Shattered Identity Read online

  A small beam of hope ignited in her heart. Just a few minutes ago, she had been agonizing over who could have done so much damage to her home and made her feel as though she was in danger. Now, thanks to Scott, she had discovered something that might answer all her questions surrounding her mother’s sudden death.

  In the span of twenty-four hours, she’d experienced numerous emotions—fear for her life, anxiety over the destruction of her belongings, hopelessness at how much the vandalism was going to cost her and uncertainty about her future. She clasped the journal to her chest and smiled. None of those mattered if she could finally put to rest the one emotion that had haunted her all her life—rejection.

  For as long as she could remember, she had felt her mother would never have killed herself if she had loved her daughter. Maybe the journal would finally give her an answer. If it did, she knew she could face anything—and anyone—who tried to harm her.

  FOUR

  Lisa gripped the journal tighter in her hands as she reentered the living room. As long as she could remember, she’d wondered about her mother and wished for a memory of the beautiful woman in the small, dog-eared photo she kept in her wallet. Now her mother’s words had found their way across the lonely years to the daughter who had hungered for her love.

  At last she might be able to discover things about her mother other women’s daughters took for granted. What was her favorite color? Did she like music? As a girl, what had she wanted to be when she grew up? But there was one burning question Lisa wanted answered more than anything else. Did Roxanne Wade love the daughter she left behind when she’d jumped from the widow’s walk of the lighthouse?

  A discreet cough from behind reminded her she wasn’t alone. The sound sent a tingle of awareness through her. Since Scott had come to work for the sheriff’s department, she had never thought of him as anything other than a coworker. The time she’d spent with him in the last twenty-four hours had changed all that, and she was glad he was the one who had found her mother’s diary.

  “Are you all right, Lisa?”

  She smiled and turned toward him. “I am. I’m happier than I’ve been in a long time.”

  A flicker of concern crossed his face. “Let me remind you…”

  She held up a hand to stop him. “I know what you’re going to say. I’m not expecting all my questions to be answered. For now, just having my mother’s words with me is all I care about. At least I have a part of her.” She closed her eyes for a moment and frowned. “Sometimes I lie awake at night and try to remember what her voice sounded like or what her perfume smelled like, but nothing comes to mind. At least I’ll be able to know what she thought about. Maybe even find out what led her to kill herself.”

  “I just don’t want you to be hurt.”

  She smiled and squeezed his arm. “Don’t worry about me, Scott. There’s an empty spot in my heart reserved for my mother. Maybe I can fill it with something from this diary.”

  He glanced down at her hand on his arm. “I hope so.”

  Before she could respond, a knock at the door caught her attention. Fear rippled through her body, and she frowned. Her intruder probably had hoped his visits would have a lingering effect on her, but she couldn’t allow him to have that control over her. It was ridiculous to be afraid of someone knocking at the door.

  She squared her shoulders and glanced at Scott. “Who could that be?”

  She started toward the door, but Scott stepped around her. “Let me answer it. You stay behind me.”

  Lisa followed close behind him to the front door. He glanced over his shoulder and frowned. “Were you expecting anybody?”

  “No. It might be Jeff stopping by to check on me.”

  Scott took a deep breath and eased the door open. His shoulders relaxed as he exhaled. “Grady Teach, what are you doing here?”

  “I heard Lisa done had another break-in, and I came by to see if’n she was all right.” Grady’s shrill voice pierced Lisa’s ears.

  She peeked around Scott and smiled. “Grady, come on in.”

  They stepped back for him to enter, and Grady strutted into the house. Lisa cast a quick glance in Scott’s direction and tried to keep from smiling. Grady, who had long been recognized as the unofficial island historian, made it his business to keep up with everything that happened to the residents of his island. As a descendant of Edward Teach, better known as Blackbeard, the pirate who had made Ocracoke Island his home, Grady felt his family’s long history with this tiny speck of land off the coast of North Carolina had given him the authority to oversee all the happenings on this island. Most residents, however, regarded him as the biggest gossip in the village.

