Page 101 of Hidden Truths

“He’s alive,” Kai whispers after the laughter dies down.

“Has anyone told Mav?” I ask.

Kai shakes his head. “I want to hand him the picture when we see him tomorrow. I asked Harlow to tell Jo to keep it to herself for now.”

“You know, I overheard Harlow talking about the case once, and she said something that stuck with me,” I say. Making sure to pause for effect.

“Which is what?” Belle asks impatiently.

“Breadcrumbs.”

“Are you sure she wasn’t making chicken?” Kai asks.

“No, you asshole. She said that she has a theory that Gavin left you breadcrumbs to find them. That he didn’t love one son more than the other. Just one of you was in danger, so he had to leave the other.”

Now it’s Kai’s turn to do his best fish interpretation.

“Because Gavin Irons would not have left a picture of his legally dead son behind,” Harlow says, stepping out into the yard and sitting on my lap. I hug her tightly to me and feel her chuckle.

“What did your dad have to say?” Belle asks her.

“He’s mad we went without him, but happy with what we found out. He’s going to go through alumni and team records for the university. I didn’t see anything with a quick Google search, but I also didn’t have a name. My dad will have a name by the end of the day.”

“Then what?” Kai asks.

“Then we track down Mr. Tight Pants and ask him some questions,” Harlow says and Belle laughs.

“His pants were pretty tight,” she agrees.

“No more looking at pictures of men with tight pants,” I declare.

“Seconded,” Kai says immediately.

Harlow and Belle laugh.

“You can’t stop us,” Harlow says, her eyes twinkling with that mischief I love so much.

“Too late. The motion has passed,” I say, slamming my hand down on the arm of the chair like a gavel. We all break out into a fit of laughter that’s only interrupted by the ringing of Harlow’s phone.

She answers and wanders around the yard as she speaks, just out of range to hear what she’s saying. Then she comes running at us.

“Hurry up! We have a call!” she says, running by us and straight into the cabin. The three of us look at each other for a beat and then get up to follow her.

forty-two

HARLOW

“Thankyou for agreeing to this on such short notice,” I say.

“That’s Jasper Wentworth,” Cal says to Kai. The awe in his voice is clear and completely unhelpful right now.

“If you two can’t get your shit together, you need to leave,” Belle hisses at them.

“Absolutely no problem at all,” Jasper says. “Shattered Halo is my favorite band.”

Cal gasps, and I pinch his leg, making him yelp.

“Sorry. My husband is also a large fan of yours,” I tell Jasper.

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