Heartless Legacy (Heartless Heirs of Canyon Falls #4)

117. Holden

Chapter 117

Holden

I ’ve done something I swore I’d never do. I’ve violated my father’s trust by breaking into his safe. The one that’s built into the bench at the foot of my parent’s bed. The one he told me he’d give me the combination to when the time was right.

I’ve decided now is the time, and I wish I’d done it sooner. If all legacy families have one of these charge books, then it’s possible he already has ours. I hope seeing it will give me some insight into our family, The League, and ultimately help me figure out what’s missing in the archive documents.

I remove the cardboard base separating the storage compartment of the bench and set it aside, pulling out the folders and documents inside. Finn’s father kept copies of the failed marriage contracts of all the previous Trium members. It looks like my father did too. He also has background checks on every companion each Trium was ever assigned. There’s a folder for each companion, which contains their photo, and a handwritten family tree, going back six or seven generations. I chuckle at the little heart on the corner of the file for my mother and grandmother.

There’s a false bottom in the safe and I pull it out, revealing a diplomatic security pouch. Inside of the pouch are photos of Canyon Creek Bridge, a newspaper article and a death certificate.

According to the newspaper article, he’d just turned twenty-one when he lost control of his car and crashed on the Canyon Creek Bridge. His body burned beyond recognition. They used dental records to identify him. The picture in the newspaper is horrific, but my father has several enlarged copies of the accident site. From the tire marks on the ground to the guardrail damage and the car. This was way before he was born. Why was he looking into this, and why is it hidden?

I pull out the death certificate next. Nikolaos Constantin. Born February 22, 1964, died March 8, 1985. My eyes snag on the medical examiner’s name. Where have I seen that name before? I snap a picture, and go back to looking at the dossiers on the companions. What is my dad trying to connect these women to? The folder for my last two companion are empty. He either gave up on his project since I go through them so quickly, or he got too busy to finish it.

I return the death certificate, photos, and newspaper article back to their place in the false bottom and grab everything else before putting the bench back together. I hate leaving questions or loose ends, so I’ll take over his family tree project.

“I hate you and I’ll never forgive you for delaying my plans with Thea.” Finn groans as he enters my room. “I came up with all sorts of creative ways to cheer her up about the smear campaign they’re doing on her mother.”

I point to the cork board and dry erase board hanging against the wall. “Do any of these names look familiar?”

“Are you making a murder board?” He asks, perking up. “Oh shit, okay, I take it back. I love you, man. I forgive you a million times over. This isn’t as sexy as what I had planned, but it’ll be fun adding names to it too. I mean, I should make sure my gifts slide through flesh easy peasy before I put them in her hands, right?”

“Do I even want to know what your test run was going to be?”

“Yes, you do. We were going hunting for cowards. Someone said they spotted Mikey in LA. I had a whole trip planned.” He waves at the wall. “But please, walk me through this maze of flesh waiting to be carved through.”

“This isn’t a murder board, Finn. It’s a giant jigsaw puzzle of multiple family trees.”

“Are you sure?” He asks. “That’s a lot of death dates.”

“Notice anything else?”

“The men all died young, which I guess makes sense for that time frame. Medicine wasn’t the best.” He points to a spot on the left. “Brannan.”

“What?”

“The Osgood’s family name descended from Brannan. I hooked up with Jenna Osgood a few times in high school and she wouldn’t shut up about her family having ties to the guy who founded the California Star.”

“Finn, have I ever told you that you’re a genius?”

“Not as often as you should.”

I fill in the name. “Who else’s history do you remember?”

I step back from the dry erase board, reviewing what I have so far. I might not have liked anyone they matched me with, but all of the companion choices through the years have made perfect sense until you get to Thea.

As Hailee’s daughter, things line up. She would have had an inheritance from the Montrose and Laurent lines. When you take that away, the pairings fall apart.

She also comes from a frozen family line, and there are duplicitous circumstances regarding her birth. If any family’s legacy status should be questioned for legitimacy, it’s theirs.

