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“Like I said, Katherine doesn’t know. And from what I could figure out, they didn’t know each other before the fire,” he said, pointing to the picture in Matthew’s hand. “She didn’t even live in Windsong until after Max died.”

“But how could this happen?” Matthew wanted to reason everything out, but his mind wouldn’t cooperate. “This can’t be true.”

“It’s true, man. The facts are the facts. And we got enough of those to prove it. Max Chandler was having an affair and playin’ house with her and his kid when Katherine was out of town. And on the night he died, he saved his girlfriend before his own child, andthatis the woman he was with.”

“But why him? Why would she even—”

“Fall for a guy like him?” Justin asked. “She’s not a bad girl, Matthew. She just got caught up in the lies of a bad dude. If you think about it, she’s really no different than Katherine.”

“Bullshit,” Matthew snapped. “How can you compare the two?”

“I get it, man. You’re pissed off,” Justin conceded. “After I found out, I felt the same thing you’re feelin’. Honestly, I think she’s here to look out for Katherine. Maybe even try to fix what happened.”

“No one can fix what happened to Katie. That fire destroyed her life.”

“Don’t you think I know that?”

When Justin snapped back at him, Matthew could see the years of frustration and turmoil boil to the surface. There had never been a reason for his partner to tell anyone other than the Chief who else was inside Gideon and Ruth Chandler’s house on the night of the fire. But now there was.

“I’m sorry, man. This ain’t easy for me either. I’ve grown to like this girl. But it’s true. Before he saved his child,Max Chandler saved the life of his secret girlfriend. And that girlfriend was Beth Ann Lucas.”

Chapter 21

Her name hung suspended in the air, like a bullet traveling in slow motion, as Matthew and Justin sat in silence, each of them waiting for the other to speak.

“Beth Ann Lucas…” Matthew finally murmured to himself, her name sounding more like a question of disbelief than a statement of fact.

“Yep, good old Beth Ann. She was the one with Max that night,” Justin said, likely for both of their sakes since it was still hard for him to wrap his mind around it after all these years.

Eager to explain the evidence in greater detail, Justin pulled theChandler Fire—Investigation Resultsfolder from his partner’s grip and searched for the exact papers confirming her identity. Then he showed Matthew that based on fingerprints lifted from various locations inside the house, Beth Ann had been everywhere in the Chandler family home, including the master bedroom.

“Do you think Max was having sex with her in his parents’ bed?”

“That’s what the evidence points to.”

“What was he thinking?” Matthew shook his head in disgust. “That’s something a high school kid does when his parents are out of town.”

“I tried to tell ya he was a bad guy.” Justin shook his head. “But here’s the kicker—”

“Dear God, there’s more?”

“Oh, there’s a lot more. Like the fact that his parents knew about Beth Ann. They even welcomed her into their home a time or two.”

“What?!” Matthew practically shouted. “What kind of messed-up people have their son’s girlfriend over when he’s got a wife and baby at home?”

“Now, just hold on a second.” Justin raised a hand. “You gotta understand that Gideon and Ruth Chandler really are good people. And whatever horror stories that boy told his folks about his marriage, they obviously bought into it. Then, with Katherine wrapped up in a new baby and tryin’ to figure out how to attend culinary school, she probably wasn’t around much for them to know what was really going on. Or to defend herself against the lies Max must’ve told his parents about her.”

“What about after the fire? Didn’t they find out then?”

“Gideon and Ruth returned home from vacation to a burnt-out shell of a home and the loss of a son and grandchild to deal with. They were so devastated. I don’t think they spoke to anyone after that,” Justin said, with pity in his voice. “Once they got the all-clear from the insurance company, they salvaged what little they could and had what was left of the house demolished. After that, they put the property up for sale and moved to Portland to be closer to their oldest son and his family.”

“And Katherine, what about her?”

“Poor Katherine was going through her own turmoil when all this was happenin’. By the time she started findin’ things out,she didn’t have the strength to defend herself against all the lies Max must’ve filled his parents’ heads with, let alone care what Gideon and Ruth thought about her. That girl was so shut down after losing Addison that the entire Bennett family had to get up and walk out of Max’s funeral. Jerome told me later that they were worried Katherine would go off the deep end in front of everyone.”

Matthew felt sick. He’d never been the squeamish type. Not even some of the worst parts of the job bothered him like other young officers, but this was almost more than he could handle.

The thought of his sweet Katie going through so much devastating pain made his stomach twist into knots as an unrelenting ache penetrated deep into his soul. He wished he could go back in time to comfort her. Hold her. Stand by her. And most of all, protect her from the awful truths that had hurt her.