  Shaking his head, Grady stopped in the middle of the living room, planted his legs in a wide stance and pulled his straw hat off the long, gray hair that hung over his ears. “Looks like somebody’s done taken a dislike to you, Lisa. Got any ideas who it could be?”

  “No.”

  He glanced around the room, and he glared at the message scrawled in red paint on the living room wall. “Calvin, huh? You think he done hired somebody to scare you?”

  “I don’t know. It’s a possibility.”

  Grady nodded. “I was over to the Blue Pelican, and I happened to overhear Brock talking to Skip Matlock. Seems like Brock might be thinkin’ that Calvin could have asked Skip to do some dirty work for him.”

  Scott cast a quick glance at Lisa. “What did Skip say, Grady?”

  “Oh, nothing much. Seems like he’s been off the island for the past week. Came in on the last ferry this afternoon and went straight to work. Hasn’t been out of the building since.”

  The fear Lisa had tried to force from her mind returned with a vengeance. Her legs trembled, and she sank down on the sofa that Scott had set upright. The stuffing from the pillows still protruded through the slashes made by the intruder.

  “So, it wasn’t Skip who broke in here. Why didn’t Brock call and let me know?”

  Scott dropped down beside her. “Skip was only one person of interest. There are others. Brock is busy doing his job, and he’ll let you know when he has any information.” He gave her hand a reassuring squeeze. “And I’ll be helping him tomorrow. We’re going to find who did this.”

  Grady inched closer and cocked his head to one side. “So you fellers think somebody else might be the bad guy here? Who would that be?”

  Scott’s lips thinned into a straight line. “I can’t say at this point, Grady. Everybody could be a suspect right now.” He stood and arched an eyebrow. “So where were you this afternoon, Grady?”

  Surprise flashed across Grady’s face, and he took a step backward. “I was doin’ what I do every day. I was out in the salt marshes lookin’ for Blackbeard’s treasure.”

  Scott glanced at Lisa, and she detected the slight grin pulling at his mouth. He advanced on Grady. “Are you sure?”

  Lisa jumped up and laid a restraining hand on Scott’s arm. “I think you’re scaring Grady. I’m sure he’s telling the truth.”

  Grady straightened to his full height and glared at Scott. “I reckon I am. Everybody on the island could tell you that. But you being such a newcomer, I expect you don’t know me yet. Just ask your sister Kate. She’ll tell you I’m an honest feller, and I wouldn’t hurt nobody on my island.”

  Scott nodded. “I’ve heard that. It’s just that a law officer can’t overlook anybody.” He turned to Lisa and winked. “So I guess I’ll take your word for it that you were looking for treasure this afternoon.”

  Grady gave a snort of disgust. “Nice to see you believe me. Now I guess I better get on home.” He glanced at the journal in Lisa’s hand. “What’s that you got there?”

  She held the book up. “We found this in a closet in the back of the house. It’s my mother’s j
ournal.”

  Grady’s eyes lit up with interest. “You don’t say.” He rubbed his chin and stared at the book for a moment. “Roxanne was a real nice lady. Prettiest girl I’d ever seen when your daddy brought her back from the mainland as his wife.”

  Lisa’s heart pumped, and she clutched the journal against her chest. “You never told me you knew my mother.”

  He frowned. “Well, your grandmother didn’t want nobody to talk to you about her. She said no woman who left her daughter like she did deserved to even be mentioned.” Grady shook his head. “Sometimes your grandmother could be a hard woman to deal with.”

  “I know. She never would talk to me about my mother.” Lisa looked at the book. “Maybe now I can find out what made her commit suicide.”

  Grady nodded. “I hope so.” His forehead wrinkled into a frown when he glanced at Scott. “Well, I’d better be goin’ before I get accused of some other crime on the island. I’ll be checking on you, Lisa, to make sure you’re okay.”

  “Thanks, Grady.”

