Page 121 of Day Break

She nodded and I saw a tear slide down her cheek.

“Hey.” I reached up and wiped it away. “Don’t worry, when I can, I’m planning on asking you to marry me.”

She smiled. “I’m not worried. I’m happy.”

“Tears are a funny way of showing that,” I said with a smile.

“Hormones.” She shrugged. “Remember, I’m pregnant.”

“I remember,” I said with a smile. “While we’re at the hospital, maybe they can confirm that for us.”

“That’s a great idea.”

She pulled back as a phone rang. “It’s your parents.” She held up my phone.

“Answer it if you want. I’m done dealing with my family for a while.” I closed my eyes.

The following morning, I woke to a bright hospital room. The surgery to remove the bullet embedded in my side, just under my rib, had taken more than three hours. They’d stitched me up, inside and out, and now I was itching for answers.

I’d gotten a lot of them last night, but there were still a few left over that I wanted.

Chloe had spent the night lying next to me in the bed. Her pregnancy test had come back positive.

We were going to have a baby.

We were going to be a family.

She’d disappeared for a while that morning and had come back with breakfast for the both of us. Even though it was hospital food, I enjoyed eating it with her.

I’d gotten a text message from our neighbor, Jimmy Evans, who assured us that Byron was healthy and happily enjoying his mini vacation with his own two dogs. He told us we could pick him up when we returned home and not to worry about him.

Shortly after we finished breakfast, my parents strolled in, followed by Officer Whitlock, Alex, and Detective Langford.

“I thought it prudent that your family be here,” the detective said, setting a file down on the hospital tray. Then he looked around the room. “You two had a productive time last night.” He motioned to Chloe and me.

“Tell me their confessions were overheard on the 911 call,” I said.

“They were. Heard and recorded.” Detective Langford smiled. “I’ve listened to them about a dozen times.” His smile slipped. “I thought you’d like to know, we pulled Rodney Clarkson’s body from the pond about an hour ago. Just like your cousin confessed. It was damned close to where they pulled your car out too.”

I swallowed. “That SOB was rough on me like my cousins, but he was trying to change. He hadn’t killed anyone.”

“We’ll have to send flowers and our condolences to Lindsey,” Chloe said, taking my hand in hers.

I nodded. “Go on,” I told the detective.

“If we’d just had the ring, there wouldn’t have been enough evidence to convict the two of them. However…” He held up Sherry’s diary. “Thanks to you telling us where this was hidden, we have our first real evidence.” He flipped the book open to the last page.

“I didn’t want to skip to the end,” Chloe said softly. “I was going to finish reading it tomorrow.” She shook her head. “Today, I mean.”

I squeezed her hand. “Go on,” I told the detective again.

He shook his head. “What’s in here will only cause more pain.” He shut the book and looked to my parents. “This”—he tapped the book— “along with their confessions and the bullet we’ll pull from Rodney and the one they pulled from Lane, will be enough to send them away for good.” He closed the folder. “Oh, this is yours.” He handed my grandfather’s letter back to Chloe. “It’s a copy, but I figured George would have wanted you to read it none the less.”

“Thanks,” Chloe said, holding onto it.

“So, that’s it?” my mother asked. “They killed my baby and killed George and Rod to cover it up?” She held onto my father.

The detective nodded. “Not too bright, if you ask me. There could have been a dozen reasons why that ring ended up in the pond. There wasn’t any DNA evidence on Sherry tying them to the crime. No witnesses. No solid evidence. If they had just stayed quiet, they would have gotten away.”