Wildest Hearts

Great-Uncle Charlie.”

    Oliver swore silently, aware that the situation had slipped irretrievably beyond his control.

    “Great-Uncle Charlie?” Shore stared at Annie, bemused.

    “Yep. Great-Uncle Charlie liked to rob banks.”

    “Banks.” Shore was clearly dumbfounded.

    “Uh-huh. Aunt Madeline says his father was so humiliated, he wouldn't allow Charlie's name to be spoken in the house.” Annie made a tut-tut sound. “It would have been one thing if Charlie had been forced into robbing banks in order to feed his family or some such noble goal. But that wasn't the case at all.”

    Shore gazed at her in unwilling fascination. “Why did he rob banks?”

    Annie glanced quickly from side to side and then lowered her voice. “For the thrill of it, as far as we can tell. Great-Uncle Charlieliked to rob banks. That's why there was no stopping him. He did time for bank robbery, but when he got out, he went right back to his little hobby.”

    “How interesting.” Shore did not seem to know what to say next.

    “I met him once,” Annie went on in a chatty tone. “When I was a little girl. He was very nice. Took Daniel and me to the zoo. Told Daniel not to start smoking or robbing banks because once you started either one it was hard to quit. Daniel promised him he wouldn't. And he never did.”

    “What happened to your great-uncle?” Shore asked as the plates of grilled halibut arrived.

    “Oh, he got shot robbing a bank. He was seventy-eight at the time. Went out in a blaze of glory. Aunt Madeline took us to the funeral and warned us to beware of a life of crime.” Annie picked up her fork. “She also warned us about something else.”

    “What was that?” Shore asked.

    “She told us that we shouldn't ever be ashamed of having Great-Uncle Charlie in the family. That's when she explained that every family had a black sheep and that no one else should feel responsible for that person's behavior. Ultimately we're each responsible only for ourselves.”

    “The actions of one member of the family can hurt and humiliate the whole family,” Shore said slowly.

    “Yes, I know.” Annie forked up a bite of halibut. She glanced briefly at Oliver. “I think everyone at this table understands that only too well. You've suffered because of the actions of your son, Mr. Shore. I saw how my uncle hurt my relatives. And Oliver, as you know, went through all sorts of hell after his father took off.”

    Oliver's simmering anger flashed into raw fury. “That's enough, Annie.”

    “I'm sorry.” She gave him a misty smile. “I didn't mean to dredge up old memories. But surely you can see that you and Mr. Shore have a lot in common.”

    “No, by God, we do not have a lot in common.” Oliver wanted to shake her, anything to make her shut up. Instead he was forced to sit there, throttling back his rage as he mentally envisioned a cage door swinging closed on him.

    “Yes, you do, Oliver. You and Mr. Shore have both been through absolute misery because of the actions of a family member.”

    “I said that's enough, Annie. I meant it.”

    Shore looked at him. “I'm well aware that I contributed to the problems you faced when your father disappeared, Rain. I've never apologized. I'm doing so now.”

    Oliver turned on him. “I don't want your goddamned apologies.”

    “I realize that. You'd rather have revenge.” Shore continued to hold his gaze. “I think this is as good a time as any to explain why I could not give you any slack fifteen years ago. I was in a precarious situation, financially speaking, when your father left town. I needed the money he owed me. I needed it badly.”

    “I don't want to discuss this,” Oliver said.

    “I know you don't,” Shore said in a low voice. “But I want you to understand what it was like for me in those days. I was heavily into junk bonds and real estate. Like everyone else, including your father, I was leveraged to the limit. I wasn't sure if I could stay afloat. When he cut out, leaving me holding the bag for a group of investors, it was the last straw. I had two sons and my wife to think of.”

    This was all Annie's fault, Oliver thought savagely. Everything was falling apart because of her. “I said I don't want to talk about the past, Shore.”

    “I don't expect you to forgive me. I just want you to understand,” Shore insisted. “I needed the money your father owed me more than I had ever needed money in my life. I also wanted revenge for