Chapter 8 - TREVOR’S REAL REASON
Trevor hadn’t met me by accident.
Not at the diner.
Not during college.
Not anywhere.
He had been placed in my life.
The thought made me physically sick.
We traced the photograph to seven years earlier.
Trevor was nineteen.
My father stood beside him outside a motel in Nevada.
Roman’s investigators found another connection.
Trevor’s mother had worked as Malcolm Reed’s assistant.
For sixteen years.
“She knew my father?”
“Almost certainly,” Marcus said.
I stared out Roman’s office window.
Every memory of Trevor rearranged itself.
The first time he walked into my diner.
The way he asked about my childhood.
My father.
My mother.
Whether I had family money.
I had thought he was interested.
He had been collecting information.
Roman stood behind me.
“Trevor stayed with you for almost four years.”
I swallowed.
“Because Malcolm told him to?”
“We don’t know.”
I laughed without humor.
“What part was real?”
Roman didn’t answer.
My phone rang.
Unknown number.
Roman immediately reached for it.
I stopped him.
“Speaker.”
I answered.
“Hello?”
Trevor’s voice.
“Sadi.”
My skin crawled.
“What do you want?”
“You found the photograph.”
Roman’s eyes sharpened.
“You’ve been watching us.”
“I’ve been trying to keep you alive.”
I laughed.
“You kicked me yesterday.”
“That wasn’t supposed to happen.”
“You deliberately kicked me.”
“I didn’t recognize you.”
“That makes it better?”
Silence.
Trevor exhaled.
“Malcolm told me you were still broke. Still alone.”
I looked at Roman.
“Why did you date me?”
Another silence.
“Trevor.”
“Originally?”
His voice grew quieter.
“To find out what your mother knew.”
My throat tightened.
“And later?”
“I stayed.”
“Why?”
“Because I loved you.”
Roman’s jaw clenched.
I felt nothing but disgust.
“You stole my money.”
“Malcolm told me to disappear.”
“You left me with ninety dollars.”
“I know.”
“You watched me almost get evicted!”
“I know!”
Trevor’s voice cracked.
For the first time, he sounded like the young man I remembered.
Then the mask returned.
“Listen to me. Your father is alive.”
Everything stopped.
Roman grabbed the phone.
“Where is he?”
Trevor laughed.
“Hello, Ghost.”
Roman’s voice became ice.
“If you’re lying—”
“I’m not.”
“Where?”
“Malcolm moved him years ago.”
“Why keep him alive?”
“Because Elias memorized account numbers Malcolm couldn’t recover.”
My knees weakened.
I sat down.
Trevor continued.
“He’s been hidden under another name.”
“Where?”
“I’ll tell Sadi.”
Roman’s hand tightened around the phone.
“No games.”
“It isn’t a game.”
Trevor paused.
“Come to the old Vale theater tonight.”
Roman looked at Marcus.
Marcus shook his head.
Trevor continued.
“Sadi comes inside alone.”
“No.”
“Then Elias moves again.”
I leaned toward the phone.
“How do I know he’s alive?”
Trevor said nothing.
Then another voice came through the line.
Weak.
Older.
But familiar.
“Sadi?”
My breath disappeared.
May you like
“Dad?”
The line went dead.
