The Belial Ring (The Belial Series 3) (10 page)

Rocky took a deep breath.
“For five years.”

CHAPTER 19

L
aney felt as if she were in free-fall. Rocky had been watching her for five years. What on earth was going on? Laney spoke slowly. “Rocky, we’ve only know each other for four.”

“
I know. I’m sorry. I was sent to Syracuse to keep an eye on you.”

Hurt and confusion fought for dominance inside Laney.
Hurt won. “You befriended me . . . to keep an eye on me?”

Rocky
’s words rushed out. “No. It was never like that. I mean, I was supposed to keep an eye on you. I didn’t need to become friends with you to accomplish that. But once we met, we had so much in common. Becoming friends was inevitable.”

Laney sat back
, dumbfounded. She couldn’t form a thought.

But Jake could.
“Who are you working for?”

Rocky shook her head.
“I can’t tell you that. Not yet. She wants to tell you herself. We’re going to see her now.”

“
How did you end up working for her?” Henry asked.

Rocky glanced back at Laney.
“You know my childhood wasn’t easy. My current employer, she got me and my mom out of a bad situation. Found my mom a good job, sent me to college. Made me feel like I was worth something. That I could do something.”

Disbelief spread through Laney.
“And in exchange, you just had to lie to me.”

Rocky winced like she
’d been hit. “No. It wasn’t like that. She explained to me what the stakes were—that there was more happening in this world than most people realized. I chose to help.”

“
And what exactly were you supposed to do?” Laney asked. “Watch me?”

“
No. It was never like that,” Rocky said. “I was just supposed to be around if you needed help. She told me that in all likelihood, I would never have to do anything. And then we became friends. And it became a moot point. If you needed help, of course I would help.”

Rocky pulled off the road into a field.
A helicopter was waiting. She put the car in park. “I know it’s asking a lot. But I need you to trust me—just a little longer. Talk to my employer. Then you’ll understand everything.”

“
And if we choose not to trust you?” Jake asked.

Rocky looked straight at Laney.
“Then I’ve been instructed to give you my car and let you go.”

Rocky
’s words hung in the air.

Laney took a deep breath.
“Henry? What do you think?”

She
could see the calculation in Henry’s eyes. “I say we trust her just a little more. After we meet her employer, we can decide what to do.”

“
Jake?” Laney asked.

Jake took her hand.
“I’d like to say let’s take the car and run. But something’s happening right now and we’re completely in the dark. We need answers. This may be a way to get some.”

Laney let out a breath.
“Okay, Rocky. Let’s go.”

CHAPTER 20

T
wenty minutes later, they were flying over an undeveloped part of
Pennsylvania. At least, Laney thought they were still in the state. She sat in the back of chopper with Jake and Rocky. Henry sat up front with the pilot.

Laney stared out the window at the ground below
. Jake sat between her and Rocky. She hadn’t wanted to sit next to Rocky. She wasn’t sure what to say to her, what to make of all of this.

“
Laney?” Rocky’s voice was nervous, her concern obvious.

Laney looked over.
She knew Rocky was worried about their friendship, but honestly, she couldn’t deal with that yet. She was still reeling from Rocky’s unexpected arrival. The discussion about their friendship could wait. For now, there were some other issues she wanted to discuss.

“
Last year, when I was attacked at my house, did you know about the Fallen?” Laney asked.

Rocky shook her head.
“No. That was the first time I heard about anyone with those abilities. And until I saw them and felt them, for myself, I didn’t even believe what you had said, really. I figured it was adrenaline, or maybe you took a blow to the head.”

Laney remembered dragging Rocky to the car, blood dripping down her side.
She had almost lost Rocky that night.

Rocky met her eyes and Laney could tell she was reliving the same night.
“Laney, I was asked to look out for you. That was all. I swear.”

Laney nodded.
She thought Rocky was being truthful with her, but she was no longer sure if she could trust her own judgment.

Laney grasped Jake
’s hand and looked back out the window. The helicopter began to reduce its altitude. Laney caught sight of a single road playing peek-a-boo through the trees below.

Up ahead
was a clearing. The helicopter landed softly on the grass. When the rotors had turned down, Laney stepped out and stretched out her legs. Her ankle still smarted, but she could walk on it.

And once again, everything else ached.
I really should just accept constant aches as my new normal.

Jake stepped up next to her.
“You all right?”

Taking his hand, she gave him a little smile.
“Not really.”

He pulled her close, kissing her forehead.
“Well, Dorothy, apparently there’s another road to follow.”

Laney nodded, but she couldn
’t help think of the cost of those other roads.

Rocky walked over to the tree line.
“It’s this way.”

The rotors started up behind them.
Laney looked back in alarm. A few seconds later the helicopter lifted off.

“
It’s okay,” Jake whispered. “On the ground, the chopper would have been easy to spot. It’s safer for it to take off.”

Squeezing Jake
’s hand, Laney followed Rocky. But she wasn’t sure she was convinced that everything was actually okay. She looked behind her.

Henry smiled.
“I’m still here.”

“
My own guardian angel,” Laney joked, but the truth was, she did feel better with him there.

