Chapter 8: ❝ tell me what you want to hear ❞

(unedited)

Got no reason, got no shame,

Got no family, I can blame.

Just don't let me disappear,

I'mma tell you everything.

So tell me what you want to hear,

Something that will light those ears.

"Secrets" - OneRepublic

Daniel Sullivan was waiting in front of my house again.

"It's Saturday," I told him as I got off my bike.

He raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, I know."

"Kaden doesn't work on Saturdays." Saturdays were family days. Or at least, they had been. It was a little awkward now, since I was grown up, and they couldn't exactly drag me to a movie or an amusement park and expect me to have fun. I usually left the house, and well, it wasn't really a mystery what they did while I was gone.

Though it was a pretty disturbing thought.

Daniel shrugged. "He called me over today." He followed after me a bit as I put my bike in the garage. "You'd think they had enough to get you a car."

I glanced at him. "I have a car. I just don't use it." I didn't mind driving, but I usually used Raine's old bike. It was still in pretty good condition, for being as old as it was, and it reminded me that I hadn't grown up as a trust fund baby, like most other people in this town.

"They should at least get you a better bike."

I pressed the button to shut the garage door as I walked out. "They don't know I use it." I unlocked the door and walked in, letting him follow and close the door behind him. "Raine? Kaden?" I called.

"I don't think they're home," Daniel said from behind me. "I was out there for ten minutes."

I heard a thud and cringed. "They're probably getting dressed."

The expression on his face would have been hilarious if I didn't feel the same way. I may not think of Raine and Kaden compeltely as my parents, but that didn't mean I wanted to think, or know, about their... Ahem, other activities.

"It's weird that you know when your parents are having sex," Daniel said after a couple moments of silence.

"Not like I want to," I replied. "But they're not exactly subtle about it." Just then, Raine and Kaden came down the stairs, dressed, but with messy hair and flustered skin. I turned to Daniel. "See?"

Both Kaden and Raine rolled their eyes, having apparently already figured out what I mean. Daniel's eyes grew huge, making a faint blush creep up Raine's already flustered cheeks.

"Lena," Kaden said, in a mock scolding tone.

I raised my hands. "You're the one who called him here!"

Daniel coughed. "The evidence, Kaden?"

Kaden stiffened, the slightest bit, but kept an easygoing smile on his face. "Right. We'll be half an hour, at most." He gave Raine a quick, and thankfully chaste, kiss, and then ducked into his office, Daniel following closely behind.

Raine turned to me once they were out of sight. "Did you have to make things awkward?" she asked.

I shrugged as I followed her into the kitchen. "It's not my fault you guys go at it like horny teenagers," I replied, wrinkling my nose.

Raine's cheeks flushed red. "We do not!"

"Sure," I coughed. "So," I started, trying for a casual voice.

"No, I don't know what they're going over," she interrupted as she pulled a pan out from the cupboard.

Damn. "That wasn't what I was going to ask."

"Sure," she mimicked, with a cough of her own. "Can you start a salad?" she asked, opening the fridge and pulling out the various ingredients needed for lasagna. She passed me a bag of lettuce and a cucumber.

I let the conversation drop as I washed the vegetables. Daniel showing up had reminded me of Skylar, and the creepy note that had come with her. If that, and what had happened yesterday, were related, then that meant someone in the Elite had probably pushed her down the stairs.

Ashton, Nathan or Jacen.

I had no idea what to think of Ashton. There wasn't any reason for him to do any of it, especially since Skylar was his best friend. But then again, none of the guys really had any motive for any of it.

Nathan... I barely knew him. He was nice, and I don't think he had any reason to hate me. Also, he had been the one to find Skylar. It was possible that he was covering his tracks, but still, he just seemed too nice.

That left Jacen. Jacen and his smirks and annoying as hell cryptic messages. Which reminded me...

"Hey, Raine?" She turned to look at me. "How well did you know my birth parents?"

If I hadn't been watching for her reaction so closely, I would've how she had stiffened for a quick second before relaxing. "Not very well, why?"

The curiosity wasn't faked; I knew that at the very least. I had pretty much never asked about my biological parents before. Even though I had been five when they died, I had very few memories of them.

A flash of blonde hair. The smell of coffee. Pale green eyes. Being picked up and spun around. A fancy wedding. A man's deep laugh. Chocolate and cherry ice cream.

And those memories could've been anyone's.

I shrugged. "Just wondering."

