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“So you guys are basically going to be my shadow for the foreseeable future?” It’s more of a statement than a question, but Reign answers.
“Like a second skin.”
Snorting, I retort, “More like an unknown antibiotic-resistant rash.” The room erupts into laughter.
Dad stands. “Since you took this better than I expected, why don’t I show the guys to their rooms and give them a tour of the security room.”
I roll my eyes as they exit. “I’m not even going to justify that comment with a response,” I mutter, and my grandfather coughs, trying to cover up his snickers.
Turning, I fully take in my grandfather. His eyes sparkle with mirth as a bright smile sits on his tan face. He’s enjoying this.
“Your dad means well,” he states.
Crossing my arms, I grumble, “So well, he’s keeping secrets.” I know I sound like a petulant child, essentially proving his earlier notion that he had a reason to worry that I wouldn’t take the news of having guards well.
The smile falls from his face, the jovial look quickly replaced by a pensive one. “Let me tell you a story.”
Eager to hear anything that might give me more insight into what’s going on, I blurt out, “Okay,” with so much enthusiasm, Tobias’s lip quirks.
His eyes bore into mine when he begins. “Nearly forty years ago to the day, your grandmother found out she was pregnant with your father, and what was supposed to be a joyous time for a young couple was instead rife with worry. My father and mother were poisoned. My brother’s and his wife’s throats were slit open in their sleep. All in the span of one night.”
I want to say something, but I’m afraid he’ll stop if I utter a sound.
“Anyone with Bradford blood in their veins was at risk. I hadn’t been head of the Council for a full year when whoever was left of my family was killed off.”
Tobias stands, walks to the bar, and pours himself two fingers of scotch.
Leaning against the bar, he takes a gulp and sighs, like he’s trying to find the words before he continues. “We had a meeting, the newly established Council. We sat down and organized a long-term solution. My family’s bodies weren’t even cold before it was decided to hide.”
I can see the pain etched into his face. There is a mixture of regret and anger in the set of his clenched jaw.
Remembering some of what I’ve been told, I state, “That’s when you decided to give Dad up?”
He shakes his head. “We wanted to keep him at first. We thought just hiding would be enough, but two months before your father was born, someone broke into the home we were living in and attempted to kill your grandmother.”
A gasp bursts from my throat when he lowers the collar of his light blue polo and reveals a jagged scar that disappears under his shirt.
“I killed the asshole who did this, but he left his mark, and it also made me realize the only way to ensure the Bradford line would live on was to make people believe the Bradford line had died.”
They staged all their deaths.
As if he can see the wheel turning in my head, he nods. “Yes. That night, the killer successfully killed your grandmother, father, and me before succumbing to his injuries and dying.”
“So, why did our grandmother risk her life to come back?”
He smiles. “Because you all needed family watching over you, and it was time to take a stand. Your mo-Elise had one thing correct. It’s time for the Bradfords to take their rightful seat at the head of the table and join the families together. But to do that, you’ll need to be patient, especially right now. We know you want answers, and you’ll get them in time.”
“How—”
Tobias holds his hand to silence my question. “When the time is right, you’ll be told. Until then, you need to be ready.”
My shoulders slump. More evasive answers.
“What does that even mean?”
“It means, dear child, that you train.” Then he drains the remainder of his drink and exits the room, leaving me to stew on his words.
5
