He's been running his mouth at church, telling anyone who listen about the deceitful woman who tried to trap him into marriage, making himself out to be the victim. Maybe he is. Maybe I should have told him. Don't. Jonas's hand covered hers, warm and solid.
Don't you dare take on his shame. Whatever Thomas Reddick told people, whatever lies he's spreading, that's on him, not you. But Lena. Jonas waited until she met his eyes again. There's something you should know, something I found out this week when I was in town talking to Doc Morrison.
A chill ran down Lena's spine. What? Thomas Reddick can't have children. Never could. Doc Morrison treated him years ago for an infection that left him sterile.
The whole story about you being barren, about that being why he rejected you, it was all projection. He blamed you for his own inadequacy. The world tilted. Lena gripped the porch railing, her breath coming in short gasps. What?
He lied, Lena. He rejected you and publicly humiliated you to cover up his own shame. You weren't the problem. You never were. The information crashed over her like a wave, drowning out thought.
All those years of believing Daniel when he said she was broken. All the shame, the guilt, the certainty that something fundamental was wrong with her. And now this. The man who'd confirmed her worst fears about herself had been lying the whole time. I don't understand, she whispered.
Why would he do that? Why bring me all the way here just to Because men like Thomas Reddick need someone to blame for their failures, Jonas said quietly. He probably did want a wife, someone to cook and clean and tend his house. But when he realized people might eventually figure out he couldn't father children, he needed a scapegoat. You were convenient.
Rage bloomed in Lena's chest, hot and purifying. He destroyed me, made me believe I was worthless, made the whole town think I was a liar and a fraud. And it was all to protect himself? Yes. Lena stood abruptly, pacing the porch.
Her mind raced, piecing together the cruelty of it. Thomas's careful questions in his letters, fishing for information he could use. His cousin Margaret's betrayal, sharing Lena's private struggles. The calculated humiliation in front of Cyrus, ensuring there would be a witness to spread the story. It had all been planned, deliberate, malicious.
I want to confront him, she said. I want to march over there and tell him exactly what I think of him and his lies. I understand that, but confronting him won't change anything. He'll just deny it or twist it around somehow. Then what am I supposed to do?
Just let him keep spreading lies about me? Jonas was quiet for a moment. We could talk to Reverend Matthews, explain the situation. The Reverend has influence in this community. If he knows the truth And what good will that do?