“He’s not stupid. His end game is getting custody of Tinsley. He won’t do anything to stuff that up.”
Knowing this isn’t a conversation we should be having around her, we try to coax Tinsley upstairs to play, but she refuses, clinging to her mum.
“Why don’t we put a movie on for you to watch?” Juliet suggests, sitting on the couch with her. “I’ll just be in the kitchen talking to Blake and Everett, okay?”
Tinsley shakes her head, but Juliet slowly extricates herself from her daughter, wrapping a throw blanket around her snugly. Kissing the top of her head, she follows us through to the open-plan kitchen where we can still keep an eye on her.
“He wants to petition the courts for a change in the custody agreement,” Everett says quietly.
“Surely he’s got no leg to stand on with his history of violence,” I hiss. “It’s just empty threats.”
Everett shrugs. “I don’t know how his past will play into it, but he’s threatened to get an investigator to look into you.”
My face drops as realisation hits.
Juliet wraps her arms around my waist and looks up at me. “You were never convicted, so there’ll be no public record of what happened to your dad.”
“Maybe not,” I say, untangling myself from her and taking a step back. “But my record isn’t exactly clean. Nothing major that would put Tinsley in harm,” I rush to reassure her. “Just a few fights at school, someunderage drinking, and some stupid vandalism shit. But if he talks to any of the guys I got into trouble with back in Sydney, they might reveal my past, and then we’re screwed.”
Everett mutters a curse.
Juliet places a hand on her forehead, a pained expression etched on her face. All the happiness I’ve felt this past week flies out the window. At this point, I honestly believe I’m cursed.
“There’s nothing we can do until we speak to the lawyer on Monday,” she says. “I’m taking Tinsley home and making sure she’s okay. I’ll call you later.”
She pulls me in for a kiss, and I sink into it despite the knot in my stomach.
“We’ll figure this out,” I promise her, though I don’t know how.
Once she and Tinsley leave, I slump against the bench. “This is fucked.”
Everett doesn’t say anything, which only makes me feel worse.
“Do you think she could lose custody?” The thought of it makes me feel physically ill.
He shoves a hand through his hair. “I don’t know.”
I mutter a curse.
“This isn’t your fault. Dad’s been planning this for a while. He even asked me to spy on her for him.” Scoffing, he adds, “As if I’d help that bastard with anything.”
“I can’t be the reason he gets access to Tinsley.” My voice cracks.
“You won’t. We’ll talk to the lawyer on Monday and figure itout.”
“What’s the likelihood of him following through on his threat?”
“Pretty high. He’s pissed Juliet left him, and he’ll do anything to get back at her.”
“It’s been eighteen months.”
“He doesn’t care. She made a fool of him when she left him and took his kid. Now they’re moving on with their life, and the miserable bastard’s not going to let that slide. It’s all about control for him, and right now his only bargaining chip is Tinsley.”
I lift my heavy gaze to meet his. “I’m sorry.”
He shakes his head. “If it wasn’t you, it would’ve been someone else.”
That thought twists like a knife in the gut, but her someone else probably wouldn’t have skeletons as dark as mine. Edward’s got money, and in this situation, that’s dangerous. Money can buy you information, especially in the crowds I used to hang around in. If he finds out I murdered my dad, the fact I was never convicted because of my age and the circumstances won’t matter. His lawyers will find a way to prove I’m a danger to Tinsley, and Juliet will lose custody.
