Chapter 103 Adeline
Adeline's POV
When I impulsively invited Zara to come watch me race, I didn't expect her to take me up on it.
It was Saturday night, and the underground racing circuit was in full swing. Neon headlights cut through the thick fog rolling off the East River, and with the deafening roar of bikes, it was a full house.
I leaned against the matte-black Ducati, zipping up my heavy leather riding jacket. I had on standard clothing for the night, and contrasting me was Zara. She went all out in a vintage leather jacket over a silk slip dress and her dark hair pulled back into a sleek ponytail. Everything around her fascinated her, and she didn't even bother to hide it. It was obvious in her wide, fascinated eyes.
"I cannot believe you used to do this to pay your rent," Zara shouted over the roar of a passing bike. "This is terrifying! It’s like a movie set for criminals!"
"It builds character!" I yelled back, laughing.
Standing directly behind Zara, looking exactly like the kind of criminal she was describing, was Alex.
The massive Russian enforcer hadn't left her side since we arrived. At this point, Alex had made her his primary mission. He stood with his arms crossed as he dared anyone to come close to her with his dark eyes.
Percy stood on my other side, dressed in dark jeans and a Henley looking at home and fitting in the dark. He leaned in, his arm brushing mine as he handed me a helmet.
"You sure you want to run the circuit tonight, baby?" Percy murmured with a dark smirk playing on his lips. "There are some heavy hitters from Queens on the grid."
"I'm going to smoke them," I promised, taking the helmet from him.
"Yo, Volkov!"
I turned to find Jax, one of the bookies who organized the races coming towards us with grease on his face and a clipboard in his hand. He stopped a few feet away, his eyes darting between me and Zara.
Jax blinked before wiping his greasy hand on his jeans as he did a highly exaggerated double-take.
"Damn," Jax laughed, pointing his pen at us. "Since when do you come in a set of two, Volkov? You didn't tell me you had a sister."
Zara beamed, entirely charmed by the comparison. She looped her arm through mine. "We're soul sisters! I'm her moral support for the night."
"Could have fooled me," Jax snorted, shaking his head. "Put some leather pants on her and I wouldn't know which one of you to take bets on. You two look like actual twins. Anyway, you're up in five. Grid line four."
Jax walked away to shout at another racer, not knowing that he had created unease in me. His words about us being actual twins kept ringing in my head.
I pushed the thought away and threw my leg over the Ducati and pulled my helmet on. I couldn't afford to be distracted out there.
For the next twenty minutes, I let the race take over. The race was brutal and fast, as usual. Liberating, too, as I wove through the path with my engine screaming as I fought for the lead.
By the time I crossed the finish line in second place, narrowly beaten by a guy riding a heavily modified Kawasaki, I felt alive in ways only riding could make me feel.
I pulled back into our bay, kicking the stand down and pulling off my helmet. Percy was waiting with a bottle of water and pride in his eyes.
"Second place, not bad when it's been so long."
"I'll take first next time," I panted.
Zara rushed over, practically vibrating with excitement. "Adeline, that was insane! You were practically flying! My heart was in my throat the entire time! I was so scared!"
As she hugged me, another racer walked over. It was Marcus, the guy who had just beaten me. He pulled off his helmet and ran a hand through his sweat-drenched hair. I had raced against him a few times back in my Queens days, so we were quite friendly.
"Good race, Adeline." Marcus grinned, holding his hand out for a fist bump. "You almost had me on that last turn."
"You got lucky with your suspension, Marcus," I shot back playfully, returning the bump.
Marcus laughed, but as his eyes drifted past me to where Zara was standing, his smile faltered. He looked at me, then at Zara, then back at me in confusion.
"Whoa," Marcus breathed, taking a step back. "Am I seeing double? What the hell, Addie? Is this the twin sister you never talk about?"
Again, everything faded around me. Zara was oblivious to what I was feeling as she smiled and stepped forward.
"I'm Zara," she introduced herself happily. "Just a very good friend, unfortunately."
"Bullshit," Marcus scoffed, shaking his head. He looked between us again, pointing a finger. "You have the exact same eyes. The exact same jawline. You guys even tilt your heads the exact same way. If you aren't twins, someone is cloning people in Brooklyn." He was the only one that laughed at his joke before walking away with a final salute in our direction.
I watched him go until I could no longer see him go on his bike. In the legal world, there is a very simple rule regarding evidence: Once is an anomaly. Twice is a coincidence. Three times is a pattern, funniest part is neither Percy nor I talked about any resemblance to Zara before until a full outsider started pointing it out now.
Evelyn Whitmore looking at me like I was a ghost was the first time. Zara telling me her parents lost a baby girl more than twenty-six years ago was the second time. The third time was tonight when Jax and Marcus asked if we were sisters. These were strangers, not stressed people like Evelyn the night of the party.
I turned my head slowly to look at Zara. She was standing next to Alex as she teased the giant Russian about his scowl and laughing as he grunted in response. I studied her features carefully, and it was then that it occurred to me, too. We looked alike in ways I had never bothered to examine. It was in the little things that we had ignored.
I needed to know; the lawyer inside me couldn't ignore the things I was seeing. I needed to be sure there was nothing there or I'd never be able to rest.
Percy noticed the shift in my posture. He stepped closer, his brow furrowing in concern as he placed a warm hand on my lower back. "Adeline? Are you alright? You're completely pale."
"I'm fine," I lied, my voice sounding hollow and entirely detached from my body. I looked up into his worried eyes. "I'm just tired, Percy. Can we go home?"
Percy didn't believe me, but he didn't push it in front of the crowd. "Of course, baby. Let's go."
As we walked out of the shipyard and climbed into the back of the tinted SUV, I pulled my phone out of my pocket.
I opened my mail app and started drafting a message to Silas Vance, a private investigator that the firm used. It was time to open the Whitmore case file.