A man who probably hated her guts.
MOLLY KNEW she could make the drive to Albany in one day. Three hours there, three hours back. She could do it, but first she had gone home to change into comfortable driving clothes, and yes, gather her nerve. In the privacy of the guest room where she was staying until she decided where she wanted to live more permanently, she tossed a few spare things into a duffel bag in case she had to stop overnight.
She didn’t miss the irony of her situation now. Over the last year, she hadn’t been able to think about anything more than how to fit in here. She’d taken one step at a time, trying to gain the trust of her two half sisters and her grandmother who’d ruled the family since her father’s wife died nine years ago. Now she found herself in charge of keeping them together by calling on Daniel Hunter.
Drawing a deep breath, she headed downstairs.
She’d almost reached the front door when she heard her half sister Jessie speak. “My father’s been arrested for murder. That ought to do wonders for my social life.”
Molly rolled her eyes. Jessie was fifteen years old. Teen being the operative syllable. Angst and drama were typical overreactions to even the slightest shift in her half sister’s universe.
At fifteen, Molly had been taking care of herself for years. She hadn’t had time to indulge in tantrums or histrionics. She’d been a mini adult for as long as she could remember, which put her in the position of not being able to relate to Jessie. And since Jessie didn’t want anything to do with Molly, she found herself at a stalemate with the teen.
“You can be such a brat.” The well-deserved verbal smack came from Robin, Molly’s twenty-year-old half sister, who like Molly had grown up too fast. Her mother had died while Molly’s had just been perpetually absent. She liked Robin and not just because the other woman had accepted her without question. Robin was an all-around good soul and there were too few of those, at least in Molly’s world.
She had planned to sneak out without conversation but she realized she should tell them she’d be gone for the rest of the day and possibly night. Although she still wasn’t used to living in a house with other people, where her goings and comings would be questioned and dissected, she’d been trying to train herself to do just that.
She stepped toward her father’s office where the rest of the family was apparently gathered.
“Shut up,” Jessie said to her sister. She never gave up without a fight. “You don’t get to tell me what to do.”
“But I do.”
Molly grinned as Edna Addams spoke in a firm, commanding tone that explained why the older woman was more often known as Commander rather than Grandma. She was the general’s mother, which made her Molly’s grandma, too. Molly stepped into the doorway at the same time the double thud of the commander’s cane hitting the floor caused everyone to snap to attention.
Edna stood in the center of the room, her focus on her youngest granddaughter. “And I suggest you stop worrying about yourself and think about your father’s situation instead.”
“I didn’t mean it like that.” Jessie’s eyes immediately filled with tears.
Edna strode to her granddaughter’s side and stroked her long, brown hair. “I know you didn’t, but as I’ve said before, you need a permanent yield sign between your brain and your mouth, so you can take the time to think before you speak.”
Molly nodded, silently applauding. “Let’s try to concentrate on what’s important and that’s helping Dad,” she suggested as she entered the room.
Jessie whirled around, the hair she’d spent hours straightening this morning in the bathroom she shared with Molly flipping over her shoulder as she moved. “Dad?” she asked. Her tears were gone, replaced by sarcasm and anger, which was as usual, directed at Molly. “That’s rich since you didn’t even know him until a little while ago. He’s our dad.” She gestured between herself and Robin. “Not yours.”
“Jessie!” Edna and Robin yelled in unison and shared horror.
Molly’s heart clenched tight in her chest and almost immediately a headache threatened, one of the migraines she’d fought since childhood.
Despite being used to Jessie’s outbursts, the teenager’s verbal abuse still stung. Was it so much to want everyone in this family to accept her? She’d already paid her dues as a child born out of wedlock and lies, and she’d spent a lifetime believing the man she thought was her father didn’t have any more time for her than her mother had.
She was damn tired of putting up with Jessie’s crap, but out of respect for her father and for the sake of family peace, Molly had bit her tongue. She’d hoped in return, Jessie would eventually come around but, so far, no such luck.
“Apologize to Molly.” Robin perched her hands on her slender hips.
Molly hated that her other sister fought her battles. Turning on Jessie now wouldn’t help anyone, but soon they would have to come to terms with each other.
“I mean it,” Robin said in the face of her sister’s silence.
Jessie looked to her grandmother for salvation.
But the older woman merely shook her head and tacked on another command for the teen to follow. “Now,” Edna instructed and leaned on her cane, waiting for the obligatory I’m sorry to come from Jessie’s lips.
Without warning, Jessie let out a loud groan. “You always take her side,” she said on a misunderstood wail. Then she stomped her feet dramatically as she flung her body out of the family room.
“Crybaby, crybaby,” Edna’s macaw crowed from his cage across the room.
Leave it to the mouthy bird to make his presence known now, Molly thought. A quick glance out the family-room door told her Jessie had already fled far from hearing distance.
“Never you mind,” Edna said to her pet. She turned to Molly and Robin. “I’ll speak with Jessie. She can’t talk to you that way.”
“Just let her go.” Molly dismissed her half sister’s behavior with a wave, pretending to be unfazed by the outburst.
“Only if you promise to ignore her. Sometimes Jessie acts like she’s fifteen going on thirty and other times she behaves more like she’s three,” Robin said, her blue eyes flashing with regret. She walked over and placed a comforting hand on Molly’s shoulder.
“Amen to that.” Molly managed a laugh and tried not to squirm beneath Robin’s touch. Unused to any kind of affection, she was still growing accustomed to the gestures that came so easily to the rest of the family. She didn’t want to insult them though or discourage their attempts to reach out to her. Besides, Robin’s caring was exactly what she’d needed when she’d arrived here. She’d left Hunter behind and it had helped to know she’d found something solid. Not that it replaced him or the place he could have had in her life.