Her Secret Alaskan Family. Belle Calhoune

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СКАЧАТЬ later and she was still processing the revelation. According to her mother, Sage had been stolen as a baby from her birth family. Right after Jane had uttered those shocking words she had died, leaving Sage with a hundred burning questions. Who was she? Who were her real family? Why had Jane Duncan committed such a horrific act as kidnapping somebody else’s child?

      Digging through her mother’s belongings had turned up old newspaper clippings about a three-month-old baby who had been taken from her crib in the middle of the night, never to be seen again. Goose bumps had popped up on her arms when she’d come across a photo with the word MISSING written in bold black print on the flyer. There were two pictures side by side—one of a baby girl and the other a pretty teenager. The words age enhanced were written beneath the image. The girl had looked a little bit like her. Similar features. Same age. Even the same birth month.

      A search on the internet had turned up even more information. If what she suspected turned out to be true, her real name was Lily North. Her family—the Norths—were the owners of the North Star Chocolate Company. Her parents still lived in Owl Creek and they had never stopped looking for her or praying for her return. Her image had even been plastered on milk cartons back when she was an infant.

      Which was why, in order to seek out those answers, she had traveled to this southern portion of Alaska and booked herself into a cozy bed-and-breakfast in Owl Creek for a period of six weeks.

      Sage felt a solid presence next to her as she looked out toward land. She turned to her right. The man standing a few feet away from her was handsome. He was looking in her direction, his eyes focused on her like laser beams. With sandy-colored hair and turquoise blue eyes, he had a rugged appearance. A shiny gold badge sat on his chest.

      He quirked his mouth. “Let me guess. You’re Lily North, aren’t you?”

      Sage’s knees threatened to give way beneath her, and her heart began to beat like thunder inside her chest. Why had she thought she could get away with this?

      “Wh-what are you talking about?” she asked, wondering how in the world this stranger knew her true purpose for being in Owl Creek.

      He let out a chuckle. His features immediately went from attractive to downright spectacular. “Sorry. Just a bad joke. Our little town has been inundated with women claiming to be the missing North baby.” He frowned at her. “Surely you’ve heard about the case?”

      “Just a little bit,” she hedged. “I’m not from Alaska, but I recall seeing some news coverage a few weeks ago back home.”

      “It’s the twenty-fifth anniversary of the kidnapping so it’s been plastered all over the news and on the internet,” he explained. “Every scam artist from here to Toledo has been trying to fleece the family by pretending to be Lily. It’s been going on for years but lately it’s gotten out of hand. I was born and bred in Owl Creek so I’ve grown up hearing about the case.” His expression turned somber. “In a way it’s always cast a shadow over the town.”

      “Do you know them? The Norths?” she asked, her curiosity getting the best of her. She wanted to learn everything she possibly could about them. Were they kind people? Had the kidnapping taken all the joy out of their lives? Had they moved past it?

      “Sure do,” he said amiably. “They’re good people. Connor North is one of my best friends. And they make some of the best chocolate you’ll ever taste.” He stuck out his hand. “By the way, I’m Hank Crawford. Town sheriff.”

      She reached out and shook his hand. “So that explains the fancy badge,” she said with a smile. “I’m Sage Duncan.”

      “Are you a tourist? We get a lot of them in our little town, but not usually in the winter. The weather is pretty intimidating for those who aren’t used to it.”

      She wrinkled her nose. “I suppose you could call me a tourist. I teach second grade back home in Florida and I’m on leave for a few months. I’ve always wanted to visit Alaska, and I do adore chocolate,” she said. “Call me crazy, but I’m looking forward to some wintry weather.”

      “You’ll need a winter parka and some insulated boots for winter in Owl Creek. Otherwise you’ll freeze,” he advised, giving her attire the once-over. He was wearing a hunter green parka and a dark pair of cords. Sage had the feeling her clothing hadn’t passed muster. Her decision to travel to Alaska had been made rather quickly. She’d taken a leave of absence and booked her airline tickets as well as the bed-and-breakfast before she could change her mind and chicken out. As a Floridian she didn’t own many cold-weather clothes, so she’d done a little shopping online and stocked up on a few sweaters, hats and pants. She looked down at her boots. They were suede with fringes on them. Hardly fitting for the Alaskan climate. She hoped this little village had clothing stores and winter gear so she could round out her wardrobe.

      “Thanks,” she said, unwilling to offer any more information to Sheriff Crawford. She had already said too much, and he was the last person whose suspicions she wanted to arouse.

      “Well, we’re about to dock. It was nice to meet you, Sage,” he said with a grin. “In a town as small as Owl Creek, I’m sure we’ll be seeing each other.”

      Sage nodded and murmured goodbye as she watched the sheriff walk away from her. His gait was confident and strong. She let out a ragged sigh. Hank Crawford was no doubt the handsomest man she’d met in quite some time. But she wasn’t in town to meet good-looking men. Not by a long shot. Sage had traveled all this way in order to scope out the people she believed might be her birth family. There was power in no one knowing she might actually be Lily North. She wouldn’t have anyone questioning her motives or digging into her background.

      She would have time to decide what to do.

      At this point she had no idea whether or not she would reveal her identity to the North family. Doing so might cause a world of legal trouble for Eric Duncan, the man who she had called father for the last twenty-five years. According to her dad, he’d been in the dark about her mother’s actions up until her dying day. Sadly, he had never addressed certain irregularities in Sage’s adoption, which could make it appear as if he’d known the truth all along. Eric had asserted he’d never had any knowledge about her being kidnapped. He’d believed that her birth parents had abandoned her. From what he’d disclosed to Sage it was evident that her adoption hadn’t been legal. Having just lost her mother, Sage couldn’t imagine losing her father as well if the North family decided to file charges against him for being her mother’s accomplice.

      Sage clenched her fists at her sides. She would do anything in her power to protect him.

      Hank hadn’t meant to talk to the beautiful woman on the ferry, but there had been something about Sage Duncan that had tugged at him. She had looked so sad staring out across the water, and he had wanted to make her smile. Instead, he’d made himself look like a goofball.

      Hank winced. He had made the corny joke about her being Lily North, which had landed with a little bit of a thud. Sage had looked at him with horror radiating from her eyes. She probably thought it was in bad form to make a joke about a missing person.

      What Sage didn’t know was that two years ago Hank had fallen for a woman named Theresa Bennett. They had gone out for a few months, during which time he had grown fond of Theresa. A short while later he had discovered she was nothing more than a fraud. A beautiful con artist bent on extorting money from his friends the Norths by pretending to be their missing child. Theresa had made a prize СКАЧАТЬ