Page 58 of Sweet Venom

Vi snaps her head toward me, and I see the confusion mar her beautiful face as she rubs her temples and says, "You said they died in a car accident. Was that a lie? And what about your real name, everything you shared with me. Was it all a lie?"

I see her hurt. Hours ago, we just confessed we loved each other, and hours ago, for the first time in what feels like an eternity, someone wanted me, but I have no one to blame for the emptiness that's slowly threatening to swallow me whole. I waged this war, not her. These are my sins that I now must answer for. I'm not okay, but I am a master at pretending.

"Everything I told you was true, Vi. Our parents died in a car accident when I was fifteen. I spent three years in foster care, being bounced from home to home. Sayward spent six total doing the same until I could afford to get her out and claim her. My real name is Carter Manolas, but he died thirteen years ago when that man showed up at my doorstep." I point toward Ellis, and everyone directs their attention toward him.

Ellis is six years older than me, and I'll never forget the day I saw him watching me, because it irked me. I was in the front yard mowing the grass, trimming the hedges, and watering my mother's flowers when I felt that eerie feeling of somesthesia settle over me. That's when I noticed a black Audi down the street. You notice new cars when you live at the end of a dead-end road. Vehicles that don't belong to your immediate neighbors stick out, and I saw him. He had the window down, and our eyes locked. It felt like I was looking at someone I knew. Our hair color was the same jet black, and he had the same grayish-blue silver eyes as mine, but maybe even a little lighter, and those things stuck out because I looked nothing like my parents or sister. My dad had brown hair, while my mother and sister were blondes. I know hair changes with age, so I never put too much weight in that, but the eyes. When I saw Ellis's eyes, it was like I knew. I knew immediately I didn't belong. My parents and Say all have the darkest of dark eyes. My mother called me over from the porch to hand me a glass of water, breaking my stare. By the time I was done hydrating, the window was rolled up, but he didn't drive off. The car stayed parked the entire time it took me to finish the yardwork, which had been every bit of two to three hours.

"I never set foot on your doorstep," Ellis says, his voice too calm before adding, "I think we all need to sit down and start from the beginning."

"Bullshit. I saw you, and you fucking know it."

He throws his hands up and says, "I'm not disputing that I was there, but that afternoon was it, and we both know I drove off."

"You fucking knew?" Sebastian questions as he slaps his hand down on the island. "You went to his house? How long, Ellis? How long have you known I'm not your brother?"

"For thirteen years." He shrugs nonchalantly, as if all of this is no big deal. After all, this isn't news for him as it apparently is for Sebastian.

"Why wouldn't you tell me?" Sebastian demands.

Ellis sits on the couch and pinches the bridge of his nose before saying, "Because it didn't change anything." Then, giving Sebastian his full attention, he adds, "I found out when Nico talked me into doing an ancestry test. You know how he is. The man can trace his genealogy back for generations. He's beyond proud of his heritage and roots. I was never going to learn any of that. Not after our parents got high and burned alive in their trailer. So, I took a test, and lo and behold, I had a sibling match. My first thought was dad cheated on mom. It wasn't until I went searching that I found him. He was the same age as you. After watching him and running through a million scenarios, I went home, stole your toothbrush, and sent it off for testing. While waiting for the results, I thought about the boy I saw mowing his grass and how his mom came outside to give him water while he worked. They lived in a nice home in a decent neighborhood. He had a good life, and by that time, so did we. So I knew it wouldn't change anything when I got the results back. I spent fifteen years with you. I practically raised you when I could barely take care of myself." His voice cracks at the end, and he clears his throat to try and cover it before adding, "You were mine. You are my brother."

My mind is blank as I listen to his interpretation, but it doesn't add up. Before anyone can refute his truth, Sayward bursts out into tears. "See, I told you the accident was my fault. He just told you he never talked to mom and dad." Fuck.

I rush to her side and pull her into my arms. Her hands wrap around me, and I notice out of my peripheral, Sebastian starts pacing back and forth.

"Tell me about the accident," he clips out, his purpose unclear. Does he want the retelling to hear how his parents died, or is it out of concern for his sister, the girl crying in my arms because she feels responsible for their deaths?

"Do you want to know how our father was thrown from the vehicle and killed instantly by oncoming traffic, or how our mother was crushed on impact and bled out on the scene?" His nostrils flare, and I can see he's upset, but I also see his pain, and it's then that I realize I'm no longer talking about my parents, but his.

"No, I want to know why she thinks it's her fault."

Sayward pulls away from my chest, her eyes puffy and swollen. "I want to share. It's my story to tell."

Vivian brings over a box of tissues, and she takes them, offering her a small smile of gratitude.

"I had a third-grade history project where we learned about the connections to our pasts, traditions, and how they left their mark on society. My teacher at the time had just done one of those ancestry tests, and she was telling us all about the fun things she learned through her DNA. We all wanted to do one, so she made it an optional class project. She would handle getting the tests and connecting the dots, but we had to get our parents' approval, and we had to pay for the test. When I came home and told my mom about it, she saw how excited I was, and she thought it would be fun if we all did it. So, she got with the teacher and found out what service she was using for the project. She then ordered the same tests for herself, dad, and Tate. The night before the crash, I heard mom and dad arguing in the kitchen when I woke up to use the restroom. I snuck downstairs to listen because our parents never fought, so I knew whatever was going on must have been serious, and that's when I heard them talking about the results of the DNA tests. Mom was convinced there was a mistake, that somehow our test got mixed up, but dad was sure there was not. I remember hearing him say, 'He doesn't look like us.' There were more hushed words, and he said, 'We'll take them to the Greens' house tomorrow, and we'll take a drive over to Kaiser Permanente to get this straightened out.'"

She pauses to blow her nose and rub her back before moving to sit on the couch opposite Ellis. Her back is hurting her now, and I can't help but close my eyes, hating how all of this cuts so emotionally and physically deep. I can't take away the physical pain, but the guilt—that's not something she needs to carry. That, I can take away.

"My parents were dropping us off so that they could go to the hospital and request birth records. They saw the same match Ellis did, and my father believed immediately that his son was switched at birth," I chime in, done with allowing her to blame herself.

Sebastian moves closer to the couch, props himself up on the armrest, and asks, "But why does that make the accident your fault?"

"Because," she says, somewhat perturbed that he's not following her line of thought. "I put everything in motion with my stupid curiosity. It was my fault we ever had the DNA tests done. My fault that Ellis ever knew we existed."

That's when I jump in, determined to take her pain. "Yes, but he's the one mom and dad were arguing about. It's his visit that distracted dad and caused the accident."

"They couldn't have been arguing about me, Tatum. I never spoke to them a day in my life. They didn't see me. You did," Ellis offers empathetically.

I shake my head. "No, mom's last words were, 'He's going to come back. I know it.'"

"I can see how, given the circumstances, you think those comments were in reference to him, but I hear a mother believing her real son would return to her. The blood tests were out there. The hit was made; she believed Sebastian would come home," Vivian adds softly.

The room falls quiet as we all let the truths shared tonight reshape our perceptions and forever change what we thought we knew.

Finally, Vivian walks around the couch and squeezes Say's shoulder, "I'm truly sorry for your loss. You're a strong, beautiful woman. Please excuse me for my behavior earlier." Then, releasing her shoulder, she steps back and heads toward the front door. "I need to leave. I can't stay."

Ellis immediately stands. "What? You can't leave."

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