Cyndi picked up the mugs and headed over to the table. Cream and sugar were there already, so there was nothing left for her to do but sit. “You have no idea.” Memories were bombarding her. Maybe it was because she'd shared her past with Shamus last night. Maybe it was being in this house, in this town. But memories she'd thought were buried and forgotten for forever were now as raw as the day they occurred.
Alicia pulled her chair closer and picked up her mug, taking a sip. “Mmm, good coffee."
Sitting there, Cyndi tried to decide where to begin. Alicia waited patiently as the minutes ticked by. Opening her mouth, she allowed the story to spill out. “It really started after my mother died."
Almost an hour later, Cyndi finally stopped. Her coffee mug was empty and she was hoarse from talking so much. Her eyes burned from holding back tears of anger and grief. She felt as if she'd been dragged through the wringer. Curiously, she felt lighter, as if at least some of the weight of the past had fallen away. Maybe telling Shamus and Alicia had lessened the grip of the memories on her.
She'd been staring at the table the entire time and finally raised her gaze to meet Alicia's. She had no idea what the other woman was thinking. Cyndi had been lost in the memories and Alicia hadn't interrupted her.
Alicia stared back, her eyes slightly red and luminous. “You can prove this?"
Cyndi shrugged. “Not all, but I do have the reports from when I arrived in Vermont. Can I prove it was my father who beat me? No. It's my word against his. But I do have scars. There are also the letters to the colleges declaring me mentally incompetent, signed by a doctor who never ever saw me.” She hesitated, but then plunged forward. If she was going to do this, she was going all the way. “If need be, we might contact some of the former staff. They might love a chance to get back at my father and Harris and Hammond."
Alicia shook her head. “I'm sorry. I'm having a hard time assimilating all this."
Cyndi shrugged. “That's okay. I lived in this town my entire life and no one ever knew, or if they did, they ignored it."
"You're Cynthia James."
"Yeah, pampered princess. The girl that other girls envied. I would have traded places with any of them in a heartbeat.” Jumping up from the table, she grabbed both mugs and strode to the counter. Taking her time, she filled them both and carried them back to the table.
She felt raw. Exposed. As if she'd turned her skin inside out. And in a way, she supposed she had. She'd started down this path and there was no going back.
Alicia reached across the table and clasped her hand. “I'm sorry."
"Thanks.” Cyndi didn't want anyone's pity. “But it's in the past."
Giving a final squeeze, Alicia sat back. “Not if Harris and Hammond have their way."
Cyndi had been doing some thinking since she'd talked to Alicia this morning. “I hesitate to even bring this up, but what if I could find something out about the law firm?"
"What do you mean?” Alicia was all brisk business again.
She traced her finger over the rim of her mug, her thoughts ordering themselves. “I know my father. He didn't do business with anyone without having them investigated. Thoroughly. I imagine that he'd be even more rigorous with his law firm. They did business together for a lot of years.” Cyndi raised her gaze and unflinchingly met her lawyer's. “I imagine that some of it was probably illegal."
Alicia whistled softly. “You sure you want to go there?"
"Whatever it takes.” Cyndi sat up straight and squared her shoulders. “They started this and I mean to finish it. One way or the other. If they won't let go of my affairs, then I'll force them to."
Alicia picked up her mug and sipped. Cyndi noticed the other woman's manicured hands. Her lawyer was polished and professional, but unlike the vultures at Harris and Hammond, she was also honest and treated people with respect.
"Okay.” Alicia pushed her coffee aside. “See if you come across anything, but if you do, bring it to me. Do not approach them on your own."
That sounded more than reasonable to her and she nodded.
Her lawyer smiled at her. “After all, that's why you're paying me the big bucks."
Cyndi laughed. “What good is my father's money if I don't put it to good use?"
Alicia stood and tossed her legal pad and pen back into her bag. “I'll need a copy of that letter from the doctor if you can find it. I doubt that the colleges you applied to kept it after all these years. I have the doctor's name, so that's somewhere to start. He's probably retired, but I'll see what I can dig up on him.” She pulled on her jacket and buttoned it. “We may need to hire someone."
"What do you mean?"
"A private investigator. Someone who knows how to dig up things other folks would like kept buried. If that doctor wrote a letter, then your father paid him to do it."
Cyndi nodded, easily following her lawyer's train of thought. “I see what you mean. If you think it's necessary, go ahead. In the meantime, I'll spend some time tonight digging through my father's files to see what I can come up with."
She'd have to go through the safe as well. There had been files and some journals in there, if her memory served her correctly. Heaven only knows what she'd find buried in those. She hadn't opened the safe since the shooting, but she needed to see what jewelry was there and get it appraised for sale. She wasn't keeping any of it.
"Cyndi?"
"Yeah?” She shook her head, realizing she'd allowed her thoughts to be diverted.
"I asked if you were all right."
She shrugged. “I'm fine."
Alicia grabbed her briefcase. “You're not. But you will be. I have faith in you."
"Thanks.” Not many people in her life had had faith in her abilities, and it felt good.
They walked to the front door. “I'll be in touch in a day or two if I find out anything. In the meantime, if you come across anything in your father's papers, make copies and bring them to me. Lock up the originals somewhere safe."
"I will.” Cyndi stood in the doorway and waved as her lawyer drove away. She was just about to shut the door when she saw a familiar truck coming down the street. It was early for Shamus to be here, but she wasn't complaining. He pulled into the driveway and climbed out of the truck. Walking down the steps, she went to meet him.
Chapter Thirteen
Shamus breathed a sigh of relief as he closed his arms around Cyndi. It had been a bitch of a morning. His well-ordered life was in chaos. Not one to leave things to chance, he'd gone to the job site himself and talked to Joe Banks and some of his men about what needed to be done today and in the weeks ahead. But his heart just wasn't in his work, so he'd left again.
He knew that Joe could handle the project on his own. It was close enough to completion that there should be few problems over the next few weeks. Still, he hated leaving anything undone. It wasn't in his nature to walk away from anything, but he felt that both he and his family needed this time apart to try and cool off and find some perspective.
Joe had obviously been concerned about him, but hadn't asked any questions. Shamus knew he was acting totally out of character. It wasn't like him to just up and leave a project with almost no notice. In fact, it had never happened before.
He'd told Joe that he was taking an extended vacation to work on an outside project, separate from B & O. Joe had been curious, as had a few of the men who'd been close enough to hear their conversation. Some of them had even stopped him, letting him know they could use the extra work if he was looking for a crew on the weekend and after hours. By now, he figured all the men on his crew knew he was gone for the next few weeks. Maybe even longer.