Page 21 of Broken Truths

“Your mother wanted me to tell you that dinner is on the table.”

I take a deep breath and walk past her, placing my hand on her shoulder. “Thank you, Melanie. I’ll go right down.”

I walk toward the door until her voice stops me. “If you don’t mind me saying, Alaric…” My real name. This woman has known me since I was a child and she’s been calling me Master Barclay since I was sixteen. “You look a little lost.”

I turn, giving her a small smile. “You’ve always been perceptive.”

“I hope it’s nothing too serious.”

I study her. The graying hair around her ears gives away her age, but she still looks as spry as ever. She’s been with my parents for so long that I wouldn’t be surprised if she knew all about my sister. I would never put her in a position by asking, though, mostly because I’d be too afraid she’d lie to me, just like everyone else in my life. “It’s not,” I tell her. “Just work and family obligations.”

“How’s Carnegie treating you?”

I smile at that. The one bright spot in my life is Carnegie, if only because it brought me to Eden. I wanted distance from my family, and I got it. Of course, now I’m trying to do the opposite with a father who’s more disappointed in me than he’s ever been. “I really like it,” I tell her sincerely.

“I can tell. You just brightened up for the first time since you got here.”

She’s right. I can feel it. A sense of renewed purpose washing over me. I hitch a thumb over my shoulder. “I better go downstairs before Mom sends someone else after me.”

“You’ve always been a good boy,” she says.

My shoulders bunch. I know it’s something Melanie has always said to me, but it doesn’t sound like a compliment at the moment. It sounds like an accusation.

I make myself walk away, my feet pounding down the stairs until I round the corner into the formal dining room. An immaculate crystal chandelier is the landmark attraction of this room. It’s hung from this exact spot since the house was built, but today, my gaze flits right over it as I take my seat.

My father is already serving himself from the plethora of dishes around the table. He has a sour look, and I remember a time when I would do anything to get that look off his face. I was a good boy, just like Melanie said.

I’m not that good boy anymore.

“Sorry,” I say, flashing a smile at my mother. She smiles back and finally settles in and takes the serving spoon after my father. The cook has made a ham dinner with mashed potatoes, gravy, and buttered carrots. My mom likes to bake in the kitchen, but my father insists on having a cook that will whip up meals to his exact specifications. When I was young, it would always be a treat when he wasn’t home. Mom and I would make chocolate chip cookies or brownies.

My sister missed all that.

She may have been the lucky one, though. She doesn’t have the bastard curse sitting on her shoulders.

“It’s nice to be here,” I say as I fill my plate. However awkward this may be, it’s normal. I didn’t have the exact upbringing that Leo did. My parents always acted like a family, bar the little nuances here and there that never stuck out to me when I was a kid but do now. My father would never disrespect my mother to her face, but I now know of his exploits outside of the home. She isn’t an idiot either. She would’ve known what she was getting into before she even married him, which only makes me feel sorry for the women caught up in this world.

Eden had the right idea by running away. Maybe after all of this, I can run away, too. I don’t care about the money anymore. I want something real.

My father hasn’t said a single word, so I wait until he’s cleaned his plate and is wiping his mouth with a cloth napkin before launching into the reason why I’m here. “I know you’re mad at me, and I’m sorry.” I twist my water glass in my hands, and my mother takes the opportunity to excuse herself to the kitchen. “The truth is, I…thought it was stupid and beneath me to watch over Eden Astor. I’ve definitely learned my lesson.”

The lie tastes like sweet chocolate on my tongue. I don’t care about feeding him bullshit anymore after he’s been feeding me every deception he could think of.

“Unfortunately, learning a lesson doesn’t get our money back,” my father bites out.

He’s really holding onto this. He’s always prided himself on how he grew the family’s businesses. The Barclay’s never used to be up there with the top names until he took over. I’m sure he saw what I did as taking a few steps back. “What can I do to make it up to you?”

He glares at me before throwing his cloth napkin on the table. “The first thing you can do is quit this nonsense at Carnegie and come back to work for Barclay Enterprises. There’s nothing for you at that stupid school.”

My stomach clenches. My job there kept me close to the Knights, and it’s been keeping me close to Eden, but this is the only way to placate my father. “Done,” I tell him. “I’ll put in my resignation tonight.”

My father blinks at me, his shoulders softening just a little. I can tell he didn’t expect that to be so easy. I’m sure he thought I would put up a fight like I did when I told him I was going to work there.

How soon my priorities have changed after meeting Eden…

My father narrows his gaze. “You’ll probably still have to watch over Eden Astor. Unless you get specific permission not to.”

“Of course,” I say, taking a drink like this is any other dinner at my parents’ house. “I’ll make the money back, too. I promise.”

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