“Please forgive me. Please forgive me.” Reggie’s father dropped his head on the table, his breath ragged.
Was he admitting it? Had her own father hired someone to kill her? Reggie shuddered. He didn’t look like a murderer. Dylan touched her shoulder. She stepped closer to him.
After a long pause, her father looked up at Reggie. He’d lost all color, tears stained his face. His eyes looked frantic and sad at the same time. He still held her hand.
Reggie felt his trembling. She tried not to feel sorry for the man. He didn’t deserve her pity.
“I tried to do what was best for—”
“Best for you.” Reggie pulled her hand back. How dare he act as if he ever cared about her or her well-being? “Certainly not best for me. I’ve spent my life thinking I wasn’t good enough. That even my own mother didn’t love me.”
He winced with each word. “I just wanted to keep you safe. I thought I was doing the right thing.” Stanley said. “I see now I made the wrong decisions, but I thought it was best…”
Safe? Best? She stared at him. She opened her mouth, but didn’t know what to say. Nothing the man said made any sense.
Billy’s cell phone buzzed, breaking the spell.
“We’re fine. No need to call the police.” Without another word, he closed his cell phone. “Let’s calm all down a minute. Who were you trying to protect her from?”
“We need answers.” Dylan caressed her shoulder and then pulled out a chair for her. He sat in another, scooted closer and kept her hand firmly in his.
Billy walked over and poured another glass of water and set it in front of Stan. Picking up the glass, Stanley’s hand still shook. He took a drink then looked at Billy. “What do you mean, someone is trying to kill her?”
Reggie let out the breath she’d been holding.
“There have been several attempts on Reggie’s life in the past week.” Billy perched on the edge of the table. “The last one ended with the death of a professional hitman. Unfortunately, he died before we found out who hired him.”
“It’s my fault. My fault.” Stanley’s gray hair stuck out in every direction.
Her heart lurched.
“You wanted to kill me?” Reggie’s voice shook.
Dylan squeezed her hand.
Stanley looked at Reggie with horror written across his face. “No, no. My dear, I only wanted to keep you safe.”
“Why did you think she needed to be kept safe?” Dylan asked, impatience edging into his voice.
Ignoring Dylan, Stanley Federer continued to look at Reggie. “Did you really think that disguise would keep me from recognizing you?”
“We all did.”
A hint of a smile crossed his face. “Your mother had auburn hair. With that wig, you looked just like Jeannie and just as beautiful.”
She clutched Dylan’s hand. He gave her a reassuring squeeze. This whole scene was so bizarre. It was as if the earth were spinning out of control. The only thing keeping her rooted in reality was Dylan’s hand.
“I don’t remember her at all. I had no idea what color my…my…her hair was. I’ve never even seen a picture of her.”
Tears leaked from his worn face. He took a deep breath as if to compose himself. “I have a few. I will show them to you. I’m so sorry. After your mother’s death, I thought the best thing would be for you to be as far away from me as possible.”
“Dead?” Blood rushed to her head. She stood, but decided sitting was the better choice. Reggie stared at him. “I th…tho..thought she didn’t want me. I thought she abandoned me.”
Stanley stared at the ceiling, then looked back at Reggie. He shook his head. “No, no, no. You were the light of her life, but she needed to go see her father. I offered to hire a nurse for you but…she left you at the hospital instead. She was convinced it was the only place that could care for you properly because of your diabetes. She was killed before she could come back and get you.”
Tears trickled down Reggie’s cheeks, but she brushed them away. Her mother dead. And all these years she’d accused the woman of not caring. Just assumed she’d deserted her. Dylan handed her a napkin.
“I thought…I...” Reggie bit her lip. “I thought she didn’t want me because of my diabetes.”
“Absolutely not.” The man shook his head. “She adored you.”
Reggie’s whole world shifted with his words. The beliefs she’d held her whole life were based on illusion, not reality. Her mother hadn’t abandoned her. Her mother had loved her, had wanted her.
Sadness and anger melted away, replaced with grief. Her mother dead. Reggie struggled to keep her emotions in check. Too much to deal with. She would think about it later. For now, she had to find out who wanted her dead.
She wiped away the tears, took a deep breath and squeezed Dylan’s hand. Reggie’s eyes met her father’s. “Why didn’t you take care of me?”
Stanley stared at the floor for so long, she thought he wouldn’t answer. His gaze moved up to meet hers. “I couldn’t. I was married. It wouldn’t have worked out. I thought it would be safer for you not be a part of my life.”
“You keep saying that, but you aren’t telling us why. You’re not giving us the information we need.” Dylan looked at the man.
Stanley’s breathing was ragged. Reggie stared at him. He didn’t look good.
“How did Reggie’s mother die?” Dylan asked.
Gulping air, the man looked up. He looked as though he’d aged twenty years in the past ten minutes. “A hit and run accident.”
A married man, with a mistress and an illegitimate child. Life would be a lot less complicated with them out of the picture. She didn’t want to ask but she had to.“Did you do it?”
He shook his head. “Of course not. I loved your mother. We were going to be married as soon as my divorce went through. But…but…after the accident…” He searched for the right words. “After the accident, I thought it better to stay with my wife.”
Reggie’s voice turned brittle. “Who killed my mother?”
His face contorted. He stood and walked to the window. The room was silent as they waited for his answer.
She couldn’t take it anymore. She needed to do something while Stanley pulled himself together. She walked to the table, poured some water to sip, and forced herself to take a bite of the biscotti.
She heard a noise and turned. The door opened.