(See the first chapter for disclaimer, notes, spoiler, etc.)

Chapter Seventeen: "All the Leaves on the Trees"

Casey

"Watch your step," he called out as he walked between steel girders. He glanced over his shoulder in time to see Ben extend his hand as Olivia followed them through the narrow opening. He exhaled deeply as a flood of relief coursed through him. The tour of the construction project had gone well. Even Ben seemed impressed with the progress they were making. As Olivia and Ben joined him, he clasped his hands and gestured to the open space. "This will be the ground level communal space for the residents. It'll have a pool, hot tub, and splash park." He pointed in the south corner and added, "We'll have a fire pit and benches there, opposite the grills."

Olivia nodded and followed his gaze as she asked, "Permits?"

He nodded and explained, "The city issued them to the contractor yesterday. Shauna's newest project report will have that milestone marked complete."

"Excellent," she murmured, glancing pointedly at Ben before she turned back to the communal space.

"It's totally barren now," he explained, "but picture it: the space will be lined with trees and all the leaves on the trees providing shade. A bit of a tropical oasis in this concrete jungle."

"What kind of palm trees?" Ben asked as he nonchalantly looked around, adjusting his hard hat.

"Giant Mountain Fishtails," he replied instantly. He felt as petty as a teenager as he thought, Suck it, Ben, when the other man blinked and nodded slightly. He glanced quickly at Olivia and she winked discreetly when their eyes met. "Isn't this all a bit much for affordable housing?"

He felt Olivia's eyes on him as he began, "Only forty percent of the units will be affordable. The remaining sixty percent will be market-rate rent." As Ben nodded reluctantly, he casually said, 'Besides, the tax credits we've been awarded for making some of the units affordable will more than help close the gap on our expenses."

"Well, Casey," Ben mused, "this is all extremely impressive. It's always exciting to see our plans come to life." He glanced down at the phone in his hand and frowned. "If you'll both excuse me, I need to take this call."

Olivia nodded vaguely as he left them, his phone urgently pressed to his ear. "Well done," she said, standing next to him.

"You really think?" he asked, unable to keep the nervous grin from his face.

"Absolutely." She grimaced and glanced down at her feet. "God, these steel toe boots are terribly uncomfortable."

He chuckled. "Just think: you won't need them after today for four more weeks." That was when the next construction site tour was scheduled.

"I can hardly wait." As he chuckled to himself, he felt her hand brush against his and she cleared her throat. "You did your homework and more than demonstrated you're intimately aware of every aspect of this project. Gregory would've been very proud of you."

His throat tightened and his vision blurred as tears stung his eyes. With a quick nod, he dramatically cleared his throat as he looked into his stepmother's eyes. To say that the family was worried about her was a gross understatement. The memory of her breakdown at a dinner two weeks ago was still fresh in his mind. Not that anyone would admit aloud it was a breakdown. But, looking at her now, it was enough to pretend that she was fine, even though sadness clung to her more visibly than before. "This isn't the right time," he muttered to himself, chastising the thought he refused to recognize.

"What isn't the right time?"

He smiled broadly and shook his head. "Nothing. It can wait. Come on, let's go you out of here."

She reached for his hand, squeezing it tightly to hold it in place. "What isn't the right time?" she repeated.

With a deep sigh, he rubbed his mouth. "Now really isn't the right time," he began. "It's not how Diana and- it's not how I wanted to talk with you about this."

"Is something-"

"Nothing's wrong," he interjected. "I just- I just wanted to ask- to make sure that-"

She squeezed his hand again. "It's alright, Casey. Just say it."

With his heart pounding in his ears, throat, and chest, he took a deep breath and, on the exhale, asked, "I want to change our name to Richards." As Olivia's lips parted, he rushed to continue, "Mine, Diana's, and the kids. I- I don't want us to have John's name."

He watched Olivia's face fall as she sucked in her breath. "Do you think you need permission?" she asked.

