Fifteen
Nina stared at the man who had fathered her. Douglas’s probing gaze made her feel uncomfortable. It was as if he were seeing her mother again, after all these years.
But then he seemed to gather himself. “I’m sorry, you’re too young to be Anna. You must be—her daughter?” He glanced briefly at Jackson, then asked, “Is your mother here with you?”
Nina stared at him, her eyes narrowing with suspicion. Was he a good actor or did he really not know that Anna Lange had been killed?
“No.” Nina regarded him coolly. “My mother was murdered ten days after I was born.”
“Murdered?” Douglas fell back a step, as if he’d taken a round to the chest. “No, that’s impossible.”
Nina sucked in a breath, watching him closely. He truly seemed shocked by the news.
“Oh, it’s true,” she said. “And even worse, her murder was never solved. My mother was a Jane Doe, badly beaten and then shot in the abdomen. She crawled to a fire station with me cradled in her arms. I was Baby Girl Doe. The firefighter who found us adopted me. My name is Nina Dobson. Trust me when I say my mother was brutally murdered.” Douglas’s face blanched, but she pushed forward.
“Maybe you can explain how that happened?”
“Me?” He appeared dumbfounded. “I would never have hurt Anna. I loved her.”
“You idiot!” Corrine glared at her husband. “Shut up, Doug. Just shut up!”
Nina glanced at Jackson, who was watching their interaction with interest. “Are you sure you didn’t kill my mother? Because you didn’t want anything to do with me, your daughter?”
“You’re my daughter?” Douglas leaned against the back wall of the room as if his legs were about to give out. “I don’t understand. Are you sure?”
“No, that’s not true,” Corrine barked sharply. “She’s lying. She’s not your daughter. You only have one child, Doug, and that’s our son, Colin. Don’t do this, Doug. Don’t listen to her.”
“Do you know for sure you’re my daughter?” Doug asked, ignoring his wife.
Nina was starting to wonder if her biological father hadn’t hurt her mother.
His question was valid, though. Shared green eyes, earlobes and widow’s peak weren’t enough to prove paternity.
She shrugged, displaying a nonchalance she didn’t really feel.
“A DNA test will confirm that one way or the other. However, we spoke to my mother’s friend Ellen Carter.
She told us my mother was pregnant, which is why she’d dropped out of high school. ”
“I don’t believe it.” Doug pressed his palms to his face. “She didn’t tell me. Why didn’t Anna tell me?”
“That woman is lying!” Corrine’s shrill voice echoed off the walls of the room. “She’s not your daughter. Don’t fall for her tricks. She just wants money. That’s all.”
“I don’t want or need your money.” Nina kept her gaze focused on her father’s anguished face.
He was either a consummate actor, or he was telling the truth.
“There was no reason for any of this. I don’t want anything from you, do you understand?
Nothing!” She waved a hand, trying to rein in her anger.
“There was no reason to kill my Uncle Mark, or to kill me. And certainly no reason to kill my mother.”
“Your Uncle Mark?” he said slowly, then suddenly straightened, his gaze swinging toward his wife. Corrine was sobbing now, tears streaking her makeup down her face. “Did you do this? Corrine, please tell me you weren’t involved in this.”
Corrine shook her head but didn’t say anything.
“She’s exercising her right to remain silent,” Jackson drawled. “But I overheard her earlier telling her hired gun he needed to finish the job. That was shortly after an attempt to shoot and kill me and Nina.”
“I don’t believe it.” Douglas appeared dazed. Then he abruptly turned toward her. “We won’t need a DNA test. You have my eyes, just as Colin does. I’m sure you’re my daughter. I loved Anna. I still can’t get over how much you look like her.”
She crossed her arms over her chest. “If you cared so much about my mother, why didn’t you report her missing? Or better yet, recognize her photograph that was plastered all over the news twenty-eight years ago?”
“Doug, please. Don’t do this,” Corrine begged between sobs. “Colin doesn’t deserve this.”
“I think you should have this conversation somewhere else,” Jackson said. He gave Nina a gentle push toward the door. “Go talk to your father. I’ll stay here.”
Nina would have preferred to have this conversation with Jackson at her side but understood he needed to stand guard over Corrine. The more she listened to Doug, the more convinced she was that Corrine was the one who’d killed her mother.
