CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

Using the castle as their home base, they rented the entire space for the next two weeks. Heath was more than happy to accommodate them. With the list of children in hand and the list of passengers who came aboard with children, they were able to match them and then check all the databases, hospital records, and other record sources for blood or DNA samples.

From there, they searched the databases for matches and put out a notification that the children who had disappeared from the Costina could very well be alive. Anyone believing that they were one of those children should contact the team working out of the castle.

Within days, there were a dozen people waiting in the entrance hall of the castle to be interviewed. The first nine were simply swindlers who were easily scared for their lives by the time they left. But the next three turned out to be a hit.

All three were under the age of five when the Costina sank. They remembered nothing of their birth parents but had been adopted into good, loving families throughout Great Britain. Their great fortune was that all of their biological families were still living and desperate to reunite.

For the adoptive parents, it was devastating news to discover that they had been fooled into adopting children whose families were still living. There would be years of therapy, years of counseling to get them through the emotions flooding their systems.

All caused by one woman's madness.

"I feel terrible for them," whispered Daphne. Brix hugged his wife from behind, kissing the top of her head.

"It's not your fault, babe. We'll find Deirdre, and she'll answer to the courts and to these families for what she's done. She's guilty of multiple counts of murder, including Lord Bishop, and she'll be questioned on the explosions aboard the Costina."

"All because she wanted wealth and status," said Daphne.

"She may have wanted more than that," said Brix. "She could have been trying to amass a wealth that could support an army. If she thought to take over for her father, she may have been trying for more than just status."

"That just doesn't make sense, though. She had all this wealth, and she was spending it as fast as Father could make it. If she wanted the money for her own army, she would have been saving it."

"That's a great point," he smiled. "See. You're smarter than me."

"No, not smarter. Just trying to think through all this madness. Did she really believe that she could just pop up and suddenly say I've found the heir to their fortunes? It's just too much. There has to be more to this."

"We're trying to find the man that set the bombs and took the kids. Marshall didn't know his name but gave a good description if we can believe it."

"I'm not sure I'd believe anything coming out of his mouth," said Daphne.

"Neither do we, babe. Neither do we."

Marshall pulled into the back parking lot of the dingy little pub. Stepping inside, he took a moment to allow his eyes to adjust to the dim light and then spotted the familiar figure in a booth along the wall. She wore a rain bonnet pulled down around her face, trying to conceal herself from everyone else.

Walking toward her, he stopped at the table and set the envelope down.

"It's all I can give you right now. I need to leave. Don't ask me for help again. Those men with Daphne are quite angry and intimidating. They're coming for you, and there's nothing I can do to help you."

"Sit down, Marshall," she said, smiling at him.

"You don't get it, do you, Deirdre? I am not helping you any longer. This was a stupid, stupid plan! Daphne would have never remarried me, and you would have never gotten the estate of St. Valary. I am leaving the city for a while."

"I'll tell them everything," she said threateningly.

"Tell them. I don't care any longer," he said with a huff. "In case you missed it, Deirdre, I'm an old man now. I have nothing to lose any longer. It's already been stripped from me. Take the money and get out of the country. Those men will find you."

She seethed as he turned and left her there, alone once again. Stuffing the envelope into her jacket, she stared at the photos on her phone of Daphne and her new husband. The men were different. Very different.

They'd said they were former military men, but these weren't ordinary military men. There was an aura about them that she knew she understood. They were killers, and Marshall was right about one thing. They wouldn't stop until they found her.

Deirdre ordered a basket of fish and chips to go and took the Rover north toward the Scottish borders. When she found a small bed and breakfast, she paid cash for the room and began to formulate another plan.

This time, she would come out on top.