Page 61 of The Man in the Cottage

He did it to our grandmother when she was sick.

I set the phone down carefully, because if I don't I'm going to throw it across the room.

"Travis?" Kelly's voice is cautious. "Say something."

"How long have you had this?"

"A few days."

"And you didn't tell me?"

"I was trying to figure out how I felt about it first." She's watching me, her expression guarded. "Some of what she said—I knew it wasn't true. But some of it..."

"Some of it what?"

"Some of it made me wonder. If there were things you hadn't told me."

The words hit harder than they should. I thought we were past this. I thought I'd told her everything—the scandal, the family, the money, all of it. But here's Savannah, reaching across the distance to plant doubt, and it's working.

"What part made you wonder?" I ask.

"The grandmother part." Kelly's voice is quiet. "She said you ran. That you weren't there for her when she was sick. But you told me you visited every day."

"I did visit every day."

"Then why would Savannah say that?"

"Because she's a liar." The words come out harsher than I intended. "Because she's been jealous of my relationship with Grandma since we were kids. Because Grandma left me the cottage and the trust fund and Savannah got nothing, and she's never forgiven me for it."

Kelly blinks. "Your grandmother left you money?"

"A trust. For emergencies. It's how I've been living since the suspension—the team stopped paying me, and I didn't want to touch my savings." I shake my head. "Savannah contested the will. Said Grandma wasn't in her right mind. It went nowhere, but she's been bitter ever since."

"You never told me that."

"I didn't think it mattered." I push back from the table, too angry to sit still. "Kelly, everything in that email is designed to hurt you. To hurt us. Savannah doesn't care about you—she cares about getting to me. And the easiest way to do that is to make you doubt me."

"I know that. I know." She stands too, moving toward me. "But I needed to hear you say it. I needed to see your face when you read it."

"And? What did you see?"

"Anger. Not guilt." She touches my arm. "That's what I needed to know."

Some of the tension drains out of my shoulders. "You believed me?"

"I wanted to. But I needed to be sure." She takes a breath. "Nicole told me to show you the email. She said I was being stupid, letting it get in my head. And she was right."

"Nicole sounds smart."

"She is. Smarter than me, sometimes."

I pull her into my arms, holding her against my chest. She fits there perfectly, her head tucked under my chin, her hands pressed flat against my back.

"I'm sorry," she says into my shirt. "I should have told you sooner."

"It's okay. I understand why you didn't." I kiss the top of her head. "But Kelly—whatever my family says, whatever they do—you can always come to me. I'd rather deal with it together than have you carrying it alone."

"I know. I will. I promise."