How did no one notice Laurent’s youngest daughter sneaking off to meet someone with no affiliation to the league? Going to my computer, I flip through the records I have for Thea, school, vaccination, the death certificate for the little boy, Moira’s fake medical records, and Hailee’s medical chart of her labor and delivery. My hand pauses mid-swipe and I click back to the death certificate.

I knew I’d seen that name somewhere. The doctor on the medical examiner’s report for Canyon Creek Bridge is the same as the one on the Greek death certificate. How did two young girls come up with such an elaborate ruse on their own?

Scott’s parents knew who Thea was all along, so they probably helped them with the travel arrangements, and paid the doctor to sign off on a fake death certificate. It was probably the doctor’s idea to have medical records forged to say that Moira had a cyst removed, to cover her medical stay.

Then, Hailee disappears with Thea, and Moira comes back to town, with no one any the wiser, until Thea shows up in Canyon Falls and turns our lives upside down. Except, Malcolm was possibly/ probably already aware of her existence and tricks Pax into trying to run her out of town again. Why did he go from not wanting her here, to locking her in Rockridge? Was it to draw Hailee out with his stolen challenge item?

There’s also the question of how Hailee hid Thea for all those years and why she let her sister think they died in a car accident fifteen years ago, and where is she now? Leaning back in my chair, I stare up at the ceiling slowly swiveling from side to side. Why, why, why?

Maybe I’m thinking too hard on this. It could have been as simple as Hailee and Moira wanting nothing to do with the men their father picked out for them, and took matters into their own hands. Hailee stealing Malcolm’s challenge item could’ve been her way of sending a big fuck you message to him and The League. Just like Thea’s been known to do.

The puzzle pieces are all there. They fit together, but the picture doesn’t feel right. Everyone except Thea has a family alliance benefiting their matched Trium member. Laurent’s company is profitable, but outside of that, there is nothing to make his family line a good match for Pax. Someone wanted them together, and Malcolm has been busy trying to keep them apart.

Deacon

Thea groans as I massage the tendons in her neck. “Keep making noises like that, and this innocent massage is gonna turn into the X-rated version.”

“Sounds good to me.”

It’s been hard finding time alone. She and the guys are devoting a lot of time and effort to following the other prospects. Alexz has doubled up on security for Thea after learning about their connection to the guardian program.

I haven’t disowned my grandfather for keeping the truth from me. If anything, I can appreciate how hard it must’ve been for him to keep this secret all these years. Security might be a family business, but there will always be league secrets he’ll never be able to share.

Thea wiggles against me. My hands drift lower, massaging her breasts. “How do you feel about me bending you forward, slipping inside you, and fucking you slow and deep?”

“Good. Real, good.”

“Then get these clothes off.” She scrambles off my lap and tugs on her t-shirt, pulling it over her head.

She pauses, with her hands on her pants. “Uh, this isn’t a spectator sport. You need to be getting naked, too.”

Chuckling, I remove my clothes, too. When she’s completely naked, I motion towards my lap. “Get over here.” She comes back over and I turn her away from me, as I situate her on my lap. “Get yourself ready for me.” I say, stroking my dick. Over her shoulder, I watch her rub slow circles on her clit, and dip her fingers in and out. “Mmm. I’m a little jealous of your fingers.”

“Mmm-hmm. Don’t be. Your fingers are welcome.”

“Our fingers together inside you sounds damn hot.” I add one of mine, matching the glide of hers. “You’re getting sloppy wet.”

“I know. What about you? Is this making you rock hard?”

“You know it is.” I say, before sucking the lobe of her ear into my mouth. She works her hips faster. “Put me inside you.”

Her hands around my throbbing cock, moving it into place when the front door opens. “Fuck,” three voices say at once.

“We were about to, before you three walked in.” Thea grumbles, getting to her feet.

Finn walks over and scoops her into his arms. “Don’t stop on our account. We’re happy to give you all the fucks.”

