Bloodline [h.s.]

fifty-three.*

if you haven't read in awhile, i highly recommend skimming chapter 52 (especially towards the end) otherwise you will be lost! :)

AIDEN SHEPARD

"I'm confused." I furrowed his eyebrows as she handed me the notebook. "What do you mean this is my dad's? This house belongs to Nick's family."

The home had been in Nick's family since his grandparents came to the country. It was possible that my parents had been here before. The photo in Bee's hands was proof it was true. Finding out I met her for years longer than my brain could recall left me unsettled. Not only had I been here before, but I was here with her. We met all those years before, and I didn't remember.

"Martin and Nick's dad were partners, right?" She asked. I nodded. Trying not to drift back into a panic from the new information, I sat down at the desk to look through the drawers for more of my father's belongings. "And, there is a picture of our families here. We clearly came here at least once as kids. I'm sure my parents sent me with a nanny, but your parents have probably been here before. How many people know about this place?"

"No one because the family hasn't used it in over a decade, except Nick. If this was my dads, why would he leave it here?" My fingers glided along the engraving of what Bee believed was father's first initial, almost scared it would disappear if I wasn't not gentle.

"Aiden, open it and find out." She urged me.

I flipped to the first page. My pulse quickened at the list of vaguely familiar names and dates connected to my father, reading for not more than a moment before setting it down. The leather bound book dropped from my hands to the desk. There was a chance that what I read could alter everything I know about my father. Learning of Kai's omissions about him left me on shaky ground. "It can wait. I promised you a break from all the plotting and chasing after leads."

"We can make an exception for this, Aiden. I don't care." She laughed lightly. Normally, discovering something like this would demand all of my attention. Her eyes searched mine while she figured out my avoidance was not only for her sake. "Are you okay?"

My chin lowered in an unconvincing nod. She couldn't just drop it as she watched a reaction that didn't make sense to her. She knew me too well.

"What are you thinking about?" She tried to meet my eyes while I looked anywhere except at her or the notebook.

The crease between her eyebrows tightened. Worry shaded her face as she tried to figure out my hesitation to read the journal.

"I can see your wheels spinning, Bee. I'm okay."

"We found a notebook that belonged to your dad with potential evidence in it, and you cannot even look at it. Something's wrong."

Sitting up on the desk, she positioned herself in front of me. Her feet rested on either side of my lap. Before her, it was always my first instinct to lie about how I was feeling. I had to remind myself that there was no reason to hide this from her. My arms hugged under her legs as my head rested on the top of her thighs.

"What if I was wrong?" I asked, my question muffled against my skin. Saying it aloud made the possibility feel even more likely. My hair filled the depression of her palm. Scorching vulnerability heated my neck and flushed my cheeks as I buried my face in her lap.

"About?"

"Everything. My dad, Alec, the boardroom murders, all of it. All my information was sourced from Kai. He knew my dad directly, he saw him after he was ruled a missing person. He kept that from me for as long as I have known him. What if Kai lied about all of it?"