"Well, what I do know is that I'm not going back to Carmel until I know what happened to Mom, not only yesterday but also twenty years ago."

"It's too dangerous, Brynn. You heard the detective. He told you not to stay at Mom's house."

"Then I'll get a hotel room, but I'm not leaving San Francisco. Not yet."

"That's crazy. You can't just stay here. I need you at the shop. Mom doesn't deserve for you to turn your life upside down for her. You need to think of the bigger picture."

"I can't leave today." I knew I should tell her about the job offer, about my long-term plans, but there was so much else to deal with it, I just couldn't get the words out.

"I'll worry about you if you stay," Dani argued. "And I can't stay with you. I can't put my baby in danger."

"I would never ask you to do that."

"But I don't want you to be in danger, either. And you will be. Mom had to be mixed up in something terrible. I don't want you to pay any more than you already have for whatever she did in her life. I love you, Brynn. We're sisters. We have to stick together."

Dani's words were persuasive, as they always were. Whenever I'd tried to put distance between us, she'd remind me how much we needed each other. And I did need her. I loved her. But at one time, I'd also loved my mother. My gaze moved past Dani to the very vulnerable and helpless woman in the bed. I wondered if she could hear us fighting about her. It probably wouldn't help with her recovery. No matter what she'd done, I wanted her to live. And I couldn't leave her here with no one to look out for her. The police would do their job, but I was her family, even if it was a family she didn't acknowledge.

I looked back at Dani. "I'll be careful."

"I'm sure she was being careful, too," Dani said harshly. "I know this sounds cruel, but she left you, and you're forgetting how much she hurt you."

"I'm not forgetting anything. Everything changed when she died, the way we grew up, our relationship with Dad, our sense of safety. I have to know why it happened."

"It's only going to hurt you more. There's no reason for her leaving that will be good enough," Dani argued. "You're setting yourself up for more pain."

"You might be right, but I still need to know." I blew out a breath, feeling like I'd just made a momentous decision. "Are you ready to leave? I'll drive you back to the house so you can get your car and go home."

"I don't like this, Brynn."

"I know you don't. But this is what's happening. Do you want to say anything to Mom before we leave?"