Page 60 of Hidden
“Bianca,” Brayden began. “What are you—”
“Don’t imagine it’s worse than it is. Father was a bit distracted when you were born,” Bryce cut in, voice as smooth as ever. “He wasn’t thinking clearly.” My knuckles were turning white, but Bryce continued before I could speak. “But we are married. Use my account, and we’ll transfer the funds back once you access your savings.”
Bryce still had that refined look to him despite his beaten face. There was no shame radiating from him, and he returned to sipping his coffee.
“This is so weird,” Brayden said, laying his head over his arms. The tension fled from his frame, and he latched on to the new topic. “Did Dad say anything about you marrying her?”
Bryce shrugged. “He understands. Though”—he glanced at me—“there’s the matter of your Biology class. I’ve cancelled everything for today. This afternoon, I need to go before the administration to pretend to plead with Mr. Abernathy for my job—”
“Hold on.” I held up my hand. “Damen?”
“Dean.” Bryce’s brows furrowed. “Finn still hasn’t told you? His father is the primary shareholder for our college. The Abernathy family owns a number of educational establishments. And they have massive political influence. Dean knows who you are, of course. Damen told him last week.”
I gaped at Bryce, uncertain at how to process this information. Finn had never even hinted…
“Finn’s dad owns the college?” I repeated, recalling past events. “Is this how Finn was able to close off portions of the library? Or manipulate the teacher’s schedules?”
“Partially.” Bryce frowned. “I’ve spent some time with him this last week. He’s admitted to having some skill in hacking these days. Which makes sense. Although it was a bit surprising, considering his interests don’t lie in that direction.”
“How does that make sense?” My voice rose an octave. How could Bryce say something like this so nonchalantly? “It doesn’t make sense to me!”
“Finn’s mother, Rhea Abernathy, is the founder and CEO of a global internet conglomerate. She’s a genius in software engineering,” Bryce said. “But neither Finn nor Damen had any interest in their parents’ businesses. Damen was always terrible with technology, and Finn followed his brother around everywhere. When Damen decided he wanted to go into criminal justice, Finn wanted to be with him. But when Finn contracted with his shikigami, everything changed.”
“What…” I listened to Bryce, shocked. I had known that Finn once wanted to be the chief of police. But I’d never known why. I also knew Damen and Finn used to be close. When we first met, Finn gushed about him.
“What does his shikigami have to do with anything?”
“Kiania was one of Huo’s most frequently contracted shikigami,” Miles said, sliding some plates onto the table and slipping into the seat opposite mine. “She’s almost as old as we are and is one of his most powerful shikigami. No one outside of Huo has been able to sustain a connection with her, although many onmyoji have died trying. She expected to be contracted in this life—it’s been a while since she’s been in service—but Damen contracted with Kasai instead. She wasn’t happy about being passed over. When Finn did his ceremony the summer he turned eight, she intercepted. The ceremony is a private affair, so Damen had no idea what happened until it was too late. Once a contract is established, only the shikigami or onmyoji can change the terms.”
“Finn refused to break the contract.” Bryce cut in as he spooned scrambled eggs onto my plate, and I wolfed them down as Bryce continued to speak. “He wanted to be strong enough to help Damen. But everyone was afraid he was going to die. His health declined, and his parents fought over it. Dean couldn’t convince Finn to change his mind, to talk to Kiania. Rhea is a divination master, but she only knew things would eventually work. Over summer break, Mr. and Mrs. Abernathy divorced because they argued about the approach. Damen changed schools and lived with his father. Finn continued to attend one of the sister schools while living with his mother.”
“He did poorly for a while.” Miles pushed the bacon toward Bryce. “But Finn ended up pulling through and can now maintain Kiania’s contract. But he wouldn’t associate with anyone after that. Damen has never gotten over it. He blames Kiania for everything. That’s why Damen allows Finn to do what he does.”
Bryce was stacking bacon on my plate. My dish was full in front of me, but there was no way I’d be able to eat any more. My stomach twisted, nausea threatening to overpower me as their words pulled at my memories. Pieces that had been missing throughout most of my life seemed to fall into place.
“I met Finn when I was eight…” I whispered. “I transferred into his class right after summer break.”
Bryce’s arm froze midair, and three sets of eyes focused on me.
My lips felt numb. “The first time I saw him, I thought he was dying. There was a shadow always following him around. I thought it was a demon. It sucked away at his life, like Kasai does with Damen.”
“Bianca,” Miles said softly, “Kasai isn’t—”
“I talked to it.” I shook, recalling my latest dream. “I’m not supposed to tell you this…”
It took everything to not to lie, especially when my instincts were screaming for it.
Why couldn’t I shake this feeling? Did I mess everything up? But if I did, they needed to know.
“Bianca.” Miles reached across the table, grasping my hand.
“I don’t remember all the details,” I admitted. “But I talked to it…her. I didn’t know what she was though.”
Miles’s lips thinned and he tilted his head. “Do you remember what you talked about?”
“I told her to leave him alone. She told me he was dying.” Goose bumps broke out over my arms.
Finn was my first friend, and I couldn’t let him die. Not if there was something I could do to help. No matter what it cost me, I wasn’t able to allow it to happen.
