The Belial Ring (The Belial Series 3) (16 page)

Kati let out a breath.
“How many are out there like them?”

Laney shrugged.
“I’m not sure. At least two hundred, not including their children.”

“
Children? Their children have powers?”

“
Some do. Henry does.”

Kati nodded, and Laney noticed
Kati’s hand shaking. “Kati?”

Kati glanced over at her
, giving her a small smile. “It’s a little scary. What chance do us normal people have against people with those kinds of powers?”

Laney didn
’t know what to say. She sighed. “I know it’s scary. But they can be defeated, you know.”

Kati shook her head.
“I think for right now, I’m going to leave you guys to figure that stuff out. I’m going to pretend I don’t know.”

Laney took her hand.
“I understand. If that were an option for me, I’d do exactly the same thing. Do you know where Jake is?”

“
He said he had something to take care of but he didn’t want you to be alone, so he called me.”

“
Did he tell you what’s going on?”

“
No, but from the expression on his face, I could tell it was something big.” Kati paused. “I saw Patrick flying off in the chopper yesterday.”

“
Has he come back?”

“
No. Jake said he called last night, but Patrick didn’t want Jake to wake you.”

Laney nodded
, her eyes straying to the French doors. How could everything have gotten so turned upside down? How was anything ever going to be normal again?

Kati reached out and touched Laney
’s shoulder. “Is everything okay?”

Laney swallowed down the hurt.
Patrick was gone. She leaned her head back, tears clouding her vision. How sad was it that thinking about the threat of the Fallen was easier than focusing on her family drama?

Laney shook off the feelings and Kati
’s question. “How’s Max?”

“
He’s okay. He didn’t really understand what was happening in Hershey. He’s with Danny and Jen. Danny’s teaching him to play Skylanders.”

Laney tried to give Kati a smile, but knew she wasn
’t convincing. “That’s good.”

Kati gave Laney a long look before taking her hand.
“Laney, honey, tell me what’s going on. I know this isn’t just about the attack. Something else happened, didn’t it?”

Laney looked over at her.
“Oh Kati, it’s all such a mess.” And the story poured out of her. Rocky, everything Victoria had said, everything Laney had said to Patrick. The whole sordid mess.

“
So, Henry’s your brother?” Kati asked, her eyebrows raised.

Laney let out a breath
, picturing Henry’s face at the cabin. He’d been as shocked as she was. “Yeah. I guess that’s the one good thing to come out of this mess. But how could Victoria do that? How could she just give me away? How could she do that to my parents?”

Kati stayed silent, picking at the blanket.

Laney looked over at her.
“What?”

“
It’s just—” Kati stopped. “Do you think Victoria was telling you the truth about sending you away to protect you?”

Laney let her head fall back against the headboard.
“Yes. I think she thought she was doing it to protect me. But was that a reasonable thing to even suspect? I mean, why would she think I was in danger?”

Kati let out a strangled laugh.
“You’re kidding, right? In the last twelve months, you’ve nearly lost your life how many times? You’ve been kidnapped once and were nearly grabbed again down in Hershey. Lately, you are an absolute magnet for danger.”

“
Okay. That’s all true. But it’s also recent. Until now, my life has been pretty safe.”

“
Maybe. But maybe that’s also because you didn’t grow up with Victoria. I mean, look at Henry. His life hasn’t exactly been normal.”

“
You’re defending her?”

Kati put up her hands.
“No. I’m just trying to help you determine if there are any good reasons why she did what she did.”

“There aren’t
. You don’t use people like pawn pieces.”

“
No, you don’t. But she gave you two loving parents, who otherwise probably wouldn’t have had a child. And she gave you your Uncle Patrick. Meanwhile, she had to live her life without you. And after Henry turned eighteen, largely without him too.”

Resentment began to build in Laney.
“You’re taking her side. I can’t believe it.”

“
No. I’m trying to understand her side. And as a mom, I don’t know.” Kati’s voice drifted off.

“
Don’t know? Don’t know what?”

Kati chewed her bottom lip.
“Okay, don’t get mad at me.”

Laney glared at her.

“Or at least, don’t get any madder. Just listen for a minute.”

Laney nodded stiffly, leaning back against the pillows.

“I want you to think about Max. Picture him when we first brought him home from the hospital. Those first few months, and all the years that you’ve watched him grow up.”

Laney did, a constant flow of memories.
Laney had met Kati on the day of Max’s birth. In fact, she had saved Kati’s and Max’s lives that day. And from that moment on, they had become a family.

“
Okay,” Laney said.

“
Now, imagine someone was going to hurt Max. What would you do?”

Laney looked at Kati without blinking.
“I’d kill them.”

Kati let out a little laugh.
She took Laney’s hand and kissed it. “I know. And I am thankful every day that he has you in his life. But the fact is, we can’t be there every moment of every day. What if you knew there were people who were after him? Or would be one day? What if you knew the only way to protect him was to give him up?”

Laney let Kati
’s words sink in, but she still wasn’t ready to be on Victoria’s side. “She couldn’t have known that.”

“
She sent Rocky to look out for you five years ago. And look at everything that’s happened to you. The fact is, she
did
know. Somehow she knew.”

