"I think Dad found out Mom was alive, and he fell apart. That's why he's not talking to any of us."

"I don't know if that's why," I said slowly, the doubts about my father growing more with each minute that he stayed away.

"It is," Dani said confidently. "You remember how he got when Mom died. He couldn't talk to anyone. At the funeral, he disappeared halfway through the reception. He drove up to the cabin and didn't come back for two weeks. He doesn't like to be with anyone when he feels weak."

"He likes to disappear, doesn't he? When things get rough, he's nowhere to be found."

"But he always comes back."

"He better come back soon," I said heavily.

"What are you doing tonight?" Dani asked. "Can I at least persuade you to finally go to a hotel?"

"I'm going to the concert at Mom's school tonight. They're going to have a vigil for her before it starts. The principal thought it would be nice for me to be there."

"I guess you can't get into too much trouble at a high school concert. But I hate that you're alone."

"Kade is going with me." I steeled myself for Dani's negative reaction.

What I got was a big sigh. "What are you doing, Brynn?"

"You know what I'm doing."

"You like this guy too much. It's weird that he's letting himself be supported by Mom. It's weird that he's living downstairs. We don't really know what their relationship is."

"They weren’t sleeping together," I said.

"I wouldn't believe anything he says."

"Mom has a connection to him, but it's not about sex."

"Then what is it about?" Dani asked.

"Well, it turns out that Mom was working with a charity group that was looking out for kids who had been hurt by violence. Kade's father was killed in a robbery, and Mom was sending money to his mother all these years through that group. Kade knew nothing about it until we found the information last night. He thought she just loved art. She never told him about the charity or the donations to his mom, nothing."

"That's a bizarre story," Dani said. "Are you sure it's true?"

"I found the evidence. Kade didn't come up with this story. He's as shocked as we are about it. Now, he's questioning everything he knows about Mom."

"Well, he can join the club. Our mother had a lot of secrets, Brynn. I don't think we ever knew her."

"I don't think we did either. But I'm going to find out who she is now. On another note, how are you feeling? How's the baby doing?"

"All is well. I just feel guilty that I'm not with you. Whenever I bring it up, Steve shuts me down. He doesn't want me to take any risks."