A Forever Masterpiece (The Masterpiece Trilogy Book 3) (24 page)

He blew out a breath before continuing. "Things were decent until ... Well, let me tell you about him first. Dad was an outstanding police officer. His actions were questioned during what was supposed to be a routine stop, and he was put on paid suspension. We learned of his real ways after that. Everyone thought he was a damn good cop, but he was a dirty one. Apparently there was a group of them, and no one knew they were doing anything wrong. The person he'd pulled over was one of his own. Because he didn't follow the correct protocol, they found out about his abuse of power. It got ugly after that. Mom had just found out about being pregnant with you. Dad's behavior at home changed. He was angry, drunk, and abusive. It's like he became a completely different person. I guess it's because he always was. I don't know." Jesse quieted down when drinks were brought to the table. He grabbed his and drained half of it before continuing. "Our once stable home life changed drastically. Yelling, fighting, secrets. I protected Mom from him more than once when he went after her while carrying you. He made it clear he didn't want another child in the house. His behavior worsened, as did Mom's depression. Then, just before you were born, when I thought things couldn't get worse, they did." Jesse covered his mouth. Eyelids at half mast, he shuddered.

Becca covered her mouth with her hands, staring wide-eyed at Jesse. Did she really want to hear any more? Hunter continued to sit quietly, but Becca could tell he was upset and stunned.

Jesse lowered his head, then raised it again. "He hurt Mom. Almost ... he left her for dead. I called the police after he ran, and they arrested him. He apparently made friends with some cops who were still on his side, and they didn't believe a word I said. I would have figured since they knew about his power abuse, they'd do something about how he acted at home. Mom told her side of the story, but because of her depression, they said she made it up. It was my word against the other cops who altered the truth. You were born that night. After Mom got out of the hospital, she left Dad. Took all four of us. My father never knew you were born. Mom let him think you..." Once again, he looked away.

That she never made it. Oh, God! "Four?" She had more siblings? If this was all true, that is. Jesse sure had a hard time talking about this, and with the ragged emotions he showed while struggling with this story, Becca guessed he was legit, or a very good actor.

Jesse nodded. "Yes. You were the youngest. I'm the oldest, and there's a sister and brother in between. We don't talk much, if at all. I don't think either of them remember you, since you were less than two months old when I approached Hunter's parents."

"Okay, so your mom left. Why did you bring Becca to my dad? How did you know my parents?" Hunter finally broke his silence. "Not saying I'm buying into this yet."

"I'm getting to that." Jesse drank a little more, looking around. "Dad claimed he was trying to get clean, sober, and attempt a good life again. Mom stayed away, but he'd come by late at night, yelling and threatening. I struggled in school because of my fear of leaving the house and taking care of everyone. Your mom was my guidance counselor." Jesse pointed at Hunter.

"A school counselor. That's right," Hunter whispered. "I always recalled it was something at a school."

"She was a good woman. So patient. I wouldn't talk to her at first, but started to after a while. She didn't know everything. I took care of Becca. I woke up with her at night when Mom's depression and fear worsened. If Dad showed up at night, I would run to the furthest room with Becca and hide in the closet, hoping she'd stay quiet so the old bastard wouldn't find out about her. I took care of everyone. I had to make sure the kids were dressed and ready for school. I fed the baby, changed her, and many times I stayed home or skipped school because Mom couldn't get it together. Your mom said I could go to her husband, your father, and talk to him if I needed to. They'd help. I think she had a feeling something was off, but there wasn't much she could do. I was afraid to tell her- I thought they'd break apart my family, and I'd hoped if Dad left us alone after a while, we'd all be okay again." Jesse clasped and unclasped his hands.

"She knew of Dad and the situation, because she used to gently convince me to talk about him. I think by then the whole town was afraid to approach the family. One night, Mom woke me up crying and told me she needed me to do something for her. I was nine. She told me I had to get the baby somewhere safe, and that the rest of us had to go, too. I had a feeling it had to do with our father, but I wasn't a hundred percent sure." Jesse sucked in a breath. "I have a letter she wrote to you. I don't think she ever believed she'd see you again, but it was her way of trying to keep a piece of sanity. It hurt her to do this."

