Chapter 249

I walked into the Brown’s party on Victor’s arm. I wore a new green, irregular hem cocktail dress and gave Amy a smile. My poor bestie was nervous about spending time with Justin’s parents.

I didn't blame her. Their change of attitude was too sudden and new. But she looked fantastic in her new pastel blue dress, and it seemed like everything would be alright.

“Hello, Amy,” Justin’s mother said as we walked in her door. “It’s a pleasure to have you and Daisy and Victor in our home.”

I elbowed Amy to get her to speak. “Thank you for inviting us, Mrs. Brown. You have a lovely home.”

“Hey, Mom,” Justin said.

Mrs. Brown clicked her tongue. “Justin, your father wants to speak to you. Show your friends around first and then find him and his study.”

“Yeah, okay,” Justin agreed. “Come on, guys. I’ll show you where the food, drink, and the bathrooms are.”

Justin gave us a quick tour before going in search of his father. I hoped, for Amy’s sake, that whatever his father wanted wasn’t serious.

We got cold drinks and said hello to people we knew before ending up near Justin’s mom again. I was surprised when she wanted to engage in small talk.

“What a lovely ring. Have you set a date?” Mrs. Brown asked as she examined my diamond engagement ring.

“We want to wait until after Daisy graduates from college,” Victor replied. He knew the question irritated me. Why did so many people care about when we were going to get married?

“Amy, I heard you and Daisy went to the Archer’s home with Andrew,” Mrs. Brown asked. “How did that go? Both Pat and Martha can be rather quarrelsome.”

Amy froze for a second, but she recovered nicely. “Andrew had to return to his office, but we stayed and had tea with my aunt Amelia.”

Justin was smiling when he returned to us. He put an arm around Amy, and she smiled too.

Mrs. Brown spoke kindly. “Amy, your other aunt, Amanda Archer Devins, is here with her oldest daughter, Kyra.”

Amy’s eyes met mine. “Do you mean Amelia’s younger sister?”

“Yes. That’s her,” Mrs. Brown said. “They were in the parlor

speaking to June Marlburg and her new husband a few minutes ago.”

“Daisy, come with me to say hello,” Amy said.

I was eager to confront the person who had been driving the silver car. The incident of being forced off the road was fresh in my mind.

“Daisy, do go on with Amy,” Mrs. Brown told me. “Mr. Brown and I would enjoy a chat with Victor.”

I nodded and walked away with Amy.

“No wonder Justin’s mom decided she likes me,” Amy said. “I’m your best friend, and she thinks that will give her access to the current and next leader of the association.”

“Yeah, but Victor and I don’t mind helping you get along with the Browns,” I assured her. “What are friends for?”

We made our way through the crowd. I was stopped several times with requests to see my engagement ring.

Then I saw her at the study door. It was the girl who had been driving the silver car!

The girl saw Amy and I approaching and hurried into the study. We followed and saw her going out a patio door.

The room only held a few people, and we rushed after her, catching her before she reached the garden gate.

I grabbed her arm and demanded, “Why did you try to run us off the road?”

“You should have your driver’s license revoked,” Amy snapped.

“Why can’t you just go away?” the girl asked. “My family did just fine without you for eighteen years. We sure don’t need you around, stirring up trouble now.”

“Who are you?” I asked. The girl looked younger than me, but she greatly resembled the girl in the Archer family portrait.

“I’m Ava Devins,” she replied. “My mom is Amanda Devins. You know, Andrew Archer’s younger sister.”

The girl had an attitude toward us. Why? We hadn’t done anything to her.

“Amy is your blood relative, your cousin,” I pointed out. “Why would you risk hurting her with your car?”

“My mother says we aren’t related to any Omegas,” Ava insisted. “And how dare you dredge up an old scandal? You’re probably just after money. Well, none of us will pay you a dime. Uncle Andrew can clean up his own mess.”

My anger rose at the hurt expression on Amy’s face. “How can you be so nasty? Amy doesn’t want money. She simply wants to know what happened to her biological mother.”

“And your digging around in my family’s past is making my grandmother insist I stay home all the time,” Ava revealed. “I got stuck coming to this party with my mother instead of going out with my friends because of you.”

I had forgotten Ava was just a young girl. And she had been influenced by the less empathetic Archers.

“I understand that would upset you,” I said.

“Yeah, having to go to a party with your mom would be a big yikes,” Amy added. “I don’t blame you. I wouldn’t like me either.”

Ava studied Amy for a moment. I could tell she was trying to be fair.

“I guess it’s not your fault,” Ava finally said. “My grandmother is a pain. She’s always worried about what everyone thinks of us and how people will think badly of my family if I wear a short skirt.”

Ava threw her arms in the air. “She expects me to stay home until people forget about the Deirdre stuff again. That was so long ago that nobody cares anymore.”

“Ava, let’s sit down,” Amy said. “Please. We need to talk.”

The three of us sat on patio chairs, and Amy told the girl about the photo and note saying her mother had been murdered.

“Can you understand how that made me feel?” Amy asked her. “I can’t stand knowing someone took her life and is still living their life like hers didn’t matter.”

Ava nodded. “Yeah, I get it. She brushed a lock of her bright red hair out of brown eyes that were just like Amy’s.

Even though she and Amy didn’t look alike, the girl had Amy’s gentle mannerisms and her ethereal beauty.

“I don’t mean to harp on the subject, but driving like you did was dangerous,” I said. “And it wasn’t just dangerous for us. Ava, you could have gotten yourself killed.”

“She's right,” Amy agreed. “Driving like that was dangerous. Promise me you’ll never do it again.”

“I promise,” Ava said. “But please don’t tell anyone what I did. If it gets back to my mom, she’ll take my car away or something.”

I realized Ava was a source of family stories.

“Ava, what have you heard about Andrew and Deirdre?” I asked.

She shrugged. “My mom said Deirdre worked for my great-grandmother as a laundress. Great granny is cheap, and Deirdre sewed well. She could repair small tears and stuff in designer clothes, adjust hems, or let out seams.”

“That would be helpful for making clothing last,” I agreed. “Anything else?” The girl had to have overheard family members discussing Deirdre over the years.

“Mom once said Deidre tricked Uncle Andrew into getting her pregnant,” Ava replied. “Then she ran away and left him with the baby when my grandmother took away Andrew’s inheritance.”

“That’s not true,” Amy said kindly but firmly. “Andrew told me he was in love with Deirdre, and he wanted to marry her. They were going to elope as soon as she got out of the hospital with me.”

Amy fought back tears. “She didn’t leave him, she was murdered.”

Ava teared up in sympathy. I believe you. And I'm sorry for what I did to you. I was visiting my grandparents when Uncle Andrew showed up in their sitting room and said you were downstairs.”

“What did they say?” I asked.

“Grandma lost it,” Ava replied. “She demanded Uncle Andrew throw you both out. When he refused, she forbade us to speak to you.”

“Martha escaped her nurse and tried to bash Amy in the head with her cane,” I told Ava.

“That sounds like her,” Ava said. “Even before the doctors said she had dementia, Granny Martha scared me. She has a gun that nobody can find.”

Amy groaned. “She has a gun?”

“Yes. My family can’t find it,” Ava confirmed. “She has it hidden somewhere.”

Amy and I stared at each other wide-eyed. Things could have been much worse this morning.

Ava sighed. “Actually, if somebody did kill Deirdre, I’d bet it was Granny Martha or my grandmother, Pat. I know she hates you for digging up the old scandal.”

“Watch out for them both,” Ava warned us. “Especially Martha. She still has that gun, and she escapes from her nurse all the time.”