Disillusioned (Swept Away 2)

“Do you think he cared?” I shook my head. “He had me fooled, especially when Steve came.”

“Did Steve try and harm you then?” Rosie asked softly. “You must have felt so betrayed to learn that Mattias knew Steve before he came to the island.”

“I was. I couldn’t believe that he could have lied to me so thoroughly. I couldn’t believe that he could have held me in his arms and made me think that . . .” My voice caught and I took a deep breath. “I’ve never felt so disillusioned in my whole life, Rosie. I’ve never trusted someone so much, only to have them turn on me like that.”

“Did you really trust him, though?” she asked skeptically. “I mean, you didn’t really know him.”

“When I gave myself to him, it was with complete trust. Yes, I had some fears, yes, I wasn’t sure who he was, but deep inside I was positive he was a good guy. I was positive he would never hurt me.”

“Men lie all the time,” she sneered. “They say they love you, that they want to take care of you, but it’s funny how quickly they forget about you.”

“Or it’s just one big lie.” I nodded. “My heart is broken. I feel like Liesl in The Sound of Music when she realizes her beau is a Nazi.”

“Huh?” Rosie frowned. “Who?”

“What was his name again? Was it Friedrich?” I thought carefully. “No, Friedrich was her brother. You know who I mean, they sang the ‘I am sixteen’ song.”

“Bianca, I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Do you remember when Maria and the von Trapp family perform that song, toward the end of the movie, and they’re hiding out? And Liesl’s boyfriend or crush or whatever finds them and she says, ‘Please don’t say anything,’ but he betrays her and calls the rest of the Nazis over to take them in. Rolf! That was it, his name was Rolf.”

“Okay.” Rosie stared at me as if wondering if I’d lost it.

“My point being”—I sighed—“that I was betrayed and you can’t trust anyone. Not even someone you think has your back. Not even someone you think you love.” I jumped up then, not wanting to talk about it anymore.

“You should call your dad’s attorney,” Rosie said softly. “If he gave you all of these papers, then maybe he knows more than he’s letting on.”

“Yeah, perhaps.” I nodded. I was about to tell her that someone had added a line to the letter Jakob had given me while I’d been sleeping, but I didn’t want her to know about the letter. I didn’t want her to think that Mattias was still threatening me. I didn’t want her to tell me that I had to come and stay with her. I knew that would be the smartest thing to do, but I wasn’t going to let someone drive me out of my home. “Yeah, let me call him.” I grabbed my phone from the table and made a call.

“Hello,” a teary-sounding voice answered.

“Is Larry there, please?”

“Who is this?” She sounded panicked.

“It’s Bianca London.”

“Bianca?” The voice froze. “Bianca London, did you say?”

“Yes, I need to speak to Larry, please, it’s urgent.”

“Larry’s gone missing.” Her voice dropped. “This is his wife.”

“What do you mean, he’s gone missing?” My heart stopped and my body grew cold at her words. How could he have gone missing? He was the only one who could help me. And then I realized that of course he’d gone missing. Mattias didn’t want me to find out the truth. First Steve was missing and now Larry? How convenient that both the men who could give me answers had disappeared.

“I was out shopping.” She gasped. “I just went to get some new clothes. We were going to go on a cruise. Larry wanted us to take a vacation. But while I was out, he called me, said that he thinks someone is in the house. He said that his old friend’s daughter is in trouble. That he shouldn’t have kept quiet.”

“What old friend?” I whispered frantically. I could feel Rosie’s eyes staring at my back.

“I can’t remember, but he said he owed his daughter, Bianca, the truth. I remember the name because it’s Mick Jagger’s ex wife’s name and I love the Rolling Stones.”

“What truth does he owe me?”

“I don’t know.” She started crying. “The phone disconnected, and when I got home, the house was ransacked and he was gone. All the papers in his office were on the floor, and I think there were drops of blood as well.”

“Did you call the police?”

“Yes.” She sounded frantic. “But they have no leads. He was taken, Bianca. I’m positive he was taken.”

“I’m so sorry. I don’t know what to say.” My head was spinning. “Did he say anything else?”

“He told me that I should call you, Bianca. I didn’t call yet because I was too upset. But he told me to tell you to look through the papers carefully. He said, ‘The answers are in the papers, but the truth might not be.’?”

“The papers he gave me in the box?” I questioned frantically. “And what answers? Is he talking about my mother’s death? Is he talking about my dad still being an owner in Bradley Inc.?”

“I don’t know,” she sobbed. “I have to go. All I can tell you is what he said, ‘The answers are in the papers, but the truth might not be.’?”