"Why Becca and not everyone else?" Hunter asked.

"Mom didn't want us all in one place. Becca had to go first, because no one but us knew she was alive. She wanted to get us as far away from our father and his crimes as possible, so she thought the safest thing to do was split us up. It didn't quite work out that way. We were split up, but not by Mom's doing. Becca was the only one who got away safely. Aside from your parents, no one else knew we had a baby sister." Jesse gripped the side of the table, his skin white as a ghost.

Becca choked back a cry. So not only was she a replacement for a dead child, she'd become an unwanted secret. No, she couldn't go there. Her mother wanted her to be safe, as did her brother. She'd been wanted. Acid swirled in her gut. She covered her mouth with her hand, holding back the bile.

"What the hell was she so afraid of?" Hunter pulled Becca closer to him, giving her comfort.

"My father crossed someone. Their revenge? A threat to his family. And the man meant them, too. My father actually took part in one of those acts. I didn't learn about a lot of that until after he was arrested, years later. Not only a corrupted cop, but a murderer. Maybe that came after the suspension and everything else, I don't know for sure. Don't want to know, either."

Bile rose in her throat again. A small squeak slipped through her lips. The word murderer rang in her ears. The possibility of being the daughter of someone who had no problem killing was making her sick, especially after her incident a few weeks ago. She thought of her constant guilt and wondered how someone could ever do that as a malicious act. And the man could be her father? Panic constricted her airwaves. She let out a series of deep breaths to try and remain calm. It barely worked.

"It broke my heart to take you to the Beckmans, but I wanted you to be safe. Mom hasn't been the same since. I cried. I held you in my arms in a quiet place for an hour before I actually had to go take you." Jesse's eyes met hers again. The same terror she felt showed in his face.

"So what happened to the rest of you?" Becca gripped the edge of the table. "How did Hunter's parents just take me with no questions asked about the rest of you?" She repeated herself, but words failed her at the moment.

"I think your parents knew getting you away from there was the best idea. They'd heard the news in those past few months. I bundled you up and took you to Mr. Beckman, saying I knew his wife and that she told me he'd know what to do. Mom left him a note as well, which I tucked in your bag. To this day, I have no idea what it said, but it must have worked, because they went with the plan to get you away without calling the cops. It surprised me, especially since Mr. Beckman was a lawyer. I don't know what they did or didn't know, but they took care of you. That's what mattered to me."

Another interruption stalled the story when their food arrived. Becca didn't think she could eat, but she needed to at least try. It had been hours, she was cold, and something warm would do her good. Becca thought answers would never come. She wondered for months why her brother would give her away to keep her safe. Nothing good came to mind and she knew it, but this she hadn't expected. Her father was a murderer? An ex-cop? And he hurt his family? He left her mother for dead, carrying an unborn child!

She couldn't take it. Becca needed a break to regroup. The bathroom. She could go there, take a breather, and come back. "Excuse me for a second." She bolted before Hunter or Jesse could say another word.

Hunter stared at Becca's retreating form and debated on going after her, even though he knew she was heading for the restroom. No, let her have a small break. This was hard for him to hear, so he couldn't imagine how Becca felt. She'd been calm, but she always pulled the strong fort. On the inside, Hunter knew it was a different story.

Instead, he faced Jesse. "Why all the secrecy? Why pretend to go to meetings on a serious subject?"

"That was a coincidence. I do suffer from PTSD, Hunter. I wouldn't screw around with something like that. You try going through what I did. All I wanted was to find out why someone would take my sister on a plane to try to do whatever it was. A Google alert on the name Beckman led me to the story about your plane and that Carrie woman. I saw a picture of Becca and had to find out for sure. The resemblance to Mom refueled my need to find my sister and understand what happened to her last summer. There are people following you around, and I thought it had to do with my father. He has connections everywhere. He still taunts us, even from prison, like he doesn't want us to forget he has the power still. I thought I'd keep my distance from showing myself to Becca until I figured it out. I didn't expect to see you at a PTSD meeting. Last summer, Mom started asking about the baby. She suffers a prolonged grief disorder."

