Chapter 9
Hailey's POV
"Hailey, your had been receiving death threats for some time before they actually acted upon those threats. It was letter after letter of someone promising to end her and in detail. I don't know who killed her but I have been trying to find out and I think they tried to kill me too.” Aunt Tara said to me.
I blink my eyes once. Trying to digest her words. Blink again, as if I could hear my own heart shatter. "I think I was getting close. I found a name in one of the letters, a Theo. Something about she belonged to him and she rejected him.” She says and I hear her but my head is still stuck at the fact that my mother was murdered.
"I believe he wanted your father dead too but that man beat him to it. Theodore Young is the name I found during my hunt for your mother’s killer and I seem to remember her having a brief relationship with a Theodore at summer camp in our high school days. Of course the relationship had to end because they lived so far away from each other but they tried to keep it alive by writing letters and calls through the telephone. I just wish I could find those letters.” Aunt Tara says.
"I could try look for them back at the house?" I ask but she shakes her head no.
"Your mother moved out remember? She would've taken them with." Aunt Tara says to me but I shake my head no this time.
"We left in such a rush, we couldn't pack everything. There's boxes of my mother's stuff back at home, I'll take a look at them.” I say and Aunt Tara smiles at me.
"Good. I'm sorry we lied to you about your mother. To tell you the truth, the police wrote it up as an accident and found someone to blame but your mother had left me voicemails the day before about being followed so I never believed it to be an accident.” She says and I nod my head in understanding.
"Then how does the widow know my mother was killed?" I ask which has Aunt Tara bulging out her eyes.
"You need to get home now and get me those letters! And keep that boy around you all the time, you hear me? He looks like he can pack a punch.” Aunt Tara says to me, scaring me.
I kiss her on the forehead before walking out the door.
I find Jaxon and Vincent sitting just outside the door.
"Ready to go?" Jaxon asks me.
"Wait, I still need to talk to my mom." Vincent says to us.
"That's fine, you'll find us at Hailey's house." Jaxon responds as he gently grabs my hand and we walk away, not sparing Vincent another second.
"My mom was murdered. Aunt Tara said that someone killed my mother.” I say with a shaky voice. "I heard. We are going to find out who did this and they are going to pay for hurting you." Jaxon says.
"You heard?" I ask and he just nods his head without looking at me.
We walk out of the hospital to find Brett waiting outside in front of a black SUV. When did he get here?
Jaxon opens the car door for me and I hop in. He closes the door and they talk for a few minutes, unable to hear anything they were saying. They eventually get in to the car, Jaxon sitting at the back with me as Brett drives us.
"Did he fly down with us?" I ask Jaxon.
"Nah. He drove down here, actually just arrived in time to fetch us from the hospital.” Jaxon says to me.
I nod my head.
I know Brett drove us to the airport and we arrived before him but a drive here takes forever, not half the day. Especially in this big SUV, he would've had to violate so many speed limits.
Although now is not the time to question any of that right now, I have to think of my mother.
The letters.
If she was indeed murdered, then my dad's widow knows about it. Maybe my dad got threats too and she knew about them?
Maybe the killer sent letters boasting about how he killed my mother. If that's the case then my father did not tell me about it, instead he went on with his life, spending my mother's hard earned money.
Jaxon pulled me closer to him as he gave me a side hug. It helped, as if he could read my thoughts and know just when to give me comfort. My head was blank now, thanks to him. My anger dissipated in seconds with his touch.
Jaxon was quickly becoming my drug and if I continued to use him like this, I won't be able to let go once we get back. I don't even know if I have the strength to let him go, I need him close to me at all times.
"I'm right here." He says to me before kissing my head.
Once again, as if he could read my mind.
The car comes to a stop and I look out, realizing that we have made it to the house. Jaxon jumps out and helps me out after him, together we walk to the front door of the house.
The door was wide open.
My heart starts to beat really fast as my bulged out eyes search Jaxon's eyes for a fix, some safety and assurance.
Brett races past us and in to the house as Jaxon walks in before me.
"Stay behind me." He says and I nod my head yes as the coward in me takes center stage. There was no way I was going to face whoever it is that broke in to my father's house.
Jaxon stops walking and I hit his back, my two left feet losing balance and gravity pulling me down as I let it take me to the cold ass floor. I close my eyes, waiting for the fall, welcoming the fall with everything in me because that's just who I am but I never make it as two strong arms catch me in time.
"I've got you. Always." Jaxon assures me.
I smile sheepishly, his voice sending shivers down my spine and his promise warming my heart. Brett walks back to us, killing the moment.
"It's the dudes wife. She's in the master bedroom packing her clothes.” Brett comes to tell us and I huff out loud before storming my way up the stairs to my daddy's room.
"You have some nerve!" I shout out, as I come face to face with the gold digger.
"Oh put the attitude away. I'm here to take my stuff and get the fuck out of here. I did my part now that your good for nothing daddy is dead, Theo will focus on us. Get out of my way you little human." Stacy says to me, shoving me out of the way. I stumble on my feet and fall, the strength of that woman!
"Did you say Theo?" I ask and she doesn't even stop to answer my question.
I stay rooted on the floor. My head spinning as question after question runs through it. There was more to my mother's death and my father's death. Theo was a person of interest but now it has just dawned on me that Stacy was at the center of it too.
Stacy was part of the story and the gold digging brat behavior was just an act. She was in fact, a person of interest who knew Theo very well.
Stacy could very well be behind it all.