Hannah's List (Blossom Street #7)(29)

Shamed in front of her peers and shaken to her very core, Leanne felt she had no option but to file for divorce. Apparently, Mark wasn't the honorable man she'd assumed. When he was presented with the divorce papers, he hadn't offered the slightest resistance. If she wanted out of the marriage, he was willing to let her go.

When the decree arrived, he signed it, worked out a plea bargain with the prosecution and served his time, which ended up being a year.

Her marriage in ruins, her life in shreds, Leanne had floundered. She dragged her pain and disillusionment with her from one day to the next. Thankfully, in the two years following Mark's arrest, the talk, the rumors, the unpleasantness, had mostly died down.

She hadn't spoken to him since the divorce was final, although she'd made a couple of pointless efforts to write him while he was in prison. Mark had never acknowledged her attempts to communicate or responded to her letters. All she'd wanted to know was why he'd taken the money.

A short while after she'd mailed the second letter, Muriel Lancaster, Mark's mother, had phoned at his request. It seemed he'd asked that Leanne not write to him again. They were divorced and he suggested she move on with her life, the same as he intended to do.

Now, however, Leanne regretted the divorce. She'd filed in anger, believing it was the best thing to do under the circumstances. No matter how many times she'd pleaded with him to explain, he'd remained silent. Hindsight being what it was, she wished she hadn't reacted as quickly as she had. Especially in light of what she'd learned since.

Mark was close to his younger sister. Denise was in a bad marriage with an abusive husband. She'd been living in California, and no one in the family was aware of how dangerous the situation was until she'd tried to leave Darrin. Her husband had immediately filed for custody of the two children and Denise was forced to fight him in court. Attorneys' fees added up and the couple had to put their house on the market.

Thankfully, Denise won full custody of the children, but she knew she'd never be safe living in California where Darrin had access to her and the two little girls. With her half of the proceeds from the house, Denise would be able to pay off the attorney and start over in another state. She could make her escape, buy airline tickets and leave for a new life.

Desperate, she'd called Mark at the last moment. All she needed was twenty-five thousand dollars for less than ten hours. She'd FedEx Mark a cashier's check from the sale of the house the very next day. She couldn't involve her parents, since her father had recently retired and their income had already been reduced. Denise was in a state of panic. Leanne and Mark had taken out a home-equity loan to remodel their kitchen and with the work in progress they were at their credit limit. Knowing how frantic Denise was to pay her bills and get out of California, Mark had sent her the funds from the charity drive at the hospital.

Then the deal on Denise and Darrin's house had unexpectedly fallen through. Caught up in her own drama, Denise took the money and ran, fleeing with her children and going into hiding. With the help of a women's organization, she went underground for six months. It was only when she resurfaced that she learned what had happened to Mark. Denise had no idea Mark had "borrowed" the funds, no idea of the consequences he'd suffered as a result. She'd pleaded his case before the court and Mark's sentence had been reduced from the original five years to one.

By the time Denise contacted Leanne and explained, it was too late. The divorce was final. The house never did sell and eventually went into foreclosure. She ended up with nothing--except guilt over what she'd caused her brother.

The only contact Leanne had with Mark's family now was through his mother, Muriel. Brian and Muriel lived in Spokane, and her former mother-in-law called Leanne periodically. The entire situation had been devastating to all of them. Brian had been an anchor, supporting both of his children, but he seemed to have a hard time forgiving Leanne for walking out on his son when Mark needed her most.

Leanne regretted her lack of faith in her husband--and his lack of faith in her. Mark wasn't faultless in this. He should've explained, should've trusted her. She felt that if they'd worked together, faced this as a couple, everything might have turned out differently.

Now here she was, two years later, divorced and miserable. The house was long gone, and she was renting a high-rise apartment. Denise, on the other hand, lived in Nebraska with her kids and was working toward repaying the money, although it was nearly impossible on what she made as a waitress.

Leanne didn't keep in touch with Denise. She couldn't help blaming her, at least a little, for the disaster that had befallen Mark, although none of it was intentional. And she suspected Denise blamed

her for not staying with him. The conversation with Michael the day before had brought Leanne a new resolve. She woke Sunday morning knowing she had to make one last effort to sort things out with her ex-husband. The divorce had happened so fast. She wanted--no, she

needed--to see him. Perhaps they could assess the situation and find out if their love, along with their marriage, was completely dead. If so, she'd wish him well and move on. And "moving on" could include seeing Michael Everett.... Leanne had found out from Mark's mother that after his release from prison, he'd gone to Yakima, assisting migrant workers there, helping them with government forms and immigration papers. Apparently, this was part of the community-service hours he'd been ordered to serve. Muriel had reluctantly supplied his address. All she'd asked was that Leanne not tell Mark how she'd learned it.