Raine sighed and set down the grater she was using for the cheese. "I know your biological mom and dad split after you were born. You were raised by your dad and his girlfriend."

"Is my biological mom still alive?" I kept my eyes down as I cut up the cucumber, partially because I didn't want to cut myself, but mostly because I didn't know exactly what to think about what Raine was telling me.

"I think so." She had moved on to simmering the beef now, I could hear the sizzling of oil.

"Did... Blake and... Avril know them well?" Even five years after, it was kind of hard saying their names. I called them by their names now, even though I used to call them 'Mom' and 'Dad' the seven years I was with them. I had gone through three- maybe four- sets of parents. It was weird to really think of two people as 'Mom' and 'Dad' now. Though, I guess Blake and Avril had been the closest.

I glanced up in time to see Raine nod. "Blake and your dad were close," she said. "Your mom and Avril as well." As she turned in the oven, I saw a tear trickle down her cheek.

I wasn't the only reason we didn't talk about Blake and Avril much. Raine had been close to them too. Avril had been her cousin and she said she had known Blake since high school.

"Oh." I didn't know what else to say. I finished the salad and grabbed the dressing from the fridge, setting it beside the metal bowl. I moved around the counter and sat at the breakfast bar, watching Raine layer the lasagna noodles and the mixes into a pan.

She didn't look at me until she had placed the lasagna in the oven to cook. "Why the sudden curiosity, Lena?" she asked, as she wiped down the counter.

I shrugged. "Some people were talking about family trees at school," I lied. "And I was just wondering if I was secretly related to the queen of England."

Raine's raised eyebrow told me she had caught onto my lie, but she didn't call it out. "Sorry to disappoint," she said with a teasing smile.

I shrugged, giving a small, forced laugh.

I wasn't sure what to think of my family- I had gone through so many. I wasn't even really sure who I was. Elena Evans wasn't my real name. Elena was my middle name and Evans was Raine's last name before she married Kaden. I had used Jordan, Blake's last name, when I had lived with him and Avril, but when they died; it had felt like I needed a change. But I wasn't a Fleming, no matter how accepting Raine and Kaden had been, and I wasn't going to pretend that I was.

Raine opened her mouth to speak, but before she could say a word, a loud curse came from Kaden's office.

"What's going on?" I asked. Kaden never lost his cool during a case, not when they were at court, nor at home.

She sighed. "He's been looking for evidence for a case for a while and nothing's turned up."

I was about to ask more questions to see if I could somehow pull some more information on the case Kaden and the brother of my English teacher were working on, but before I could, the office door opened.

"Everything okay?" Raine asked as Kaden and Daniel walked into the room.

Kaden sighed and moved towards her. "Everything's fine," he replied, then proceeded to pull her into a long, not-so-chaste kiss that showed that everything, was definitely not fine.

I wrinkled my nose and turned away, causing Daniel to chuckle at my reaction. I moved beside him on the couch. "So, how's Skylar?" I asked quietly.

He glanced at me. "Fine."

I raised an eyebrow. Right. I hope he never planned on being an actor... I glanced at the briefcase in his lap. "How'd you end up as Kaden's partner?" I asked, in the most casual tone I could manage.

"Lena, you better not be questioning Daniel," Kaden scolded, without even looking in our direction.

I cleared my throat and scooted away from him. "Why would I be?"

Kaden pulled away and shot me a look that had 'I know what you're up to' written all over it.

I blinked back at him innocently.

"Dinner's in ten minutes," Raine said, interrupting our partial staring contest. "Would you like to stay, Daniel?"

He shook his head. "I can't. Thank you for the offer, though," he replied, standing up.

"I'll walk you to the door," Kaden said.

"Do you mind making dinner tomorrow?" Raine asked once they were gone. "If you've got plans, I can get Kaden to, he's overdue anyway on kitchen duty. I have a doctor's appointment. " Again?

"Yeah, sure."

"Thanks. I know you're going to Devon's, but he's still figuring out the kitchen," she said. Kaden not being able to cook was a bit of an ongoing joke.

Last Christmas, Raine had asked him to cook. Kaden hadn't set the kitchen on fire, or anything, but since it was either Raine or I was usually the one who cooked and organized the kitchen, he hadn't known where anything was. And it resulted in a disgustingly sweet turkey and chili flakes in salad. He was learning more now, though Raine often complained that he wasn't putting any effort into it.

