A Masterpiece Unraveled (The Masterpiece Trilogy Book 2) (11 page)

"We'll bring her back in a few hours," Hunter promised Beverly.

"You just have a good time. Forget about your troubles for a while." Beverly smiled before she turned to Becca. "I have some ideas to run by you."

Becca's eyes went wide.
"Okay. I'm eager to hear them."

Beverly stood before her now and covered her hands. "I'm sorry, hon. I didn't catch that. I'm learning, but it's still hard."

"She's eager to hear them," Hunter said softly.

Becca put on another smile, even though Hunter knew this frustrated her. She removed her hands from Beverly's.
"I know you're trying, and I appreciate it so much."
Then her gaze flicked to Hunter.

He got the message. She wanted him to interpret. "She knows you're trying and she appreciates it."

Beverly wrapped Becca in a big hug. "Welcome home, Becca. You're with people who love you very much," she whispered before letting her go. Hunter had told Beverly and Todd just a little about what happened in Vermont, and he knew they wanted her to feel wanted here.

"Go?" Sienna tugged on Hunter's shirt.

He noticed Becca wipe her eyes before he focused his attention on Sienna. "We can go now, Princess. We'll stop at the store and pick up something to eat."

"Yay!" Sienna jumped up and down. She reached for Becca's hand, then looked over at Rissi. "Friend?"

Rissi smiled.
"I'd like to be your friend."

Back outside, Hunter settled Sienna in her booster seat. Since his car was still hooked to the trailer, they drove Becca's instead.

Rissi walked around the car and climbed in the backseat behind the driver's side.

Before Becca ducked her head to get in, Hunter stopped her. There were no words he could come up with that would make this better. She struggled because of her voice, she struggled with needing answers, and she struggled with her fear. So he said what he meant from the heart. "You're my rainbow at the end of the storm, and we'll get there again." Gently pressing a kiss to her lips, he let her go and made his way to the other side of the car, ready to hit the road.

Half an hour later, they had a basket full of goodies and Hunter pulled into the parking lot of the park. The sun was shining, a gentle breeze made stray leaves dance in the parking lot, and the temperatures weren't ridiculously hot. They weren't the only one with this idea. The park was full of families playing.

Sienna reached for the basket. "I wanna hold!"

Hunter helped her get a good grasp on it before fully letting go. It wasn't too heavy and she walked a little slower, but Sienna laughed with excitement. He reached for Becca's hand, twining his fingers with hers. Awareness shot through him and he knew he couldn't be without her. Ever.

He found a perfect spot, a shaded area with a nice stone picnic table, and directed everyone toward it. There was a playground nearby and Sienna must have noticed the swings because she turned around and handed the basket to him. Then she pulled on Rissi's hand. "Let's swing!" Rissi was another person Sienna found easy to like as she went to her with little hesitation. Either that, or she was finally coming out of her shell. Either way, he liked it.

"I'd love to take you to swing if it's okay with your daddy." Rissi flicked her gaze to Hunter.

He smiled. "If she's that anxious for a new friend to swing with her, I'm not going to object."

"Ready?" Rissi asked Sienna. Hand in hand, they skipped toward the swings.

Hunter pulled Becca closer to him as they walked the last few yards to the picnic table he'd spotted. Setting the basket down, he lowered himself to sit on the bench facing the swings. Sienna ran to an empty one and settled on it while Rissi moved behind her to push. Their happy faces relieved him.

Becca sat beside him and put her camera bag between her feet. She stared off at the swings for a bit before Hunter leaned over to kiss her cheek.

"Want me to push you on a swing?" he half teased.

Her cheeks flushed.
"No. There's too many kids wanting the swings. I'm not going to hog them up."

"Okay." Disappointment sagged in his shoulders, but he got it. Again with the lack of conversation. This was so unlike them before Carrie. Damn that woman. Damn her and the agenda she had that still scared the hell out of him and Becca. "Hey, Bec? Will you tell me about four years ago? And why you were afraid you'd lose me again if you said how angry you were at me?" He didn't want to ignore it any more.

She narrowed her eyes.
"Do we have to do this here?"

