“I guess I should rephrase that. We did find their mother. We found the remains of a woman near Estes Park. Gunshot wound to the head. No weapon found. She’s been identified as Cheri Robertson, the boys’ mother.”

As a cop, I was used to getting bad news. But those poor little boys… Tears welled in my eyes, but I choked them back. I needed to find out more. “So what now?”

“The local police are treating it as a homicide for now, but it looks more to me like a suicide. Just a hunch, though, because no weapon has been found yet.”

Finley had been in the business a long time. His hunches were usually correct.

“The boys are staying with their great-aunt, but she’s elderly and can’t take them permanently. We’ll begin looking for alternate arrangements.”

Alternate arrangements…

Two boys with mental health issues, ages seven and ten… The outcome wouldn’t be good. Alternate arrangements would be a group home. Adoption was almost unheard of for children past toddler age. And children who would need years of therapy to deal with the trauma they’d experienced? Not likely. Even if one found a home, it was unlikely the brothers could stay together. And they needed each other.

I bit on my lip. “I don’t know what to say.”

“I wish I had better news, Lee. I do. I know how much you care for the two boys.”

“Yeah.” I sniffed. “Thanks for the update, Fin.”

“You got it. I’ll be in touch.”

I was supposed to meet my father the next morning. Right now, I had to drive over to Talon’s and tell the Steels the news about Dale and Donny. They would want to know. Maybe they could pull some strings somewhere, or at least throw some money at a home to make it a better place for them. I didn’t relish telling them this.

Those poor boys had lost their mother after everything else they’d been through.

Swallowing back the sobs that threatened to overtake me, I began driving.

Chapter Forty-Five

Ryan

“Say what?” I said incredulously.

“I own the island.”

“The one where all that horror took place?” I shook my head.

My brothers said nothing, but their faces said it all. They were numb with shock.

“No. That one is owned by the Fleming Corporation. I own its sister island.”

“How in the hell did that ever happen?” I asked.

“Your grandfather bought the two islands from a private landowner before I was born. It was cheap land back then, and your grandfather believed real estate was the safest and best investment. After all, it was limited. He had an idea to build a lavish Caribbean resort someday, but that day never came. The ranch took all of his time, and between production here and other more lucrative investments, he was close to becoming a billionaire, so the islands fell onto the back burner. After his death, I decided to get rid of them.”

“So you sold one to the Fleming Corporation?”

“I did. That was before I knew the extent of what they were doing. I didn’t see the value your grandfather had seen in real property. I saw only a big expense. Do you know the kind of money it would take to build a resort of that magnitude?”

“Probably around the same amount it took to build a replica of this house behind concrete walls,” Joe said, rolling his eyes.

My father ignored the sarcasm. “Much more, actually.”

“So Wade, Mathias, and Simpson owned the island.”

“They did. Until they sold it to the company they worked for. And even I don’t know who owns it now. But I kept the other one. When it came time for me to ‘die’ and move your mother ‘home,’ I used the other island to accomplish that goal.”

Joe shook his head. “Crazy. You can’t make this shit up.”

“Why don’t those islands appear on our list of assets, then?” Talon asked. Finally, the voice of reason.

“They’re owned by a special trust, for which I am the beneficiary. I set it up after your mother’s ‘death’ to make sure she was taken care of. Of course I couldn’t let anyone know it existed.”

“The Steel Family Trust,” I said. “We found it. You bought the Shane ranch and transferred it to the Steel Family Trust. You have loyal attorneys. They wouldn’t budge an inch.”

“They’re well paid,” my father said.

“How did you keep all of this from Wendy?” I asked.

“After so many years of dealing with her, I learned how to stay one step ahead of her. She can be manipulated. As you said, Ryan, you and I are her Achilles’ heels.”

“She told you to keep Anna away from me. I found the note in with your papers.”

“That shouldn’t have been in there.”

“Well, it was.”

“I’m sorry.”

“They took Anna. Did you have anything to do with that?”

