CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN
Edward
A lot had happened while I was being held for questioning.
Lyle Hargrave had booked a three-story vacation rental for everyone to stay in while we were trying to find Cara.
Orla and Hawthorne Whittaker had become the family’s spokespeople for press conferences.
Half of the Hargraves and Whittakers were already in town and the rest were on their way.
Everyone was, of course, desperate to locate Cara.
After arriving at the house with Olivia and Sam, I wanted to go straight to work on finding Cara.
Instead, Livy and Declan had forced me upstairs to a bedroom.
Unable to keep my eyes open any longer, I’d given up and collapsed into bed.
I slept for what felt like a couple of hours, then I stumbled down the stairs of the vacation rental, groggy, in search of headache medicine, water, and answers.
I found the first two easily enough. When I entered the kitchen, the first thing I saw was Lyle Hargrave with a glass of water in one hand and a bottle of Excedrin in the other.
He looked like I felt… terrible. His hair was a mess, his clothes were rumpled, there were circles under his eyes, and I was pretty sure they were swollen from crying.
“Hello, sir.” My greeting felt awkward and stilted, but what the hell do you say to the father of the woman you love when she was hurt and kidnapped? And when you were the police’s main suspect?
“Edward,” a smile cracked his handsome, craggy face, “I’m glad to see you.”
“You are?” The question burst out before I could think about it.
He gave a huff of a laugh. “Of course. We all know you didn’t hurt Cara.”
The relief I felt at those words almost took my breath away. I didn’t realize how scared I’d been that everyone would think I was the one who took her… who hurt her. “I’d never want to hurt her.”
He looked at me for an extended moment, studying my face. Then he nodded. He pushed the bottle of headache medicine my way. “You looking for this?”
I nodded, gratefully, and shook a couple of pills into my hand while he got me a glass of water.
He handed it to me, and I saw that his hand was shaking.
Cara’s abduction was clearly weighing on him.
“Everyone’s in there,” he gestured towards the room behind me.
“Once you’re ready, you need to listen to this plan Livy’s cooked up.
I’d like to say I never thought I’d see the day when one of my daughters took charge of something like this and made me feel almost insignificant…
but Livy’s kind of always been like this. It’s not a shock, is it?”
I got a half smile on my face despite my grief and worry over Cara. “No, it’s not a shock. Thank goodness. She saved my ass today.”
Lyle raised his eyebrows. “That was yesterday. You’ve been sleeping for a while. We didn’t want to wake you considering the police kept you awake for about thirty-six hours. Even your mom decided against it.”
I choked on the water and almost spit it in his face. I coughed and hacked for a minute until I got it under control. “My mom?” I finally gasped out. “She’s here?”
Lyle gave me a look like he was questioning my sanity. “Um… yeah. You were being questioned by the police for kidnapping, Edward. That tends to bring a parent to town, don’t you think?”
“Well, yes, sir. But my mom,” I lowered my voice and looked around, “she’s not the type to drop everything and come running…”
Lyle nodded. “She did have a panic attack. But Charity talked her down, and then she asked if she could hitch a ride with us over here.” He looked at his watch. “The two of them are at the governor’s mansion now. They’re talking to him about Cara—and you, of course.”
I blinked at him and pointed at myself. “My mom is at the governor’s mansion?”
Lyle frowned. “What aren’t you understanding? You’re her son. She wasn’t just going to stand by and do nothing while you got framed for kidnapping… and possibly murder.” His face had gone pale, and he was gripping the countertop so hard the tips of his fingers were white.
“Don’t think like that, please…”
“Not Cara. I don’t think my baby’s been killed. I think they’re holding her somewhere. The Hart family, that is. When I figure out how to get to them—and I will—I’m going to rip them apart with my bare hands.”
Okay then. “I’ll happily join you.” A thought occurred to me. “What did the police have to say after they questioned Kelisha Kelley from the Moonlight?”
Lyle’s already pale face went a shade whiter. He took a quick sip of his drink, and I was starting to wonder if there was more in his mug than coffee or water. “They can’t find her.”
My heart sank. “What?”
“She’s gone missing, too. Her wife reported that Kelisha never came home from work the same day Cara went missing. We found out while you were sleeping.”
“Oh my God. That’s… horrible.” Everything was falling apart around me.
How many people had to go missing before the police started to suspect that this was happening on a larger scale than some twenty-five-year-old orchard owner could handle?
Couldn’t they see there was a bigger entity involved? Like the Hart family?
“It is horrible. There’s nothing going on right now that’s good, besides maybe Livy’s calm head during all this.
” He looked at me over his mug. “You need to be careful. I mean, you probably realize that after being held and questioned by the police for a couple of days.” He set his mug down and leaned forward.
“But when I said I was afraid you were being framed for murder, I was talking about the MacAllister girl. No one can find her, and things aren’t looking too good.
I’m afraid she’s dead, and you weren’t just the last person seen with her.
You were seen shouting at her after you threatened her and forced her on a plane to Charleston where she disappeared. ”
Wow. It sounded really fucking bad when he put it that way. I ran both of my hands through my hair before leaning on the bar for support. This was… a nightmare. “It wasn’t like that,” I whispered. “She came willingly, and I have the video to prove it. The flight attendant can back me up.”
He narrowed his eyes at me. “I’m not saying you did it.
I don’t think you did, so don’t get me wrong.
But in the eyes of the public, things aren’t looking too good for you.
A bunch of things came out while you were being held.
” He ticked things off on his fingers. “No can find Sara anywhere, her parents say she didn’t want to go with you, the flight attendant has gone MIA, and the police are insinuating that the video was taken under duress.
That maybe you held a gun on them to get them to make it. ”
“Oh my God.” I covered my face with my hands.
“I don’t want to deal with any of this bullshit—because that’s what it is.
I swear I put that girl in a car and watched her drive away.
Cara could back all of this up, but…” I trailed off and shook my head.
“All I want to be doing is trying to find her. To save her.”
“Good,” he said, taking a swallow of his water, “because Livy’s needs your help in order to make this plan work.” He looked me over. “Go take a shower and make yourself look good.”
“Why?” I looked down at the T-shirt and shorts I was wearing, thinking how I must look after a couple of days without showering or shaving. “I know I look like crap, but why does it matter?”
“’Cause you’re going to a fancy party tonight.”
I opened my mouth, ready to ask questions, but he held up a hand, stopping me.
“Just do it. Then come down and listen to Livy’s plan.” He checked his watch again. “We only have a couple of hours until it’s showtime.”
I cast a quick glance out the window. The sky was heading towards sunset. I had lost all track of time. “I’ll be down in a bit,” I said and headed up the stairs, taking two at a time.