  When Lisa had closed the door behind Grady, she turned to Scott and laughed. “I’ve never seen Grady so flustered. You really scared him.”

  A grin spread across Scott’s face. “I couldn’t resist. Ever since I’ve been here, I’ve heard how Grady is the island authority on everything that’s happening. Kate once said his news gets to the island grapevine quicker than sending a text message.”

  Lisa shook her head. “I think she’s right.” She glanced around the house and sighed. “I think we’ve done enough tonight. We both have to work tomorrow, so we need to get some rest. If you’ll give me a few minutes, I’ll pack some things to take to Treasury’s, and then we’ll leave.”

  “All right. In the meantime, I’ll see if there’s anything else I can do in your parents’ old room.”

  They walked back down the narrow hallway to the bedrooms. As Lisa turned toward her room, she brushed against Scott, and a small tingle raced up her arm. She glanced up at him, but his cool stare gave no indication he had noticed the brief contact. He turned toward her parents’ room, and she entered hers.

  She closed her eyes and rubbed her forehead. What was the matter with her? She’d promised herself she would never become attracted to another man. Even though Scott had been a huge help to her during her ordeal, she couldn’t forget the fact that he struggled with a past that still haunted him. She didn’t know what had happened to him, but from what Kate had told her, it had left deep scars in his soul. She had enough of her own problems to even think about a man who shouldered a lot of baggage from his past.

  Her suitcase lay on the floor where the burglar had pulled it from the closet. She set it on the bed and began to pick up her scattered clothes and put them inside. When she had packed enough for a few days, she laid the journal on top.

  A thump from her parents’ room reminded her that Scott was still working. Since their first meeting, she had thought him reserved and serious. Tonight a different side of his personality had surfaced when he’d teased Grady, and she liked the part of him he seemed to guard with such care. And his deep-set blue eyes. Sometimes they took her breath away when they stared straight into her soul.

  No. I will not do this.

  She glanced down at the journal she’d placed in the suitcase. All she wanted was to find out more about her mother. Maybe then she’d be free of her past and could leave the island to begin a new life somewhere else.

  The next morning Scott, juggling a cardboard carton that held two cups of coffee and a small white sack, closed the door of The Coffee Cup and stepped onto the sidewalk in front of the shop. A group of teenagers on bicycles waved to him from the street. He gave a nod and smiled. Off to the beach, no doubt.

  He’d traveled the world, but he’d never seen beaches like the ones at Ocracoke. How he wished he had grown up here. His life would have been so different if he’d lived with his father and his second family. He shook his head to rid it of thoughts of things that could never be and headed toward his police cruiser parked at the curb.

  “Scott, wait up a minute.”

  The familiar voice brought a smile to his face. He turned to see his three sisters hurrying toward him. Emma, who’d recently had her eleventh birthday, ran ahead of Kate and Betsy.

  Emma came to a stop next to him and grinned up at him. He reached out with his free hand and cupped her chin. “Hi, princess. I didn’t expect to see you today.”

  She pointed to their sisters. “We’re on our way to the Island General Store. We’re going to bake a cake for Treasury’s birthday. You’re going to be home for dinner Friday night, aren’t you?”

  “You bet I am. I wouldn’t miss Treasury’s birthday.”

  “Good.” She glanced at the sack. “What’s that?”

  “Blueberry muffins. Why? Are you hungry?”

  She grinned. “I sure would like to have a donut.”

  He laughed and pulled a five-dollar bill from his pocket. “Get a donut and something to drink.”

  She grabbed the money and gave him a quick hug. “Thanks, Scott. You’re the best brother any girl could have.”

  Kate and Betsy came to a stop beside him and stared after their little sister. Kate shook her head. Her chestnut-colored hair brushed her shoulders, and she arched an eyebrow. “You’re spoiling her, Scott.”

  “I thought that’s what big brothers were supposed to do.” The door to The Coffee Cup slammed behind Emma, but he continued to stare after her. A lump formed in his throat at how much she had come to mean to him. “And I’ve got a lot of years to catch up on.”

