“For the life of me,” Moira said, “I have no idea why you’re asking this question. She’s telling you that there are others besides his children who had a motive for killing Derek Wolfe.”

“All she’s telling me is that she had a motive,” Morgan said icily.

“We’ve already established that Ms. Jones was not in New York at the time of the murder,” Zach said, his tone adamant.

“Zach is right,” Moira agreed. “I think this meeting is over.”

“No,” I said softly.

“Zee,” Moira said. “You don’t have to do this.”

“I do have to. I have to for all those women who didn’t survive. And I also have to for myself. To put this to bed in my own mind. I’ve carried it around for far too long.”

Moira smiled. She reminded me of my grandmother, who died when I was ten. Very nurturing but also a spitfire who didn’t let anyone push her around. “As you wish.”

I cleared my throat. “I didn’t come forward earlier because I was afraid, Detective. I was a mess. Men had kidnapped me, cut me, and then hunted me with the intention of killing me. That’s not something you get over quickly.”

“I never meant to suggest that it was,” Morgan said.

“Well, you kind of did. What woman in her right mind would go straight to the person who violated her and demand money to keep her mouth shut?”

“You could have gone to the police.”

“I should have. But I was kind of catatonic for a while. I have no idea how I got to the ER. I have no idea how I got home. I was a mess, and my mother wanted me to get back into modeling right away.”

“Why didn’t you?”

“I hated modeling. I wanted to go to college.”

“Why didn’t you go? You said you had a scholarship.”

“Because I couldn’t.”

“Why?”

Rage swirled through me like a black storm. “It’s all so easy to sit in judgment of me, isn’t it? But you’ve never been through what I’ve been through. I was a mess. I needed an escape.”

“So you turned to drugs.”

“I did. I’m not proud of it.”

“She got help,” Moira said. “She took responsibility.”

“And then you went to Derek Wolfe.”

I gulped. “Yes. To pay off my rehab, and to get some money to begin a new life somewhere far away.”

“Las Vegas.”

“Yes.”

“You dance in a topless show.”

“I do.”

“Why didn’t you just prostitute yourself? It’s legal there, you know.”

Moira and Zach both stood. Gone was the nurturing Moira. Now she was a lioness protecting a cub.

I was never so thankful to be a cub.

“This meeting is over.” She held her hand out to me. “Come on, Zee.”

“I agree,” Zach said. “The Wolfes will hear about this.”