13. Cash

13

CASH

"Michael," Libby said, walking up my dad's house steps.

I watched in utter fascination as Libby walked right up to my father and wrapped her arms around him in a hug. I hadn't seen him for years, but she was familiar enough with him to hug him. I didn't understand how any of this happened.

And my father…he hugged her back. It was so strange. I didn't remember anything but him yelling at us. Now he was hugging her? When had this happened?

"Hey, Libby. Thanks for coming."

"When you called, I wasn't at all surprised. I'm sure you've heard about Rafe."

"You know, then."

She shrugged. "Not exactly. I know he did something stupid. I know he said goodbye to me."

Though she was strong, I could hear the fear and anger in her voice. She knew my brother well, that he wouldn't say goodbye unless he knew it was a one-way trip.

"Maybe you should come inside."

"No," she snapped. "Don't tell me to come inside like you're going to sit me down and explain my husband to me. I know him better than you."

"That's probably true, but?—"

"But what? You think you can tell me something I don't know?"

"Libby," I broke in. "You don't know this."

She turned to me, her eyes already filling with tears. "I don't want to hear it."

"You need to. You need to know why," I said gently.

A huge part of me wanted to leave this to my father to answer for. After all, it was his daughter that my brother went chasing. Why should I be responsible for breaking the news to his wife?

Because I would do it better than my father. He wasn't the ideal parent growing up. He had the same temperament and blunt nature as Rafe. If I left it to him, he'd fuck the whole thing up.

"Just tell me. Whatever the hell it is, just tell me. I don't need to be coddled and I don't need you to sit me down like I'll collapse like a schoolgirl. I just need you to fucking tell me what's going on."

I handed over the letter, watching as she carefully unfolded it and read Rafe's words. I glanced at my father, wondering if this was the best way to let her know what was happening. The minutes ticked by, each one more excruciating than the last. I didn't know what to do or how to help her.

I heard a sharp intake of breath and focused on Libby once again. Tears filled her eyes, but her face was marred with anger. When she finished reading, she looked at me.

"I guess you should be glad that Eva's love for you is so much more worthy than my love for Rafe."

"Libby—"

"You have kids," she choked out. "That's what this says," she said, waving the paper around. "You have kids and that makes your life worth more than his. Eva needs you more than I need Rafe. That's what he's saying! Apparently, I'm strong enough to deal with him throwing his life away to find his long-lost sister!"

She rushed forward and slammed her fists into my chest. I didn't try to stop her or defend myself. I just stood there as Libby took her anger out on me. Each blow reminded me that this woman loved Rafe for better or worse. She was his perfect match, even if he was a complete ass.

"I hate you!" she screamed. "We were supposed to grow old together! It's all your fault!"

She slammed her fists into me again and again, even taking a few shots at my face. I would have let her continue, but she was losing it. I grabbed her fists and held her to me as she broke down. Tears soaked my shirt as she cried into my chest. I hated that Rafe did this to her. He didn't even give her a chance to say goodbye.

"He didn't write me a letter," she whispered as her cries died down. "He wrote to you. He told you everything…"

"Libby…" My heart broke for her as I tried to figure out what to say, but the words wouldn't come. There was nothing I could do or say to make this right for her. "He loved you. I could see it in his eyes every time he talked about you."

She stepped back, looking intently into my eyes. "And he talked to you about me often?"

I could hear the disbelief in her voice. Even as I said the words, I knew they didn't ring true. Rafe kept his personal life separate from everything else. He didn't even share things with his brother.

"You don't have to lie to me, Cash. I know my husband. There was a reason he didn't leave a note for me." She pulled herself together, wiping the tears from her eyes. "So, this sister of yours…what's the plan?"

"I need to find Raven."

"The cat burglar. Rafe told me about her."

"She was taken by Zavala and traded to another man."

Rae stepped out of the house, nodding to Libby. "His name is Benjamin White. He's in the Caribbean. As we expected, he went through Panama. It looks like he's headed to Zavala's island, but he could land at any one of them in the Caribbean. I have an idea, but…it would require either some very good acting on Rafe's part or we need to get him a message."

"Since we don't know if Rafe is even alive, it would be best if we could get him a message," I said.

"What's the last you heard from him?" Libby asked.

"He was in Zavala's custody, but he needed a boost to get Zavala to bring him to the island. We did everything we could. He got on his plane, but we don't know what happened after that."

"Do you have any way to get him a message?" she asked me.

"No."

"I might," Dad said, stepping forward. "But I'm going to have to talk to Claire."

"What's the problem with that?"

He winced, rubbing the back of his neck. "She's got a bit of a temper. The last time I talked to her, she said she would shoot me if I came within fifty yards of her house."

"Well…stay at least fifty-one yards away," I retorted.

"It might not work."

"I thought you said you loved this woman," I snapped. "You loved her more than Mom, so what the fuck is the problem?"

"She doesn't know about you…about Rafe either. Knowing you're involved might push her over the edge. I'm not sure we can risk Isabelle's life."

I strode over to him, pissed as hell that he was being a pussy about this. "I get that you don't want anything to happen to Isabelle, but right now, your other son is risking his life for her. He's given up everything in his world to try and get her home. So, you're going to go to Claire and crawl on your hands and knees to get her to fucking help you. I don't give a shit if she fucking shoots you as long as you get her to help us. Are we understood?"

He gave a tight nod. "God save us all."