Page 67 of The Summer Inn on Plum Island
“Ben, why are you so hostile toward her?” Dawn was trying hard to understand. “Wade turned against her as well. I mean, I saw him changing toward her years before that, but the incident ten years ago was Wade’s turning point.” She shook her head. “Do you know on the rare occasions Wade came to a family function in the past nine years, if Bailey was there, he’d leave?”
“Can’t say I blame him,” Ben backed up his friend’s actions. “Can we talk about anything else but Brat Blackwell?”
“Okay!” Dawn sighed in defeat. She wasn’t going to get answers from Ben. “Tell me about your sister.” She smiled. “I haven’t really kept up with Arno’s life. The guy was a cheat and so jealous of Wade and you in high school.” She shuddered. “I couldn’t believe Clem married him after…” She swallowed. “Anyway, you said Clem and Arno were divorced.”
“Yes.” Ben nodded. “They got divorced five years ago.”
“Don’t they have kids?” Dawn asked. She was sure she’d seen an article somewhere about Arno’s secret family.
“Yes, my sister has kids,” Ben told Dawn. “They are the most wonderful kids and remind me so much of my sister and me.”
“Oh?” Dawn said with a smile and frowned once again at Ben’s strange choice of words. “Are they twins?”
“Yup, a boy and girl like Clem and I,” Ben told her proudly.
“That’s so sweet,” Dawn said, smiling at the look of pure love in his eyes as he spoke about his niece and nephew. “Does Clem have full custody of them? I don’t see Arno as a very good father figure.”
“Clem shares custody with their father,” Ben told her, his eyes once again closing off.
“What are their names?” Dawn asked.
“We call them Cheeky and Mischief,” Ben said, laughing.
“Ah, so they are just like you and Clem then?” Dawn laughed with him. “What is their relationship like with their father?”
“Very good,” Ben told her. “They adore him, and he adores them, although their parents don’t meet each other at the pickup and drop off. That’s done by their nanny and chauffeur.”
“At least the kids aren’t caught in the middle of a cold handover with their parents,” Dawn said.
“Yes.” Ben nodded. “Their parents keep their distance, and as far as I know, they never ever say a bad word about each other when they have the twins.”
“That’s good,” Dawn said with a nod. “And you, Uncle Ben? Do you get to see them?”
“I only met them in person a year ago,” Ben told her. “But they knew about me and drew me pictures and sent me handmade birthday and Christmas cards every year.”
“I’m so glad that Clem did that,” Dawn said. “She always believed in you and Wade.”
“Clem never gave up fighting to clear our names,” Ben said with a soft smile.
“We never saw her after the trial,” Dawn said. “I mean except from a distance or in passing somewhere. She’d politely nod but never went out of her way to interact.”
“She doesn’t like any of you,” Ben told her bluntly. “Well, except for your Aunt Faith, Harriet, and more recently Scott.”
“Scott?” Dawn’s brows drew together. “How come he gets a pardon from Clem?”
“Scott was the one that helped Clem get what she needed to get me out of prison,” Ben told her. “But, let’s put this down as another subject that’s off limits.”
“What is wrong with you and Wade?” Dawn hissed in frustration. “What are the two of you hiding?” Her frown deepened as something flashed in Ben’s eyes, and that muscle ticked at the side of his jaw again as he clamped it. “Or should I ask who are the two of you protecting?” Her eyes narrowed as he glanced away, but not before she’d seen the truth that his words had hit a nerve. “That’s it, isn’t it? You’re both protecting someone.” She saw Ben start to shut down. “Is it Clem?”
“Dawn, please, I’m imploring you. Drop it,” Ben warned her. “Let’s agree not to talk about what happened ten years ago and, like I said before, leave the past behind.”
Dawn responded with a frustrated shake of her head, her voice tight. “Then what’s safe to talk about, Ben? The weather?”
Ben managed a weak smile, trying to lighten the mood despite the heaviness in his heart that took Dawn by surprise as it was reflected in his eyes.
“Yeah, let’s go with the weather,” Ben murmured, but the smile quickly faded. He sighed deeply, his following words laden with the weight of his memories. “I’m sorry, Dawn. I’m not trying to be difficult. It’s just… revisiting that chapter of my life.” He shook his head. “It makes too many excruciatingly painful and terrifying memories return.” He cleared his throat as his eyes darkened with emotion. “Being sentenced was a nightmare that came to life. I stood there, completely helpless, as my future slipped through my fingers.” His voice cracked a bit as he continued. “I was painted as a monster, and not a single soul stood up to question it. My sister was wrecked, barely holding herself together, and Wade... he was so devastated he almost landed in the cell next to me trying to defend me.”
“Oh, Ben… I…” Dawn’s heart dropped and started to ache for him.
