Page 63 of The Puck Decoy

“It’s okay, Eliza, Mr. Donovan was just leaving,” the Clark Kent one responds without looking at us, confirming to me that he is who we are here to see.

The other one, Mr. Donovan, looks ready to kill him still, but turns toward us and nods, “Mr. and Mrs. Peters.”

I’m not sure how he knows us but to my surprise, Josh replies, “Asher, good to see you again.”

The tall, lethal blond doesn’t respond, just brushes past us and exits the office without another word, and I watch as Eliza pulls the door closed behind them with a soft smile. I guess this must be their usual behavior, and I can’t help but smile back as I turn towards Lincoln Blackwell.

“Sorry about that,” he offers, gesturing to the chairs in front of his desk. “You must be Hallie?” he adds, offering his hand out for me to shake, and when I take it, I’m surprised it feels rough in mine.

“It’s nice to meet you,” I reply with a smile, and he looks at me in a way I can’t quite decipher, almost as if he is assessingwhat I just said. It doesn’t make me feel uncomfortable, in fact his presence is cold yet inviting.

“You really mean that,” he tells me, and I look towards Josh in confusion, but he just shrugs as we take our seats.

“Yes, of course I really mean that,” I laugh as I turn back towards him, and then he looks between Josh and I as if seeing us with fresh eyes, as if he is sensing something he didn’t before, but he quickly shuts it down.

“Well, thank you both for coming, I know it was short notice,” he replies stiffly, moving towards a large box in the corner and bringing it back over to the desk. “Like I said I was away for a close friend's wedding, congratulations on your own by the way,” he muses, dropping the box on the desk in front of us. “We are quite busy at the moment, but I did manage to find a lot of useful information for you.” He taps the box before taking a seat behind his desk and watching us closely.

The box is bigger than expected considering I didn’t expect a box at all, a few pieces of paper maybe, or a file, but not a whole box. What the hell has Hugo Peters been up to? Not that I should be surprised. I mean, I’m only here because the plan to marry his daughter off was botched, and he forced Josh’s hand into mine. So whatever skeletons are in his closet, I shouldn’t be surprised really.

“All that box is stuff you found on my father?” Josh asks, not moving from his chair to inspect it any closer, and I can tell even from his nonchalance that he is nervous about what’s inside.

“Yes, there were the easy finds, like the affairs and underpaid taxes of course,” Lincoln replies without emotion, keeping his focus on my husband as he adds, “And then there was the deeper stuff like embezzlement, bribery, corruption, you know the usual.” His tone is as casual as you could get and I have to silently remind myself that this is what he does, picks people's secrets apart for a living.

“Is it enough?” Josh questions, and I know what his question means, he wants to know if what Lincoln found is enough to really do it. He doesn't want to dig through his father’s wrongdoings and play his games, he just wants to win.

“If given to the right people then your father is looking at spending a long time behind bars. It would take a couple of weeks to leak it without a trace, but yes, it’s enough.” Again his words are said with no emotion, as if he doesn’t have a care in the world, and I mildly find myself wondering if he cares about anything or anyone.

Josh is silent beside me and I know he must be asking himself if this is what he truly wants. He hates his father, I know that, hell, even I hate him, but is hate enough of a reason to send him to prison for the rest of his life?

“How much?” Josh finally asks, and for the first time I see Lincoln frown a little in confusion.

“I’m sorry?” he replies in question, looking between the two of us, but I keep my focus on Josh.

“How much more is all this information going to cost me?” he snaps, leaning forward in his chair and still making no move to look into the box. He is offering money without even finding out if the information is worth it.

“Have you always been this cynical?” Lincoln finally responds, and without thinking I reply, “Yes,” at the same time Josh replies, “No.”

Josh snaps his head towards me as Lincoln smiles. “The downfall of being raised by the elite I’ve come to learn,” he laughs, as if it’s his own private joke before focusing back on us. “There is no extra fee, I quite enjoy helping take down a Mayor,” he replies coolly, and it’s only now that despite his youth I see him for what he really is,ruthless.

“Well okay then, pull the trigger,” Josh finally says, standing to his feet and moving to leave without even looking at anything Lincoln found.

I also stand but Lincoln halts us in our tracks as he adds, “There is one other thing.” He reaches into his desk and pulls out a file that clearly wasn’t packed away with whatever is in the box. Josh halts behind his chair as Lincoln looks between us before finally saying, “There is another marriage deal on the table.”

“That’s impossible,” Josh spits back instantly. “My father agreed that if I married Hallie then he would leave Madeline alone.”

Lincoln looks slightly nervous now, and I know whatever he is about to say is going to change everything. “The marriage deal isn’t for you or Madeline, it’s for someone else. A child.”

Josh is already shaking his head. “No, you must have it wrong, it’s just Maddie and me,” he starts, but it’s as if he remembers who he is dealing with here because then he spits, “What the fuck do you mean a child?”

Lincoln flicks open the file and pulls out the top piece of paper, sliding it onto the desk towards us. “I matched your father’s DNA to another child, a little girl, she lives in Fairfield, I think you might know her.”

Her. Realization slams into me almost instantly, and without even looking I know exactly who Lincoln is referring to, and I know it’s about to break my husband’s heart.

Josh reaches out and snatches the paper off the desk, about to read whatever is on it as Lincoln finally adds, “The marriage deal is for Penelope Barratt, your little sister.”

My mind is reeling as I stare down at her name on the piece of paper in my hands, yet still it doesn’t sink it. I have another sister, a little sister, a younger sister, one that I know, one that I spend time with regularly, and one I am only just finding out about.Penelope is my sister. I stare down at a picture of her birth certificate with her name right alongside Callia’s, the father’s name left conveniently blank, and when I flick my stare back to Lincoln, he passes me another piece of paper. This one is a DNA test that proves in black and white that she is my sister, well my half-sister.

I automatically start doing the math, and start shaking my head in disbelief even more. “Penelope is almost eight, Callia is in her early twenties,” I say out loud, trying to work out how much of a scumbag my father really is.

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