The four of them followed the
path through the woods. After about two hundred yards, Laney could just make out a little cottage tucked away between the trees. The stone and wood blended into the forest well. Large, leafy branches bowed over it, hiding it from the air. It would be easy to miss.

T
he little house was quiet, but Laney could see two dark SUVs parked around the back. A narrow dirt road led away through the trees.

Rocky climbed the short steps to the porch.

The door opened and Rocky disappeared through it. The shadows kept Laney from seeing who had opened the door. She took a deep breath and walked up the steps.

The boards of the porch creaked.
The door stood open, but Laney stopped walking. It was only a few short feet, and an ordinary doorway, yet it seemed like a yawning cavern.

Laney didn
’t know why, but she was terrified to step into that house. Somewhere at the back of her mind, she knew that stepping over that threshold was going to change everything. And she just wasn’t sure she was ready.

Jake slipped his hand into hers and squeezed.

She looked up at him and read the love there.
She knew if she wanted to walk away right then, he’d be right there with her.

And if she walked in that door, he
’d be next to her for that, too. She squeezed his hand back. “Okay. Let’s do this.”

Hand in hand,
Laney and Jake walked into the cabin.

Victoria Chandler, Henry
’s mother, stood in front of the couch, waiting for them.

CHAPTER 21

“V
ictoria?” Jake said.

“
Mom?” Henry said at the same time.

Laney just stared.
As far as the world knew, Victoria Chandler had died almost twenty years ago when her car ran off a bridge. Laney knew that wasn’t true, because Laney met Victoria Chandler in Baltimore, two months ago. But only that once, never before.
This
was the person who had hired Rocky to look out for her? Five years before they had even met?

“
I don’t understand,” Laney said.

“
I know.” Victoria gestured to the dining table to her right. “Why don’t we all sit down and I’ll explain?”

Laney looked at Jake, who gave her a nod.
She glanced at Henry’s face as she walked over and took a seat. His jaw was taut. She could read the anger and confusion there.

Victoria
turned to Rocky. “Rochelle, could you wait outside, please?”

Rocky nodded but looked at Laney for a second.
Laney avoided her eyes.

Rocky left, leaving Laney, Jake, and Henry alone with Victoria—and the same bodyguard who Laney had seen with her in Baltimore stood by the door.
Once everyone was seated, except the bodyguard, Laney said, “Victoria, you sent Rocky to watch me?”

Victoria nodded.
“Yes.”

“
I don’t understand.” Laney looked between Victoria and Henry. “I never met Henry until a year ago. And you I only met two months ago.”

Victoria paused.
“Actually, we met thirty years ago. On January twenty-sixth.”

Laney looked at Victoria in confusion.
“You couldn’t have met me. That’s the day before I was born.”

“
No.” Victoria’s voice was soft. “That
is
the day you were born.”

Victoria
’s words curled around Laney’s mind and she tried to make sense of them. January twenty-seventh was her birthday, not the twenty-sixth. What on earth was Victoria talking about?

Henry
’s voice sounded just as confused as Laney’s thoughts. “Mom, what’s going on? Why did you send Rocky to watch Laney? And what do you mean her birthday isn’t her actual birthday?”

Victoria placed her hands on the table and let out a pent
-up breath. “I worried Laney would be in trouble one day. I wanted there to be someone nearby that could help her, should she need it. So I arranged for Rocky to get a position with the Syracuse Police Department. In exchange, she agreed to be there if Laney needed help.”

Jake stared Victoria down.
“Why would you think Laney would need help? And how did you even know who she was?”

Victoria clasped her hands in front of her.
Laney saw a small tremble in them. When Victoria spoke, her voice was soft. “I’ve rehearsed this speech a million times . . . and now I can’t seem to find the words.”

Tendrils of fear started to spread out from Laney
’s stomach. She didn’t know what Victoria was going to say, but she was pretty sure she didn’t want to hear it.

Jake
’s voice was steel. “Well, find them.” Jake’s arms were across his chest, his body tense. Henry had almost the exact same posture.

Victoria let out a shuddering breath.
She glanced at Henry, her eyes apologetic. “You all know about how Henry’s father died. What you don’t know is that I was pregnant at the time. I had just found out a week before.”

Laney stared at Victoria, her mind reeling at where this story could possibly be going.
She glanced at Henry. His mouth was open, shock splashed across his face. He clearly knew nothing about any of this.

“
You know about Henry’s abilities, about who his father was,” Victoria said. “I worried this second child would be targeted, especially when I found out she was a girl. I knew who she would become, what her destiny was. I knew I needed to protect her and I hoped that maybe, just maybe, if I sent her away, she could avoid her destiny altogether.”

Laney shook her head. What the hell was Victoria talking about?
“What does any of that have to do with me?”

Victoria looked at her.
“I knew I had to keep my daughter’s birth a secret. When she was born, I gave her to a family, and there was no record of her birth.”

Confusion warred with doubt in Laney
’s mind. “And what?
I’m
supposed to be this daughter? Victoria, I’m not. My parents are Fiona and Derek McPhearson. I wasn’t adopted. There
are
records of my birth. In a hospital. To my parents.”