Thea looks at me. This is her call. Before she can say anything Holden, says, “That’s gonna have to wait. We have something important to discuss and I think it’ll go better with clothes on.”

I put my clothes on, letting my annoyance show through when I say, “Finn, a heads up when you’re sneaking home in the middle of the day would be appreciated.”

“If I warn you, I wouldn’t get to walk in on you doing things like this.”

“Exactly.”

“So what’s up?” Thea asks.

Everyone except Holden takes a seat. He’s leaning against the wall, across from where Thea is sitting. “Thea, you drove across Canyon Creek Bridge to get into town, right?”

“Yup.”

“How was it?”

“It’s old and wooden and needs some lighting, but I didn’t have any problems with it.”

Finn asks, “If it’s drivable, why did they ever close it?”

Holden answers, “That’s a good question. I’ve never asked and I certainly never went to the bridge to see it for myself, but I’ve seen photos of the car accident and the coroner's report.” He’s staring at Thea when he says, “The same coroner who signed a death certificate for a little boy in Greece who never existed.”

He’s been digging. But she doesn’t take the bait. She sounds bored when she says, “Interesting.”

“Is that all you have to say? Interesting?”

Her brows furrow, her lips purse. “What else do you think I should say?”

“You don’t think it’s strange that the same doctor signed the death certificate for a guy who died on the bridge and the fake baby in Greece?”

“No, I don’t. But you do, and that’s valid, since you’re even more suspicious about everyone and everything than I am.”

His lips quirk. “I am suspicious, but I also do my research rather than jumping to conclusions. Do you know what my research into the bridge suggests?” He finally pushes away from the wall. “I’m thinking that everything that happened from the accident on the bridge until now has been one big cover up.”

“Really?” Nodding, she says, “Yeah, I guess I can see that. They close the bridge and pretend it’s washed out or impassable, just to direct all traffic to the tolls. It’s revenue for the city.” She says, continuing to pretend she doesn’t know what Holden’s suggesting.

He’s enjoying this game. We all are. It’s fascinating listening to her evade answers and him trying to get around her defenses. “The cover up wasn’t to push the vote for the new toll road. It was to hide something from the town, and I think you know what?”

She gives him a placating smile. “Sorry, I can’t help you figure it out. The lighting was crap along that route. I could barely see the road in front of me with my high beams on, let alone anything suspicious.”

He counters with, “Did you look in the rear-view mirror while you were driving?”

“I did.”

“Then you saw something suspicious.”

I think I know where this conversation is going. Thea and I both do, but she keeps playing dumb, letting him reveal what and how much he really knows.

Thea barks out a laugh. “Are we back on that? Geez, Holden, I wasn’t doing anything the night I drove into town.” Nudging Finn, she says, “It was a coincidence that I was there, and hit Finn with my car.”

“Would anybody like a drink?” I ask, getting to my feet.

Thea jumps up and says, “I’ll help.” Once we’re in the kitchen, she whispers, “What should I do?”

“They think they know something. If they eventually say something close to the truth, it’s up to you to confirm or not.”

Looking over my shoulder at them, I say, “At this point, I don’t think it will hurt for them to know how you’re connected to the person who died on the bridge.”

I snag some beers and sodas out of the fridge. Handing two to her. “Let’s get this over with so we can kick them out and get back to what we were doing.”

When we make it back to the living room, Holden already has his laptop connected to the television. I stare at the giant diagram of Thea’s family tree. He already has Nikloas Constantin’s name plugged in.

I can imagine Thea is remembering what happened the last time they went digging into her life. If the truth comes out this time, it’ll have deadly consequences. Nobody’s going to just accept the family tree and unproven allegations about the establishment of The League of the Daggered Raven. That’s why it’s more important than ever that she claims that fourth blood line by winning the challenge. Her being assigned that role gives her an added layer of protection and access to things to prove the rest. She straightens her spine, stares them down and says, “Get out.”