Devious Intentions (Carson Cove Scandals 3)

“Usually, when teenagers are out of control, you try to parent them.” I exhaled sharply through my nose. “You don’t try to find them a husband—but that’s not how your mind works, is it? You were trying to convince me to find a rich guy to marry when I was younger than Jenny!”

“We had nothing! I wanted you to have a better life—better than the one I had.” She sighed, and I saw tears in the corner of her eyes. “Better than the one you always knew…”

“I’ve never hated my life.” I shrugged. “I didn’t have a problem with being poor or working for what I had. You call it nothing, but it was everything to me…”

“You must think I’m just a fool.” She turned away, and I heard a slight sob in her throat.

“No.” I took a step towards her. “I don’t think you’re a fool—I just think you spent so much time trying to figure out

how to be someone else that you never really figured out who you are.”

“Maybe you’re right.” She wiped the tears away from her eyes. “It doesn’t matter anymore. Edgar’s going to prison, and I’m right back where I started—the same place I was when I met him.”

“You should probably ask yourself if that’s really what you believe.” I walked to the door and looked back at her. “Because if you don’t think everything that happened changed you—then that’s almost as terrifying as the fact that you fell for him in the first place.”

My eyes teared up when I left Sinn Manor. I said what I needed to say, but I was still talking to a brick wall. My mother, like Damien’s, was an emotional casualty of Edgar Sinn’s cruelty. She couldn’t see that because she never recognized the face that stared back at her from the mirror until she was looking at one in Sinn Manor. I didn’t know if she could come to terms with what was on the other side of that. If she chose to mourn her loss instead of appreciating what she had, then it was her choice to make. I couldn’t make it for her.

“Are you okay?” Damien handed me his handkerchief when I returned to the car.

“Yeah.” I patted the bottom of my eyes and soaked up the tears. “Let’s go home.”

“I love you, Leigh.” Damien squeezed my hand and then started the car. “I know that wasn’t easy.”

“I love you too.” I stared at Sinn Manor in the window as we left the driveway—for what I assumed would be the very last time.

Once I had time to reign in my emotions, Damien and I talked about the conversation I had with my mother. I could tell he was dreading the one that he was eventually going to have with his. Addison had reached out to the medical staff there to explain the situation—so it was only a matter of time before she heard what kind of monster she had lived with for all those years. We were hoping the doctors would allow Damien and Jenny to be the ones that broke the news to her. Even if they didn’t get to explain everything to her, they would be there to offer emotional support—which we were all sure she would need a lot of.

“Jenny just sent me a text.” Damien pulled his phone out of his pocket. “Can you read it for me?”

“Yeah.” I nodded and took his phone. “Uh…”

“Is something wrong?” He glanced over at me.

“We need to go to Carson Cove General Hospital.” I took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. “Jenny got a call from your grandfather’s doctor...”

“Fucking hell.” Damien looked up and shook his head. “This is the worst week ever. He’s been in bad shape for a while—it was only a matter of time.”

“I’m sorry.” I put my hand on his arm. “I know you used to be close with him.”

“Yeah,” Damien sighed.

The information we found while going through Sinn Technology’s server and Edgar’s personal emails suggested that Damien’s grandfather wasn’t directly involved in the arrangement Edgar had with the De Luca family. Most of the activity ceased when Edgar went to prison and didn’t start up again until he was named CEO. Gordon Sinn was going to die—or had already died—an innocent man. That wasn’t going to make it any easier for Damien. He had a strong connection with his grandfather before his life fell apart after Caroline’s death.

“Do you want me to park the car so you can just go inside?” I looked over at Damien.

“Nah, if he’s gone—getting there faster isn’t going to matter.” He sighed. “Even if he’s barely hanging on, I think he’s been gone for a long time.”

Damien found a parking place, and I held his hand as we walked into the hospital. He was trying to put on a brave face, but I saw the pain in his eyes. His grandfather may have lost his mental capacity due to his age, but that was a lot different than planning a funeral. We checked in at the front desk, and the nurse gave us the floor number. Damien tensed up when the elevator stopped, and I squeezed his hand as tight as I could. The doors opened, and we saw Jenny—she started walking towards us immediately.

“Damien!” She hugged him, and he let go of my hand to embrace his sister.

“Is he gone?” Damien looked down the hallway.

“No.” She leaned back and looked up at him. “Damien—he’s asking for you.”

“What?” Damien’s head snapped back. “I went to see him not to long ago. There’s no way he has been asking for anything.”

“You need to go talk to him.” Jenny pointed down the hallway. “Just trust me.”