Page 44 of Haystacks and Hoaxes

“One of the ladies Gage and Johnny spoke with recalled a heated exchange between your mom and Loretta Bentley on your wedding day.”

“Almost wedding day,” Mila corrected mechanically.

“Of note, their confrontation happenedoutsidethe churchbeforeyou made your famous exit from the altar. Multiple eyewitnesses described your mother as tearfully distraught afterward.”

“Oh, to be a bee on one of their bonnets that fateful day,” Mila mocked.

“Since I wasn’t,” her brother continued with the ghost of a smile, “I had Team Gage and Johnny paw through more of our mother’s past, and something else popped.” From his expression, it wasn’t anything good.

Mila’s heart skipped a sickening beat as she motioned for him to continue.

“This isn’t the first time Carla Kingston has had a warrant out for her arrest,” he announced gravely.

“What?” It was a good thing Mila was already sitting down.

“She was accused of embezzling funds from the dealership’s coffers, but the Bentleys dropped the charges. Nobody knows why.”

As reluctant as Mila was to jump to conclusions, she understood how bad this latest discovery looked for their mom. “Maybe because she was innocent?”

“Maybe.”

Her brother’s answer surprised her. “Really?” Hope leaped into her heart. “Why do you say that?”

“Because a subpoena for her bank records showed that she started investing the oil royalties into a global mutual fund around that same time.”

Mila spread her hands, not sure where he was going with his story.

“A closer look at the mutual fund proved that it’s nothing more than an overseas shell account. A carefully crafted one, mind you.”

Alarm sliced through her. “Are you saying she’s being blackmailed by the Bentleys?”Which would make her a victim instead of a criminal!Hope warred with her fears. The explanation fit better than anything else she’d heard so far. It wasn’t difficult to picture a young and grieving stepmother facing the prospect of raising a baby that wasn’t hers — not only alone, but as a dirt-poor receptionist with zero support from her in-laws. At the time, nobody had known Mila’s inheritance would grow into what it was today, but somebody had figured it out. Somebody who hadn’t hesitated to terrorize an already struggling single mom into forking over every penny of the oil royalties.

Decker looked troubled. “She’s being blackmailed by someone alright, but there’s no evidence linking the Bentleys to the mutual fund.”

“Yet,” Mila snapped.

“It could be anyone, sis.” He shook his head regretfully. “If our mother had any proof it was the Bentleys, she would’ve gone to the police by now. Or at least told Dad.”

Her throat constricted as another thought popped into her head. “You said her bank accounts were subpoenaed. Does that mean she and Chet know about the arrest warrant?”

“They do.” His jaw tightened.

Poor Mom! Poor Chet!“What did they say?”

“Not much.” He flicked his thumb and forefinger against the side of his coffee mug. “Probably at theadvice of their lawyer. It’s standard procedure to advise their clients to maintain radio silence.”

Mila found a thread of comfort in his words. “It sounds like your dad is sticking by my mom.”You were right about that.She was so glad he was.

“That’s what family is for, sis.” Decker gave her a tight smile. “If I ever had any doubts about how much my dad loves your mom,” his words indicated that he most definitely had, “I don’t anymore. He’s doing everything to protect her that I would do if Chanel was in the same situation.”

The warmth of his acceptance chased away the chill of fear in Mila’s heart. Somewhere along the way, their blended family had become a real family. It was an unexpectedly wonderful conclusion to draw on Christmas Eve. It felt like an early Christmas gift.

Her phone buzzed with an incoming text. Then another one and another one.

“Whoa! Who’s blowing up your phone?” Decker eyed the vibrating instrument curiously.

“Normally, it would be Mom.” But if her lawyer was advising radio silence, it probably wasn’t her this time. Mila lifted her phone, glanced at the caller ID, and nearly dropped the phone.

“Who is it?” Decker asked quickly.

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