“This is Cole Sands. You knew his father, Thomas,” I responded.
“Yes, Cole, my boy. You have grown, as well. How is your family?” he
asked with a bright smile.
“I would rather know where you have been,” I said, trying to control my
anger. “If you have been alive, why did you wait almost eight years to return?”
Elliott slumped in his chair and slowly began to explain his absence. “The night before I drowned…” he paused and restarted. “The night before I left, I was on my way home from working in Chester's woodshop when I was met by
Cedric Drygen and a few of his men. Drygen told me I had been playing house
long enough with Eliza and that he was going to reclaim what was his. Of course, I put up a fight, but I was no match for the four of them. They overpowered me. Lying on the ground, I stared into Drygen’s cold eyes,
knowing I had failed my family. Just as Drygen was about to drive his knife into
my heart, he changed his mind. Instead, he sent a warning and drove it into my
shoulder blade.”
Unbuttoning his shirt, Elliott pointed to the long, ragged scar.
“Laughing, he warned me that the next slash of his knife would kill me, but
not before he killed both you and Meg in front of me. I begged him to spare you
both. I told him I would do whatever he wanted as long as you weren't harmed.
As he moved to drive his knife into my leg, Eliza appeared and told him to stop.
She promised him that I would leave and never come back if he spared me. His
final blow was to kick me hard enough to break a few ribs. As I writhed on the
ground, Cedric and Eliza must have thought I was in too much pain to see him
kiss her passionately before he left."
Stopping, as if the memories were causing him pain, he took a deep breath
and continued, “When Drygen left, I asked her if she loved him. Your mother promised she was pretending in order to save us all. Slowly, she unveiled her plan. In the morning, I would go fishing on Sparrow Lake, as usual, but this time, my boat would be overturned, and my body would not be found."
“Why didn't you go for help?” I asked. “There are so many people that
would have protected us.”
“My thoughts were only of keeping you and Meg safe. So, I followed her
plan.” Continuing his story, he looked at me with tears glistening in his eyes.
“The morning I left, Eliza woke me before dawn. She had already packed me a
small bag. She wouldn't let me wake you and say goodbye. When I asked to, at
least, take pictures of you girls, your mother refused. She said it would look suspicious if any of my things were missing. I insisted she allow me to take more
food than she had packed, or I wouldn’t leave. Angry that I was questioning her,
Eliza stormed out of the room. I quickly grabbed the first picture I could find of
the both of you – one I didn't think she’d notice was missing.”
Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a worn photo of me holding Meg
when she was born. “I kept this with me as a reminder that everything I did and
would need to do, was always to keep you safe.”
Shaking, he stopped and took a long drink of his coffee before continuing his
story, “Eliza brought me to Chester's boat. As I was pushing it into the water, she
stopped me. She coldly told me that, if I failed, your death would be on me. I was to leave Starten and never return. I loved you girls so much that I left, but
only until I could figure out how to save you.”
Elliott’s voice was tight as he said, “To make it authentic, your mother took a
