It was perhaps the only voice that would have gotten through to her in this moment, so stuck in the past did she find herself.
But Jill…
She looked up at the granddaughter who’d so patiently cared for her after the stroke.Who’d never gotten impatient with all her frailties.Her bad attitude.Her refusal of so much.The way she’d shut down.All the hard edges she’d built to keep herself safe, Jill had never done anything but let herself be cut by them.
Glenda was used to taking care of herself and everyone she loved, but this sweet girl had taken care ofher.
Jill was huffing and puffing.A muddy, desperate mess.Tears in her eyes and tracking down her dirty cheeks.Cal was holding her back.Nate was here now and that detective.Sam, Landon and Aly too.
Glenda didn’t know who’d shot Daryl.It didn’t matter.
If she pulled the trigger, everyone would know who killed him.Everyone was giving her the chance.No one was trying to stop her.They were leaving it up toher.
She wanted to.She really did.Pull that trigger.End his life for certain.Good riddance.An eye for an eye.Fairand justified.
But she’d go to jail, no matter her reasons.
Still.Tempting.
Glenda looked down at Daryl, still felt the pull.She could end it all.It would be righteous.It would be revenge.
And Jill would witness it.She would see that choice, and it would haunt her forever.Her son would know what she’d done, and she would spend her days in jail, disappointing everyone she loved that she had left.
Glenda wouldn’t let that be the case.
She dropped her arm.She didn’t want that for her granddaughter.All this hard.All this pain.She wanted something softer than Glenda had ever been able to find in this life.
Arms came around her then.Jill hugging her tight.Crying and reassuring her.
Glenda looked at Daryl, ashen, bleeding out.Before she could think of anything to say—some kind of blame or closure or something, someone rushed up to him.
Paramedics had gotten up here apparently.
But Glenda didn’t care.She didn’t care about any of it.All the past.She’d never stopped loving her husband.She never would.
And now she didn’t have to lie about the story of Gerald Harrington.
Like the truth really had set her free.
Chapter Thirty-Five
Marietta Police Department
Getting back downto town had taken some time and doing; the paramedics had taken Daryl away.Hayes had stayed with the emergency personnel to handle the crime scene, such as it was.He’d given them all instructions to head down to Marietta and meet him at the police station.
They were in decent enough shape to walk back to the Harrington cabin, even Glenda.From there, Cal had insisted on driving Jill’s truck down to the station—Jill and Glenda in tow, while Landon and Aly had driven Nate and Sam back to Nate’s truck so Sam and Nate could drive in.
Of course, Landon and Aly hadn’t been content to stay put at the ranch.Even though they hadn’t had much to do with anything, they sat in the same police station lobby, doing what they could to help.
Cal watched Aly murmur comforting words to Jill or Glenda.Landon got coffees, snacks.Just… taking care of anyone in their wake.Like two anchors amongst the rest of their floating, bobbing driftwood.
It stirred up something in Cal he was too tired to deal with right now.Thoughts on family and roots and what could be built when secrets weren’t the ever-growing vines closing in on you and pulling you under.
Hayes wanted to talk to each of them individually, though Cal thought this was all a bit overkill.Hayes had been there.Couldn’t he handle it without making each of them relive it again?
Cal blew out a breath, went ahead and closed his eyes, even thought he might doze off.Hell, Hayes could wake him if he wanted to.
No one said anything.What was there to say?More secrets uncovered.More lies turned into the truth.Where did it all end?How did it all matter when they’d lived this long with the lies?