"I'm going to admit something. I followed you one night. You rode your bike about a mile or so, then got in your truck. Why?"

"I thought someone was following me that night. Damn it! I did that to cover my tracks. I didn't want anything traced to me. I would have kept hidden if you and I didn't meet that night. Then I realized I had a small way in to learn about my sister. I'm sorry. I gave you every reason in the world not to trust me, and considering I know what you've been dealing with, it was the wrong way to handle things. I didn't know what else to do."

"You know we're not taking your word for it. Are you willing to do some sort of DNA test or something for verified proof that you are Becca's brother?" The words rolled off his tongue and sounded so foreign. Strange. Unreal. Becca's brother. The family they'd been looking for had been right in front of their noses the entire time. "Becca and I have had a lot of lies and deceit in the last twenty years. We want proof." Hunter leveled him with a hard stare.

"I understand. I'm willing." Jesse's gaze landed on him. "So ... when you went on the plane twenty years ago ... was that because I contacted your dad and wanted to see Becca?"

Unsure how much to divulge, Hunter hesitated. He clasped his hands together and stared in the direction of the bathroom, wondering how Becca was and if he should at least go knock on the door. "I think it was only a small part. There was another issue to be dealt with. Thing is, I don't remember a lot about it. Only bits and pieces," he finally admitted. Though he'd been vague even with being true, Hunter saw the relief on Jesse's face.

"I would have stayed away, had I known. Before this past summer, it was the only time I ever tried to find her. I thought, with Dad being in prison, maybe it was safe to at least figure out where Becca ended up."

"We'd do a lot of things differently had we known things. You took a chance. Guess I can't blame you." Hunter didn't trust him, but he understood the idea of a young child taking on far more than they ever should have.

"Her real name was Ariana. Ariana Rosalie Laughlin. Who are the Langes? How did they end up with my sister?"

Hunter tried to process the name. He'd always known her as Rebecca Lange, aka Becca. Ariana didn't suit her. He picked up the photos by Becca's plate and thumbed through them, peering carefully. She sure did look like the woman Jesse claimed was her mother. Come to think of it, she looked a lot like Jesse, too. "My mom was friends with Anne Lange in high school. They lost a baby the same time you brought Becca to us." He left it at that.

Jesse turned pale. "Dear God. You're telling me-"

"Yes. I replaced a dead child." Becca returned, her voice cold and edgy. "What a plan, huh? No one would ever know. In fact, if Sylvia, or as you've heard her name- Carrie, had never come out in the open, I'd never have known any of this. I've spent months going back and forth with feelings. I've spent years grieving for a family who loved me, but I wasn't theirs. I spent the hardest parts of my life living with grandparents who never wanted me, and I always thought it was because of my injuries." Becca picked up her napkin, tore it in half, then tossed it on the table. "I want to believe you're my brother, but there's been too many things thrown at me. I'm not going to get my hopes up until I know for sure. Not that I want to have another horrible history that I get to learn about, but at least the truth might finally be given to me."

"It's fair." Jesse glanced at Becca. "I'm not asking for anything. I'm not even asking for trust right now. I get it. I've learned only bits and pieces about your life and what you went through, at least after the crash. I'm glad we got you out of there before that night. I don't know what would have happened to you."

"What did happen?" Hunter asked.

"Mom had everything packed. We were getting ready to leave, and she said she had plans for each of us. Don't know what they were, because as we grabbed our bags, the thugs arrived. You ever look in the eyes of a cold blooded killer? Scariest shit. Sometimes you see a soul through a person's eyes. These guys- no soul. They had no problem hurting a child. I can't get the look out of my head to this day. I told the other kids to run as far as possible and tried to protect Mom. Our sister didn't get far before they shot at her and hit her in the knee. Just as they were about to do it to me and Mom, Dad came in and retaliated. I don't remember a lot of it after that."

Tears streamed down Becca's face. "This is horrible." She shoved her plate away.