“You need to know, Daniel had a plan for recouping the investment,” her father continued. “He would’ve had one lean month—maybe two—and I had a plan to pay him back.”
“But you didn’t pay him back,” Marissa said. “And we had to start over from scratch.”
Louisa watched as her father slowly shook his head. “When he died, I did turn my life around. But it took some time. And by the time I had the money, I don’t know—I guess it was easier to pretend none of it ever happened.”
Marissa scoffed. “So were you relieved when my husband died?”
He took a step toward her. “Danny was my closest friend. He saved my life. He sacrificed to save me, and I owe him everything. I don’t know if I’ll ever recover from his death. But I’ve been such a coward, Marissa.” He looked at Cody. “I know I don’t deserve it, but I hope you can forgive me. Someday.” He paused. “And of course, I’ll pay back every cent.”
Marissa methodically bent over and picked up her purse. She slung it over her shoulder, then walked right up to Louisa’s dad and smacked him across the face.
“You are a terrible man,” she said. “As long as I live, I will never forgive you for what you’ve done.”
Louisa’s heart dropped. This was not the way this was supposed to go.
“Marissa, please—” Louisa’s mom took a step toward them, but Marissa’s glare stopped her in her tracks.
“Did you know about this?”
“She didn’t know anything,” Louisa’s dad said. “Nobody did, except Daniel. I asked him to keep it from all of you. I was so ashamed.”
“So your secret died with him, and you let it,” Marissa snapped, obvious disgust on her face. She looked at Cody. “Let’s go.”
Cody stood still for several seconds, as if being held in place by a magnetic force. Louisa knew that once he left, that would be it—they would be over.
She looked at the fallout of her father’s confession. If they’d been broken before, they were shattered now. And Louisa could dream all she wanted to—but even she couldn’t put the pieces back together.
Maggie Fisher was buried on a Wednesday.
All of Nantucket came out to pay their respects, yet somehow Louisa had never felt more alone in her entire life.
CHAPTER FORTY
THE WEEK AFTER MAGGIE DIED, Louisa finally went to the old woman’s house. She assumed it was up to her to get the thing cleaned out and put on the market, though part of her wished she could keep the old cottage for herself. She could take up collecting the cottages of the people she loved.
The view of the water was unmatched, and she still felt Maggie inside these walls.
She hauled boxes down the stairs and tried not to think about Cody. Marissa and Marley had left the island the evening of the funeral, something Louisa only knew because she overheard someone sending them off at the funeral luncheon. Her own parents would also leave in just a few days, and while that was a blessing, without Maggie there, how would Louisa keep from feeling truly, utterly, and horribly alone?
The island itself used to feel like a friend, but with Cody still here and the wide divide between them, even it felt like a traitor.
That afternoon, Maggie’s lawyer, Henry Holbrook, would come by to read the will. As far as she knew, she would be the only person in attendance for the reading, but Louisa thought that was fitting. Until this summer, it had been her and Maggie for a long time. Sure, her own parents popped in and out every summer for a few weeks, sometimes a month or two, but their presence hadn’t left an indelible mark on either of them.
Until now.
Her father’s mistakes had cost them everything. It was hard not to be livid with him. It was hard not to want him to suffer now that his secret was out. Yet it hadn’t been too long ago she was certain it was her own mistakes that had been what cost them everything. What she would’ve given for someone—anyone—to offer her grace.
A knock at the door pulled her from the boxes she was sorting. She was embarrassed that Mr. Holbrook would have to sit in the middle of this mess, but she imagined he would understand.
When she opened the door, however, she saw that the lawyer wasn’t alone.
She hadn’t seen Cody since the funeral, which felt like an eternity ago. He looked the same, mostly, though maybe a little more tired than usual. She resisted the urge to ask if he’d been sleeping, if he’d been eating, if he still loved her.
Sometimes when she got really lonely, she took out her phone and scrolled through photos they’d taken during their brief romantic reunion. Selfies, mostly, but probably her favorite photos ever. She’d zoom in on his face and, filled with the kind of longing that would only go away with time, touch her index finger to his smile.
Now Cody stood on Maggie’s porch, avoiding her eyes and certainly setting her healing back days, maybe even weeks. She would love him until the day she died—she was sure of it.
She tried to hide every single thought that floated through her mind as she opened the door wider to allow both men to enter. “Sorry about the mess.” She inhaled as Cody passed by her but noticed (sadly) that he barely acknowledged her. The realization stung.
“The old girl sure liked to hold on to things, didn’t she?” Mr. Holbrook’s laugh was jolly, as if remembering Maggie should only bring happiness. As if Louisa’s world weren’t lying in pieces like a cracked egg on the kitchen floor.
At the silence, the lawyer straightened. “Right. Let’s get to it then, shall we?”
Louisa glanced at Cody. “I didn’t realize anyone else would be here.”
He met her eyes then, and she realized it sounded accusatory, like he didn’t have the right to come, which was, of course, not how she meant it. Somehow, though, she didn’t have the ability to explain.
“Just the two of you,” he said, his tone jovial.
“Please.” Louisa motioned to the sofa and both men sat, leaving her with the armchair across from them. Maggie’s favorite chair sat horribly empty.
All at once, the room seemed dead without her in it.
If she listened close enough, would she be able to hear Maggie’s unmistakable cackle echoing down the halls? How did a person simply disappear from the earth, from her life? She hadn’t felt this way since Cody’s dad passed away, and she’d nearly forgotten what it was like. It was different from when Cody had vanished—she’d known he was out there somewhere. She could make up stories about where he was and what he was doing, always careful to imagine him happy and full of life. She hadn’t been able to do that with Daniel Boggs. And she couldn’t do it with Maggie.
“Louisa?”
She could tell by Mr. Holbrook’s tone that she’d missed a question. “I’m sorry—what?”
“I asked if Maggie had discussed any of this with you?”
Louisa folded her hands in her lap, feeling embarrassed by her inability to concentrate. “No, sir,” she said. “She never did.”
“Well, then, we are in for a surprise.”
Louisa’s frown matched Cody’s as they waited for the man to continue. Before that could happen, he had to finish chuckling, sort through a stack of papers, and apparently sit back on the couch just so. Finally he looked up. “Are we ready?”