Page 155 of The Secrets She Keeps

Known Trey was doing monstrous things. But Trey was his son and he’d wanted nothing more than to protect him.

At the cost of other people’s children.

He would never forgive himself that.

Could never look himself in the eye. Knowing that his work had led to the deaths of so many young people.

“I never intended for Sopalmitraln to take lives. I thought I washelpingthe world, Heather Holly. Like Andrew did. I just wanted to leave a legacy. For my children. All of them. I wantedthem to be proud of me. Like you girls were of Andrew.” Tears stung his eyes. As he justremembered.“I never…I didn’t know Trey and his friends had turned it into this OPJ until several years later. By then…it was too late.”

“Nothing is ever too late, Daddy,” Trey said. Of course. His son wanted to be thecenterof attention. “I have lots of money riding on this OPJ. It’s mylegacy,right? Just like Grandpa Andrew had his legacy for that heart meds he made. Mine is just a lot more fun. Grandpa Andrew was always such a serious schmuck. Never any fun.”

His son was such a monster at times.

Trey always had wanted all eyes on him too.

Maybe that had been the problem with Trey all those years. He had had all of Timothy’s attention for almost six years. Then Timothy had married Angela, and Trey had been thrust into a family with so many other kids. He’d felt left out or something. And then Eden had come along not even a year after Timothy and Angela had married.

Maybe Trey had never found hisplaceagain? Timothy’s fault. It was all Timothy’s fault again.

“How long are we going to play this little chitchat game?” Heather asked coolly. Her hand hadn’t shaken even once on that gun.

The gun she had pointed right at Trey now. If she squeezed that trigger, Timothy’s son was dead.

He would watch his son die right in front of him.

Timothy did what he had to do—he was a father, after all. He put himself in front of his son. Protecting Trey like he always would. Even though Trey was the monster in so many nightmares now.

“As long as it takes, Auntie Heather, as long as it takes.” Trey yanked the Barratt girl closer. The girl cried out.

She was so afraid. Her fear cut into Timothy’s heart completely. Angela…Angela had looked thatafraidright after she’d been diagnosed. When they’d known she wouldn’t be there to watch their daughters grow up. Or her sisters.

That had been one of the darkest moments of Timothy’s life. When he hadknownhe would lose Angela, no matter what he did to stop it. This girl had one hand over her stomach, where her precious baby grew now. “Trey…let that poor girl go. She’s never hurt you. Not once. Just let her go. Let’s leave. Before it’s too late.”

Timothy wasn’t afool.

Everything had changed when Heather walked in. Completely.

116

Gunnar creptto the front window. The one that looked out toward the park. He suspected what was going down was in the side room—a formal sitting room type space. It was the only room with a light on, for one thing. For another—it was around the side of the house. Less visible from the road.

There had been a light switched on upstairs. There was at least one person upstairs, where the family bedrooms were.

Gunnar needed a way in. He headed to the back door. Miguel had followed the sounds of an engine somewhere nearby. He was going to check it out. They didn't need an innocent neighbor wandering into something at the wrong possible moment.

Gunnar peered into the front window. He could break it. That would be one way in. But if he did that, it would be advertising his presence. That was the last thing he wanted to do.

They only had the one headset that Miguel wore. To let them know what was going on inside.

Movement to his left had him turning. He knew who it was—that whole giant shadow was a good indication.

"Neighbor at number eighteen going in to work tonight, I think. False alarm," Miguel said quietly. "We have another problem. Some of Heather's family are out here now. They just found Daniel unconscious. He's had the shit beaten out of him. I think some of those bastards got away."

"We'll worry about that after we get Powell and Heather and Mason out. You call Heather's family off? Send them home?" Eight blocks. They lived eight blocks away. It was too damned close.

"They refuse to go, and we don't have time to fight a battle with the Colesons right now. Samia and Cashlyn and Summer. Those three will do okay. They know how to stay back when needed. Norm and Heather have trained them all well. Samia already checked the guards. One is holding on still. She's done what she can to stabilize him. But the second guard from Barratt-Handley is dead."

Gunnar just nodded. "We need inside."

---