Chapter 58

LUCAS

" And this used to be your old room. " Keith concludes sadly when we enter a blue furnished nursery room , with toys and everything.

My eyes skim around the room . Tears well up in my eyes as a shaky breath escapes my mouth when I spot a few pictures of a newborn baby boy " Is that m-me?" I choke out .

" Yeah, your first home was here. " Keith stands next to me, looking down at the picture of me with my eyes closed. " I wish it could have been forever but---" he gulps, his voice cracking a little.

" Me too ." I whisper, putting down the picture with a trembling hand. I find more of my pictures on the wall and on the bookcase he must have built for me,  but one picture catches my eye , I quickly wipe my eyes and stand in front of it on the wall .

I see a man holding me while looking at the camera . He has this huge contagious smile on his face, that looks warm and kind . He's in some hospital gown and definitely in a hospital ward, while I'm in his arms, crying and a little bloody  .

" That's your birth father, my husband . " Keith says behind me like he could read my mind that is full of questions

" But I have a mother, she--"A lump in my throat forms, enabling me to form any words and I start blinking away the tears.

" That's your father's sister , not your mother . " He whispers weakly . This makes me step back in shock . Finding it hard to even process the whole situation at the moment.

" No, how can I have. ... What is going on?" I turn to the man in front of me . Keith swallows hard, he looks to be on the edge of breaking down himself but he holds back .

" The way you were able to give birth to your son, is the same way, your father, Luca gave birth to you . He gave birth to you when he was only 15.  He didn't know at first, his family kept that part of him to themselves until he got pregnant by me.  " He sighs heavily" I was 18 during that time . I was accused of many things, including rape since he was still 15 but I know that , Luca was more than just a mere 15 year old . We were childhood best friends, literally grew up together and loved each other dearly until the end . "His eyes blaze with unshed tears as he whispers the last words.

" Until the end?" I repeat in a rather small voice.  My heart quickens at the thought of what that could mean .

" Yes, he died right after that picture was taken ." He points at the picture I was looking at earlier on . " Some birth complications.  I wasn't there . They wouldn't allow me. " He sounds so defeated and sad . I want to reach out, to comfort him but I'm frozen in place.

I know this is supposed to make me feel better, especially knowing that the people who made it possible for me to be here loved me from the day I was conceived. However, why do I feel sad? Sad that I could have had a different life if my father was alive . That I could have probably been less messed up than I am . All these years, I have been begging my mother to have a relationship with me , and now that I think about it, I know why she hated me . I reminded her of her dead brother . Someone she must have loved so much and he died because of me, because he gave birth to me .

" Luca and I knew that we were taking a risk when we decided to have you , so he wrote these for you ..." Keith hands me a stark of letters  " He wrote to you every single month until you came into this world ." A gloomy look crosses his mind when I pull the letters to my chest protectively .

" He wrote to me?"I say more to myself, but Keith nods at me anyways.

" Yes, I never read them because I knew this day would come . " He hugs himself, drawing in a long breath " I'm sorry I couldn't save you from her . I'm so sorry, I tried to-- "

I don't allow him to finish . Instead I slam my body to his, his arms immediately circling around me with loud sobs filling the room from both of us . And this time, as we weep together. He rocks me, rubs my back smoothly and tells me how much he missed me . How much he wanted to protect me from all the pain, the sufferings I had to endure but all I can do is cry and hold on to him . And hope that I never have to let go .

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NATHANIEL

" Talk about keeping it in the family, first it was me and now Lucas?" Axel scoffs as he takes a seat next to me on the couch .

" I'm not in the mood for your nonsense ." I utter, checking my phone occasionally to see if I have any messages from James.

" Come on, we are a family Nathan.  Did you know, Uncle Keith and my mother are siblings?" He scoots closer to me, invading my personal space .

" I didn't know until now ." I admit with a huff, I scoot over the corner of the couch, place a few cushions between us so he wouldn't come anywhere near me.

" Why are you trying to get away from me?" He frowns at me .

" Why are you trying to come closer to me?" I ask that instead of responding to his question .

" Because I want to be closer to you ." He shrugs like that is pretty obvious.  I don't buy into his innocent look so I glance over the playing TV .

" Are we seriously going to be like this around each other? I mean, Lucas wouldn't wan--"

My phone rings, interrupting him . I sigh in relief when I see that it is James calling.  I excuse myself, get in the nearest bathroom and answer the cellphone.

" Hello?"

" We have a problem. " James says on the other side of the line .

" A problem?" I run my hand through my hair anxiously.  " What kind of a problem?" .

" Tyron escaped a few hours ago . " James mutters " We can't find him and we have reasons to believe that he's heading your way . "

" Fucking hell James! How the fuck did he escape if you had him under a tight security?" I say through gritted teeth .

" It's not my fault that he's a pro at picking locks and being invisible.  " James jeers through the line .

" The deal is off! I don't even know why I bothered asking you for help!"I'm about to hang up when James stops me .

" Wait, I don't care about the deal anymore.  " He mumbles " Lucas being Keith's son is enough for me . So, with that said, I won't stop looking high and low for Tyron . Just keep a close look on your side and keep everything locked up . " Then he hangs up .

I just stand there, dumbfounded . What has Keith being Lucas' dad got to do with everything? However, I don't allow my mind to wander long . I immediately call Wylder to let him know that he needs to be careful and Tyron is on the loose.

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