I felt like there was something I was supposed to do Sunday, but I couldn't remember what. I shook my head, clearing my thoughts. "Hey Raine?" She looked over at me. "Is everything okay?"

What do you mean?"

"You've had a lot of doctor's appointments lately."

"Sometimes I wish you weren't so observant," she said, with a slight smile. "Everything's fine, Lena. I promise."

♡ the trouble with love ♡

The third Sundays of every month were my Devon days.

They used to be lesson days, but since I had learned everything he was willing to teach me, it had turned into us doing whatever we felt like doing that day. Which was typically just watching a movie with his boyfriend, Shawn.

We usually met at Devon's house, but since he had a last minute meeting with one of his patients, he said to come to his office, instead.

When I got there, the last person I expected to see was leaving- Jenna Tunclet.

Who I hadn't seen since she left me the message about the Elite.

Beware of the royals or you will drown in their lies

"Jenna!" I yelled. She glanced at me, but didn't stop walking; I just barely managed to grab her arm before she got in her car. "Why did you leave me that message?"

"So you got it," she said.

"It wasn't exactly hard."

"And you took it seriously?" she asked.

"Was it supposed to be a joke?" The thought had crossed my mind, but I had dismissed it because Jenna didn't seem like that kind of person.

She shook her head.

"Then what did you mean by it?" I asked.

"Exactly what it said," she replied. For a second, I got distracted, wondering if cryptic answers were a rich-people thing or if it was just people I knew.

"Were you talking about the Elite?"

"Who else is royalty at our school?" There was a bitter edge to her tone, but it wasn't jealousy. Hatred, maybe, but not envy.

"Why are you warning me against them?"

She shook her head, staying silent.

"What do you know?"

Another shake of head.

"Lena?" A voice called from behind me. I glanced back to see Shawn getting out of his car. Damnit. I sighed and let go of her arm.

"Tell me sometime, okay?" I said, lowering my voice. "You can't just leave me a message like that and expect me not to have questions."

She gave a slight nod, then turned and got in her car.

"What was that about?" Shawn asked, watching Jenna's car until it turned and disappeared out of sight, before turning to look at me.

I shrugged. "I know her from school." And she owes me some answers. I didn't say that bit out loud, of course.

"So you decided to hold her hostage?" He smiled teasingly. "I didn't think you were that desperate for friends, Lennie."

I rolled my eyes and flicked him.

"What were you asking her about?" he asked.

Shawn worked for the police department as a detective, which meant I probably wouldn't be able to lie to him and get away with it. I tried, anyway. "Just something for school."

Of course, it didn't work. He raised an eyebrow. "Didn't look like that."

I shrugged.

He stared.

I need to stop surrounding myself with people who can tell when someone's lying better than I can, I thought as I continued to blink at Shawn innocently.

He blinked back at me.

And this was how Devon found us.

"What are you guys doing?" he asked, twirling his keys around his finger. He had probably just locked up.

I looked away from Shawn. "You... Therapize Jenna Tunclet?" I asked, blanking on the word for what Devon did.

Shawn snickered. "You mean console?"

"Yeah, that."

Devon nodded. "She's one of my patients, yes."

"She goes to my school," I said.

He nodded again. "I'm aware."

Damn, he knew there was something I was hiding. I wanted to ask about Jenna, but that would require explaining why I was curious and that conversation probably wouldn't go well. And with both Devon and Shawn, I doubt I would be able to pass will a lie.

I let it drop as we walked to Shawn's car and got in. Me in the back, Devon in the passenger seat and Shawn driving.

"So, how do you feel today, Lena?" Devon asked, turning around to look at me as Shawn started the car.

I shrugged.

He raised an eyebrow.

Shawn smirked.

"You know," I said after a moment. "I feel like all of you are keeping some kind of huge secret from me."

Shawn raised an eyebrow, glancing at me through the rear view mirror. "Oh really?"

I nodded.

"And how do you feel about that?" Devon asked. And this was the question the most fully booked psychiatrist in our town chose to ask.

"I hope this isn't how you treat your patients," I said after a couple beats of silence. "Because then they're paying you too much.

Devon rolled his eyes and chuckled. "No, I don't ask them that," he told me, shaking his head. He continued to stare at me as he flashed me an almost insane smile.

I stared at him. "I still think they're paying you too much."

-- ♡ --

Daniel ---->

Teaser: "You know," I said. "I'm starting to believe you and your friends have a lot more than one secret each."

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