Page 95 of The Cottage on Plum Island
Jennifer’s heart slammed into her rib cage when she realized that Sam was talking about Harley as he was the one who had control of Angela’s entire life, including control over Wesley Industries and what Jennifer thought must be a sizable amount of money.
“Angela and Harley are in great danger, aren’t they?” The words tumbled from Jennifer’s lips. “And all because of money?”
“Especially now they know Clair was the one that died and not Angela,” Annie pointed out.
“Clair!” Wallis’s words were ragged, and his eyes haunted. “I should’ve got her to understand who she worked for a lot sooner.”
“This isn’t your fault, Wallis,” Angela soothed.
“Yes, it is!” Annie and Sam said in unison.
“You should’ve spoken up years ago, you coward!” Annie sneered at him.
“Annie, please,” Angela implored her. “You don’t know what it’s like to live in fear like Wallis has since he was ten years old.”
“Ten years old!” Jennifer looked at Wallis. “How old are you?”
“Fifty.” Wallis looked at her curiously.
Jennifer’s eyes widened as it suddenly dawned on her. “The night you found out who your father really was was the night of Gloria Liddle’s death.”
“Yes.” Wallis nodded.
Her eyes narrowed. “Your mother was trying to get your father and his friends arrested for abusing Gloria and was trying to figure out who fathered Duncan.” Her eyes darted from Annie to Wallis. “Why did your mother suddenly swap sides during your father’s trial and support him, changing her statement about Gloria?”
“Because my fathertold her I killed Gloria.” Wallis’s words had Jennifer’s jaw-dropping.
I did not see that coming!Jennifer stared at Wallis. “She changed her mind because of you.”
“She changed her mind because she believed my father’s lies,” Wallis corrected Jennifer. “I was playing video games in the Wesley’s pool house when I heard Gloria and someone arguing by the pool. They were shouting and made baby Duncan cry.”
“I was sleeping on the sofa then,” Angela told Jennifer. “I didn’t hear a thing until Shannon rushed into the pool house with Wallis and shoved him in the shower.”
“You were there?” Jennifer asked Angela, amazed.
“I didn’t see anything because Shannon wouldn’t let us out of the pool house until Gloria had been taken away and Sylvia, Gloria’s mother, took Duncan,” Angela told her.
“Where was Clair?” Jennifer asked.
“She’d gone to her room long before that,” Wallis told her. “Clair hardly ever socialized with us.”
“Was Shannon with you?” Jennifer looked from Wallis to Angela.
“Yes, she was looking after us while my parents were out,” Angela answered.
“What happened, Wallis?”Jennifer looked at him.
“I rushed out when I heard Gloria scream, and Duncan’s cries got louder,” Wallis continued to tell Jennifer the story. “I saw a dark shadow rush off to one side, but I ignored it when I saw Gloria lying on the ground bleeding.” He stared into the distance, taken by the memory. “I yelled, Glory, and dropped down beside her. There was so much blood. I remembered our lesson during a school camping trip: you had to try and stop the bleeding. I took a towel and pressed it to her head.”
“That’s when Shaun appeared and got his daughter to take Wallis inside and clean him up,” Sam finished the story. “Shaun told his wife and close circle of friends,” he looked at Jennifer, “which included Pearce Gains that Wallis had killed Gloria because he thought she was trying to break their family up by having his father’s baby.”
“Is Duncan your father’s child?” Jennifer felt her heart lurch.
“No!” Angela, Sam, Annie, and Wallis said in unison and looked at Jennifer.
“Do you know whose child he is?” Jennifer asked, warning bells going off in her head at how they looked at her. “Is he Andrew’s child?”
“He’s my half-brother,” Angela told her. “That night, while my parents were out celebrating their anniversary, Shaun was tasked with taking care of theGloriaproblem.”
