Andrew appeared ready to spit fire. “Does anybody know what the hell is going on? Because this seems way too convenient to be a coincidence.”
Terra shrugged off Marlow’s mother as she made her way toward me.
“Thanks,” I said as she approached.
“I am sorry. I know you kept someone from raping me. I was out of it, but that much I remember.”
“Stay away from him.” Ivette yanked on Terra’s arm.
“Easy there. This is between us. Has nothing to do with you.”
“You raped my daughter,” she screamed. Her mouth snapped shut.
The color drained from Terra’s face. “You’re my aunt,” she whispered.
I tried to do mental calculations in my head to no avail. Terra would be a few years older than Holt, so the math didn’t add up.
Ivette smoothed her hair. “You’re right, sweetheart. You’ve always been like a daughter to me. I spoke out of turn.”
Marlow recoiled. I untangled our fingers and put an arm around her shoulders.
“She had something to do with this?” I flicked my chin at Ivette.
Terra’s cheeks turned scarlet. “She said she saw you”—she swallowed hard—“rape me.”
Rage boiled deep within me into a rolling current. “When? How?”
“The party was at her house.” Her gaze flicked to Marlow’s mother. “Aunt Ivette was the cool aunt.”
“You had a house in Cape Elizabeth? Even though at that time you were still married to Mr. Dixon?” I asked incredulously. It was difficult to wrap my mind around this woman being in the same town in Maine I grew up in.
The woman remained silent, clutching her niece’s shoulder.
“The details were fuzzy at first. But I remember you getting him off of me. Aunt Ivette must have seen you putting my clothes back on. The next thing I knew, there’s a non-disclosure agreement and a settlement.”
I pointed at Ivette. “You knew my family had money. You seized the opportunity to collect.”
“And if my dear niece hadn’t opened her mouth, we could’ve gotten even more.”
My frown deepened. “It was you.”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“The texts. The leaks to the press. You did it.”
“I’m not the one who solicited sex from a federal agent.” She brushed off an imaginary piece of lint from her arm.
“You wouldn’t get any money. Terra would have.” She flashed me a devious smile as Terra paled. “She’d have given you some.”
“It was my duty to make sure she was justly served. That measly amount your parents gave didn’t even last until Terra went to college.”
“I thought it was supposed to be for her college.”
“That was nowhere in the deal.” She waved as if clearing the air. “But now you’re the father of my grandchild. If you want me to go away, I have a price.”
“Go to hell.” Marlow stepped forward, fists balled at her sides. “Is she my cousin?”
“You’re an only child,” Mr. Dixon said to his ex-wife.
“Did I forget to mention my sister?” she asked innocently.
“I had a niece I knew nothing about?” He looked at Terra as if he could barely believe it.
She stared back at him. “A nephew too.”
“Did you know about us?” Marlow’s wrath turned onto Terra.
“No.” She implored her aunt. “Who are these people? I don’t understand.”
“They don’t matter.” Ivette slipped an arm through hers. “Don’t worry. We’ll fix this mess.”
“She set this up,” I said. “And thinking about that night, I’m wondering if she didn’t arrange that too.”
Terra tried to pull away from her, but that grip was tight. “Did you?”
“Of course not. Who are you going to believe? These strangers or the woman who practically raised you?”
“You don’t know how to be a mother,” Andrew spat.
“She was the best. After my mom died, she was there for all of us through it. Especially Dad.”
Marlow’s jaw worked. “Just how long is the trail of men you’ve left behind? What does Oliver think of this?”
“That’s my father.”
Stunned silence fell over the group.
“And he agreed to pretend to be my dad? He knew about all of us?” Holt’s face crumpled in confused pain.
“He’s the only man I ever loved.”
To his credit, Mr. Dixon stood tall, even though the words had to have been a blow. “That’s why you never introduced me to your family.”
“It was unfortunate my sister was taken by cancer, but he and I were meant to be together. I wasn’t going to waste the opportunity.”
Terra appeared slightly appalled, as though torn between this woman and the version she’d known all her life.
“Get away from her,” Marlow warned. “She’s nothing but destruction. Did you know she tried to take my baby? Did you know as soon as Holt was born, she left us? She’s not what you think.”
“Don’t listen to them, darling. What you’re looking at is a bitter family devoid of love.”
“Terra, I appreciate what you did today,” I said. “That took courage.” I turned my attention to Ivette. “And you think you’ve poisoned us, but what you’ve really done is made us realize how important we are to each other. You can’t stand to see them thrive without you, but I can promise you this. You won’t find a more bonded group of people. It’s too bad you threw it away. I think I speak for everyone when I say you’ll never be a part of it.”
“I already am,” she said darkly.
“You’ll have nothing to do with our children. None of them. They’ll never know you exist.” That wasn’t an idle threat. As soon as I got back to the office a detailed documentation of all the shit this woman had piled on was my priority.
“We’ll see about that.” She tugged on Terra’s arm and led her away.
Terra looked over her shoulder, uncertain, but her feet kept moving.
“Why?” Marlow called. “You ended up with the family you wanted. Why torment us?”
Her mother turned and stalked back toward us with a sneer. That pale pink blouse and those pearls couldn’t cover up how awful she was.
“So you’d know exactly what it was like to have everything you wanted stolen from you,” she spat. “I had to settle
