Page 123 of Three Stepbrothers Save Christmas

“What did you find in here?” I ask, picking up some paper from the floor and walking to the desk.

“Nothing of any use. We couldn’t find the safe you mentioned when I asked for your birth certificate. I didn’t have time to ask if you knew where it was when you returned, as everything moved quickly.”

“Do you think he would have hidden all the bad stuff in there?” I ask, turning to look at Travis, who nods. I place the papers I’m holding on the desk and walk from the room and up the stairs. The guys don’t say a thing; they fall into step behind me and follow my lead.

Not allow myself to think about where I’m going; I force myself to focus on the end goal—the safe. Ignoring how my feet have become lead weights, I open my father’s bedroom door and head into the walk-in wardrobe.

I stand for a moment and picture the last time he was here. He casually packed a bag so he could leave me, again. He didn’t show any remorse because he had broken my heart. That’s because he didn’t feel any; he didn’t care what damage he was doing to me mentally. I would go as far as to say he liked that he caused me pain.

“Sweetheart?”

I know if I turn around and face him now, I will break down; I don’t want to cry here. I don’t want this place to have another piece of my heart. Instead, I walk over to a door that looks like a standard cupboard. But, inside is my dad's safe, where he once told me he kept his most important possessions.

“Do you know the code?” Ryan asks behind me. I shake my head and kneel in front of it for a moment. I try his birthday, but nothing. I try Mum’s birthday and their anniversary, but again nothing happens.

“Any ideas?” I ask, looking back at the two of them. Ryan smiles at Travis, who nods.

“Go get him.”

“I always knew Henry was a cheap skate, but this safe is as cheap as they come and so easy to break into,” Ethan chuckles as he kneels in front of the small safe. “I need something long and pointy.” He pulls out the small safe as we look for something that matches the description.

“Hang if I.”

I turn just in time to see Ethan hitting the top of the safe and twisting the lock. He does it a couple of times before laughing out loud and opening the door.

“I thought those things were meant to be secure?” Travis asks beside me.

“If you spend a few quid on one, they are. A cheap one like this would have cost him about twenty pounds, and a child could break into it.”

They continue discussing the different ways to unlock it, but I’m more interested in the contents of this one. Slowly, I kneel in front of the safe and pull out a small white envelope and a larger brown one.

I open the brown one first and tip the contents onto the floor. Inside are my birth certificate and paperwork for my driving license. I find myself holding my breath as I look at the parent’s section, terrified I will find out who my father is. But, instead, is Henry Stevenson's name.

“It’s a fake.”

My head snaps to Travis, who is looking over my shoulder.

“What?”

He holds out his hand, and I pass it to him. He looks at it for a moment before handing it back to me.

“The differences are subtle; no one would ever notice. But I know it’s a fake, and I could tell you who made it.”

“Your friend?” Ethan asks beside him. Travis nods and rubs the back of his neck.

“When I contacted him to make up some fake ID for you in case we needed to run, I noticed he acted like he knew your name. I asked him about it, and he said it just sounded familiar.”

“Stevenson isn’t that rare a name,” I point out. But Travis shakes his head.

“No, but when I was on my way to Nicholson’s, I contacted him again to prepare for the guys needing some fake IDs. When I was on the phone, I told him what was happening, and he told me everything. It was the confirmation I needed that Henry wasn’t your father.”

I look down at the paper in my hand and sigh.

“Did he ever see the real one?” I ask as I stare at the space where Henry’s name is.

“I can find out, but I doubt it. He doesn’t usually require any paperwork. You just give him all the information he needs.”

I let out a sigh while placing my fake birth certificate beside me and picking up the small white envelope. It feels like there is something heavy inside. I open it and tip the contents into my hand.

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