He shook his head slightly. "But, I want to know you don't mind." I want to know that Gregory wouldn't have minded. I want to know he would've been happy.

Her expression melted as she reached out, wrapping her arms around him. "Of course, I don't," she said into his ear as he hugged her back. "This would've meant the world to Gregory that you want to do this."

He closed his eyes as a grateful sigh went through his entire body.


Olivia

"I'll see you back at the house," Casey called out from the gate of the construction site. With a gentle wave, I removed my hard hat as I walked across the parking lot to my car. As necessary as they were, I hated wearing the hard hat and boots at the construction sites. Heaving an abrupt sigh, I tried hard not to remember the way Gregory would tease me about them at the other site tours we made together. What was the good in that?

With a deep sigh, I ignored the dull throb in my right shoulder as I reached into my purse for the car keys. Driving was not something I've missed in the months since Gregory died. But, everything comes back to us in the end. Except for the dead. They stay dead. As my fingers slipped around the keys, I looked up and my eyes narrowed. Ben leaned against the boot of Gregory's Jaguar, intently staring at the screen of his iPhone. I pressed the button on the key, smirking as he startled when the alarm system chirped. He recovered quickly though. That was his nature. "It's progressing nicely," he said by way of a greeting, gesturing with his chin to the construction site.

"Ahead of schedule," I pointed out as I pressed the boot button. It sprang open and I set the hard hat next to my heels.

He chuckled beneath his breath before he muttered, "Casey's done well." I smirked as I pulled the steel toe boots off, one at a time, and swapped them for my heels. It sounded painful for him to admit that. God forbid I should be right about anything. "Do you want me to say, 'Olivia, you were right'?"

I chuckled and shook my head as I replied, "No need." As I closed the boot, I turned to him. "I already know I'm right."

An irritated expression washed across his face as he chuckled and rubbed his mouth. I suddenly wonder if he was always annoyed by my presence and merely tolerated me because of Gregory, or if this was a recent development. What does it matter? It isn't as if I liked him either. I placed my purse on the boot and folded my arms against my chest. "Business or the children," I said plainly. "Pick your topic."

Ben glanced at the gravel before he replied, "Meg and I had dinner with Benjy and Evy the night before last." Something that resembled a truly genuine smile lit up his face as he continued, "I'm very happy they're dating. She's a lovely girl."

A silence stretched between us as my stomach turned. Of course Evy was lovely. Gregory and I raised her. She wasn't the child of a serial killer. I suppose the polite response would be to compliment Benjy in return. But, I just couldn't bring myself to do it. My tolerance and acceptance of Benjy varied from day-to-day and hour-to-hour. "Is she safe with him?" I asked bluntly.

I wasn't prepared for the pained expression that overtook him. "Olivia," he sighed, my name choked in anguish, "Benjy is a good boy." I cocked my head as he continued, "He is. He- he's nothing like Derek." I must have oozed skepticism because he ran his hand through his hair and stepped closer to me, his voice low and urgent. "I became his legal father, but…I failed him. After Maria moved to Monterey, I didn't see him as often as I would've liked. As often as I should have." He lowered his eyes and continued, "I thought it would be easier. But, it slowly became harder to get to Monterey after Meg had Will. Then Lizzie and then Emma. It was harder to bring him into our family then I thought it would be."

I sighed and nodded, my mind racing. He and I weren't all that different. If Casey had entered our family thirty years ago, my story could've been eerily similar to Ben's. Back then, my marriage was on life support, my drinking out of control, and Gregory and I were openly betraying each other. Adding the news that Casey was Gregory's son then could've been a markedly different experience than it was almost two years ago.

"But, Maria…Maria did a phenomenal job raising Benjy," he continued, meeting my eyes. "Everything good about Benjy is because of her."

With a reluctant nod, I cleared my throat and suggested, "You can't fault me for being concerned."

