that R.J. and Anna were Meganâs oldest children. Sheâd been surprised to discover that they, like Connor, were nephew and niece. Megan and her late husband had adopted the two after their widowed father, Robert, had disappeared one day. The magnitude of Meganâs heart had impressed Lacy.
Just as the meanness within Janelleâs took her breath away.
Janelleâs lips narrowed into two thin lines. âSurpriseâhe married my mother and then abandoned four more kids before he finally cashed in his chips. Youâll pardon the expression,â she said sarcastically when she saw the confusion on Lacyâs face. âIâm from Vegas. Thatâs where Robert Maitland met my mother.â For just a fraction of a second, she looked away and her expression softened. If she had ever felt anything at all, it had been for her mother. âMy mother was a showgirl. She was really something in her prime.â And then her face clouded over, malevolent again. âBut he had no use for her after her looks started to go.â
Janelleâs gaze shifted back to Lacy. âThatâs a Maitland for youâtakes the best, leaves the rest.â Anger flashed in her eyes. She wanted revenge on all of them. âThey owe me. And when I found that letter from Big Daddy Harland to âUncleâ William in my fatherâs things after he died, I figured it was time the Maitlands paid up.â
Lacy wasnât following this. What Janelle was saying was so disjointed, part of her thought the other woman was deranged or making things up. âWhat letter?â
Because it had been such an integral part of her scam for the past year, Janelle had momentarily forgotten it was still a secret.
âYou donât know, do you? You donât know who youâve been drooling over. Heâsââ And then she realized that she had another weapon in her hand. Something to hold over Lacyâs head. Her eyes glinted as her thoughts scrambled. âNo, never mind. Why should you know? Why should I tell you anything? Unless, of course,â she continued loftily, âyou can see your way clear to using your influence with that old bitch and getting the charges against me dropped.â
It was a trick, a ploy. There was no so-called secret, no letter. It was just Janelleâs way of trying to manipulate her again. But she wasnât the same person sheâd been a year ago, Lacy thought. She was her own person now.
It was Lacyâs turn to be contemptuous. And to look at Janelle with pity. âI donât have any influence, and even if I did, I wouldnât use it. Not to get you off. Youâre evil, Janelle.â
If the words were meant to shame Janelle, they fell far short of their mark. Instead, she laughed, amused. âDamn straight I amâand proud of it.What did being a Goody Two-shoes ever get anyone?â
Lacy rose to her feet and crossed to the door. There was no anger, no hatred any longer. There was only abject pity in her eyes as she looked at Janelle. Instead of trying to make something of herself, sheâd destroyed lives and created a wretched future for herself, all because sheâd been consumed with envy.
âPeace of mind,â Lacy answered quietly. She rapped on the door, then stepped back as it was opened. âIâm ready to go now.â
âGo ahead, go,â Janelle scoffed, waving her away. âBut youâll be back. Youâll come crawling back, begging me to tell you. Wait and see if you donât,â Janelle called after her before the door closed, sealing her in a world sheâd never foreseen for herself.
Â
A S SHE DROVE away from the jail, her mind in turmoil, Lacyâs first thought was to go to Connor with what sheâd just discovered.
But heâd been so distant since last night. Would he think she was making it all up for some purpose of her own? Not that she could entirely blame him. After