Chapter 41
Nina
Ireading on the couch while Nana napped when John called and said they’d found the locker the key opened and they had some stuff to show me.
When I asked, “What stuff?” he didn’t answer. Instead, he said it’d be easier to show me.
My phone buzzed with a text from Matt as I grabbed my purse.
I’ll be in soon to bond with your grandmother over her favorite crime show.
It shouldn’t have surprised me that Matt knew what was happening.
Wait in the house until Nathan comes to the door, Matt ordered me via text.
I wanted to be at SSI now, so I argued it’d be faster if I waited outside.
It’s for your safety.
Right, my safety. Because psychotic guys were after me and my treasure.
A treasure I didn’t have.
Unless they found something in the locker.
What kind of treasure? Gold and silver, or plain money? Jewels? Was I a secret trust fund baby?
Or maybe they’d left me items with sentimental value. Like how some parents kept snips of hair and the first tooth their kid lost.
I lost my baby teeth after being adopted by the Novaks.
It could be all of the above. Or nothing. And anything in between.
The not knowing was killing me, so I ignored Matt’s order and waited for Nathan on the porch.
It took everything I had not to rush to his truck when he parked behind my crappy red hatchback.
“You shouldn’t be outside,” Matt scolded me, as he and Nathan both rushed to my side.
“I’m eager to go,” I whined.
“Nina, I need to trust that you’ll listen, just in case.” Nathan didn’t finish his sentence.
In case what?
Before I could start creating crazy scenarios in my head, Nathan said, “Let’s go.”
“Do you know what they found?” I asked as soon as he pulled away.
“Sorry, I wasn’t in the room.”
“Oh, okay.”
“I don’t want you to panic, but I need to call John.”
“Why would I panic?” I asked, but Nathan was already telling his phone to call John.
“Blaszek, is everything okay?”
“I’m on speaker.”
“Hello, Nina.”
“Hi, John.”
“What’s going on?” John asked.
“We have company.”
“Can you lose them?”
“Not likely.”
Once again, I heard them talking, but their words were more confusing than helpful.
“ETA?”
“Ten.”
“I’ll have the boys ready.”
“Copy that.”
The call disconnected.
“What does he mean, have the boys ready?”
“John will have guys staged at the end of the access road.”
He answered my question, but I still didn’t understand.
“Staged?”
Nathan gripped the back of his neck before answering. “SSI will block the end of the access road. Don’t be scared when you see their rifles pointing at the road.”
That had to be illegal.
“Can they do that?”
“It’s private property, so yes, they can.”
When we turned onto the road leading us to the access road, I asked, “Do you have to tell John you’re close?”
“He knows.” The scar on Nathan’s face scrunched up when he smiled.
“How?”
“SSI can track any of our vehicles and phones; it’s in our contract.”
It sounded like a huge invasion of privacy.
“Why would you let him do that?”
“Because it saves lives. That’s how we found Madi so quickly.”
A mentally ill woman, seeking revenge for her rejected brother, had kidnapped and tortured Madi.
Two black SUVs were parked a few feet down, on either side of the access road. Each had someone standing behind an open front door, with a rifle resting in the v between the door and the SUV frame.
I gripped my thighs to keep my hands from shaking and prayed to wake up from the nightmare my life had become.
As we drove past them, Jack saluted Nathan. Nathan nodded.
My breath caught in my throat as reality slammed into me.
This is because of me. They’re protecting me. They’ll get hurt because of me.
“Nina, you’re safe. We won’t let anything happen to you.”
Easy for him to say. His life hadn’t turned into a living nightmare. All the cloak and dagger stuff might be normal for him and the rest of SSI, but I was just a barista.
And I had to worry about the psychos going after my grandmother. How was I supposed to take care of her with people hunting me?
After Nathan escorted me in through the back door, I stood staring at the floor while he talked to John.
Five minutes later, Jack and Cate came in.
“They left. Jay and AJ are watching the road to make sure they don’t return,” Jack said.
“Will they be okay?” I asked. I didn’t want them getting hurt because of me.
“They’ll be fine,” Jack assured me.
“Mary will be here soon with Natalie and food. Until then, let’s go upstairs and get started,” John said, ushering me up the stairs and into the conference room I’d recently seen too often for comfort.
Funny how I’d often wondered what the SSI office was like, but now that I’d had to visit, I wished I’d never seen the inside.
The table was covered with papers and photos, and a jewelry box.
“Is that what you found?” I asked, in awe of the quantity of things on the table.
Pictures. That’s where my heart directed my eyes and my hands.
“Wait,” Austin said, handing me gloves.
It was then that I noticed he and most of the others were wearing latex gloves.
“We haven’t finished dusting for prints.”
