The Fountain of Infinite Wishes (Dare River Book 5) by Ava Miles Page A

statement was enough to elicit a gasp from both McGuiness sisters.
    “Incarcerated?” Shelby croaked out.
    “You mean prison?” Sadie asked, her heart contracting at the mere thought. “Good Lord above, I never even thought about that. Oh, Shelby, that would be the end of the world.” Imagine that, their daddy behind bars for doing something illegal, wearing some horrible orange jumpsuit. She felt faint.
    “But wouldn’t the court know his real name?” Shelby asked in that logical way she had sometimes. “Wouldn’t it be listed somewhere?”
    “Yes, wouldn’t it?” Sadie prodded.
    “Not all the records go that far back,” Charlie said. “He could have served his sentence and been released.”
    “But he still would have been on probation, right?” Sadie asked.
    Shelby shot her a look.
    “What?” she said. “I listen when Amelia Ann speaks about her work at the legal clinic.”
    Vander’s eyes narrowed. “You know someone who works at a legal clinic?”
    “Yes,” Shelby told him, reaching for her tea. “She’s rather like our sister, I guess you could say. She’s the sister of our sister-in-law. Amelia Ann’s in law school at Vanderbilt and helps abused women.”
    Judging from the way Charlie’s button nose rose in the air, she was surprised they knew a serious woman like that. “Amelia Ann almost got herself killed one time helping a client in East Nashville on a home visit,” Sadie burst out. “It was scary.”
    Her sister cleared her throat, and Sadie knew it for the message it was. She shut up.
    “We’d need to talk to our brother and other sister about contacting Daddy’s family if you find anything,” Shelby said, looking like she was barely breathing now. “But I say look there first. Sounds more efficient. Sadie, what do you think?”
    Shelby would put it that way. “I agree.” Plus, she wanted to know more about Daddy’s family, even if it was only basic information. “You should know, we only agreed to tell them of developments. It’ll be up to them whether or not they want to be a part of contacting a family member. Frankly, it’s not going to stop me from doing it if I feel it’s best.”
    “Or me,” Shelby said, and they shared a look of solidarity.  
    “We’ll start plugging right away,” Vander said. “With Charlie helping, it’s going to go a lot faster.”
    The woman rolled her eyes. “He’s flattering me. But he’s right. Vander has a lot on his plate, running the show here. I only do straight investigative work. I’ll start tonight.”
    Sadie couldn’t exactly imagine having lunch with Charlie, but the woman seemed more than competent—and dedicated. “Thank you, Charlie.”
    Vander stood. “I’ll be in touch. I know the waiting is hard, but we’ll keep pulling strings until there’s nothing left to pull—if you want that.”
    “We appreciate it,” Shelby said, standing as well and extending her hand to him.
    He shook it, and Sadie stood and did the same despite how unnatural it felt. It got even weirder when Charlie shook both of their hands too. Business people mystified her. No one in the craft store or her quilting circle would have shaken her hand.
    Shelby and Vander shared another look before they left his office, and Sadie had to bite her tongue until she and her sister were walking out of the building.
    “Do you think he brought Charlie on to help because you two are attracted to each other?” Sadie asked her sister.
    Shelby gave her a look and pushed the heavy glass door open. Sadie followed, gasping at the hot, damp air she encountered. Heavens, the weather was atrocious.
    “I won’t dignify that with a response,” Shelby said, walking up the street to where she was parked. “Where are you?”
    “I parked in the garage over there,” Sadie said, pointing toward the area. “Shelby, do you think we should meet his kin if it comes down to it? If Mama had wanted them in our life, she would have made sure it happened. Part of me