the damage to my home, and then he walks down the dock toward me. He doesn’t say anything as he sits down next to me on the edge. He’s not wearing a jacket and his dress shirt is ripped and smeared in blood. His tie is missing. He holds up his newly bandaged arm.
“Only eight stiches had to be replaced,” he says. “I think I’m getting tougher.”
I meet his eyes, those sweet, brown eyes, and then I completely fall apart and cry as he holds me.
CHAPTER THIRTY