  The two sisters glanced at each other before Betsy smiled, the dimples in her cheeks deepening. She reached out and grasped his arm. “You’re here now, and that’s the most important thing.”

  Moisture threatened to flood his eyes. He blinked and looked around in hopes that no one had witnessed the momentary lapse in his demeanor. It wouldn’t do to have Grady Teach telling everybody that the new deputy had weeped right on the village’s main street. He drew in a long breath. “You’re right, and I don’t want to waste a minute of our time together.”

  A mischievous smile pulled at Betsy’s mouth. “You know how much Emma and I enjoy having you live at our house since Kate and Brock got a place of their own. It makes dinnertime so special to have you there at night.” She inched closer. “So, what time will you be home tonight?”

  His face grew warm, and he swallowed. “I—I d-don’t know…” Then he caught the teasing look on both his sisters’ faces and scowled. “Quit it, you two. I can tell you know I’m going to have dinner with Lisa tonight.”

  They burst out laughing, and Kate nodded. “I called the police station this morning and asked her to come over for dinner tonight. She told me the two of you are going out.”

  “It’s not what you think. She only wants to thank me for helping her after her break-ins.”

  Betsy rolled her eyes at Kate. “Sure she does. And I’m sure you’re willing to be thanked.”

  Scott cocked an eyebrow. “Betsy, cut it out.”

  Kate elbowed her sister in the ribs. “Leave him alone, Betsy. We’ve tried to fix him up with Lisa ever since he got here, so let’s not jinx it by teasing him.”

  He flashed a grateful smile to Kate. “Thanks, sis.”

  Kate’s face grew serious, and she took a step closer to him. “Seriously, though, Brock and I are worried about those burglaries at Lisa’s house. Maybe it’s because I know what it’s like to be targeted by a crazed killer, and I’m afraid for her.”

  His heart thudded at the reminder of the brush with death his three sisters had experienced before he came to Ocracoke. “I don’t think her situation is the same as yours was, Kate, but I’m going to keep an eye on her.”

  She smiled. “Good. Lisa i
s one of my best friends, and I don’t want to see anything happen to her.”

  “Neither do I.” He reached over and kissed both his sisters on the cheek.

  Kate tilted her head and pointed her finger at Scott. “And make sure you don’t do anything to hurt her either.”

  His sister’s words stunned Scott, and his eyes narrowed. “You know I’m not interested in getting involved with a woman. Especially not one who happens to be best friends with my sisters.”

  The door of The Coffee Cup opened, and a man stepped onto the sidewalk. Scott moved toward the curb to let him pass, but the man stopped and faced Kate. “Well, if it isn’t former Deputy Kate Michaels—or should I say Kate Gentry, now that you’re married.” His gaze raked her body. “I heard you were expecting a baby.”

  “Ean Thornton,” she said. “I haven’t seen you around much lately.”

  Hatred glared from his eyes. “I spend a lot of my time at the state prison visiting my son. You remember him, don’t you? After all, you’re the one who picked on him all the time he was growing up.”

  Kate shook her head. “I’m sorry about your son, Ean, but he made some bad decisions. Especially when he decided to commit murder.”

  He shook his finger at her. “It’s all your fault he’s in prison, and someday you’re going to pay for it.”

  Scott stepped in front of Ean. “Don’t threaten my sister, Thornton. From what I heard your son got exactly what was coming to him.”

  His eyebrows arched, and he gave a sarcastic chuckle. “You’re new to our island and don’t know what’s gone on here for years. A lot of people around here have something coming to them. Just make sure you don’t get caught in the middle.”

  He whirled and stormed down the street. When he’d disappeared around the corner, Scott turned back to Kate. “Are you all right?”

  She sighed. “Yeah. When I was chief deputy, Ean accused me of persecuting his son Mike every time I stopped him for speeding or driving under the influence. He now blames me because Mike’s in prison for murder.” She rubbed her stomach. “I hope this little one doesn’t put me through what Mike has done to his parents.”