“You two can question that, but I’m not going to.” I cross my arms and elevate my chin. “Uncuff him before I pick that lock.”
Aiden and Ellie stare at each other, having some sort of silent conversation. Just how long have they known each other? And why does Aiden have a familiarity about him? Has Ellie known him for a long time, and I saw him at some point?
With how many secrets she has, I wouldn’t be shocked if this were true,
“Fine.” Aiden retrieves a key from his pants’ side pocket. Then he sticks the key into the handcuff lock. “If this goes wrong, it’s your fault,” he warns, pointing a finger at me.
“Cool,” I deadpan, eliciting a dirty look from him.
I get a sick pleasure in knowing he let his emotionless mask slip for a moment, and he turns the key rather aggressively.
The cuffs fall to the floor, and Finn sits up, massaging his wrist. “Thanks,” he mumbles to Aiden.
“Don’t thank me. Maddy’s in charge of you now,” he grumbles to Finn as he pockets the key.
Finn gives a half shrug, then lowers his feet to the floor and stands up. “You say that like it’s terrible, but I don’t mind.”
“Also, I’m a terrible person for that job,” I chime in. “Since the only person I’ve ever been in charge of is myself, and look how well that turned out.”
No one says anything, but Finn squeezes past Aiden and comes to stand in front of me. “Are you okay? You passed out so badly when that tranquilizer hit you. I was lucky I had time to catch you, or else you would’ve hit your head on the ground.”
I offer him a small smile. “I’m glad you caught me then. And I feel fine.” I scrub a smear of mud off his cheek. “Are you okay?”
He nods dismissively. “I’m fine, but I’d like to know more about what’s going on.”
“Me too.” I face Ellie, who’s watching me closely. “You want to chime in here and tell me where the hell you’ve been and why you never told me I was your daughter?” My clipped tone causes her to flinch.
“I know you want answers, but we need to get out of here.” Her lips dip downward as she glances at the alarm clock on the nightstand. “We have a plane to catch in just a few hours, and the airport is a ways away.”
I cross my arms defiantly and lower my ass onto the bed. “I’m not going anywhere until you give me something.” When she looks at Aiden, it adds fuel to my fire. “Why are you looking at him for an answer? How do you even know him?” I whip around toward Aiden and almost topple over as the room spins. But like always, Finn is there to catch me.
I point a finger at Aiden. “And why are you helping us? It doesn’t make any sense.”
“I agree with her on that,” Finn says, looking at Aiden with his hand resting on my hip to keep me steady. “You’ve worked for my father forever, so why did you all of a sudden backstab him?”
“Who said it was all of a sudden?” Aiden states with indifference, then he focuses on collecting the handcuffs from off the floor and putting them into a backpack that’s on a table.
Finn shakes his head. “I’m with Maddy on this. I’m not going anywhere until we get some answers.”
Again, Ellie looks at Aiden. “I think you should tell them. It might help them trust us.”
Aiden zips up the backpack. “They should trust us because we got them out of that prison.”
“I know, but at the same time, it does look like you’ve been working for James for years,” she stresses. “It’s okay. It might be good to get this off your chest.”
My gaze shifts from Ellie then to Finn, whose confusion mirrors mine. I direct my attention to Aiden, and he’s staring at Finn.
When Finn notices, his brows draw together. “What’s up? Why are you looking at me like that?”
“It’s okay, Aiden,” Ellie encourages him in a gentle tone. “Once you say it aloud, it’ll feel better.”
“Doubtful,” Aiden mumbles, but then snatches up the backpack from off the table. “I’m your half-brother,” he tells Finn as he strides by us. To Ellie, he says, “I have a few things to do before we leave for the airport. Meet me in the lobby in an hour.” He exits the room, slamming the door behind him.
“What the hell?” Finn gapes at the door with his mouth hanging open. “He’s lying, right?”
Ellie shakes her head. “He’s not. Your father has a handful of children with various women, most of them from northside. And a lot of them were prostitutes, so he would take his kids from their mothers and raise them. Except he didn’t raise them. He locked them up and tortured them into obeying his every command. Aiden was the only one who survived it.”
Finn is struck speechless, his eyes wide, and he’s shaking his head.
