“Dear Lord,” she whispered. “I’m tired of being scared. Tired of being suspicious of everyone. Tired of not trusting anyone. Tired of not fully trusting You. I’m sorry for trying to keep everyone safe without You. For being so stubborn. I don’t want to be in control anymore.”
Peace threaded through her. Complete peace she hadn’t had since her mom’s death.
A knock on her door vibrated against her back.
She swiped her face, folded the letter, put it back in the envelope and stood. “Come in.”
Daddy stuck his head in. “You okay?”
“Not really.” She shook her head, sank to the edge of her bed.
“You read it?” He stepped in, closed the door behind him, plopped on the bed beside her and gave her a hug. “Oh sweetheart.”
“It actually helped.”
“I hoped it would.”
“Ross told me he has feelings for me and I accused him of pretending, so he could get custody of the twins.”
“Just like Aunt Eleanor.” Daddy sighed. “You have to apologize. Have you told him about your aunt?”
“Not really.”
“Tell him, sweetheart. He’ll understand.”
“It’s too late. And even if it wasn’t, I can’t have kids.”
“Does Ross know that?”
“Yes.”
“And he still has feelings for you, so he must be okay with that.”
“Maybe. But even if he is, is it fair for me to sentence him to a life of never having a biological child?”
“If we’d known about your mom’s health, I wouldn’t have considered it a sentence. I loved her. You have to talk to him.”
Daddy was right, she needed to at least apologize. Maybe nothing could ever happen between her and Ross, but she still owed him an apology.
* * *
Ross had barely slept last night. The rental cabin was nice with a comfortable bed. But his mind had been stuck on Stacia. His heart hurt and he couldn’t wait to get back to Houston, to get on with his life without her. Since he’d had the argument with Stacia and his parents knew he was hurting, they’d agreed not to stay for church.
He pulled into the familiar drive for the last time with a heavy heart. Maverick waved from the porch swing as Ross got out of his truck. His parents turned in behind him.
As Texan hospitality would have it, Maverick had insisted on cooking them breakfast before they headed out. Ross had considered staying at the cabin, but he wanted to see the twins before he left. And he didn’t want to insult Maverick’s gesture.
One more tense meal of trying to ignore Stacia and he’d be free.
“Can we talk, privately?” Maverick met him with a handshake.
“Sure.”
“Sam, Karen, so glad you could make it.” Maverick greeted his folks. “I’m afraid we’re a bit behind here. Our mutual grandkids aren’t even up yet and Stacia’s in the workshop, finishing up a baby gift for her friend.”
“You don’t have to bother with breakfast,” Mom said. “We can visit with the twins a bit and then eat on the road.”
“Nonsense. We’ll get it together. Y’all can go on in and wake the kiddos if you want.”
“We’ll definitely take you up on that.” Dad rubbed his palms together the way he did when things went his way.
“I’ll get breakfast going in a jiffy.” Maverick waited until Mom and Dad went inside, then turned to Ross. “Have a seat.”
Ross settled on the porch swing and Maverick plopped down on the opposite end.
“I can’t let you leave without explaining a few things.”
“Okay.”
“After Emilia, my wife, died, Callista had a really rough time with it. Stacia was always the strong, stoic one. Not so much for my youngest. So Eleanor, Emilia’s younger sister, came to stay with us for a while. I was in over my head with two girls and grieving my wife, so I welcomed her help. But after a while, things got weird.”
“How so?”
“It seemed like she was trying to take Emilia’s place. In the house, in the girls’ hearts and in mine. She became less sisterly and set her sights on me. I told her I thought the world of her, but not in that way. She was embarrassed and planned to go back home.”
Maverick stared off in the distance, lost in memories. “But just as she was supposed to leave, I got a bad case of bronchitis, so I asked her to stay and take care of the girls until I was up to it. She drove us to the doctor and then the pharmacy. I went in to get my medication and when I came out, they were gone.”
“She took them?” Stacia’s hang-up suddenly made sense.
“Yes. At first, I thought maybe she’d gone to get the girls ice cream or something. I didn’t feel well, so a friend drove me home and I left a message on Eleanor’s cell phone that I’d gone home. When she didn’t call back, I started getting worried. That’s when I listened to the answering machine.” Maverick closed his eyes. “I’ll never forget the words. ‘Maverick, I just can’t leave the girls behind. Don’t worry, I’ll take care of them as if they were my own. I’m sorry.’”
“Did you call the police?”
“No. I knew if my Emilia was alive, she wouldn’t want her sister going to prison. I’d gotten the girls a cell phone and I had a computer guru friend.” Maverick seemed to age as he told the story. Shoulders slumped, more lines on his face.
“I called him and he was able to track them. They were headed toward Dallas. I have no idea where she planned to go. I called her and left a message that I’d put a tracking device on her car and that
