I grab onto my car and watch Mark as the tears slide down his cheeks. “I’ll never forget that moment for the rest of my life. The pain he was feeling . . . The look of pure agony and loss in his eyes ate at me and made me realize that if I were in his position that I’d do the same. I’d kill for my family too.” He releases his car and turns to me. “He’s not dangerous. He’s not a bad fucking guy. He fights for the ones he loves and does everything in his power to protect them. That makes him a good man that was in the wrong place at the wrong time. He was thrown a shitty hand and he dealt with it. All of these people in this small town don’t see it that way. They’re twisted here in some ways, and want to believe that they know who are the good civilized people and who are the bad, uncivilized savages that are nothing but a waste of space and a disgrace to their town. To them . . . Royal became a savage that night. Even to his own fucking family.”

“Oh my God,” I whisper, while wiping the tears from my eyes. “I never knew you were there that night. I’m sorry. I know how hard it must have been to witness such a tragedy. And Royal . . .”

He shakes his head, trying to pull it together, but I can see how much this truly still hurts him. “It was the hardest thing that I’ve ever had to witness, and to top it off, Royal went to jail that night. He assaulted a police officer; broke that son of a bitch’s nose for trying to keep him away from his dead fucking fiancé. He deserved it, but the court didn’t see it that way. Officers Payton and Cooper made sure of it, and also made sure that he didn’t get to see the light of day until his justice was served. They couldn’t get him on murder because it was self-defense, so the asshole cop whose nose he broke, charged him with assault. Royal spent five weeks in jail after losing the love of his life. It was total fucking shit and I felt helpless that I couldn’t do a damn thing to help him. He didn’t utter a word for weeks.”

“His parents took care of everything on the outside to make sure Olivia had a proper burial, but they stayed far away from Royal and didn’t even bother to visit him.”

I cover my face and shake my head so hurt by all that Royal has been through. I had no idea the extent of things and I hate hearing this. It makes me angry. “So Royal was in jail when they buried Olivia? Those assholes kept him away?”

He nods his head. “Yeah . . . he was. He was a fucking mess, but refused to speak to anyone. He shut down, so I went and visited him every few days just to let him know that he wasn’t alone and that I stood behind him. Small towns like this work different from larger ones, Avalon. It’s the only thing I hate about being here.”

“Fuck,” I whisper. “All of that, and on top of it he lost his baby girl. He doesn’t deserve all of this pain. He doesn’t . . .”

“Yeah,” he says softly. “He couldn’t handle all of the shit that was going on, so during his time behind bars papers were signed to give up his daughter. It’s the one and only time that his stepfather went to visit him. I was surprised at first, but then realized that Royal was broken at the time. He’d been through more than any one person should have to go through. I could see how keeping his daughter would be hard on him, so I tried my best to keep my opinions on the matter to myself and support his decision.”

He breathes out. “She’s the little girl you just met. That’s Royal’s daughter,” he continues. “That’s why she’s so important to me. She lost everything that night and I was there to see her last bit of family break down.”

My hearts stops and I find myself fighting to breathe. The more I fight, the less air I seem to be able to get. He has to be wrong. This can’t be . . .”What did you just say?”

“I’m sorry that I told you this way, but you needed to know. That little girl is Royal’s child. I’ve been visiting her since she was a baby. I’ve been protecting her and looking out for her. I know Royal won’t speak of her. He never does.”

I shake my head and fall against my car, suddenly feeling weak. “No. That can’t be true. She’s dead,” I say softly. “There has to be a mistake. Royal said she was dead. He said . . .”

Mark rushes over and grabs my arm, pulling me back up straight when I about fall over. “What are you saying?” He screams, while supporting me against the car. “What do you mean Royal said she’s dead?”

“He said they both died,” I cry. “Blaine told me the same thing. They both think they lost her.”

Mark pulls me into his arms and holds me as I cry into his chest. “Royal thinks she’s dead. He thinks she’s dead and now he’s gone. He’s fucking gone and I can’t tell him that she’s here.”

“Fuck. This cannot be happening. Payton is a dirty fucking piece of shit cop, and I’m willing to bet he was in on this shit along with Royal’s fucking parents. I knew that son of a bitch was fucked up in the head.”

“What are you saying,” I question. “What does that mean? Why would they do that to him?” I pull away and push at Mark’s chest, feeling overwhelmed. “How could you think that Royal would give his daughter up? He would never do that!”

He punches the top of his car a few times, before gripping it again. “It means that Royal’s parents forged his signature, and Payton and them made Royal believe she was dead. It also means that it would be Royal’s word against Payton’s. He stands no chance at fighting him in court. I never fucking talked about her to him because I didn’t want to bring up the memories and pain of that night. I always suspected that he gave her up because it hurt him too much. I was a fucking idiot. You’re right. I should have known he wouldn’t give her up. Fuck!”

“I want her,” I say without hesitation. “Tell me what I need to do to get her out of there and into my home.”

Mark nods his head. “I’ll do everything that I can.” His eyes meet mine. “Are you sure you want to do this? Don’t take on something that you can’t handle. This is a little girl that we’re talking about here. I need to know that you really want her, and will take care of her and love her as your own.”

“Please,” I say firmly. “I love him. That is his child in there and I’ll love her too. I’ve never been more certain of anything in my life. Help me.”