He nodded as he exhaled deeply. "Olivia, I swear to you-"

"But," I admitted softly, "I suppose I'm fonder of him than I let on."

His eyebrows jumped in surprise. "Really?" he asked, relief flooding his question.

"Evy needed an emergency appointment with her allergist. Benjy spent almost two hours in the waiting room with her so she wouldn't be alone." He smiled as I reached for my handbag and asked, "What mother would dislike that?" All of a sudden, the throbbing in my shoulder intensified. The doctor said this was to be expected. The fracture in my scapula had healed, but early arthritis in the joint was to be expected. The word had imprinted itself in my mind. Arthritis. The elderly get arthritis. Not me. Not yet, anyway.

"Before you go," he said quickly, "there's something we should discuss."

I rolled my right shoulder and winced. "Can it wait?"

"I'm selling a portion of my Liberty shares to AJ."

My blood ran cold at his frank announcement. "Ben-"

"I don't need your approval to do sell some of my own shares," he retorted. My lips drew into a thin line, pain radiating from my shoulder, as he continued, "This isn't about any of us. It's about Liberty. I want Liberty to have the liquid assets AJ can provide. Plus, I want us to leverage the Deschanel name with the town's centennial coming up in two months."

I forced myself to blink as I asked, "You've seen what Casey is accomplishing with the MUMI project. We don't need AJ to help make it a success. It will do that on its own."

"We'll get more traction if AJ were the face of the project."

An image of Casey flashed to mind, the bashful smile he shared with me after he asked my permission to take Gregory's name. Ben might not believe in Casey, but I did. With a sigh of regret, I said, "I know I can't stop you from doing what you want with your shares. But, Ben, I'm telling you: you're going to regret doing this."

His eyes flashed defiantly and he squared his shoulders, drawing himself up to his full height. "You're going to make me regret it?"

"I won't have to," I murmured. "You'll regret it on your own." I turned away as the burning pain in my shoulder radiated throughout my whole body. "And," I announced as I opened the car's driver side door, "Casey is the face of the MUMI project. That's non-negotiable."


By the time, I reached Ocean Avenue, I was surprised by how calm I felt in the face of Ben's decision. He could do what he liked with his shares. If anything, it might benefit Casey and I. With AJ's buy-in reducing Ben's former status of equal shareholder to the minority, Casey's role as the majority shareholder was solidified. Despite the white-hot pain in my right shoulder, I felt a wicked smirk curl my mouth. Wouldn't it be something if I turned my shares over to Casey too?

As I mulled over that thought, I slowed and turned into the driveway. Immediately, I felt a flush go through my body. A Rolls-Royce with darkly tinted windows idled in the part of the driveway that curved around to the front door. I pulled up to the closed garage door and parked, letting out a deep exhale as I turned off the car. When I glanced back at the intruding car, I saw the rear door open as AJ stepped out.

Of course.

The sunlight caught on my engagement ring, a sparkling flash at the corner of my vision. I looked down at it for a long moment, the fingers of my right hand brushing against the pear-shaped diamond. Gregory's voiced suddenly whispered from the back of my mind, remembering the way he encouraged me on my first day at the radio station. Go on, Liv. You can do this. His hands were on my shoulders then, his chest against my back as his lips brushed my right ear. We were standing in the hallway outside the conference room. I was terrified to go in. Terrified of facing the station's executives who now reported to me. Terrified of failing. Terrified of letting Gregory down.

But, I'm not terrified now.

I'm just angry.

With a grimace, I opened the door and stood tall. Ignoring the burning pain in my shoulder, I turned around as I heard AJ call my name. Slowly, I walked across the driveway to where AJ now leaned against the hood of his Rolls-Royce. "Isn't it remarkable to think this is the first time I've been to your home since I returned to Sunset Beach?" he asked, something of a smug grin on his face.

"Not really," I sighed, my hand clenched around the key ring. "I haven't invited you."

