Bloodline [h.s.]

one.

"Tell me about your father."

I knew what was coming.

"My father was a the best dad in the whole world. He would never do anything to hurt anybody. He was framed–"

Her face was so cold. It scared me more than anything. In my short nine years of life, I had never seen a face as cold as hers was. I was terrified of what she would do to me if I failed to cooperate. I was even more terrified of losing the only thing I had left: the memory of my father and my family.

"Aiden, honey, repeat after me: my father was sick. He started the fire. Then, he vanished."

I winced. I was not going to budge.

"My dad is a good man and a good dad. He didn't do this."

The black haired woman squinted at me. I searched desperately for some sign of humanity in her eyes. She set her hands on my quivering frame and squeezed my shoulders.

"Listen to me. Your father lied. He pretended. Your father was a bad man. He is the reason your family is gone."

No. She was wrong. This was a lie. She had never met my dad.

"I want to go home. I want my dad," I began to cry.

"Your dad is gone. You have no one to go home to. Your dad is the reason they're all gone, and you have no family anymore." Her face moved closer to mine. She wouldn't hit me, but she wanted me to believe she would if I pushed back hard enough.

I brought my knees to my chest and curled up against the cold metal bars of the bed.

"Stop, please," I begged, "What did I do wrong?"

Not a single drop of remorse appeared on the monster on front of me. She held up a finger for me to pause. She needed to record my "session."

"Patient name is Aiden Shepard. No diagnosis as of July 2003. The recent events seem as though they will define him. Still displaying denial, possibly even brainwashed by Martin Shepard, more evaluation is crucial." She reported.

"Please, let me out," I cried, "My dad didn't brain wash me. You're trying to do that now."

"When you get better, we will find a new home for you."

"Why can't my grandma come and get me? I don't want a new home. Take me to my own family. I have family." I pleaded.

The monotone woman didn't answer. She stood up about to leave.

"Please, don't leave me in here," I pleaded, "Please, I didn't do anything."

She ignored my begs.

"No! Don't leave me in here, please!" I sobbed.

The tall metal door slammed shut with a loud bang, and I snapped out of the childhood memory and back into reality. My airways were filled with water. The weights were still chained to my ankles. I tried to untie them. Time was running out quickly. Someone else was in the water now removing the chains from my ankles. They pulled me to the surface and helped me onto the dock. I realized it was my friend Kora who pulled me out. I coughed violently to catch my breath and get the salty ocean water out of me .

"Kora!" Kai snapped, "Aiden has to be able to save himself."

"If we had waited any longer to let him try to save himself, he would have drowned and died. It's not the end of the world to need help every now and again," she chuckled.

Kora tossed me a towel. Kai has trained me for the past two years to exonerate my father.

"Aiden, What memory did you access?" Kai ignored Kora.

"The first week in the children's detention centre, but I never lost that memory."

"That doesn't matter. You need to hold on to each of those memories as much as possible. It's okay if forgot things before the trauma. It is more important that you remember the suffering after it. These people are master manipulators. You will be tempted to feel guilt even forgiveness. They were able to target your father because he let his guard down. You must keep these memories fresh to stay focused. Let's review your plan."

"I'm going to Santa Barbara as Nick's new CFO at Payco International. Kora is coming as my executive assistant. The target is the weakest link of the Gallagher family to path my way in and build a case against them. The mission is to prove Alec Gallagher is a fraud and a murderer."

"I don't think Kora should go. If you two are perceived to have a relationship that is anything other than perfessional, you could raise suspicion." Kai warned.

Kora looked to me to refute this. Her charcoal colored hair was still dripping wet from her dive into the water to help me.

"But Kai–"

"We will discuss it later. How do you plan to take down the Gallaghers?"

"I think we have been going over that since you started training him." Kora said.

"I need to hear him say it."

"I'm targeting Bridget. I'll get close to her. Through her, I get to the family. Nick is helping me set up cameras in their home and their offices. Meanwhile, I take down everyone else who took part in killing my family."

"Good. What's your name?"

"Jacob Montgomery."

"And Kora?" Kai asked.

"I'm not the one who spent their childhood there. My name is still Kora."

Kai nodded in agreement.

"Where are your parents?"

He searched for uncertainty or nervousness, but I was one hundred percent confident in our plan. The Gallagher family is smart, but the couldn't see me coming. I knew my mission inside and out.

"Died in a boating accident."

"How did you get your money at such a young age?"

"Inheritance and investing."

"Good. You are ready Aiden. Do not fail."

"I want this more than anything. You have my word." I promised and meant it with everything in me. This mission was all I had left.

He nodded.

"I will speak to both of you tomorrow before your flight." Kai left me and Kora alone on the dock.

As soon as he walked away, Kora pushed me into the water.

"What the hell?!" I coughed.

"I had to make up for saving you earlier."

Her legs dangled over the water. I quickly yanked her in before she could move. We fought underwater for a few seconds dunking each other. When she came back up to the surface, I let her catch her breath before I kissed her.

"We should stop this before tomorrow." she said.

"Why?"

"If someone sees us, they may start to see something is up. They will want to look into you."

"One more night. Then, done." I smirked. My fingers trace the lining of her bikini bottoms underwater. She bit her lip playfully. My friendship with Kora was quite unconventional. Any physical relationship beyond the mission between us was strictly recreational. We were trained to learn everything about each other and use it to our advantage. There were no secrets or surprises with her. I trusted her completely.

Anticipation knotted my stomach. Tomorrow morning Kora and I were going to be on a plane for Santa Barbara. I was finally fighting back for my father, and she was helping me do it. I had taken the first step into the fight.