Hunter suppressed a sigh. She had a point. "Fair enough. This isn't the best time or place. I just wish we could get everything out in the open. Everything." He emphasized the last word.

"I know, but we should do that in a private setting."

While he knew that, he was afraid she'd find a way to evade the conversation again. What was going on in that mind of hers?

A blond haired little boy with freckles on his nose wandered up to them. Blue eyes full of curiosity stared at them. Hunter pegged him as just a year or two older than Sienna. "What is she doing with her hands?" He pointed at Becca.

"She's using sign language to talk," Hunter informed him, using a gentle tone. He stole a quick glance at Becca. Her cheeks were dotted pink as she blinked.

"Why?" the kid inquired.

"Well, sometimes, when her voice doesn't work, she has to talk to me that way."

"But that's not talking! How does it work?" The kid ambled closer, touching Becca's hand. "Why does your voice not work? Is it broken?"

Was this what Becca endured day after day when she was a child and had been mute for years? He understood a child's curiosity, but it had to be tiring.

"It's not that easy, buddy," Hunter said to the boy. Oh, if only it were.

"Jason! Come on, time to go," a female's voice called. The little boy jumped away from Becca, looking at them one more time before running off.

Becca turned away from him again. He'd guess she was watching Sienna and Rissi still having a blast on the swings.

Hunter caressed her shoulder. "Hey, look at me."

She did.

"What are you thinking right now?"

Her tongue darted out, touching her lips before it disappeared back in her mouth.
"I'm constantly being reminded of some of the hardest years of my life."

"Not just because of your voice loss, either. Right?"

The sadness in her eyes told him what he needed to know.

"You want to know one of my favorite memories of you when you were younger?"

"Dare I ask?"
He already called it a win when she smiled. Good! He loved talking about old memories with Becca.

"I remember coming to visit you when you were thirteen. Your aunt warned me that you were struggling. We showed up at her house after she picked me up at the airport and we found you on the ground, angry but determined. It didn't dawn on me right away, but I remember being stunned when I couldn't find your wheelchair anywhere." At that age, Becca had just wanted to belong and fit in. He remembered that year well. She used to call him so upset, and he'd talk to her for an hour and have her laughing again, forgetting all her troubles. It also helped him forget his own. She never really called to complain, either. He just always detected a certain tone in her voice and his stubborn streak wouldn't let up until she told him what was wrong.

Her eyes lit up.
"After you got over the shock of seeing me like that, you said something along the lines of how a lot of girls fell at your feet, but I took it to a literal level. Then you realized I was attempting to walk and scared me when you said you had a serious question to ask me."

He chuckled. "Do you remember the question?" They'd all been tactics to make her laugh, and at the time he wasn't sure what would or wouldn't make Becca smile.

"Yes! You asked if I would escort you to the swing. You helped me to my feet and held my hand as I walked the farthest I had since before the accident. I remember yelling at you for being a dork and for scaring me before we did that. Why is that one of your favorite memories?"

Hunter cupped her face and kissed her lips. "Because you reached a milestone and I actually got to be a part of it. I was there watching you do something I knew you could do again. I remember you told me how hard it was being the different girl at school. What made me the proudest was even though part of you wanted to do it to fit in, you did it more for yourself. You beat the odds more than once, Rebecca Lange, and I know you'll do it again and again. I watch you struggle and it's hard on me. I think we should both remember to keep looking for the good through the bad." He held out his pinkie, wondering if she'd remember their old little shake on a promise. If she was reliving some of her hard childhood days, the least he could do was bring back some of the fun memories the two of them shared. "What do you say?"

Becca's lips curved upward again as a spark of recognition flashed in her eyes. She did remember! She curled her pinkie over his and went through the rest of the motions. The symbol had been their own secret language. Their promise keeping shake. He'd taught her the promise shake on the island when she first started having trouble talking. It was something they kept up with years after, but had long forgotten about in their adult years. Well, he hadn't forgotten it, but they didn't do it in a long time.

