"The postcards in the box," I said. "Now that makes sense."

"I made a new life in San Francisco," my mom continued.

"And I went to Phoenix for a while," Rachel said. "While I was there, I got in touch with a cop in New Orleans who I knew had been working on taking down the smuggling operation. I told him everything I knew about the organization and the Davino family. Eventually he, along with some cops in New York, busted Max and his family for at least some of their criminal operations. Max was sent to jail for ten years."

"That's why Max said you set him up," I said.

"Yes. I had to do something. When he was locked away, it was the first time I could breathe."

"Did you tell that cop you were involved in the robbery at Holden's estate, that Max had killed Kade's father?" I asked.

Rachel shook her head. "No. I focused on the other information I had gotten on his current operations. I didn't have any proof for the other."

"And you didn't want to get yourself in trouble," Kade said sharply.

"That's true, too," Rachel admitted. "After Max went to prison, the cop I'd become friends with helped us get new identities again. We weren't officially in witness protection, because I hadn't testified publicly, but we were able to get new social security numbers, fingerprints, IDs, and fake histories. We became Rachel O'Connor and Laura Hawthorne."

That explained Laura's fake background that had allowed her to teach. "Okay. But why didn't you come back when Max went to prison, Mom?"

"It had been three years since I'd died," Laura said. "It was too late."

"It wasn't too late," I protested. "Dani and I were ten years old. We still needed our mother."

My mom looked at me with sorrow in her eyes. "I actually did go back to see you a year later, but your father was about to marry Vicky, and you all looked so happy, I couldn't ruin that."

"You saw us when we were eleven?" I asked in amazement.

"I was nearby at other times in your life, too. I had to let you go, but I still needed to see you."

"What about what we needed?" Dani demanded, her voice rising with the level of her agitation. "Did you ever think about that? I'm guessing the answer is no. Because you and your sister are selfish. You only think about each other."

"Dani," Steve said. "Maybe we should go. This is too much for you."

"You're right," Dani said. "It is too much. And I'm not sure I even believe half of what either of you are saying. I'll wait outside for you, Brynn. Unless you're ready to go now?"