He chuckled and grinned wider as he folded his arms against his chest. "Hopefully, that will change," he suggested. A chill shivered down my spine as his sickeningly sweet tone swept over me. "Especially now that we'll be working together."

He played his hand early, Liv. "So I've heard."

"Are you angry?"

Yes. About many things. But not about this. I shrugged and mused, "Ben can do what he wants with his shares."

With a chuckle beneath his breath, AJ removed his sunglasses and tucked them into his blazer's pocket. His blue eyes crinkled and suddenly, I remembered being 18 and seemingly head-over-heels in love with this man. As much as any 18-year-old can love anything. As much as I could be until Elaine and I realized AJ was dating both of us. As much as I could be until I met Gregory.

"But, I hope Ben impressed upon you that this wasn't a personal decision. He wants what's best for Liberty. We both do."

A rueful smile came to my face. "I didn't realize Liberty meant so much to you."

With an easy smile, he stepped closer to me. With only a thin pane of air separating us, he admitted in a low voice, "It isn't just Liberty." My stomach muscles tightened as he continued, "Perhaps you'll join me for dinner. Tomorrow night? We can discuss Liberty…and get reacquainted."

My throat was tight. All I could do was blink in reply. A dozen different emotions swirled through me as my mind raced. Only Pancake's happy bark could have pulled me back to this moment. "Hi, Nana!" I inhaled sharply as I heard Nicola call out and I looked away from AJ. "Pancake was crying at the front door. I think she heard you."

I nodded quickly and turned back to AJ. "I should go," I said softly. A moment later, Nicola and Pancake, straining against her least, stood next to me. "This is my granddaughter, Nicola," I explained, my left arm going around her.

As he opened his mouth to introduce himself, Pancake moved between us and growled, her teeth bared. "Pancake, no," Nicola murmured, crouching down low next to the spaniel. "Be a good girl. Where are your manners?"

With an embarrassed chuckle, AJ took a step back and put his sunglasses back on. "Actually, I should go. I'm late for meeting. An overseas call." I nodded blandly in reply as he said goodbye to Nicola. "Olivia, tomorrow?"

"Yes," I said softly. "Tomorrow."

"7?"

I nodded and watched as he turned and walked back to the Rolls-Royce. "Who was that, Nana?"

With a deep sigh, we turned back to the house. "Someone I knew a very long time ago. When I was Evy's age."

The little girl looked up at me, a quizzical expression on her face. "Did Poppop know him too? Were they friends?"

A sudden weight materialized in my gut and I glanced over my shoulder, watching as AJ's car left the driveway. With Pancake rubbing against my shins, I whispered, "No. They weren't. They weren't friends at all."


Morris' feet were heavy against the stones lining the patio and I looked up. "In awe of your reflection?"

"If my name was Narcissus," I murmured. The sun had long since set and a comfortable darkness had settled over the beach. The gentle garden lights gave off just enough illumination so I could make out the grave expression on Morris' face. "Thank you for coming over. I know the drive is-"

"Don't worry about it." His deep voice was low, matching the hush in my own voice. Pancake sat at my feet as he sat next to me on the bench. "After days of delays and another request for more money, I received all the police reports. Rebecca is translating it word-for-word as we speak."

I nodded as he fell silent. "But?"

He cleared his throat and angled his body, facing me. "I asked her to skim it and call out the important parts. The initial report from the responding team, the coroner's report – everything – lines up with what we were originally told."

I frowned and turned to him quickly, startling Pancake. "But, Morris, I heard them! There were other people there! I know what I heard!"

Slowly, carefully, he said, "I believe that you believe what you heard."

"But?" I asked, the pitch of my question causing Pancake to jump up on the bench between us. A moment later, her head was in my lap as she sighed.

"But…you were in shock. You were concussed. Perhaps you did hear voices, but – perhaps – it was Gianni Cappello talking to Gregory."

