Chapter 28

Sophie

I worked all night. Sleep would have been impossible anyway. My brain was fried, and by the time I left Andrew’s, I could feel my body threatening to shut down. I was exhausted. My arms felt like lead and my feet like concrete. I dragged myself out the back door, hoping Andrew wouldn’t hear me leave. I knew the front door was too close to his bedroom. No matter how quiet I was, he would hear me. I slipped out the back and ran to my car, not stopping until the keys were in the ignition and the engine had roared to life.

I sped away from Hopper mansion without looking back. Andrew couldn’t have stopped me if he saw me, but I knew he would try. His anger was probably stronger than ever. The last thing I wanted was to face him. Not yet. And not ever again.

As exhausted as I felt, going home wasn’t an option. My head was still spinning from the revelation of my father’s thievery. Despite Andrew’s insistence that my dad was at fault, I still couldn’t believe it. My father was a good man, a kind man. He had all the money he’d ever need. There was no reason for him to steal, let alone from the son of his lifelong friend.

My foot fell heavy on the gas as I drove toward my father’s house. It was early, too early for a visit, but I didn’t care. We needed to talk, and this time, I wouldn’t leave until I knew everything. My father wasn’t going to talk his way out of an explanation. I refused to let my emotions get the better of me. It was time for me to know everything.

When I pulled into the driveway, the sun was just beginning to rise. It peeked over the chimney, falling directly in my eyes and making me wince. I was so tired, so ready for sleep, that I almost laid my head back against my seat and closed my eyes. It would have taken me no time at all to fall asleep. After a night of working nonstop, not even coffee could have revived me.

But the prospect of finally getting the truth was enough to keep me awake. I pushed open my car door and hurried toward the backdoor. It was locked, but I stuck my key in the door and shoved it open with a loud bang. I didn’t care if I woke my father. I didn’t care if I scared him.

“Dad!” I yelled, closing the door behind me and hurrying into the living room. I looked up at the stairs and screamed again. “Dad!”

“Sophie?” Dad called from upstairs. His voice was muffled and distant. He’d been asleep. Seconds later, I heard his thunderous footsteps as he ran down the stairs.

“Dad,” I said when I saw him. “We need to talk.”

He was still wearing pajamas, and his hair was disheveled. His face was flushed from being so rudely awoken, but I felt no sympathy. My ability to feel sorry for him was all but gone. If any part of Andrew’s story was true, then my father wasn’t the man I thought he was.

I’d defended him endlessly just hours before, and yet, when my eyes locked on his, I was furious. I could barely stand to hold his gaze as he moved farther into the living room, his eyes searching my face.

“What are you doing here so early?” he asked, worry coating his voice. “Are you okay? Did Andrew do something? Did he hurt you?”

“No,” I said quickly. “No, I’m fine. Well, I’m not fine.”

“What did he do?” Dad demanded. His eyes flashed. “I knew I shouldn’t have let you stay there. I knew he couldn’t be trusted. After everything, I never should have let you stay with him.”

“Dad!” I snapped. “Stop.”

He fell silent immediately. His eyebrows pulled together as he tried to work out why I was so upset. My cheeks felt hot. I knew they were bright red, and I was certain my eyes were bloodshot from being up all night. The lack of sleep was catching up to me.

“Honey,” Dad said slowly. “Tell me what’s going on.”

“That’s what I’m here to ask you,” I said. “I want the truth, Dad.”

“The truth about what?” Dad asked.

I shook my head and moved to the couch. My legs couldn’t support my weight any longer. I was exhausted, both physically and emotionally. I fell onto the couch and put my head in my hands, trying to calm down enough for this conversation.

“Sophie,” Dad said. He sat down across from me. “You’re scaring me, honey. What’s wrong? What happened?”

“Andrew told me about that night,” I said, looking up at my father’s face. Fear flashed through his eyes. “He told me that you broke into the Hopper mansion. He said you were there in the middle of the night, in his study.”

Dad didn’t speak. I expected him to deny it immediately, to say that Andrew was crazy and that he would never do something like that. Instead, he just stared at me in wide-eyed horror. I shook my head and stared back. Was this really happening?

“He told me you were there to steal something,” I continued. “That he found you in his office, digging through his crates.”

My father’s head fell forward. I couldn’t see his eyes anymore, but I knew tears were forming. His shoulders shook. I felt a surge of pity rise inside my chest. I pushed it down quickly. There wasn’t time for that. Not now.

“Dad,” I said firmly. “Look at me.”

He slowly lifted his head. His eyes fell on my face, and I knew that Andrew never lied to me. My father wasn’t the man I thought he was. He broke into Andrew’s house. He tried to steal from the Hopper family. Andrew’s story was true.