I slid the gloves on and reached for the stack of photos.
A couple I now recognized as my parents on their wedding day.
Them standing in front of the Eiffel Tower. Paris or Vegas? I turned the picture over. Paris.
A picture of my father standing behind my mother, his hands on her belly, hers over his. Was she pregnant? She looked thin, but maybe they’d just found out.
Pictures of my parents all over western Europe, with my mother’s belly getting progressively bigger in each one.
A tear slipped from my cheek and splashed on the picture.
A hand landed gently on my shoulder while another took the photos from me.
“They looked so happy,” I said, wiping the tears from my face with the tissue Austin handed me.
“They were. They loved you very much,” Austin said. His hand rubbed the back of my shoulder.
The warmth of his hand soothed my frayed nerves. I wiped my eyes and nose, then squared my shoulders.
“How do you know?”
“They told me.” He reached over and grabbed a plain red leather journal. “It’s all in here.”
“You read it?”
“No, just a few entries around key dates.”
“Can I read it?”
“We’ll make copies so you can read it later.” He placed the journal in my hands and opened the cover. “But this you should read now.”
My lips moved as I read the message written in black ink. “To our most precious jewel, we didn’t plan for you, but we couldn’t love you more. You were a shock, but the instant we heard your heartbeat, we knew we our lives would change forever. For the better.”
The next note was written in blue ink, and the writing looked shakier.
“More than anything, our precious jewel, we hope to be reunited one day, but in order to protect you, we have to let you go. We love you.”
I sniffled. They loved me.
Austin lifted the journal out of my hands. “We’ll have the copies made before you leave tonight.”
“Thank you.” More than anything, I wanted to read the journal my parents had left me.
“There’s more,” Austin said. “You should sit.” He pulled out a chair, and I blindly did what he said.
Before Austin could tell me, Mary arrived with Natalie and food, so we took a break.
I didn’t want to stop, but I couldn’t ask them to skip lunch. It’s four, so maybe it’s an early dinner.
In the lobby, everyone, including Jay and AJ, ate and chatted. I sat and stared at the shade covered window that blocked my view of the items they’d found. I didn’t care about the jewelry, but the paperwork and journal might have the answers to my questions.
Austin sat beside me and handed me a plate. “I know you probably don’t feel like eating, but you should try. You’ll need your strength.”
I choked down the dry, tasteless sandwich and drank the soda Austin handed me. When the can was empty, I rested it on my leg and went back to staring up at the room that held my parents’ messages.
Mary replaced Austin at my side and gave me a hug. “This’ll all be over soon.”
“Will it?” I asked, scared it’d never end.
“I trust my boys; they’ll figure it out.” After a gentle squeeze, she released me and stood. “The girls and I will clean up; you guys go back upstairs.”
The guys all stood and started towards the stairs.
“Blaszek, you and Janerek stay down here.”
“Yes, sir,” they both replied. “Here, let us help you with that,” Nathan said, picking up some discarded cans.
“Come on, Nina, let’s find out what your parents left you,” John said. The only thing that kept me from running up the stairs was his arm around my shoulder.
Back in the room, John said, “Nina, Austin found your parents’ wills, insurance paperwork, medical histories, and bank information.”
“How? Why?” My brain couldn’t wrap itself around one thought long enough to form an intelligent question.
“I’m sorry, Nina, but they knew they might never see you again, so they planned for that possibility,” Austin said.
“They sent me to those people who died?”
“The Fosters, yes. They were old friends of your father’s family. Mr. Foster was former military, and he and his wife agreed to watch you until your parents came back.”
“But you said they didn’t think they’d come back.”
“They wanted to return to you, but knew they might not.”
“What happened?”
“According to your parents’ journal, the Fosters had paperwork to adopt you. We haven’t found copies of the paperwork yet.”
“Did they die because of me?” They’d died a horrible death by fire.
“No, by all accounts, the fire was an accident. Mr. Foster got you safely to the car but didn’t make it back out with Mrs. Foster.”
My head was a tornado of jumbled thoughts. Question after question popped up in my mind, but I couldn’t grasp them. Guilt and loss tore at my heart.
“Why didn’t they know who I was after the fire?”
“The fire destroyed the Fosters’ copy,” Austin answered. “We may find the other copy among the paperwork your parent’s left behind.”
It occurred to me that I might have a big family somewhere out there.
“Do I have a family?” I sniffled again.
Austin handed me a tissue and a bottle of water. “Drink.”
I wiped my cheeks, blew my nose, and sipped the water.
“Your parents were both only children. And their parents have passed,” Austin said. “I’m sorry.”
Gone. They were all gone, and I never got to meet them.
“Who killed them?”