Page 34 of Dahlias, Sapphires, and Cool Autumn Dusk
“I wasn’t.” Dan smiled as though Phoenix didn’t just snap at him. “I’m glad it’s going fine.” He paused. “How about for you, Alatheia?”
I stared at him for a second, considering my response carefully. “Also fine.”
“Good. Did it help? The phone call I made? Did it help with the girl?”
I cleared my throat, since I meant to broach that topic with them. “Yes, but I don’t want you to feel like you need to do things like that for me. I don’t want to be trouble.”
He waved away my protest. “Don’t worry about it. Sometimes it’s the only way to handle bullies—you have to bully them more. It’s not nice but that’s life.”
Kit clapped his hands together. “Okay, listen, I have been looking into you and…”
The door opened and then closed, so he paused as the twins joined us. Julian nearly choked on a sports drink when he saw them.
“Hey,” Jeremy said and set his bag down on a chair by the table. “What’s going on?”
Daniel grinned at them, but even I could see his strain. “We wanted to see you.”
“And talk to Alatheia,” Kit finished.
Julian pulled me to him, sitting us both down on the big lounge chair next to the couch. In a second, he tangled our legs. “About what?”
The air conditioner chose that second to turn on, which added to the chill in the room. Daniel was trying, but Kit wasn’t. My guys, without Barrett as a buffer, were making no effort whatsoever.
Jeremy sat down next to Daniel, Phoenix actually rose to take the other side, which left Kit standing. Maybe he realized it because he looked around quickly then took a seat in a smaller chair.
I cleared my throat. “You were saying? You looked into my family?”
“Right, so there is no record of you being born in Colorado.”
I blinked, a chill icing my bloodstream.Is it the AC or just the feeling like everything is about to explode?“What?”
“You weren’t born in Colorado, hard stop. Actually, I haven’t been able to find your birth record anywhere.” He held out his hand. “I don’t think it’s surprising you were worried about your family, since even a simple search proves something is wrong. We have two options. We can hire a guy I know, more of an ex-spy than an investigator. Although I’m sure he’ll find answers, he is a bit like using a shotgun in a knife fight.”
Jeremy shook his head. “So you don’t want to pay for him?”
He shook his head. “I’ll pay for him. When have I ever turned away something because of money? No, I think we have a faster, easier option, a far simpler way to find answers.”
I looked between them all, not sure what he meant. “What is that? My mother told me I was born in Colorado. It isn’t just some lie my aunts and uncles made up, because I know that was what my mom said.”
The volume of my voice increased with every word, panic threading through my tone despite my best efforts. I couldn’t even seem to stop it.
Julian squeezed me. “I’m sure she had a good reason. She loved you. You know that.
Daniel nodded quickly. “If your mom lied, it was for a reason.”
Kit sighed. “Listen, there is no way to get through this other than to go through it. I’m not sure why your mom lied to you, Alatheia. I don’t have enough information to reach any kind of conclusion, but if you want your birth certificate, you may have to go get it.”
Go get it?“How?” My heart raced and I might have actually stopped breathing.My mom lied to me.Is there anyone in my family who didn’t lie to me?She always told me I was born there, where we had been living when my father died. It didn’t make sense for it to have been anywhere else.
“My suggestion is you walk in and take it when she’s not there.” Kit rose. “Get me your birth certificate, and we’ll go from there. I don’t want to take any steps forward without that, just in case.”
Phoenix shook his head. “Just in case of what?”
“Just in case other steps have to be taken. This is bad, you guys get that, right?” He aimed the question at his sons, but my stomach churned in response.
I closed my eyes. His wife called me a charity case. As the days passed, increasingly, we proved that was what I was. I wanted a family. The Lents—at least the ones I knew—wanted me to be part of their family.But how can I be anything when I don'teven know who I am?
“Excuse me. Give me a minute, please.” I squirmed until Julian let me out of his embrace then I rushed into the bedroom where I slept. Barrett’s room, stolen from him for our shared use, despite him saying he didn’t mind. It was probably true, since Barrett didn’t worry about having a place to belong, about having something that was his. He knew his place in the world even when things got slippery.