And when Nina had found her identity through a DNA website, the evil woman must have discovered her connecting to her uncle and had targeted her.
Knowing Anna had a child she could have kept an eye on the DNA site to watch for connections to Mark Lange.
Unless there was another way Corrine had uncovered the truth?
And why? Because of money? The thought was absurd and she didn’t even really understand why Corrine had been worried about such a thing.
Turning, Nina left the room. Doug followed her down the hall and out the main doors that led to the waiting room. The room was more than half-full, so she headed to the only corner that provided some level of privacy.
“I loved Anna,” Doug said the moment she turned to face him. “I need you to understand that.”
“So much that you left her pregnant and alone?” Nina shook her head, sinking into the closest chair. Her father took the seat next to her. “I’m not buying that. Why didn’t you report her missing? Or recognize her photograph from the news?”
“I didn’t see any pictures of Anna on the news.” Doug sighed. “I probably wasn’t paying any attention to a murdered woman, because your mother sent me a letter. She told me she found a wonderful man and was going to start a new life with him.”
“I don’t believe you.” Nina could appreciate he might not have known her mother had been murdered, but he was still the jerk who’d left her pregnant and alone. “Ellen Carter told us that you were engaged to be married when you started seeing my mother. You chose Corrine over her, didn’t you?”
“No—I mean, yes, I was engaged to Corrine.” His cheeks flushed red.
“And you’re right. I was unfaithful to Corrine when I fell for your mother.
The truth was, I planned to break off our engagement.
It wasn’t as easy as it sounded because we had already put money down on a wedding venue, along with other things.
The wedding was only three months away, and my parents and hers…
” He sighed. “They were upset. But I didn’t care about the money. Not after I fell in love with Anna.”
Nina regarded him thoughtfully. “And based on a letter you let her go?”
He winced. Then he dug into his back pocket and pulled out his wallet.
He opened the billfold and removed a yellowed piece of paper.
It was so worn around the creases Nina half expected it to fall apart in his hands.
“I know how it sounds. I kept her letter. For all these years. I would read the words and force myself to believe that if she was happy, I would be happy for her.” He held out the thin paper.
“I thought I was doing the right thing. But now that I know she was murdered, I wish…”
Nina took the letter. She had no way of knowing if the document was actually penned by her mother or not, but based on Corrine’s actions, she wouldn’t have put it past the woman to have forged the document.
The letter was brief and to the point.
Doug, I’ve met an amazing man who has promised to love and marry me. What we had is over. Please move on with your life, the way I have.
Anna.
She handed the note back to him. “And you’re sure my mother wrote that?”
He looked surprised by the question. “I—guess I don’t really know that.”
“Did Corrine know about your affair with my mother?” She held his gaze. “Did she know Anna was pregnant?”
He flushed. “Yes, she knew about the affair. I told her about Anna when I broke off our engagement. About ten days later, when Anna wasn’t answering my phone calls, I received the letter.
A few weeks later, Corrine told me she was pregnant with our child.
We were high school sweethearts. I cared about her, so I agreed to go through with the wedding as planned. ”
“How do you know Corrine didn’t write this?” She gestured to the note.
“It’s not her handwriting.” Doug frowned, then added, “But if half of what that Texas Ranger said is true, then I wouldn’t put it past Corrine to have gotten someone else to write it.”
“Oh, it’s all true.” Nina hardened her tone. “But what I don’t understand is why your wife tried to kill me? How did she learn Anna was pregnant?”
“I don’t know.” He rubbed his hands over his face. “I honestly don’t know.”
Nina wondered if Ellen Carter may have said something to Daniel Cartland, who in turn mentioned it to his older brother Robert, Zane’s father.
And if so, they’d need to find out why Robert would have mentioned Anna’s pregnancy to Corrine.
Unless of course, Corrine was stalking Anna, trying to find out information on the woman who’d captured Douglas’s heart.
She eyed Doug. “It wasn’t just me, my Uncle Mark was killed, too. I guess Corrine may have thought that if I met with Mark I’d discover my true identity, but that still doesn’t explain why she’d go to such lengths to get rid of me.”
Doug hung his head, staring at the letter. Then he sighed again and looked up at her. “Because I created a trust indicating my estate would be passed down to my children, including any that were deemed mine as verified from a DNA match.”
That was the final piece of the puzzle. Or was it? “Are you telling me you have other illegitimate children out there?”