Lane massaged her temples with circular swirls of her index fingers.
âDid he think Kent was Willâs father just because thatâs what Sharon put on the birth certificate?â
âHe asked me if he or Kent was Willâs father.â
âWhat did you tell him?â
âThe truth.â
Lillie Mae released a long, relieved sigh. âDid you tell him everything? I mean about how Sharon came to you wanting money for an abortion and how yâall tricked Kent into adopting Will?â
Lane picked up the cup of tea. âYes. I explained how and why Kent and I married and adopted Will and that until Sharonâs deathbed confession, Kent believed Will was his son.â
âWhy that girl of mine had to get religion before she died and confess her sins is beyond me.â Tears gathered in the corners of Lillie Maeâs faded gray eyes. âI loved her, my Sharon. But Lord knows she wasnât worth shootinâ. I guess folks thought that her dying the way she did, from AIDS, was punishment for her sins. But it wasnât Godâs punishment. It was her own doing. If she hadnât been hooked on them drugs, sheâd never have come down with that horrible disease.â
Lane kept silent. She agreed with Lillie Maeâs assessment of Sharonâs wasted life, but where Lillie Mae had a right to malign Willâs biological mother, Lane didnât. After all, Sharon had given her something she otherwise would never have hadâJohnny Mackâs baby.
âSo, Johnny Mack knows the truth.â Lillie Mae glanced at Lane, her gaze speculative. âBut you didnât tell him any details about your marriage to Kent, did you? You didnât tell him what a high price you paid for Willâs life.â
âNo, I didnât tell him. And I donât want you sharing my secrets with him, either. Do you understand?â
âYes, I understand. I understand only too well.â
Â
The fact that his grandmother met him at the door instead of one of the servants told Will how eager she was to see him. Maybe he shouldnât think of Edith Ware as his grandmother anymore, now that he knew Kent wasnât his father. But how could he turn off his emotions? Miss Edith, as everyone referred to her out of respect for her position in the community, had always been his doting grandmother, someone who had lavished attention and money on him all his life.
Edith reached over and squeezed his arm, a sad, uncertain look in her eyes. âThank you for coming, Will. I know that things have been strained between us since your fatherâsâsince Kentâs death.â
âYes, maâam. I suppose, since you believed Kent was my real father, finding out that he wasnât came as a big shock to you.â
âYes, of course. It was a major shock to all of us, except Lane, who had known all along thatââ
âI donât want you to say anything against my mother,â Will said. His stomach knotted painfully. He wasnât going to listen to Miss Edith making accusations against his mother. Not now or ever. He might be only fourteen, and others might consider him just a kid, but he knew things. He knew that his mother had suffered more than anyone else. He had heard the things Kent had said to her before their divorce. He knew the way Kent had treated her. And now, with Kent dead, people thought she had murdered him. But he knew better. His mother couldnât kill anyone. Not unless it was in self-defense or to protect someone she loved.
âAs you wish,â Edith replied. âWe wonât discuss Lane. Not tonight. At the moment I have a more urgent problem.â Edith ushered Will into the marble-floored foyer and closed the door behind him. âMary Martha is quite agitated and we canât calm her. Jackie has suggested giving her a sedative, but my poor girl has been overmedicated since Kentâs death. And sometimes the
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