Alex’s body stiffened, waiting for her to lose control. She patted him reassuringly. “Yes I do. But before I tell you, I want you to know that I’m not trying to hurt anyone. I only want the truth to come out as much as that might pain you, Lucy. I know you kept things a secret for a reason, but asking me this will make it all the more real.”
“I’ve had time to think it over, Billie. It’s old news anyway and it’s probably foolish of me to try to hide it anymore. I hardly think it will make waves.” Lucy shuffled in her chair, her discomfort obvious. “It can’t hurt us unless we let it.” She cleared her throat. “I think it’s time that I told you what happened when I left. After all you’ve gone through, you deserve answers.”
“Don’t you want to know what happened to Wilz first?”
“Of course I do but I think it’s only fair I tell you what I’ve been holding back.” She licked her lips, prepared to tell her tale. “When I came back from my tour overseas as a nurse for the Red Cross, there was a box waiting for me.”
“The one I found in the flat.” Billie touched the watch on her wrist.
Lucy saw the movement and winced. “Yes. Wilz had been dead for months and I wasn’t told. I never did understand why she never wrote to me while I was deployed.” Tears filled her eyes but she battled on. “I knew Papa had engineered everything to cause me the most pain and let me know he had control. I couldn’t return home, there was no way I would let myself be manipulated by him again, not after Wilz had gone through. That was where my dear Frederick came to the rescue.”
Father gave Billie an awkward smile. Keeping this from her hadn’t been his decision but still, it felt as though he had let her down.
“My friend Lucy died while we were overseas. My only friend not caught up in the influence of Papa. She showed me so much about life in such a short time I decided to honour Lucy and use her name to make myself disappear. Make a new identity in case Papa decided to come looking for me. Everything went smoothly until Sam gave you the job of writing about Foxborough Hall.”
“You should have told me. It would have saved a whole pile of grief. I’d have understood if I’d known.” Billie gripped her hands together, frustrated at her mother. “Please tell me if this had anything to do with the way you treated me when I was growing up.”
“Billie, please.” Father sighed.
“No, it’s a fair question, Frederick. We didn’t have the best relationship and it wasn’t always Billie’s fault.” Lucy fiddled with the chain around her neck. “You look so much like her, you always did. It threw me out so much from the day you were born. I thought giving you the modern version of her name would atone for what I’d done in leaving her behind but it didn’t. As you grew you reminded me more and more of her and my guilt grew. You are so much like her. Her personality, her drive. I think I built up a barrier between us to protect myself. I’m sure you’d have a field day with that admission, Hamish.”
“Perhaps.”
“Can we discuss Wilz please. I for one want to know what happened to her.” Father smiled encouragingly and waited for Billie to begin.
“Papa killed her.” Billie lifted a hand and stroked the bruises on her neck. “He wrapped his fingers around her throat, pushed her face underwater and squeezed until she couldn’t breathe anymore.”
A cry from Lucy had Father holding up his hand for Billie to stop. “Give her a minute.”
“No!” Lucy’s face was ashen.
“I’m sorry.” I tried, I really tried.
“But why? Why would he do that to his own daughter? He loved her. He loved both of us. Why would he do something so vile?” Her eyes filled with tears and Father pulled another chair over to sit beside her.
“She knew about what happened in the war. You see, his brother saw your mother first. Only he made the mistake of telling his Papa who got rather upset over it all. I believe Reginald was a philanderer, married with a child. Apparently he couldn’t cope with his younger brother winning a rich wife and made a play for her. He insinuated she was unfaithful and Papa hinted that he killed her too. Wilz taunted him with it when he caught her creeping out of the summerhouse after spending the night with her lover.” A sob caught in Billie’s throat as the feel of her his hands on her skin came back to her. The loving words, the scent of his body as they lay together. A hand squeezed her heart, taking the breath from her as she recounted the loss that occurred.
Hamish was by her side, handing her a handkerchief for the tears rolling down her cheeks. “Thank you.” She took it, and wiped her eyes before looking back at her mother. “She was so in love, so sure they could make it work, but it wasn’t to be. Papa wouldn’t have it. So she goaded him. Threw it in his face, how his brother died in the war trying to save him.”
“No, you have it wrong. He was shot and Papa risked his life to pull him back to the trenches. Uncle Reginald died in Papa’s arms.”
“No. Papa tried to run and Reginald wanted to stop him, called him names and goaded him about Mama. Papa was scared being under fire and it was the perfect way to dispose of what he thought was his competition. He shot Reggie when the fighting started and bolted. Collected a bullet for his troubles and spun his story from that. He was a coward and Wilz knew that.” Billie coughed, pulled her son closer. “Mama told her