Laney wasn
’t ready to let Victoria off the hook. “But why not wait until danger appeared? Why send me away
before
it appeared?”

“
You know, if she had done that, I wouldn’t think too highly of her. She would have been putting her happiness before yours. If she had kept you for any amount of time, it would have been harder on you, harder on Henry, when you finally had to leave—but easier on her. She would have had the memories of those times to keep her going. Instead, she gave you away. She put your happiness before hers. To me, that sounds like a mom.”

Kati leaned over and kissed Laney on the forehead before leaving.

Laney sat quietly, Kati
’s words flowing through her mind. She wasn’t ready to forgive Victoria for what she had put her through.

But she had to admit, the only ones hurt here were her and Patrick.
Her parents were beyond getting hurt.

No.
Henry and Victoria were hurt too,
a little voice whispered in the back of her mind.

Henry.
When she’d first met him, she’d been bowled over by his intelligence, his kindness, his generosity in all things. The image of him risking his own life to save her uncle’s was forever branded in her mind.

Laney kicked off her blankets.
She needed to talk to her brother.

CHAPTER 32

A
bout eight hundred yards from the main building, Laney drove the golf cart over the rolling lawns to Henry's house. Ahead, a deep grouping of well-aged blue spruces guarded the way to Henry’s home. The branches rubbed against the side of the cart as she passed through.

Most people who arrived at the expansive Chandler Group
’s Headquarters probably assumed that Henry’s home was equally lavish. But actually, it was the exact opposite.

As she broke
free of the towering evergreens, Henry’s cottage came into view. A two-story home that had once been a caretaker’s cottage, it was extremely modest by millionaire standards.

But Henry wasn
’t into the trappings of wealth. He knew that for the Chandler Group to be successful, he needed to present a wealthy image. Underneath the image, however, he preferred a simple existence.

There was no driveway, no noticeable wires.
It was just a simple stone cottage, with a riot of wildflowers surrounding it, looking as if it could have been right at home at the turn of the nineteenth century.

Henry had added a second floor a decade ago and outfitted it with all the latest in electronics and security to allow him to work from home when necessary.
Otherwise, though, it was minimalistic.

Inside, of course, the doorways and windows had been adapted to accommodate Henry
’s height. On the walls, there were a few simple sketches—bought because Henry liked them, not for their resale value. The furniture was chosen for the history he felt when he saw it, and of course, for its comfort.

Laney loved that about him. He could have lived in a huge mansion.
Instead, he chose a simple cottage for him and Danny to call home.

Laney pulled to a stop next to the front stone path.
The heavy oak door opened before she reached it.

Henry stood outlined in the frame.
“Hey.”

Laney climbed the three brick stairs.
“Hey.”

Henry stepped back to let her in.
“I was about to get some sweet tea. Would you like a glass?”

Laney wasn
’t thirsty, but she said yes anyway. She followed Henry back to the kitchen. Pictures dotted the hall. Henry had added them in the last year. Pictures of Laney, Jake, Danny, Jen, Patrick, even some of Kati and Max, covered the space. At the end of the hall were even a few from when Henry was child.

Just before the kitchen, a picture of Henry and Victoria made
Laney pause. In the photo, Henry couldn’t have been any older than four. Victoria stood behind him, her arms wrapped around him, giant smiles on both of their faces. The Victoria that Laney knew today had a head of pure white hair. But in the old shot, her hair had been a deep auburn—the exact same shade as Laney’s.

Laney stepped into the kitchen.
A giant farmhouse stove stood against the left wall, a brick archway above it. Large windows looked out onto a stone patio. The walls were a pale yellow, the cabinets a grey blue. Laney had always liked this kitchen. She always felt welcome in it.

She took a seat at the island, with its heavy oak counter.
Henry got out two glasses and poured them each some tea.

“
Thanks.” Laney took the glass from Henry, taking a small sip.

Henry took a seat next to her.
“So, how exactly do we start this conversation?”

Laney let out a shaky laugh.
“I’m really not sure.”

“
Laney, I want you to know, I never knew any of what my mother—our mother—revealed. I didn’t know . . .” His voice drifted off.

“
You didn’t know I was your sister?” Laney asked gently.

Henry nodded.
“Yeah.”

“
You don’t remember her being pregnant? Or anything?”

“
I was only five. And Dad had just died.”

Laney was jolted by his words.
She’d forgotten about the timing. Henry’s dad, her dad, had been killed just six months before her birth. Victoria had been pregnant when she watched her husband get killed for what he was.

Henry continued, unaware of Laney
’s thoughts. “I remember her going away for a few days, which was weird, because at that point, she barely ever let me be alone. That must have been when—”

“
When I was born.”

“
Yeah.”

“
Henry, I don’t understand Victoria. I don’t get why she does what she does.”

Henry gave a little laugh.
“Well, you’re in good company there, because I don’t either. But what I’ve never doubted, no matter how many secrets she’s kept, is that she loves me and that she’s always doing what she thinks is in my best interest. And while this last revelation is incredible, I can’t help but think she did it because she thought it was what was best for you, too.”

“
It’s just hard to accept that. My whole life has been a lie.”