“I have the letter,” Aiden said, drawing his family’s attention. He met his father’s gaze across the expanse of the long dining table. Ian Fitzgerald nodded ever so slightly. Obviously Aiden had discussed this with the patriarch.
Aiden placed the letter on the table. “There’s something I must confess to all of you.”
Meghan held her breath.
“Twenty-three years ago I was unfaithful to your mother.”
A collective gasp echoed in the stillness of the room.
Charles and Owen didn’t look surprised. Meghan saw the slight nod the two brothers exchanged. Interesting. Had Owen and Charles known and kept the information from their siblings? She wondered why.
Meghan’s gaze shot to Ryan. A muscle flicked angrily at his jaw. His taut expression tried to mask his thoughts, but the deep, welling pain in his eyes tugged at her heart.
But she couldn’t regret bringing the truth to light. Olivia deserved justice for her life and death. Her blood relative, Georgina, was missing. And Meghan needed the resources of the Fitzgerald family to find her.
FIVE
Ryan couldn’t take a breath. His world was imploding as he stood in his family home, the one safe haven they all shared, and the only place he’d ever felt truly at peace.
That peace was now shattered into a million fragments that cut his soul to shreds. Everything he’d believed about his father had been stripped away in one devastating blow.
The pedestal he’d placed his father upon toppled. Leaving Ryan feeling vulnerable and uncertain.
Douglas, Fiona and Keira peppered their father with questions. Only Owen and Charles appeared unfazed as they stared at their father with sympathy tempered by anger in their eyes. How could they excuse this? How could they not be reeling the way Ryan was? Unless…
“You knew?” Ryan accused his two brothers.
Charles and Owen exchanged a quick glance then nodded. Betrayal sliced through Ryan. “How could you keep this a secret?”
“When did you find out?” Douglas demanded.
Aiden held up a hand. “Please.” He waited until his kids had quieted down. “Don’t be angry at them. I asked them to let me tell you in my own time and way.”
Fury churned inside Ryan. His own time and way? Ha. Like never?
“I know this is a shock and I never intended for any of you to find out like this.”
Ryan turned away, unable to look at his father. Nausea filled his stomach, making him regret the eggs and bacon he’d had for breakfast.
“Maureen and I had hit a rough patch. You all were so young. There was so much pressure on me, on her. We were fighting all the time. Your mother and I agreed we needed some distance and time to regain perspective. I went to Ireland for a month.”
Each word was like a knife digging deep into Ryan’s chest. He remembered when his father took that trip. He’d been gone exactly a month. A long time in a child’s eyes. His mother had never once shown distress, always saying dad would be back soon with presents for everyone. And he was.
Ryan still had the chunk of rock claiming to be a bit of the Blarney Stone sitting on his desk as a paperweight. The once happy memory was now tarnished by the truth of what his father had done. Hurt burrowed into Ryan’s heart.
“I didn’t plan on… I had a brief relationship with a woman there named Tara Henry.”
“You mean Olivia’s mother?” Fiona asked, her voice shaking.
“Yes.” Regret and sadness darkened his eyes. “Olivia was my daughter, your half sister.”
“Have you known all along?” Keira demanded. Anger made her cheeks red.
Aiden inhaled and slowly exhaled before answering. “Yes.”
Ryan had to give his dad props for not dissembling. “Did Mom know?”
The shame in Aiden’s gaze was answer enough. No, she hadn’t known. If she had, would she have stayed married to him? Rationally, Ryan understood his father’s need to keep his affair and other daughter a secret. He risked losing his family. But he should have thought of that before making such a choice.
Unable to take any more, Ryan headed for the exit. His gaze collided with Meghan’s. The sympathy, the pity, on her face was almost more than he could bear.
“Ryan, please, wait!”
His steps faltered. He needed to get out of there. He needed to breath. To think. To ask God why this was happening. How could his father, who professed to be a man of God, do this? Was anyone’s faith true? Was his own faith even real?
“I know you’re hurt. And you all have every right to be angry with me, but right now we must pull together and find Olivia’s child. My grandchild. Your niece.”
Meghan laid a hand on his arm, the pressure light, but searing even through his uniform shirtsleeve. “Please, Ryan, you promised to find Georgina and bring her home safely.”
Her plea scored him to the quick. A child was in danger, in the hands of a murderer. He’d sworn to serve and protect, regardless of his personal problems. His duty was to find the child.
Compartmentalizing his anger and hurt, Ryan nodded. This was not Meghan’s fault. Nor was it the child’s. Covering her hand with his, he said, “She is the priority.”
Relief flooded Meghan’s face. “Thank you.”
He wanted to be angry at her, to rail at her for peeling back the veil of deception that revealed his father to be all too human, but he couldn’t. She’d acted in the best interest of her family. Just as he would have were the situation reversed.
Now he could only hope to follow her example.
Meghan hovered on the edge of the tight-knit group of Fitzgeralds, overwhelmed by the sheer size and force of the family. The yearning to belong, to be accepted into the inner circle twisted her up in knots. A pipe dream that wouldn’t ever come true.
Ryan summed up the events of the past day, including the attempt on their lives.
“Thank the Lord above you’re safe,” Ian Fitzgerald stated. “This is nasty business. We have to pull out all the stops.”
“What we need is to get the public’s help,” Owen Fitzgerald stated.
Meghan wondered if the detective for FBPD handled fugitive cases often. Fitzgerald Bay didn’t strike her as a hotbed of crime. But then again, lately they’d had their fair share of criminal activity. An arsonist, a stalker. Murder. A shiver of dread coursed through Meghan.
“How about flyers?” Merry asked.
“We could put out a press release,” Keira said. “Show pictures of Georgina and Christina. I’ll volunteer to man the phones for tips.”
“I can answer calls, too,” Fiona said.
“Me, too,” chimed in Demi.
“A press release is a good idea, Keira,” Aiden said with approval in his tone.
The rookie police officer and youngest of the Fitzgerald children beamed.
“But a press release will only hit the surrounding area,” Douglas pointed out. “We need national coverage since we have no way of knowing how far Christina has taken Georgina.”
“A press conference, inviting all the stations in the state, would be the best way to reach a wider audience,” Nick said.
Aiden nodded. “I agree. I’ll make a plea to the public.”
“Are you sure that’s a good idea?” Fiona asked. “I mean with the mayoral elections coming up. If the public