I turned away and folded my arms against my chest. I felt the glare on my face as I gazed angrily out at the refracted light dancing in the pool water. But, it wasn't the light I was seeing. I was seeing Gregory, unconscious and bleeding from a wound on his head in the driver seat. He was unconscious. He couldn't have spoken to Gianni Cappello.

"Olivia?"

It did happen that way, didn't it? It had to have. I felt all these memories so clearly, just as I felt all the other memories that made up the story of my life. I can't bear the alternative: that Gregory wasn't unconscious. That he did speak to Gianni Cappello. Help my wife first. That he was conscious when the car caught fire. That he was conscious as he was burned alive. The echo of Gregory's screams consumed me and I inhale, choking on a sob.

"Olivia?"

I shook my head, wiping the tears from my cheeks as I looked back at him. "I remember the voices. I remember Gregory was unconscious. I'm not wrong," I said, my voice cracking over a sob. "The children don't believe me, but they're real. They happened."

With a deep sigh, he leaned over his knees and rubbed his face. "Logic says, I should believe that you were concussed. That you're confused." I looked over at him, surprised, as he continued speaking into his palms. "But, Rebecca pulled the weather reports from that day. She checked several different local newspapers. They all confirmed it was a cold, but mild, winter day in Florence. It was a few degrees too warm for ice to be on the roadways."

I watched as he put his hands on his thighs and pushed himself up with a deep and prolonged sigh. "And, Gori isn't concerned about Gianni Cappello giving a fake name and disappearing. I was able to pay him off for the police reports, so he's easy to turn."

With a sniffle, I put my hand on Pancake's head and murmured, "If you could pay him off, why couldn't someone else pay him off too?"

He looked at me for a long moment before he said, "I believe you." A tingle went down my spine and I shivered. It felt like anticipation. It felt like standing with my father before he walked me down the aisle to Gregory. "-them saying you weren't supposed to be hurt," I heard Morris say as I returned to the moment. They. A mysterious and faceless They. "You were supposed to survive. Unharmed. But, Greg…Greg was never supposed to make it out of that car."

"Why?" The next question, Who?, was on my lips before a dozen memories flashed before my eyes. Ben inviting AJ to the shareholder's meeting. AJ inserting himself into Liberty. AJ lurking outside the house. Like a bolt of lightning, the events of the last few months married with my newly remembered memories of my last day in Florence with Gregory. I looked up, seeing the pensive expression on Morris' face. "Ben. AJ." His unsurprised expression gave way to my next question, "Both of them?"

With a thoughtful sigh and a shrug, he rubbed his mouth before he said, "Maybe. Maybe one of them."

A sick feeling came over me, remembering the way AJ stood before Nicola and I earlier. The way my normally sweet and docile spaniel growled at him. "But, there's no proof," I heard him say. As a cold numbness invaded every ounce of me, I heard myself suggest in a clipped voice, "Then, we'll just have to find some. Won't we?"

He reached out and touched my arm, shocking me back to my senses. It was as if he knew, instantly, what I was thinking. What I wanted to do. But, he wouldn't change my mind. "You can't."

With a sad smile, I patted his hand and explained, "AJ invited me to dinner tomorrow. Seems like the perfect occasion to get closer to him."

He shook his head and swore beneath his breath. "Olivia, I can't let you do this. I can't."

But, he would help me. I knew he would. He was the only one who knew what I knew. Who knew that Gregory was murdered. Who knew that the crash wasn't an accident. I couldn't tell the children. The four of them were already convinced my grief over their father's death was causing me to break from reality. I couldn't tell them someone killed their father without having proof. Without being able to answer their innumerable questions. I couldn't put them through that. Not until there was proof. More than that, Gregory wouldn't want me to tell them until I was sure beyond a shadow of doubt and with proof.

Pancake's eyes turned up to me as I finally replied, "I wasn't asking for your permission, Morris."