28 Days(31)

Saige felt like she was the last to know with everything, and she found it frustrating that everyone who knew her had her memories.

“Saige, honey.” Her dad walked into the breakfast room and interrupted her thoughts, but it didn’t remove the frown from her brow.

“Morning, Dad. You’re up late.” She smiled.

“Not really.” Her father helped himself to half a plate of food and a small bowl of fruit before he sat opposite her, instead of his usual seat at the head of the table.

He looked tired as he poured a cup of coffee. His usual dusky blond hair had more than a hint of grey around the temples. He’d been lucky that he hadn’t shown any sign of going grey until he reached fifty. Her father had always been a strong man, and she knew that he still was, but there was now a weariness to him. His square shoulders sagged and the stress around his eyes told her that he worried. Saige had a good guess as to what about, so she decided to get it all out in the open and hoped her father would too.

After Christina and Alex’s reaction to each other, she no longer wanted to wait for everyone to come together. Christina, especially, could wait until Saige got her alone. No way did she want Alex setting her off again.

“Spit it out, Saige.” He offered her a wry smile. “I’ve always been able to tell when you had something on your mind, but didn’t know how to get it out.” He took a sip of his coffee. “You know what I used to say, and you always used to agree with me.”

“You’ll feel better once you’ve had your say, Saige,” she mimicked her father from years gone by.

“That’s the one.”

Saige glanced toward the bay window with a view of the water, hoping for courage. “I can’t leave the past alone.”

“I already knew that when you showed up with Alex, which I have to admit, I’m not too happy about.” Her father continued to eat while his eyes stayed focused on her.

“I know you aren’t happy about Alex staying here, but there’s nowhere in town to stay and we’re both doing this together, so staying here made sense.”

“Hmm,” he mumbled and sipped his coffee while watching her over the rim of the steaming brew.

“Why have you never told me about Quinten? About my relationship with him?”

Startled, her father dropped his cutlery as his eyes widened. “You got your memory back?” he asked.

“I wish I did.” Saige dipped her head and then lifted it to look at her father. “Alex is convinced that Quinten didn’t take me, or kill those girls. There is so much that isn’t making sense to me right now. I mean, did I really select him from a lineup of photographs as my abductor? The statement says I did, but that doesn’t seem right to me. When I look at images of Quinten, I don’t feel fear. Shouldn’t it trigger that feeling?”

“Oh, honey. No one mentioned your relationship with him because it could have harmed your recovery. You loved him. As a father, I wanted you well. So I listened to the doctors and refused to let anyone remind you of anything.” Her father pushed his plate away and cradled his cup of coffee in his hands. “I did question his guilt. I spoke with the sheriff, the detective investigating your case, and the district attorney. They were all convinced they had the right man. The detective hesitated to lay the blame at Quinten’s feet and told me so during a private conversation between the two of us. He wasn’t completely sold on Quinten’s guilt, but in the end, he was convicted.

“The prosecutor pushed and pushed until Quinten was found guilty of five counts of first degree murder, and your abduction and torture.”

Her father held his hand up to keep her silent as he continued, “Quinten’s defense attorney explained in court, in front of the jurors, about the gash along Quinten’s arm that had bled all over the shack as to the reason why his DNA would be found. So did the detective. Photographic evidence along with the doctor’s report was produced as evidence.

“I honestly don’t know what to think, and every now and again when there’s mention of Quinten Peterson on TV, I start thinking again as to whether or not he really was guilty.”

He took a deep breath and stared into his coffee before he added, “One thing that I’ve never been able to understand is that he loved you, Saige.” Her father stood and walked around the table to sit beside her, his arm going around her shoulders. “I knew he was married, which you and I fought over. I also knew that his marriage had fallen apart a while before he met you.” He smiled. “I’m a guy, honey, and you only had to watch Quinten when you were around. The guy loved you. So why would he do something to cause you harm?”

“It doesn’t make sense,” Saige mumbled. “I want to remember him, Dad. I want to remember our time together that you and Alex have now confirmed was real. The not knowing is driving me crazy.”

“I guess I was happy to just let everything take its course. While you had no memory, it was fine…it was easier…for you.” He paused and looked ashamed. “It was wrong of me, but it was easier for me. I’ve tried, since then, to forget. To forget the sight of my daughter all bloodied and cut. To forget that the little girl who used to look up to me, and call me Daddy was forever changed. I wanted you to remember. But you never have. Until now it would seem.”

“I don’t remember him. I remember the tattoos on his arms and hands. I also remember that the man who held me didn’t have any.”