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Suddenly, someone was lifting her up and she heard sirens and voices as she was loaded into a big vehicle with flashing lights.
“Stelli,” she croaked, as the ambulance doors closed.
“Your little boy is fine,” the EMT said to her. “You saved his life.”
Piper closed her eyes in relief. “Thank God,” she said. “Thank God.”
The next time she opened her eyes, Leo was in a chair next to her bed—a hospital bed, she realized, as she looked around theroom. The pain in her shoulder brought everything into sharper focus.
“You’re awake,” he said, leaning forward to take her hand. “How do you feel?”
“Some pain. What happened? Where are the children? Is Stelli all right?”
“Stelli’s fine. He and Evie are with the Mortons, friends who live about a mile down the road from the house. The kids will be more comfortable there.”
She swallowed, her mouth dry. “Water?”
Leo picked up a lidded cup and brought the straw to her lips.
She drank greedily and then rested her head back on the pillow, exhausted by the effort. “Joanna?”
“She tried to kill Stelli. Almost killed you. The police have her now.” His voice sounded raw.
“She never stopped following us, did she? She knew we’d be at the house in Maine,” Piper said.
“Rebecca told her we were going there. She—”
“What? Rebecca was talking to her about us?” Piper asked before Leo could finish.
“I called her a little while ago, to let her know what happened. Apparently, Joanna had gotten in touch with her, feeding her lies about you. Rebecca thought the children might be in danger, so she told Joanna about the trip. Joanna had told her about Ethan’s death and then the accident with Mia and Matthew.”
Piper shook her head, disbelieving. “All this time Joanna thought I was a murderer?”
Leo took her hand again. “She convinced Rebecca of it, too. Ava got to Joanna and clearly convinced her.” He took her hand again. “I’m furious that Rebecca called Joanna. I told her to pack her things and leave.”
“That’s probably for the best.”
“She should have come to me. We could have avoided all of this.” He shook his head.
She sighed, thinking about Joanna again. “I knew Joanna had problems, but I never imagined she could go as far as she did.”
“It’s my fault. I never realized how unbalanced she was. All the years she was at the firm, she was invaluable to me. She was the perfect assistant.” His eyes clouded over. “I should have seen what was happening. She was just such a help after Olivia died, offering to get the kids from school, packing their lunches, cooking their meals. All I could think about was my wife and how much I missed her. I let it go too far by allowing Joanna to stay in the guest wing and spend weekends with the kids and me. Nothing ever went on between us, trust me. That was the last thing on my mind,” he was quick to add.
“Joanna thought that because you let her stay at the house and help with the children that she was meant to be your wife?”
“I guess so. But I knew something was off when she started acting like it washerhouse—rearranging the kitchen, questioning me about my plans, looking at my emails. I guess because she was living at the house until Rebecca could come back she started to feel like it was her house. I wrote it off as her being pushy. She ran everything at the office, so I thought she was just trying to help... or at least I told myself that. I was grieving, and I needed the support. But then she got so weird and angry that I was seeing you. Stupid me, I assumed it was because she was worried about the kids and felt it was too soon after Olivia’s death. When she told me that she loved me, I felt guilty. I told her I didn’t feel the same way, but I had to handle her with kid gloves. I mean, how would it look? My assistant staying over at my house.”
“I never understood how she got so intertwined in your life in the first place.”
He leaned back in his chair and ran a hand through his hair. “It started when Olivia’s depression escalated, and Joanna became her confessor. Olivia confided to Joanna that she believed she was a bad mother, that her depression made it impossible for her to care for the children the way she should. I see now that Joanna saw it as her mission after Olivia died to become the mother she thought they needed. I knew the night she came downstairs in Olivia’s red dress that she was taking things too far.” He shook his head. “When Joanna left to take care of her mother, it seemed like the problem had been solved—she would go home and I would ease her out of our lives slowly. It was so stupid of me.”
“You were trying to be kind, and the children loved her. You couldn’t have known that she’d escalate things the way she did.”
He stared past Piper, unblinking. “No. I’m a criminal lawyer. I should have seen it. All I saw was a lonely woman professing her love. I thought she’d get over it with time.”
“Stop beating yourself up, Leo. There’s no telling what caused her to snap the way she did. We’re safe now. And together. That’s all that matters.” She paused. “Why didn’t Olivia get some professional help?”
“She should have, but she insisted she could fight it by herself. The despair would take over one minute, and the next she’d be on a manic high. I never knew who she would be when I got home. She wanted to prove that she was strong enough to do it on her own, with no medication, no help with the children... but obviously, it was too much for her.” His face sagged. “I should have insisted.”