Conflict of Heart

Chapter 35

A silence so thick it was almost tangible settled over the room. As soon as the statement passed Rosa's lips, her shoulders instinctively hunched, her nervous gaze moving over the expressions of the people that surrounded her.

Nathan's shoulders tensed upon hearing his daughter's words. His sapphire gaze hardened to a deep cobalt hue, his jaw tightening as his fists furled until the nails dug painfully into his palms.

Ryker's expression darkened, his suspicions about the man confirmed as the pieces slowly began to fall into place. He had been playing them all along. There was no possible way that it was a coincidence that he entered the Walker's lives only briefly before Jenny Walker's accident. And while it did not conclude that this was a direct motive for his presence, he certainly wasn't as innocent as he claimed to be.

His gaze moved to Isabella, who appeared to have been cast in stone. Her eyes were wide, unblinking, her cheeks pale.

The possibilities tumbling about in his mind faded from thought as his attention focused solely on her frozen features. The investigation didn't matter at that moment, as he felt a compelling desire to bridge the gap between them and whisk her away from the situation and the negative emotions associated with the discovery.

But he knew he couldn't. It was not his place.

She had made sure of that.

However, it didn't stop him from wishing to take some of the pain that she was undoubtedly feeling away from her to bear on himself.

Nathan was the first to break from his stupor, and a splash of red crept from the base of his neck and onto his face. "Did you hear his name?" His voice was strained with barely withheld restraint, his eyes harboring a dangerous intent that shocked his youngest daughter.

"No," Rosa murmured in response, her eyes wide as she stared at her father's furious expression.

Nathan cursed beneath his breath and stepped away from them, running a frustrated hand through his hair. Anger burned within his veins, forcing him to pace the room lest he creates a hole in the wall with his fist.

It suddenly made sense to him now. The way Jenny had reacted when she first saw Damien, her unease around him, and her guarded nature in his presence. She had recognized who he was related to instantly!

A twinge of uncertainty and hurt came over him then. But why hadn't she told him? Or at least warned him? What possible reason could she have had to withhold such invaluable information from him?

"A-are you sure, Rosa?"

The defeated tone in his eldest daughter's voice pulled him from his thoughts, and he looked back to see Isabella looking at her sister with an imploring gaze. His stomach lurched with worry, and the anger that had briefly been doused by his hurt returned full force.

He had let that creature near her!

Rosa lowered her gaze, unable to look at the desperate expression on her sister's face. "Yes."

A rattled breath passed Isabella's pale lips, and she glanced at the people around her with almost frantic anxiety. "It has to be a coincidence. Surely. It has to be!"

Ryker's eyebrows drew together in a regretful frown, his sharp hazel eyes watching her carefully. "I don't think so," he replied slowly.

She sucked in a harsh breath, her restless hand gestures exposing her unsettled state as she continued, "Well, then there must be some sort of explanation! If I ask him, I'm sure he'll—"

"Absolutely not!"

The strong, authoritative voice of her father sliced through the air. His gaze was hard, his shoulders tense as he approached her, his long strides covering the space between them within a few steps. "You will not go anywhere near that man until Ryker and I decide what to do about this."