Page 70 of Betrayal In Calusa Cove
Fletcher’s stomach turned. He blinked. “What was Ken thinking?” He glanced over his shoulder.
“I have no idea, but at first, he did push Audra hard to leave town. It was all he talked about right before he left,” Baily said. “He’d become so desperate, it was strange.”
“I agree.”
“Keep reading, please.” Baily eased to the floor, sitting across from him, twirling her hair, like she used to do when she’d been younger and deep in thought.
I can’t believe it. I met a girl. Name’s Julie. She’s nice. But she doesn’t want anyone to know about us. Well, there isn’t really an us because, for starters, I’m still a little hung up on my high school sweetheart. Although that ship has most likely sailed, especially since I haven’t a clue as to where Audra disappeared. I haven’t told Julie about her. Don’t think I will either. Don’t think Julie and I will last. She wants to keep us a secret, and I’m keeping one hell of a secret from Fletcher and Baily. It sucks.”
“Are there dates in these entries?” Baily asked.
Fletcher nodded. “That one was from about one year after Victor disappeared. Which doesn’t track with when he said he met Julie.”
“I know. That would’ve been two years after Victor died.” Baily inched closer, leaning against the bench, stretching out her legs. “What’s next?”
“Two related entries. One from right before he went to meet with Audra and one right after,” Fletcher said with an ache in his chest.
I got a weird call today from Massey. He told me that he knows where Audra is and that he needs me to go see her. Like I wouldn’t want to do that. I’ve been worried sick about her. But here’s the kicker. He wants me to make sure she doesn’t return to Calusa Cove. Okay, yeah. I don’t want her to either. I want her here with me. But that wouldn’t bode well with the new girlfriend. So, what am I to do? Well, Massey made that easy for me. He reminded me of all the crap he’s got hanging over my head. All the ways in which he can make my life miserable, like sending me to prison for shit I didn’t do.
Fletcher cleared his throat. “The next entry is dated four months later. But that tracks with when we came back here to visit.”
“That journal has been in this garage the entire time?”
“Appears so.” Fletcher nodded.
“It kills me that I broke Audra’s heart…again. But it’s better this way. Better for her. Safer for her. She’ll figure life out. She’s got fire and grit. I have to believe that. Paul, his son, and whoever they’re working for—it’s bigger than I could’ve ever imagined. I’m glad I got out. Now, I wish I could get my sister out. But she’s about as stubborn as a mule and stuck to my dad like glue. She won’t even leave for Fletcher, and I know she loves him. Maybe I can help get the marina on stable ground so it’s not bleeding money anymore. Make their lives would be easier. Julie and I’ve talked about that, which is funny because her family is so rich, her biggest hardship is worrying about what color sports car to pick for her twenty-first birthday.
“He sounds lighter in that entry,” Baily whispered.
“I agree.” Fletcher nodded, glancing up. “This is right before he started bringing Julie around, and we all commented on how he started having a spring to his step again. We thought that maybe it had to do with getting over Audra. I always thought that was hard on him. It’s not like he didn’t love her.”
“He did love her.” Baily rubbed her hands on her thighs. “That’s why some of this is so hard. I feel like there were times my brother acted like the man I always knew, but then at other times, like a total stranger.”
“We all thought that of him.” Fletcher flipped a page and scanned a few of the entries. The next couple were mostly about Julie. How sweet and kind she’d been. How much fun they’d been having. How alive he felt, but how it bothered him that she struggled with the team. That she didn’t want to spend time with the team. They were his brothers. His family. His lifeline.
Fletcher smiled, tapping his finger against his chest.
Further in—another entry, years later—but this one wasn’t very rosy.
Julie and her family aren’t who I thought they were. I’ve been trapped since the wedding. They own me. I don’t know what to do. I stopped writing things down because I’ve been so afraid. But this needs to be documented. I need to figure this out. I can’t tell the guys. Not yet. I know I can trust them. It’s not about that. They are loyal. True. And they have my six.
But I’ve fucked up royally. And oddly, it all dates back to when I first sold my first dime bag of weed for Benson. What an idiot I’ve been. Now, if I want to be a dad to my own boys, I’ve got to feed my dad bad tips for the stock market. Worse, now they have me pushing a predatory loan on him. It’s going to bleed him, my sister, and the marina dry. I tried to push money back, and I told Dad to keep paying the loan even when they said not to. But they caught me. I figured I’d end up in some massive custody battle I couldn’t afford, but no, instead, they showed me a picture of Audra. A recent one. They told me they’d finish what Massey started.
Fletcher gritted his teeth. Tears burned.
“Oh, my God. They were using his children and his love for Audra to…to…that’s just disgusting,” Baily said softly.
“I understand why Ken kept his distance from us now. Why he struggled to look us all in the eye.” Fletcher squared his shoulders. “Because if he had, he would’ve broken down and told us, and he didn’t feel as though he could. Not without putting his kids or Audra at risk.”
“I guess I can’t hate him anymore.”
Fletcher let out a sarcastic chuckle. “Oh, there’s some animosity swirling around in my gut still.” He cocked a brow. “Ken should’ve trusted we would’ve had his back. That we would’ve protected the boys, Audra, you, your dad, and this fucking marina. But he didn’t, and I’m sorry, but he was being a little selfish from the beginning, all because he didn’t want anyone to know he’d been dealing drugs for the likes of Paul Massey.”
“Can you blame him?” Baily asked.
“A little bit.” Fletcher nodded. “Why don’t I continue?”
I’ve made a decision. The Barbaros are going to think I’m all in, and then I’m gonna burn the place down. I don’t care if I go down with them. At least my sister won’t. They already took my dad from me. The guys don’t respect me like they used to, and I don’t blame them. I lost the only woman I’ve ever really loved years ago. But I can do this for my boys. Hopefully, they’ll see that their dad, in the end, was brave enough to do what was right.