"Come here," he requested, pulling her in his arms for a comforting hug. Becca slid her arms around him and held on tight. "How about we get Sienna and Rissi, take some pictures and then dig into our lunch?" Tonight, he'd see if he could break even more of the tension and have a good talk with Becca. Get everything out in the open. As he let her go and looked toward the swings where the two had been just a few minutes ago, he tensed.

Rissi and Sienna were nowhere nearby. Hunter scanned the playground, thinking they went to another play area.

Becca pulled away and her eyes were full of curiosity.
"What's wrong?"

"I don't see Sienna or Rissi anywhere." He kept his voice calm.
Don't overreact.
His first instinct was to overreact, and he probably didn't need to.

To add to his nervousness, Hunter noticed a ton of kids running to the other end of the playground, an area that had been empty prior. There were a bunch of trees there that a stone pathway led through. What happened over there?

Odd. It probably had nothing to do with Rissi and Sienna, but curiosity got the better of him. They could have gone over there to see what the fuss was about. He shot to his feet. "I'm going to go see what that's all about. Will you stay here in case Sienna and Rissi get back? I wonder if they ventured over that way, too." Becca gave him a quick nod and then he darted off toward the crowd. Kids were shouting and he heard a few screams.

Hunter tried not to panic, but his missing daughter and friend sent a chill down his spine.

Chapter Nine

Becca sighed, pulled out her phone and planned on sending a quick text to Rissi to find out where she went. Her attention was glued to Hunter rushing toward the crowd. Was he as panicked as she felt and didn't want to alert her? Most likely it was kids looking at an animal, or a fight, or something minuscule and dumb compared to what the two of them were probably thinking.

Before she could send the text, her phone rang. The caller ID registered Vince's number. Why would he be calling? He knew she couldn't talk to him on the phone! Whatever. If he wanted something that bad, he'll leave a voice mail and she could check it later.

The ringing stopped. No voice mail yet. Becca stared in the direction Hunter ran, wondering what the crowd had gathered for. Where did Rissi go with Sienna? Maybe a drink of water? Well that wouldn't make sense. They had drinks right here. Another playground? There were several areas with different playgrounds. The bathroom maybe? Did Hunter feel the same unease she did?

He was right. They were both on edge and falling apart. After twenty years, this was the worst few weeks they'd ever had in terms of arguing. She couldn't recall ever feeling such frustration with him before. She didn't want to lose Hunter. She sure as heck didn't look forward to telling him about four years ago or admitting to how angry she'd been. But it had to be dealt with.

The voice mail notification finally went off. Curious, she played it, still looking for Hunter, Rissi and Sienna.

When the message began, she could barely hear Vince's voice. There were loud sounds in the background and everything was muffled. What was going on? Maybe he had his phone in his pocket and had butt dialed her. She was about to delete the message, resigned to the idea that's what it was when the voices came in more clearly. She froze, her stomach flip flopping as she heard Vince and her grandparents.

"Never did I realize how much you were hiding!" Vince shouted. He sounded so ticked off. "I don't think you can keep it in any more. Had I known just how much you kept from her, I just ... This is bad."

What was he referring to? Becca clutched the phone to her ear, pressing hard as if she'd be able to hear even better. There were other voices, but she couldn't make them out easily.

"What makes you so sure Becca isn't Rusty's biological child?" Vince snapped. More strange sounds. His phone had to have been in his pocket, and he had no idea this message was on her phone now.

Becca's grandmother's voice rang out loud and clear somehow. "I heard Anne lost a child, and then all of a sudden they had another baby. In that time frame, I barely heard a word from Anne or Rusty. Then they disappeared from our lives completely. That new baby had to be Rebecca. I think Anne was so desperate, she stole a baby. And I think the Beckmans-"

The message cut off, running out of time.

No! No!

Becca held back a wave of nausea and saved the message.

Stolen?

Could this be true? No. No way! And what about the Beckmans? Did Hunter's parents help steal her for the Langes?

This just went from bad to worse within seconds.

"Becca? What's going on? Where's Hunter?" At the sound of Rissi's voice, Becca jumped and almost dropped her phone. Sienna let go of Rissi's hand and ran to her, throwing her arms around her legs.