Page 30 of The Summer Inn on Plum Island
“Or us,” Dawn pointed out. “What’s in Lila’s locket?”
“A picture of my mother and Aunt Betty,” Liam replied, his eyes widening at the implications. “Anyone who’s done their homework at the hotel will know that Aunt Betty is the woman who raised me and Jennifer after our mother died and father left us.”
“Which adds another layer of targets as well,” Dawn pointed out. “Your father’s a prominent judge in Boston.”
“And your family is considered the royalty of showbiz,” Liam stated. “Which means until we figure out the who and why, we’re not the only ones potentially in danger.”
Dawn nodded in agreement. “It also means that we need to keep this quiet. If my brother finds out about this, poor Harper will beshipped back to the Hamptons and this hotel will be swarming with Vanderbilt security detail.”
“Maybe that’s not a bad thing?” Liam pointed out. “Well, not Harper going back to the Hamptons, but having your brother beef up the security.”
“You don’t understand,” Dawn told him. “My brother oversees every new security project involving Harper or me. It was okay when the Blackwells were here because my brother and Harley ensure that the security is discreet and tight.”
“But with all of them away…” Liam added with a nod of understanding. He frowned. “Wait a minute.” He picked up his phone and started messaging Finn. “Someone’s going to be moving into Finn’s holiday house on the other side of my house. Finn said it was one of Alex’s relatives. You know the one Harriet’s parents and uncle stayed in?”
“Yes, it’s a beautiful house,” Dawn said. “And completely different from your house. Which is odd because from the outside of the house, you’d think besides a few subtle differences, they would be the same.”
“Finn designed them that way,” Liam explained. “He modeled them off the glass house that Alex bought, which was sadly burned down.”
“At least it’s going to be rebuilt in the same style but just not as a house,” Dawn reminded him. “But the new library and various centers.”
“I know,” Liam said with a nod. “I’m glad it’s going to be changed into something useful. It’s just that it’s been a landmark in Cobble Cove for a long time, so it’s going to take a little getting used to.”
“I understand,” Dawn said with a smile. “We get used to something being a certain way.”
“But change is always inevitable,” Liam sighed. His phone pinged, and he looked at it. It was a reply from Finn. “As I was saying, Finn has someone moving into his holiday house, and he’s just replied that it’s Alex’s younger sister.”
“Bailey?” Dawn’s eyes widened. “She couldn’t make the wedding as she was stuck in Egypt.”
“Well, she’s coming to stay on Plum Island for a while and will be renting Finn’s holiday house next to mine,” Liam told Dawn. “I wonder if your brother knows about that?”
“I’m not sure,” Dawn said. “Bailey tries to fly under the radar and avoid my overprotective big brother.” She raised her brows. “My brother became overly paranoid after Bailey was kidnapped when she was…” She frowned. “I think seventeen or eighteen.”
“Bailey is Alex’s younger sister, right?” Liam asked Dawn for confirmation.
“Yes,” Dawn said, nodding. “There is a big age gap between the Blackwell twin brothers and Bailey—twenty-two years.”
“That is a big age gap,” Liam said. “Don’t you also have a much younger brother?”
“Yes, Wade.” Dawn sighed. “He’s the black sheep or likes to think he is.” She shook her head and looked at her hands. “My little brother is fourteen years younger than me and nineteen years younger than Scott.”
“Was it a theme or something where you lived?” Liam teased. “All your moms having late lambs.”
“You’d think so.” Dawn laughed before her face fell serious. “Harriet’s mother lost what the medical world likes to term a geriatric pregnancy. Harriet was sixteen, and the family was devastated.”
“Oh, no, that family has been through such a lot,” Liam said. “So Harriet nearly also had a much younger sibling.”
“Twin siblings,” Dawn told him. “It was twins.”
“I’m sorry to hear that,” Liam said. “Sally nearly lost Lila, but the doctors managed to fix the problem, but Sally was bedridden for the last four months of the pregnancy.”
“This is why I chose not to have kids,” Dawn confessed. “My mother’s family has a history of difficult pregnancies. My mother had three miscarriages, and when she nearly lost Wade, the stress got to her. After Wade was born, my mother started drinking again and eventually killed herself in a car accident driving under the influence.”
“Dawn, I…” Liam looked at her in shock. “I don’t know what to say to that becauseI’m sorryseems so lame.”
“It’s okay.” Dawn’s eyes were deceptively bright as she gave him a tight smile. “While my mother’s death was a shock, I think we all knew deep down how she was going to end up.” She glanced at her hands. “My father’s death was the tragic one.”
“What happened to your father?” Liam asked.