“Oh my god.” I stood up quickly, unable to remain still. Part of me wanted to run away. I felt like a scorned child. Everything I thought I knew was a lie.

“Sophie, please let me explain,” Dad said. His voice was weaker than I’d ever heard it.

“What is there to explain?!” I yelled. “You tried to steal from him, Dad! He should have called the police! He should have had you arrested!”

“He wanted to,” Dad said. “He was seconds away from doing exactly that.”

“But you offered me up instead,” I snapped. “You used your own daughter as a way to buy yourself out of trouble. What were you thinking?!”

“I wasn’t.” Dad shook his head, tears streaming down his face. “I was out of my mind that night, Sophie.”

“Dad, I don’t even know what to say.” I turned away from him. There weren’t words to describe how insane this situation was.

Just hours before, I would have sworn to anyone that my father was innocent. Andrew Hopper was wrong. I was sure of it. He misread the situation, and instead of listening to my father, he lashed out like a spoiled child. I would have gone to the ends of the earth to protect my dad’s name, his reputation.

Now, I didn’t know what was real. My dad was no longer the pillar of morality that I once believed him to be. He was a thief, just like Andrew said.

“How could you do this?” I asked weakly. “How could you sink so low?”

“When your mother died,” Dad said. “Something changed inside of me. I became a different person, someone I didn’t recognize.”

“We both did,” I said. “That’s what happens when you lose someone you love, Dad. But I never stole from anyone because of it.”

“My heart was broken,” Dad said. “Trashed. I didn’t think I would ever feel okay again.”

I stared at him. His hands were shaking in his lap, and he couldn’t meet my eyes. He felt horrible about what he’d done. The look on his face was almost enough to soften my anger. Almost.

“What were you there to steal?” I asked, trying to keep my voice steady. “What was so important?”

“It’s an antique compass,” Dad said simply. “Just an old compass. It’s not worth any money. Maybe a few bucks at the most. It wasn’t made properly. It’s very old. Just an old compass.”

None of this made sense. Why would my father risk his life for an old compass? What if Andrew was armed? What if Liam was?

“You could have been killed,” I said softly. “Dad, I could have lost you, too. How could you risk that? All for a compass?!”

“When your mother and I were first married,” Dad said. He finally lifted his eyes and met my gaze. “We went on a vacation together. We swore that we wouldn’t work, that we would just enjoy each other’s company for an entire week. But when we got to Greece, we found out about this dig a few miles away from our resort. It was right there, so we went. Neither of us could resist.”

He paused and shook his head, fresh tears falling down his cheeks.

“It was incredible,” Dad said. “We’d never been on a dig together. I’d gone countless time before, so had your mother. But this was our very first expedition as a couple. I’ll never forget the look on her face when she saw that compass.”

Dad’s voice broke. He wiped his eyes impatiently and forced himself to continue.

“She loved it,” Dad said. “I don’t know why. It was old and broken, horribly beyond repair. And yet, that was the one thing your mother wanted. She said she saw the hidden potential in it. I thought she was crazy, but I couldn’t deny her anything. Not then. Not ever.”

He looked at me as if he were waiting for me to speak. I didn’t. My throat felt tight.

“Sophie,” Dad said. “Your mother loved that compass so much. She kept it for all these years, and when she died, Hopper Antiquities accidentally took it. They came to the house to collect the things I wanted to sell. Do you remember? You were here that day.”

I nodded. It was just a couple months after my mother passed. Several Hopper employees spent all day poring over different artifacts.

“I didn’t want to sell the compass,” Dad said. “Like I told you, it’s not worth anything. I don’t know how it got into the crate, but it did. When I realized it was gone, I knew it could only be in one place.”

“Why didn’t you call Andrew?” I demanded. “He would have given it back to you.”

“I’m sure he would have,” Dad said. “But at the time, I couldn’t think straight. Sophie, all I wanted was that compass. It felt like the only piece of your mother that I had left. The night I realized it was missing, I lost my mind. I tore this house apart looking for it. I was terrified that it was gone forever.”

He looked away, staring out the window and trying to get ahold of his emotions.

“I drove to the Hopper mansion in a blur,” he said. “I wasn’t myself. I don’t even remember how I got inside. I just know I found Andrew’s office and tore open the first crate I saw. The compass wasn’t there. Before I could check the other crates, Andrew found me, and well, you know the rest.”

Dad stared down at his hands. My throat was so tight that I didn’t trust myself to speak. My eyes burned, but I blinked back the tears that threatened to spill. As I watched my father, my anger faded into sadness. I was right about one thing, this was nothing more than a horrible misunderstanding. A mistake made by a desperately broken-hearted man.