opies.”
“So you made yourself the target.”
“I planned to leave the car at the station and meet a security officer.”
“But Mara changed the meeting place.”
He nodded.
“She said she had proof Vale was tracking the trains. I believed her.”
“Did she betray you?”
Ethan watched the rain.
“I think she panicked. She sent me toward the mountain road, then tried to warn me after she discovered Vale had hired someone to follow the car.”
“Do you forgive her?”
His fingers rested against the blanket over his knees.
“I don’t know yet.”
It was the most honest answer he could have given.
He looked at me.
“Do you forgive your father?”
“Not all at once.”
“That sounds wise.”
“It feels messy.”
“Most wise things do.”
I smiled.
Then the question I had been avoiding rose between us.
“Why did you name me in the marriage arrangement?”
He looked away.
For the first time, Ethan Thornton appeared nervous.
“The letter was only supposed to be delivered if I remained incapacitated near my thirtieth birthday.”
“That does not answer the question.”
“No.”
He drew a slow breath.
“After I met you at the health center, I asked who you were.”
“So Vivian told me.”
“You were arguing with a pharmacist.”
“I was not arguing.”
“You threatened to call three state agencies.”
“The prescription had been approved.”
“You were terrifying.”
I tried not to smile.
He continued.
“Later, your mother told me about you. Not the dramatic things. Small things. That you took the longest route home because you liked passing a bakery that gave leftover bread to the shelter. That you pretended not to notice when your father burned breakfast because he looked proud of making it.”
My throat tightened.
“She told you that?”
“She loved talking about you.”
He turned toward the rain again.
“When I created the contingency plan, I needed someone outside the company. Someone Vale would not control. Someone Vivian could not intimidate.”
“I am not sure the last part has been proven.”
