CHAPTER 38
My baby’sfuture depends on it.
Sissy’s words echoed in Naomi’s mind.
“I won’t let them get her,” Naomi said. “I promise.”
“And Richard—” Sissy’s voice broke. “I still love him. I do. But his family is different. They’re not like him. You have to believe me.”
Naomi’s jaw tightened.
Sissy was still in love with Richard Harding. The man who’d murdered Sarah. The man who’d manipulated Sissy into infiltrating the family, into planting herself in their lives, into getting pregnant so he’d have leverage.
Naomi didn’t understand it. She couldn’t wrap her mind around how someone could love a man who’d used her so completely.
But she saw the truth in Sissy’s expression. In the way her voice softened when she said Richard’s name.
She wanted to tell Sissy she was a fool. But then she remembered that Sissy was a victim too. Just a different kind.
A voice crackled over the intercom. “Visitation ending in two minutes.”
Sissy’s face crumpled. “No. No, please. I need more time?—”
“I’m sorry,” Naomi said, her own voice thick. “We have to go.”
“Please take care of her.” Sissy pressed both hands against the glass now, tears streaming down her face. “Please. She’s all I have.”
“I will. I promise.”
The door on Sissy’s side opened, and a guard stepped through. “Time’s up, Sutton. Let’s go.”
Sissy shook her head, not moving. “Just one more minute. Please?—”
“Now.”
The guard’s tone left no room for negotiation.
Sissy stood slowly, her hands sliding down the plexiglass, leaving smudged prints behind. She looked at Grace one last time—at the baby who had no idea her mother was being taken away—and her face twisted with grief.
“I love you,” she whispered into the phone. “I love you so much.”
Then she hung up the receiver and let the guard lead her toward the door.
Naomi sat frozen, Grace still in her arms, staring at the empty chair on the other side of the glass.
Micah moved forward and rested his hand on her shoulder. “Come on. Let’s pick up our things from security.”
Naomi nodded but didn’t move right away. Instead, she sat there, holding Grace, staring at the smudged handprints Sissy had left behind.
Finally, she stood slowly and turned toward him. “Let’s get out of here.”
Micah guided her toward the door, one hand on her back, keeping her moving forward.
As they stepped into the hallway and the door buzzed shut behind them, Naomi’s mind was already racing.
Dale Harding. Criminal connections. People who didn’t ask questions.
Because the warning had been clear.