“Of course not! I bought their farm and later set them up to relocate to Hawaii.”

“Somehow they got hold of Anna.”

“That must have been your mother’s doing. If she wanted Anna away from you, that would have been one way of getting rid of her.”

My throat burned. So much evil, and a big part of it was sitting across from me behind that fucking desk, looking so high and mighty. The great Bradford Steel.

“You never stopped dealing with Wendy, though,” Joe said through clenched teeth. “She’s the one who identified your body when you ‘died.’”

“Yes. I needed her help with that.”

“Why?”

“Why do you think? I couldn’t have one of you identify me, because I wasn’t dead. I couldn’t pay off a doctor or nurse at the hospital and risk a paper trail. She was my only option.”

“Maybe you needed a better option,” Marjorie said, choking back tears. “Like staying with your children.”

“I’m sorry. Your mother needed me. You were all good, strong adults. I knew you’d be okay.”

“Okay?” Talon stood. “I was so far from okay. You never let me, or any of us, deal with what happened to me. You swept it under the rug. I needed help, damn it. So did Joe and Ryan. They suffered every bit as much as I did.”

“Tal,” I began. “You can’t equate—”

“It’s not a matter of equating anything. Joe suffered with all the guilt of not protecting me. You with the guilt of getting away. It’s apples and oranges, but we all suffered, including our mother and sister.”

“I did what I thought was best at the time. Your mother was unwell. Your sister was a premature newborn. Plus, I knew Wendy would interfere if any of it was made public. I couldn’t risk any of your lives. I wish I could make you understand.”

“How could we understand any of this?” Joe demanded. “Logic flies out the window. You put your allegiance to some stupid high school club above your own family.”

“I did not,” my father said calmly. “I’ve explained all this to you.”

“But it all comes back to that stupid club,” I said. “The money you gave them. The money you promised them and then reneged on. Your association with Wendy. That’s what this all boils down to. That fucking club at that fucking prep school. You even lied about that. You told us you had gone to Snow Creek High School. That’s why you wanted us to go there, you said. If it was good enough for you, it was good enough for us. We didn’t need any expensive private school, right, Dad?”

“You didn’t,” he said solemnly. “You see what my expensive education cost me.”

“You could have left the club.”

“I could have. You have no idea how much I wish I had.”

“Why didn’t you?”

“I was young. I had money. They needed money. They were my friends at one time. I was in love with one of them.”

“You did love my mother?” I asked.

“I was seventeen, Ryan. No one understands love at seventeen. She was beautiful and brilliant. She had that fiery spirit that you love so much about Ruby.”

“Don’t ever say that again,” I said, seething. “Ruby is nothing like my mother.”

“Your mother does—or did, at one time—have some good qualities.” He sighed. “And yes, at that time, I thought I loved her.”

I supposed that should have made me feel better about the whole thing.

It didn’t.

“I kept in touch with your mother, Ryan, after my supposed death. I had to. But she never knew where I was. I told her not to ask, and she didn’t. She will submit to me when pressured.”

“How did you get her to agree to that?” I asked.

“How do you think?” He shook his head. “I told her your safety depended on no one, not even her, knowing where I was.”

Yes, her other Achilles’ heel.

Silence for a few seconds.

Then, “There’s something else you all need to know.” He looked down at his hands.

“What’s that?” Joe asked.

“I’m dying.”

He’d said that before but hadn’t elaborated. Talon and I hadn’t told Joe and Marj. We’d been so angry, I’d nearly forgotten.

“What’s wrong?” Marj asked, chewing on her lip.

“Cancer. Pancreatic. I’ve chosen to forego treatment. I have no more than about six months. That’s why your mother needs to stay where she is. She’ll be safe, and the Steel Family Trust will take care of her for the rest of her life.”

“Is there treatment available?” Marj asked.

“There is, but the odds aren’t good. I’m going to prison, treatment or not.”

“No.” Marj sniffled.