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Izzy

The air is so thick it’s hard to breathe. All eyes rest on Erika, who is on her knees, her face a knot of agony.

“Talk,” says David.

I watch him closely. He’s a time bomb, a threat that grows with every second that ticks by.

Unfortunately, Erika seems to have lost her voice at a most inopportune moment. She manages to get to her feet, but she’s not saying a word. The gun stays on Lucas.

In the silence, I find myself moving toward David, not away. I know I should be afraid—terrified, in fact. But I’ve reached some kind of breaking point. This man has put his mark on my family for long enough. I won’t let him control the narrative any longer.

“Let him go—you can have me instead,” I say, stepping in front of Lucas.

Julia’s eyes go wide. She can’t believe what I’ve just done. Honestly, I can’t believe it, either. Taylor gasps, but I’m not budging. I’ve set my sights on David while he glares back at me.

It’s on.

“Susie Welch is my aunt,” I announce, mainly for David’s benefit. The shock that spreads across his face delights me.

“She’s your aunt?” David squints as though he can’t see clearly.

“You sneaky little bitch. I knew you weren’t telling me the whole story, but I never would have guessed that.

I suppose you get what you pay for. I was desperate for a new nanny after Fiona figured out I was sleeping with the last one. ” He smirks like he’s proud of himself.

“Nice. Way to keep it classy,” I say. “And you had no chance with me, by the way, I can assure you of that. I only wanted this job to investigate what happened to my aunt. I found out quite a lot, too. I know what you did to her, and I have every intention of exposing you for her rape and murder. So, if you have to hold someone accountable, it should be me. Let Lucas go. He has nothing to do with this.”

I sound a lot braver than I feel. Inside, I’m quaking. I’ve never had a gun pointed at me, and the feeling is far more frightening than I anticipated. But here I am, being dangerously impulsive yet again, skipping the filter of logic and reason and going straight from thought into action.

I steal a glance at Lucas, who appears conflicted about being rescued.

Instead of relief, his eyes are full of confusion.

We look at each other, and I try to make it clear he doesn’t have to be the big strong man.

I’ve got more skin in this game than he does.

Besides, he has more pressing concerns—namely the baby he doesn’t know about.

I shift my focus ever so briefly to Taylor, and when I do, Lucas seems to get it. He might not know all the facts, but he’s sensitive enough to understand that this is best for her, and that’s enough for him. Lucas moves aside.

David doesn’t object.

“Go ahead and play hero if that’s what you want,” he says.

“Your aunt’s charges against me went nowhere.

And good luck sending me to jail now that she’s not around to tell her side of the story.

” He addresses Lucas directly. “Stay where I can see you. If your mother doesn’t give me the answers I need, this rifle will be pointing right back at you. ”

Welp, my heroism hasn’t really changed anything. Lucas and Taylor are still in danger. Hopefully, Erika will pull it together and get us out of this jam.

David turns toward her, expecting the same. My body relaxes, but only a little.

“You’re my worry, not the damn nanny,” he says, addressing Erika. “Now, answer me… where the fuck is Fiona, and what the hell are you both up to?”

A ragged inhale and exhale help Erika to settle. She appears more composed, while my blood pressure is skyrocketing.

Erika turns to Rick, sorrow etched on her face. “I’m done,” she announces. “Enough is enough. Whatever the punishment, whatever the consequences, we’re going to face this together.”

Rick holds up a hand in protest. “What? No. We didn’t agree to this.”

“It’s over,” Erika declares with authority. “I can’t risk anybody else getting hurt. It’s the right thing to do. We should have done it ages ago. I’m going to end this once and for all.”

Rick says nothing, though anger ripples off him.

Erika tunes out her husband’s objections to focus on David. “You did this to yourself,” she tells him like a mother scolding her child. “You started the whole chain of events when you came to me for seed money to invest in your electronics company.”

“NewPulse?” David is surprised.

I remember being in the kitchen when David, shirtless and sweaty, tossed me a blue tee with his company’s name emblazoned on the front. I can’t figure out how an electronic components company could connect to Fiona, Jimmy T, Aunt Susie, Anna Olsen, Erika, and the Mob, but color me curious.

“When Rick and I wouldn’t give you the money, what did you say, David?”

He smiles wickedly, eyeing Erika down the long black barrel. “I said I’ve kept your secret all these years, but there could be an expiration date on my goodwill.”

“That’s not goodwill, that’s a threat,” says Erika.

David chides her with his eyes. “I needed some help for a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and you laughed me off, told me the business would go nowhere. But with NewPulse, I saw what you didn’t—a golden goose.

I knew better.” He chuckles softly to himself.

“I couldn’t go to the bank—they don’t like guys who make most of their money under the table.

And I’ll be honest, I couldn’t go to Jimmy for the cash because he was still pissed about Bella.

So, I went to the next best source—you. Jimmy told me how much Cormac left you in his will, and you’re a well-paid attorney on top of it.

So yeah, I asked you for the money. Hardly a crime. ”

“You blackmailed us,” Rick shouts.

“All you had to do was give me the cash and it would have been over. But my lifelong friends with their hefty bank account couldn’t be bothered.

What was I supposed to do? I needed the money.

And lucky for me, I had the leverage to get it.

The bones changed everything. I gave you a choice—pay me or pay the piper.

I think you picked wisely,” David jeers.

“And then you took our money and went and built that monstrous glass house blocking our view of the lake, just to lord it over us.” Erika’s fire sparked again, if only momentarily.

“Of course we were nervous when the remains were found, but there wasn’t anything to trace it back to us except the gun, and that was easy enough to get rid of.

“You, however, were a different story. We couldn’t let it go on. You were too big a threat. First, it was the money, then the house—who knew what was next? You could have come after us for the rest of our lives.”

David’s callous shrug suggests that Erika was right.

“I wasn’t going to let you push us around forever,” she continues. “I’m not very religious, and I certainly don’t deserve forgiveness, but it was Jesus who said, ‘The truth will set you free.’ It’s time for the truth.”

David appears smug, like he knew he’d win the standoff.

I’m waiting for Erika to address him with her big reveal, but to my astonishment, she advances toward me. I have no idea why or what she’s about to say.

David follows her with his weapon. She’s standing so close that the gun is essentially pointed at both of us.

“Izzy, I’m so sorry,” she says, her voice cracking from emotion. “Many years ago, when I was very young and foolish, I shot and killed your aunt Susie.”