Chapter 50
FIFTY
Sixteen Months Later
“Almost done,” I say to Sadie after removing the pink curlers from her hair, dropping them into the sink. “You’re going to be the most beautiful girl at the prom.”
I lower my gaze to the brush at the edge of the sink, trying to hide the tear that slips free.
Over a year ago, I didn’t think I would be here, getting my daughter ready for prom.
To know she’s alive… when for six long months I believed she was dead.
I try not to think about Saltspray. But sometimes it creeps in anyway.
Sometimes late at night, I still see that room. Still feel the walls closing in.
Even now, when I pass someone with white-blond hair on the street, my heart stutters. For a split second, I’m back there, and the air turns cold in my lungs.
“Mom, hurry. I only have thirty minutes before Dylan gets here,” Sadie says, pulling me back.
Dylan. Her boyfriend of five months.
I’ve never seen her this happy. Even after everything, she’s coping better than I am, and seems to be healing faster.
We’ve given her everything we can. Time, love, and lots of therapy.
“I know, honey. Let me just give it a little more volume.”
I run the brush gently through her dark hair, then use my fingers to shape the curls before turning her toward me.
“I love you so much.” I press a kiss to her forehead.
She pulls back quickly, laughing. “You’re going to ruin my makeup.”
“Wait,” I say softly, then reach up and unclasp the silver necklace from my own neck, the one I bought when we thought we had lost her, the one I haven’t taken off since.
For a moment, I hesitate, then I fasten it around her neck. “This is yours now. For tonight… and to keep.” My daughter is alive and well, with many more birthdays ahead of her.
With her fingertips, she touches the teardrop pendant, her birthstone catching the light. “Thanks, Mom. I love it.”
She’s still smiling as she slips out of the bathroom and disappears into her room, where her dress is waiting for her. It’s the color of a stormy sky, and she fell in love with it the moment she saw it.
“I’ll wait downstairs for the big reveal,” I call.
In the living room, Gabriel is sitting on the couch, staring at the TV. His face is pale.
After finding out about his affair and the secrets he kept from me, we’re still working through things, separated for now until we decide what’s next. But today, he’s here. For Sadie.
“What’s going on?” I lower myself beside him.
“Another arrest,” he says quietly.
I squint at the TV. “Who?”
He doesn’t answer. He doesn’t have to. The name is already on the screen.
Alexander Robbins, a local police officer.
I push the door to the hallway closed so Sadie won’t hear, then turn the volume up slightly.
A female reporter with auburn hair whipping in the wind is standing in front of the camp gates.
I exhale slowly, preparing myself as her voice crackles through the speakers.
“Tonight, we have new developments in the Saltspray Cove Youth Camp scandal. Alexander Robbins, a local Saltspray police officer, has been formally linked to former employee Megan Hale, with whom he was apparently also romantically involved at one point. Authorities say Robbins assisted Hale in a web of illegal adoptions and human trafficking.”
I press my fingertips to my temples, willing the ache away.
The camera pulls away from the polished newsroom set and glides over a stretch of private beach, the beach Alice and I escaped from that day.
The reporter’s voice continues, low and urgent.
“You’ll remember, after police raided Saltspray Cove Youth Camp sixteen months ago, they discovered two children locked in rooms only a few doors from the dark room where Sadie Sutton was rescued.
Sadie, once presumed dead, was found by her mother.
Megan Hale was later found dead on the premises before she could stand trial. ”
No one ever found out how Megan died. Whatever poison was in that syringe was undetectable. The cause of death, according to the autopsy reports, was heart failure, same as Scarlett’s. To me, it suggests they died from the same poison. Megan helped me cover up her own death, and my crime.
I blink twice, then open my eyes again to focus on the screen.
“Megan Hale was a dangerous woman who stopped at nothing to get what she wanted, including murder. During the search, human remains were discovered near a concealed tunnel leading to the beach.” The reporter tucks a lock of hair behind her ear.
“They have been identified as Anthony Hoggins, Eliza Bennett, and Marisa Lane, three children who disappeared years earlier after reportedly threatening to expose Hale. Authorities also confirmed that Hale was responsible for tampering with the vehicle of camp director Mandy Potter, resulting in the accident that led to her losing a leg.”
I shift a little closer to Gabriel, feeling a chill settling on my skin despite already knowing most of what the reporter is saying.
“Alexander Robbins is only one of a number of people who helped Megan Hale commit and hide her crimes. Several individuals connected to Hale have already been arrested and charged, including camp employee Quinn Prescott and security guard Lucas Rodham. Officials say further arrests are expected.”
“I’m glad Alice was given immunity,” I say to Gabriel. “She didn’t deserve to go down with her.”
“She was the only reason they could prove any of it,” Gabriel replies.
“Yep, and she was a victim too.” I sigh. “I wonder how she’s doing. I need to give her a call one of these days to check up on her.”
Even though Alice betrayed us and hurt me deeply, she did what was right in the end. I’m learning to forgive her every day, just like I’m learning to forgive Gabriel.
I take my husband’s hand briefly and squeeze it. “I’m glad you also didn’t go to prison.”
He offers a tired smile. “Makes two of us.”
There was enough evidence to prove he funneled money to a secret account in Megan’s name, but the court accepted his defense. He was blackmailed, coerced by threats he couldn’t ignore.
“I’ve heard enough,” I say and reach for the remote, lowering the volume.
“The Saltspray Cove Youth Camp remains closed at this time,” the reporter adds as her voice fades. “However, sources confirm that plans are already underway to reopen it in two months, with Mandy Potter expected to resume control. The camp’s new name will officially be Saltspray Cove Center.”
Gabriel takes the remote from me and clicks off the TV entirely. “Listen, I heard something today about Ronald Hastings. It’s not on the news yet, but one of the guys I work with at the firm is close to the case and he forwarded some information to me this morning.”
I’m too nervous to ask what that is, so I just lean back, bite down on my bottom lip, and brace myself.
“We already know Hastings didn’t kill Eliza Bennet,” he says. “But they’ve confirmed something else.”
“What?” This just never seems to end.
What I already know is that Roland Hastings has apparently committed so many crimes that proving his innocence in Eliza’s murder still wasn’t enough to keep him out of prison.
“He’s the one who assaulted Megan when she was a teenager.” Gabriel clears his throat. “He got her pregnant.”
The words land heavily between us.
“You mean…” I whisper, my mouth dry.
He nods.
“Alice.” I press a hand to my mouth. “That awful man…” My voice shakes. “He’s her father?”
“Yeah.” Gabriel’s gaze is distant, his voice flat. “Megan may have been one of the first, but she is not the only girl he has assaulted; there are so many others.”
“I can’t believe this.” I sink deeper into the couch, my chest tight.
“Megan knew,” Gabriel continues. “That’s why she set him up. It wasn’t random. It was calculated revenge.”
Nothing about Megan Hale had been accidental.
“I’m coming down!” Sadie calls from upstairs.
Everything inside me shifts instantly, and for a moment, the past loosens its grip on me.
I get to my feet, and so does Gabriel.
We have our daughter back, and nothing matters more than her. Not now. Not ever.