“It’s nice to meet you, too,” he said with a firm shake.

“You must be very proud of Jane,” Ava added.

“I am. She’s an excellent investigator.”

“I’ve come to that realization myself,” she said. “What a story.”

“I wasn’t the one who saved Latisha,” Jane said.

Ava waved her words away. “No, but you did your best and handled it all so well. Gloria tells everyone who’ll listen how amazing you were.”

Sebastian lowered his voice. “You heard what went down at the ranch house.”

“I did.” Glancing over at Luther, she raised her glass to him in acknowledgment, and Jane offered him a conspiratorial smile.

“Another unlikely hero,” she said.

Sebastian remembered her saying that about the old lady who’d saved Latisha’s life, but the sentiment certainly held true. Malcolm would’ve killed them both if Luther hadn’t arrived when he had. “As unlikely as they get.” Repeating David’s line from that earlier conversation, he put his arm around her.

“What’ll happen to the woman who gave Jane’s information to Malcolm?” Ava asked.

“Constance? I don’t know, but she’s going to be prosecuted. The police have a copy of her e-mail on Malcolm’s computer.”

“It’s hard to believe she’d do that. Could she really have meant to cause so much harm?”

He thought of the woman he once planned to marry-and was glad he hadn’t. “She let jealousy make her do something stupid and now she’ll pay the price. And she’s not the only one. Apparently, Malcolm paid some lab tech to help him establish the DNA match. The police are going after her, too.”

“Did she help him come by the body he burned?” Ava asked.

“No, she claims he was going to steal a body from a cemetery. But he was afraid that would make it too obvious.”

“So he killed a homeless man,” Jane inserted.

“How do you know?” Luke asked.

“He confessed,” Sebastian said. “He’s hoping to avoid the death penalty, so he’s doing everything he can to cooperate.”

David joined them. “Hey, someone’s asking for you,” he told Jane.

“Who?”

David motioned toward the door.

When Jane turned, her eyes widened, and Sebastian felt his own surprise. It was Wendy. She stood just inside the entrance, dressed for the party.

“Why do you think she’s here?” Jane asked Sebastian.

He’d dropped his arm when she turned but squeezed her hand. “I invited her. I called and apologized for upsetting her when we had dinner. Then I said it was time to let bygones be bygones and get on with the business of living and asked her if she was up to the challenge.”

“And she said…”

“She hung up on me.” He grinned. “But judging by her attire, I’d say she’s changed her mind.”

He could tell Jane was nervous. She crossed over to her sister-in-law, looking hesitant, unsure, but that seemed to melt away when Wendy gave her a hug.

Sebastian wanted to approach but didn’t. They needed time to work everything out. He watched them step into a corner. He knew from their expressions that they were in earnest conversation and smiled to himself. This was a turning point. He was sure of it the minute tears began to streak down their faces and they embraced a second time.

Shoving his hands in his pockets, Sebastian took a deep breath. What he’d been through, what Jane and many others had been through, wasn’t easy. But with forgiveness and hope and the sheer determination to persevere, there could be a rebirth.

Smiling again, he went to get a drink.

About Brenda Novak

Brenda and her husband, Ted, live in Sacramento and are the proud parents of five children-three girls and two boys. She juggles her writing career with her children's softball and soccer games, field trips, carpool runs and homework sessions. Brenda sold her first book, and the rest is history. Many of her novels have won or placed in contests such as the National Reader's Choice, the Bookseller's Best, the Write Touch, the Award of Excellence and the Beacon Award for Published Authors.