Chapter 52

**ARIA**

I've been in a bubble for the past two weeks, we announced my pregnancy to Sasha and Cassius. Since Leila knew about it, I didn't think it was fair to them to keep it from them. Adam's little brother was immediately thrilled and can't wait to meet his nephew or niece. As for Cassius, it took him a day and a conversation with Leila to digest the news. We both talked and we're both very disappointed that dad isn't here to experience this with us. He would have made a great grandfather, but I know I can count on Cassius to teach him all about boxing. He's confident that the baby will be a boy, but I know he'd be a great uncle if he had a niece.
The Petersons and Clara visited us last week and I took the opportunity to spend as much time with her as possible. I feel like I haven't seen her in forever and was thrilled to hear that they were planning to adopt her. She deserves the best that life can give her.

I've had a strange feeling for a few days now... more than a feeling... a certainty. Something is being kept from me. I camp quietly by Adam's office, waiting for him and Austin to be alone inside.
When they are finally alone, I enter without knocking. Austin turns around in his chair and Adam looks up from his desk, both of them looking at me like deer caught in headlights.

I sit down in the empty chair next to Austin, crossing my arms. "I want to know everything."

Austin opens his mouth with a frown but I cut him off. "Don't act like you don't know what I'm talking about. I know you're hiding something from me and I want to know what it is. So talk!"

"Austin is going to go back to his pack, they gave him the green light and he's going to try to find out what Riley's motives are and who her possible accomplices are." Adam explains.

"Okay. How?" I ask them.

"That's the million dollar question." Austin shrugs. "I'll wing it."

I shake my head. "I'll come with you, I'll get better at getting answers. She doesn't know I know anything and I can coax her better."

"No way." They both reply in the same breath with fervor.

They are hiding something from me...I'm sure of it.

"What else are you hiding from me?" I ask and they exchange a look confirming my suspicions.

"Alex was able to hack into the messages and geolocation data on Riley's phone. We were able to find a connection between her and the palace attack, the hijacking of the blood delivery trucks and..."

"And what?" I ask Adam when he doesn't finish his sentence.

"We found a suspicious message exchange that would possibly link Riley to... your father's accident."

I can't even tell you if he said anything after that sentence because I can't hear him. I don't hear anything but a ringing in my ears, like after a hit. I get up from my chair, unable to stand still and pace around. She attacked one of my companions, then she lured me here, she tried to interrupt the deliveries here, which would surely have led to a horde of bloodthirsty vampires going to feed on human blood in the nearest towns, and finally she ordered my father's accident. Well, not the accident... the murder. Even if she wasn't driving the car that hit him, she's responsible.

I hear Austin and Adam's voices in the distance bringing me back to reality.

"I knew we shouldn't tell her anything. She'll stress and it's bad for her and the baby." Austin tells him.

"She had a right to know. We couldn't hide our suspicions from her."

"She's in the same room with you and she hates it when we talk about her like she's not there. I'm going to come with you and help you find out what she's up to." I tell them. "You'll have a lot of work to do with the pack and I'll have time to get closer to her. If she had anything to do with my father's death..."

"We know." Adam says to me, and in an instant he is standing next to me. "I knew it would end up like this. I can't come with you right now but I want Cassius and Leila to go with you. He's your brother and he's a new werewolf so no one will suspect anything."

"If Cassius knows that Riley could be connected to our father's death..."

"We'll have to tell him everything. With these two, you'll be protected." Adam reassures me and hugs me.

Austin got up from his chair but his face is closed, I know he would prefer that I stay here where I am safer.

"I would never endanger our baby, if I find anything I will let you know immediately. But it's the same for you, there must be no secrets, okay?"

He nods, and as Adam releases me, Austin takes his turn to hug me. I suddenly feel nauseous, push myself away from Austin and frantically look around because I know I won't have time to go to the bathroom. I grab a wastebasket next to the desk and throw up in it.

"Sorry." I mumble, my head still in the garbage can.

"No need to apologize. I hope for your sake that this nausea doesn't last." Adam says to me as he rubs my back.

"Cass told me that Mom had nausea the whole time she was pregnant, so it must have scarred him to remember."

And just thinking about Mom makes me nostalgic and tears well up in my eyes. Adam takes the basket from my hands and sets it on the floor.

"It's going to be okay, we're together, the three of us. Austin and I wish your parents were still here to go through this with you. We've all lost our parents and I think it brings us closer together but we're lucky to still have a family to rely on. You will never be alone." He hugs me and I feel Austin hug me behind me.