Chapter 36 Marked With a Lily

Chapter 36 Marked With a Lily
Ivy

My fingers stung because the paper felt like ice in my hand. I took a good look at the picture again and her face appeared... Zara... her curved lips caught in an image dated barely more than forty-eight hours ago. Someone had been watching her. 

A cold twist hit my gut the moment I knew there was no way out for me. I grabbed the heavy ledger almost immediately, the file pressed firm against my ribs, then my feet carried me fast through the doorway. Strands of my hair whipped across my face,and I didn't even care if the maid saw me that way. The house staff could gawk all they liked. I had to find Lucian right now because he was the only one who could help me.

I reached his door and kept moving, I didn't even bother to knock. My gaze rose from the broad table, surprised at the sight of seeing him. Whether he looked worn out or not, he still wore that edge... the one that's keen enough to catch my breath short. Fear held back the words because I was too tired to even think about anything.

"Ivy? What is wrong? You look like you are going to faint," Lucian said and he stood up really fast.

"He knows it all," I said so softly. "He knows everything, Lucian."

"Slow down. Who knows what?" He moved closed now, then set his broad and heated hand upon my shoulders. Usually those palms soothed me, but this time they made shake too much..

"Alistair," I whispered. "He gave me these big books to look at. He said he wanted to test me. But look what fell out of the first one."

I handed him the paper. It was the report of a man who made money watching people... there were pictures tucked within. In one: Zara, taking a drink near a counter. Her exhaustion stood out plain. But she was definitely Zara.

A flicker of darkness passed over Lucian’s expression when his gaze traced the words. He looked like he wanted to break something.

"This date," Lucian said in a low voice. "This was from last week."

"Yes," I said. "And look at this one. This one is from the day I first came here. He knew she ran away. He knew it before I even walked through the front door."

Lucian walked over to his table and he threw the paper down. "That old man. He is sitting in that chair acting like he is dying but his brain is still working like a trap."

"Why would he let me stay?" I asked. "Why would he pretend I am her if he knows I am not?"

"I don't know yet," Lucian said. He started flipping through the big financial books I brought. "Maybe he wanted to see what you would do. Or maybe he wanted to see what I would do."

"I am scared, Lucian," I said. I sat down on the edge of a chair because my legs felt like jelly. "He told me he liked me today. He said I did a good job regarding the gala thing. But he was lying to my face the whole time."

"He is always lying," Lucian said. He was turning pages very fast now. "He treats people like toys. He’s not just sick, he’s a damn puppeteer! He knew Zara was gone the whole time. Did he mistakenly left the slip inside the ledger or he meant foryouto find it?"

Lucian slammed his fist on the table and the sound was very loud in the quiet room.

"You think he wanted me to find it?" I asked.

"Everything he does has a reason," Lucian said. "He wants to see if you will tell him the truth or if you will come to me. He is watching us play our parts."

"But what about the ledgers?" I pointed at the books. "He told me to check the numbers. He said even his wife Elena never saw these books."

Now, quiet settled over Lucian. His eyes came back to the pages, sharp and wide. He went down into the chair, its wood groaning. He pulled the lamp close toward the sheet. And I couldn't help myself but to stand up and stood near him. 

"Wait a minute," Lucian said, low. His fingertip drifted near a small tag next to the book. "Do you see this mark?"

"It looks like a little bird," I said.

"It’s not a bird," Lucian whispered. "It’s a Lily. That was my mother’s favourite flower. She used it on her private letters."

"Why is it in Alistair's secret ledger book?" I asked.

Lucian didn't answer for a moment, full minute passing by. 

"These are not Alistair’s accounts," Lucian said. "These are my mother’s personal investments. Things she owned before she married him. Things that were supposed to come to me when she passed away."

"Did he take them?" I asked.

"He didn't just take them," Lucian said and he sounded very angry now. "Look at the dates. He has been moving this money around for years. He’s been using my mother’s own money to pay for things he doesn't want anyone to see. Look at this line here. This is a payment to a company I’ve never heard of."

"Maybe it's for his medicine?" I tried to say.

"No," Lucian said. "This is too much money for medicine. This is more money than a hospital costs. He is hiding a huge part of the family fortune inside my mother’s old accounts because he knows I wouldn't think to look there. He told you to look at these because he thinks you are too simple to understand the codes."

"He thinks I am just a girl," I said. I felt a little bit mad then. "He thinks I am just a pretty face that looks like my sister."

"He made a mistake then," Lucian said. He looked up at me and his eyes were glowing. "Because you found the slip. And you brought it to me."

"What do we do now?" I asked. "If he knows I am Ivy, is he going to hurt me? Is he going to send me away?"

Lucian reached out and took my hand. He squeezed it very hard. "He won't hurt you. I won't let him. If he knows who you are, then the game has changed. We don't have to hide as much from him, but we have to be much more careful."

"I don't like games," I said. "I just want to be safe."

"I know," Lucian said. "But look at this, Ivy. Look at the way he marked these. He wanted someone to see this eventually. It’s like he’s leaving a trail of breadcrumbs."

"But why?" I asked. "He is your father. Why would he want to show you that he stole your mother's money?"

"Because he wants to see if I am strong enough to take it back," Lucian said. "He is a monster. He thinks life is just a big puzzle and he doesn't care who gets hurt while he builds it."

Heavy books piled up, pressing on my sight. Each page, row upon row, carried numbers without breath beneath.

"There is so much in here," I said. "We have to read all of it, don't we?"

"Every single page," Lucian said. "We have to find out what else he is hiding. If he knows about Zara, he might know where she is right now. He might be holding her somewhere."

My heart jumped. "You think he has her?"

"I think Alistair Hale has everything he wants," Lucian said. "And right now, he has both of us right where he wants us."

A smudge of ink made me stop... Lily’s mark, I knew it well. Numbers beside it stretched longer than any entry prior. Beneath, a trail of hasty strokes formed letters slanting sideways. It said only four things: For the final piece.

"What's did he mean by the final piece?" I mentioned, pointing straight at the mark.

Lucian stared at the words... silence stretched past its normal length. Not like him. The first time I saw worry cross his features.

"I think the final piece is me," Lucian said.

We both looked at the books. The paper felt heavy and the room felt like it was getting smaller. We knew the truth was in those pages, but the truth felt like it was going to break us both.

"We have to start now," I said. "Before he calls for me again."

"Yes," Lucian said. "We stay up all night if we have to. We find out what he did to my mother's money and we find out what he wants with you."