The Broken One

by Cardello, Ruth

  I had to reach deep into my memories for that. With Heather in the circle of my arms, I shared a story about Therese walking into my father’s store. That was all it had taken. I’d accidentally double-charged her credit card—something she’d always teased me about doing, saying I’d done it on purpose so I could see her again. My defense? How could any man be held accountable for how many times he put a credit card through when he’d just met his future wife?

  “A smooth talker back then, huh?” Heather asked with a chuckle.

  “I was. She saw right through me, though, and somehow wanted to be with me anyway. She had such a big heart, Heather. I was too young to fully appreciate how lucky I was, but I see it now.”

  We stood in each other’s arms for a long, quiet moment. I hoped what I’d said hadn’t been too much for Heather to hear.

  She didn’t look upset when she turned to Therese’s stone. “Thank you for sharing Sebastian with me, Therese. Camilla was telling me about guardian angels. If you’re interested, I’d love it if you’d watch over us. This parenting stuff is tough. And now we have a pony. A pony? I’ve never even ridden a mechanical horse. Sebastian might get nervous when I drive, but I’m a basket case every time Ava takes a riding lesson. I thought ponies were supposed to be tiny.”

  I chuckled and hugged Heather closer.

  She continued, “Oh, and I have a request. If you see my friend, Brenda, could you make sure she pays the utility bills? I’d hate heaven to go dark before we get there.”

  Hand in hand we walked back to the car. Before driving off, I said, “What should we do now?”

  “I’m starving,” Heather said, and I barked out a laugh.

  I could take her anywhere as long as the trip included a sandwich.

  Life is good.

  MEANWHILE . . .

  * * *

  JUDY

  “What if we get caught?” Grace asked from the inside of Alethea Stone’s office.

  “It’s a little late to ask that,” Judy said with sarcasm. “Watch the door.”

  “Did I do this to you? Just because I laughed at your family tree last year? I thought it was a joke and you were going to pull out another one. I’ll help you this time. Or you could ask your parents if they can write a note to your teacher if you don’t want to do another one this year. I don’t want to go to jail.”

  Judy scanned the room for a filing cabinet. Not an obvious one. Alethea would never put anything important where it could be easily found. She also wouldn’t have put her notes online—she trusted no one. “No one is going to jail. Alethea works for my father. Worst case, I’ll get grounded again. Plus, Alethea is still on maternity leave. Stop worrying.”

  “Why can’t you just ask her what she found out about your father’s family?”

  “I promised her I’d stop looking, but I can’t do it. If anyone would understand, she would.” Not those cabinets. Not in Alethea’s desk. Judy ran her hand along a wooden panel beside a bookcase until a part of it lit up. A concealed biometric unit? “I bet it’s in here.”

  Grace joined Judy near the bookcase. “That’s so cool.”

  “Predictable is what it is.” Judy pulled out a small plastic case. She opened it, revealing rubbery-looking squares. “Luckily I have plenty of access to Alethea’s fingerprints. All I had to do was grab a few prints, make a mold of them, add a little gelatin, and voilà. It will even fool a device that blocks inorganic replicas.”

  “You scare me sometimes,” Grace said as Judy began to place the gelatin squares on her fingertips.

  “You’re the one who said you wanted to come with me,” Judy answered as she aligned her hand to the reader. It beeped, went green, then slid to the side. With a huge grin, Judy said, “Best part? Gelatin is edible. How can I be guilty of anything if there is no proof?”

  Grace’s rebuttal to that was lost to the excitement of seeing a second door open. Behind it there was only one file. Judy pulled it out. The label read “Corisi Family Tree.”

  Not wanting anything to spill out, Judy laid it down on Alethea’s desk before opening it. Her smile faded when she saw that it only contained one piece of paper—addressed to her.

  Dear Judy,

  If you’re reading this it means you sneaked into my office and found my hidden filing cabinet. First, bravo for getting this far. I am one very proud auntie. Second, you know you’re not supposed to enter anyone’s office without permission. Especially not mine. And don’t think I won’t know you were here. As soon as you accessed the panel, I was notified.

  No, I won’t tell your parents.

  Although I don’t know the circumstances that have made you start looking for your father’s family again, I beg you to stop. Not every secret is meant to be revealed. Not every family member is meant to be found.

  You won’t want to hear this, and I can’t believe I’m going to say it, but the truth is sometimes better left buried. Especially if not knowing endangers no one.

  I’ll call you tonight and tell you all of this again.

  Please—stop.

  Love, Auntie Alethea

  P.S. Don’t forget to close up the panel before you leave. It’s where I usually hide my chocolate stash.

  Judy read the letter aloud the second time.

  Grace hovered by her side. “I wish I had an aunt like that.”

  With a growl, Judy stuffed the letter into the folder and tossed it into the hidden compartment. The panels automatically slid back into place. “I’m not handing another incomplete family tree in. You heard Alethea—my father has more family out there.”

  “What I heard was that looking for them is not a good idea.”

  “Why?” Judy paced the office. “Are they dangerous? Criminals? What if they’re in some kind of trouble? My father would want to know, and he’d want to help them.”

  Grace made a pained face. “Wouldn’t he be looking for them if he did? Maybe you could just ask him about them?”

  “He doesn’t know about them, and I can’t ask him about any of this because whenever he talks about his family, he gets sad.”

  “That sounds like a really good reason to listen to Alethea.”

  “My father didn’t get where he is by letting people tell him what he couldn’t do. Only in school are we rewarded for being well behaved and quiet. Out in the world it’s the brave and daring who make a difference.”

  Shaking her head, Grace said, “You just want to keep looking.”

  Judy shrugged. “Wouldn’t you?”

  Grace looked around the office before answering. “I wouldn’t, but I understand why you do. So what’s next?”

  Judy took out her phone and scrolled through her contacts. “I have other people I can ask for help.” She touched on a name of someone she knew wouldn’t go running back to her parents if she asked him for a favor.

  She texted: Uncle Jeremy, I need your help with a school project.

  Less than a moment later his response came back. Absolutely.

  Judy: It may require some hacking.

  Jeremy: Are you texting using encrypted software?

  Judy: Of course I am.

  Jeremy: Then what do you need?

  Judy: I’m working on a family tree for my father, and it’s a surprise. Can you keep a secret?

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  I am so grateful to everyone who was part of the process of creating The Broken One.

  Thank you to:

  Montlake Romance, for being as excited about this new series as I am. Special thanks to Lauren Plude for encouraging me each step of the way.

  My very patient beta readers. You know who you are. Thank you for kicking my butt when I need it.

  My editors: Karen Lawson, Janet Hitchcock, and Krista Stroever. As well as all the talented line editors who polished away my mistakes.

  My Roadies, for making me smile each day when I log on to my computer. So many of you have become friends. Was there life before the Roadies? I’m sure there was, but it wasn’t as m
uch fun.

  Thank you to my husband, Tony, who is a saint—simple as that.

  And my children, who have given me so many wonderful memories. I hope my love for them shines through in every story I write.

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Ruth Cardello is a New York Times bestselling author who loves writing about rich alpha men and the strong women who tame them. She was born the youngest of eleven children in a small city in northern Rhode Island. She’s lived in Boston, Paris, Orlando, New York, and Rhode Island again before moving to Massachusetts, where she now lives with her husband and three children. Before turning her attention to writing, Ruth was an educator for two decades, including eleven years as a kindergarten teacher. The Broken One is the first book in her Corisi Billionaires series. Learn about Ruth’s new releases by signing up for her newsletter at www.RuthCardello.com.