“No, I always went to him. I didn’t want him to see where you’d grown up. The more you stayed out of his mind, the better he functioned.”

Her cheeks flamed like she’d been slapped.

“It was for the best, Gianna,” Saul said gently. “Emotions were very hard for him to process.”

“Why was he here?” Gianna asked. “How did he come to be in my cabin?”

“That’s where I get a bit confused,” answered Saul. “I hadn’t heard from him for several months. The last few times I talked with him, he seemed obsessed with Leo Berg. After years of not caring, suddenly he was upset that Leo had changed the name from Berssina to BergTech. He worried that you weren’t getting any money from the company, even though I assured him Leo always paid.”

“He did. Leo has always been nothing but wonderful to me.”

“Your father didn’t think so. Several times he ranted on the phone to me that he thought Leo wanted you dead so he no longer had to share the company’s profits. Other times he’d claim that the South African company had hired someone to make that happen, so they’d have more profits, too.”

Ice formed in Gianna’s throat. “He thought someone wanted to kill me?”

“Why didn’t you warn her? Or call the police?” Chris interjected. “Christ. She’s got a daughter.”

Saul held up a hand. “You don’t understand. You don’t know what Richard was like.”

“No, I don’t, because the two of you decided to keep him from me and Violet for the rest of our lives!”

“Richard didn’t think rationally. His brain was never the same. People who suffer TBIs often have anxiety and panic attacks. They’re easily overstimulated and can’t deal with everyday tasks like a trip to the grocery store. I was used to hearing Richard’s crazy stories. He never got over the feeling of being hunted. He thought people were following him almost every day of his life.” Saul’s gaze went from her to Chris, pleading for understanding. “I’d learned to never take what he said at face value.”

“It almost got Gianna and Violet killed! Maybe if they’d been warned, they wouldn’t have been alone in a cabin in the middle of the woods!” Chris’s grip on her hand tightened.

“You did what you could,” Gianna said slowly, looking at her uncle. “That’s why you had the tracking on our phones. That’s why you came immediately when you heard I had a close call.” Small pieces slipped into place in her brain. Her uncle always wanted to know where she was going and what she was doing. Even when he lived three thousand miles away.

“What else could I do? Tell you to look over your shoulder for assassins?”

“Wait a minute. So who killed Richard?” Chris asked. “And tried to kill Gianna? Who did Richard believe was after him? And why would anyone kill Richard after he’d been in hiding all these years?”

Saul leaned forward. “I’ll make some calls and get his apartment searched. The last time I visited him, he was living in a place outside of Palm Desert. Maybe there’s something there that will indicate what he thought was going on.”

“I’ll want to go see it.” Every cell in Gianna’s body wanted to see where her father had lived. After the crushing news of the last hour, her heart had finally found something to latch on to. “Don’t let them throw out anything.”

“I’ll be right back.” Saul pulled out his cell phone as he vanished into the bedroom.

“This is crazy,” Chris stated. He didn’t let go of her hand. It was a small tether keeping her grounded after the events of the morning. She clung to it.

“My father was murdered for something he knew,” Gianna said. She had no proof; it was simply what her heart and head told her.

“I think you’re right,” said Chris. “And I believe it’s connected to his old company or that South African business. Why would they kill your father now? What threat could he pose to them? It sounds like he was a very confused man.”

Her heart ached for the years with her father she’d missed. She didn’t care how messed up his brain had been; she’d deserved to know him. Violet had deserved to know her grandfather. “It must have been big. My father hid for all that time, believing they’d kill him if they knew he lived.”

“Somehow he got on their radar.”

“What did he do?” whispered Gianna. “They killed him and came after me and Violet. Violet!” She whirled to face him. “We need to tell her. No! Wait. Don’t tell her. Tell Jamie and Michael. Maybe they should take her to the police.”

Chris already had his phone out and was tapping a text. “I’m reaching out to Michael. But really, Gianna.” He stopped and a serious hazel gaze held hers. “I’d want Michael watching over Brian instead of any cops. He’d give his life for your daughter.”

Gianna stared back at him. “He doesn’t know her . . . or me . . . why would he do that?”

“That’s who he is,” Chris said simply as he finished his text.

I believe him. Calm settled over her. Her daughter would be safe with Chris’s brother.

“He says he’s heading home immediately. He’ll call Jamie right now and let us know promptly if anything is wrong.”

“The landlord will give a key to one of my assistants,” said Saul as he stepped back in the room. “I’ll arrange for someone to drive out to Palm Desert. The landlord said he’d been about to enter the apartment because the rent was a few days overdue, and Richard hadn’t returned his phone calls. He says he can’t remember seeing him for the past several weeks.”