“And I fell right into it.”

“You became my scapegoat, my sweet rebellious sister. You swallowed a pregnant woman’s desperation, and the rest paved my golden road to millions.”

“After my prison release, you sent your dogs after me. Why, after I paid your debt? I honored the request to stay away from all of you.”

“Couldn’t risk losing all I’d built. I needed your death to permanently lock away the past so I could make my escape.”

I hid my anger and grief. “Whose handwriting was on the sympathy card?”

“Eli found a maid from a Miami hotel.”

“And what of Aria?” My lungs warred against me. I struggled to keep my strength and sucked in air.

She sneered at me. “Do I look like I want to be chained to a fifteen-year-old? She makes me crazy. Transforming Dad into a Shelby-hater took time. He denied your guilt for a few years.” She clenched her jaw. “Aria and Mom were at church every time the door opened. I went to keep up the facade. Utterly disgusting.” She laughed, a hysterical high pitch. “Aria looks and acts like you. You should see yourself. You can’t mask your revulsion of me. And I worked so hard all those years to teach you how to hide your body language.”

“My hatred is for what happened to you as a child.”

“Marissa,” Aria said. “I’m sorry I stood in your way.”

“Shut up. You and Shelby make me sick.”

“Are you going to kill us?” Aria whispered.

“You had doubts? I don’t deal with liabilities.”

The sound of an approaching vehicle seized Marissa’s attention.

84

Eli sped to the side of the car in a battered pickup and stepped out, gun in hand. “Marissa, we need to talk.”

She opened the car door and aimed her gun, sending a bullet into his left shoulder directly above his heart. Eli fell back and didn’t move. “Another problem resolved.” She whirled to us. “Out of the car. Time’s running out, and I don’t need anyone reporting gunfire.”

We exited the car, and she gestured to the front of it. A gust of wind blew, and droplets of rain hit my face . . . like the day I was released from prison. Then it was morning, now we faced sunset.

“Leave Aria out of this. Do this one good thing. She deserves a full life.” I softened my voice. “I know you want your daughter free of the hurt you’ve felt all these years.”

“Fat chance.”

The whir of helicopter blades sounded. Marissa had specifically said a plane was coming. The helicopter hovered closer over the landing strip. A bullhorn sounded.

“Marissa Stover, this is the FBI. Lay your weapon down now.”

Denton. Hope fluttered inside me.

“How did they find us?” Marissa’s anger erupted in a shriek. She stared at the car and quickly searched the sky. “They won’t shoot up the place as long as I have you two.” She pointed the gun at Aria and me. “Besides, I won’t go down alone.”