Page 124 of Three Stepbrothers Save Christmas

“I haven’t seen a skeleton key in years.” I look to Travis, who is watching over my shoulder. “Any idea which door it unlocks?”

I look at the key in my hand and know exactly which door it unlocks.

Keeping hold of it I check for anything else in the safe, but when I see it’s empty, I let out a deep breath and stand from the floor.

“Baby? Are you okay?” Ethan asks, placing a hand on my shoulder. I nod as I hold back the tears threatening to fall. I had hoped for answers, and all I got was more questions.

“Before Mum died, we used to dance in the basement all the time. It was our little studio. When she died, I couldn’t bring myself to go in there. The whole place was just a reminder of her, making me miss her more.” I swallow the lump in my throat at the thought of happier times. “One day, about two years after she died, I thought about going down there; I wanted to feel close to my mum. The nanny found me by the door and told me off. She made me write lines the whole day. I shall not trespass where I’m not allowed.”

“You can’t trespass in your own home! What the fuck?” Travis curses as he steps forward. I shrug as I look back at the key.

“There were a few places I wasn’t allowed to go. Dad’s office, the basement, and the shed at the bottom of the garden.”

“Didn’t you ever try to go in there and see what they were hiding? It’s the first thing I would have done,” Ethan asks. I shake my head and show him a smile that is as sad as I feel.

“I was a good girl and did as her father said, remember?” I can see the anger in both Ethan and Travis’s eyes and turn to head out of the room.

Walking down the stairs, I see Ryan standing at the front door, which is open, having taken Ethan’s post so he can get into the safe.

“Did you get into it?” he asks as soon as we get into view.

“Yep, piece of piss,” Ethan answers as I get to the bottom of the stairs.

“Did it contain anything you wanted to know, Kitten?” he asks, reaching for my hand. I shake my head and look toward the door I hold the key for.

Letting go of Ryan’s hand, I walk to the cupboard under the stairs. Where the basement door is hidden, it’s one of the things that made the basement so magical to us. It was like entering our own little world, hidden from others.

I’m met with all kinds of rubbish when I open the door. There are old suitcases, shopping bags filled with clothes I no longer fit into, as well as boxes of old ornaments and pictures Linda had placed around the house at one time or another and then shoved in here when she had picked up new ones. I bet she has loved spending my mum’s money, the bitch. It’s all blocking the door I’m so desperate to unlock.

I reach in to pull out a box, but a hand landing on my arm stops me. I look up to see Travis frowning at me.

“The door is behind all your mum’s shit,” I answer. He looks at all the boxes and back to me.

“Anything you want to keep in there?” Looking back at the boxes, I shake my head. “Then let us get it all out of there for you.”

Stepping away from the door, I watch the three guys take turns grabbing a box and moving it out of the way. There is box after box of stuff. I know all belongs to Linda. I want her things out of the house. I want to forget she ever came in here and tried to take over my mum's home.

I’m about to turn away when I see Ethan picking up a wooden box I haven’t seen in years.

“Wait!”

All three guys freeze and look at me, not knowing who I’m talking to. I step towards and hold out my hand. Ryan places the box that seems so much smaller than I remember it being.

“That was my mums,” I whisper, running my fingers over the smooth chest. It’s locked, but I know how to get into it.

“Dad found me with it one day when we were looking for something of Lindas. He took it from me and said Mum wouldn’t have wanted me to see it that it was personal. I knew he was lying, but I also knew better than to argue with me.” I start looking for somewhere to place it, knowing I need to concentrate on one thing at a time. Right now, it’s the basement that I need to focus on.

Ethan steps forward and holds his hands out.

“Let me place it in the kitchen, on the table, so it’s safe.” He gently places a hand on the top of the box and removes it from my grasp. “No one will ever hide anything of your mother's from you again. We will search this house from top to bottom and retrieve everything that is hers,” he whispers, kissing the top of my head before heading towards the kitchen.

“If you spot anything else, just say, and we will place it with that box,” Ryan adds as he steps forward and retrieves another box from the cupboard.

There are only three more items I spot that I know belonged to my mum; the rest are all dads or Lindas or things from when I was small. Finally, after what feels like a lifetime, thanks to the amount of junk stuffed in here, the door at the back of the cupboard comes into view.

The guys step back and leave me to enter first. Placing my hand on the dusty door, I remember how excited I used to be every time Mum and I came down here, sometimes with Aunty Trish. This was our favourite place; we could dance as much as we liked and never worry about space.

With a shaking hand, I push the key into the lock and turn it. It sticks a little where it probably hasn’t been opened in years. But I’m able to unlock the door and open it without any issues.

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