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(Winnie)
"I wonder why your father wants to see us," I said to Reed. It was Sunday afternoon, three days later. We were sitting on a stone bench in the Drummonds backyard waiting for Mr. Drummond to join us.
"He probably has more bad news to share with us," he muttered.
"I hope not." I took Reed's hand and studied him intently. With dark circles under his eyes and pale skin, he looked unwell. I wished more than anything that I could take away his pain. My heart in my throat I leaned in close and kissed him on the cheek. "Have I told you today that I love you?"
"No."
"I love you," I whispered.
Reed smiled slowly. "I love you, too, Winnie." He squeezed my hand gently. "I know you're worried about me. Don't worry. I'm going to be fine."
"Telling me not to worry is like telling the sun it can't rise or the wind it can't blow." I smiled weakly. "But for you, I will do my best not to worry."
He raised my hand to his lips and kissed my knuckles. "Thank you, sweetheart." He sighed softly. "How's your family?"
"They're doing well," I said.
"Good," Reed muttered. "I promise you the next time you go for a visit I'll go with you and it won't be another year before you see them. I want you to visit them more than just one week out of the year. Maybe I'll buy a home in Wyoming. It would be nice for us to get away from the city for a while and enjoy the fresh air and peace and quiet."
"That sounds like a wonderful idea," I told him.
We lapsed into silence. I glanced at our surroundings, taking in the beautiful rosebushes around us and the clear blue sky above us. It was a gorgeous day. I could easily sit here with Reed for hours. "I don't-" The words stuck in my throat as I spotted them. Coming toward us was Reed's parents.
"What's wrong?" Reed asked.
"Your mother and father are here," I mumbled.
"They let her out," he hissed. "It's too soon. She needs to be in the hospital longer than three days. What the hell were they thinking?"
"I don't know," I said.
"Thank you for coming," Mr. Drummond said. "This won't take long. I have to have Miranda back at the hospital in an hour."
"Hello, Mother," Reed muttered, getting to his feet.
"Reed," she croaked. "Hello, Winifred."
"Mrs. Drummond." I scooted over. "Please, sit down." She lowered herself on to the bench. From the corner of my eye, I stared at her. Her face was deathly pale and her eyes were bloodshot. I lowered my gaze and noticed the white bandages that covered her wrists. She must have felt I was watching her because she quickly tugged her sleeves down, hiding the bandages from sight.
Mr. Drummond cleared his throat. "We asked you here, Reed, because your mother and I have something to tell you. We invited Winifred because what we have to tell you is going to be difficult for you to hear. We thought Winifred could lend you her support."
"Whatever it is I'm not interested." Reed crossed his arms. "I'm tired of getting nothing but bad news from you. I've had enough."
"Please." Mrs. Drummond moistened her lips with the tip of her tongue. "I need to get this off my chest."
I looked at Reed. A muscle was twitching in his jaw. I held my breath and waited for him to say something that would make the situation worse. He remained silent. I exhaled slowly, rose from the bench, and went to stand next to him.
"Son." Mr. Drummond paused for several seconds. "Your mother and I have been keeping something from you. It's time to come clean. No more secrets. Please, listen to us."
Reed ran a hand through his hair, sighing heavily. "Go ahead."
Mrs. Drummond lowered her head. "Mark killed that married couple."
I gasped softly.
"I knew it," Reed snarled. "All this time you were claiming he was innocent and-"
"He was innocent," Mrs. Drummond interrupted. "He was innocent because the blame was all mine. I came up with the idea to kill them, and the gun he used belonged to me. He never would have done it if not for me. I am the guilty one."
"The woman he murdered was named Rose Cabot." Mr. Drummond passed a hand across his face. "She worked with Mark. They were having an affair. The baby she was carrying was his."
"Mark came to see me one day," Mrs. Drummond said to her son, "to tell me that he had gotten a woman pregnant. He told me she was married and that they had been sleeping together for a while."
"I demanded there be a DNA test done," Mr. Drummond added. "I wanted to make sure that the baby was Mark's. The results showed that he was in fact the father. Once Mrs. Cabot had proof she began to make demands on Mark. When he refused to give her what she wanted she threatened to destroy the Drummond name. If she had done that-well you know how it would have affected the company and everything I had worked years to build."
"When I learned that she was blackmailing Mark I paid Mr. Cabot a visit and told him everything." Mrs. Drummond shifted on the bench. "He all ready knew. It turns out he was the one that came up with the idea to blackmail Mark. You see, they were in debt and on the brink of bankruptcy. They needed money and a lot of it."
"I gave them the money they needed with the understanding that they would leave Mark alone," he said. "A few months went by without a word from them. I thought it was all over."
"But it wasn't," I guessed.
"No." He grimaced. "They wanted more money. It was then that I realized they would never leave Mark or us alone."
"So you decided to kill them," Reed said coolly.
"Your father had nothing to do with their deaths," Mrs. Drummond stated. "As I said it was my idea. I know it was wrong, but I felt it was the only way to get them out of our lives-to get them out of Mark's life. I shared my plan with Mark and he agreed to carry it out." Tears filled her eyes. "I never thought he would get caught and sent to prison."
"Guilt began to eat away at your mother. She blamed herself for everything." Mr. Drummond placed his hand on her knee and she shoved it away. I saw a look of pain cross his face. It was obvious he still loved her. "When Mark died her feelings of guilt became more than she could bear." He gazed up at Reed. "In my eyes the blame lies with Mark. This is all his fault. If he hadn't slept with that woman, none of this would have happened. Don't be too hard on your mother. She-"
"She's just as much to blame for everything that has happened as Mark and you are," Reed growled. "The only innocent one in all of this was that baby. Mark got what he had coming to him and someday you two will as well." He grabbed my hand. "I'm sick of your lies and your secrets. I'm done. Forget I was ever your son. Come on, Winnie."
Reed and I made our way to the car in silence. Once we reached it, he opened the door for me and then walked around to the driver's side. I got in and put on my seat belt. Reed slid behind the wheel and inserted the key in the ignition. Instead of starting the car, he turned his head and gazed at me.
"I meant what I said, Winnie," he told me. "I'm done with them."
"I believe you." I caressed his hair with the back of my hand. "And I don't blame you."
"How could they do something so horrendous?" Reed shook his head. "It shouldn't surprise me. They were always cleaning up Mark's mess', but to kill an innocent child that hadn't even had a chance to be born. That's unforgivable."
"I know, love." My heart ached for that precious baby. Reed was right. What his parents-what Mark did was unforgivable. "Let's get out of here."
Reed started the car and we drove away. We never looked back.