Page 59 of Catalyst

The action caused a dizzy feeling to wash over me, but I did my best to pretend to be okay.

“You remind me of my wife–too strong for your own good.” He accused, his eyes narrowing in frustration before he grabbed a coffee cup off the table and pressed it into my hands. “Drink. It’ll help.”

My lips parted to argue as my gaze flicked toward the steaming yellow liquid in the cup. There were small bits of what looked like lemon rind in the bottom. I didn’t trust it.

“It’s tea.” He explained as he took a seat across from me. “I used to make it for my wife when she was pregnant with Sulien… She swore it made her feel better.”

… Why was he being so nice to me? Was this real?

I hesitated, allowing the citrus-scented steam to waft up. Shin motioned for me to take a drink, and I humored him by taking the world’s smallest sip. The tea was citrusy and sweet, and while I liked it… I couldn't figure out why Vexxas wasn’t killing me on the spot.

“You’re a lot…nicerthan I thought you’d be.”

Shin jerked back into his chair, staring at me as if I’d grown a second head.

“Nice? Callie, this is the bare minimum that a father can do for his daughter-in-law.”

My heart lurched at the knowledge that Iwouldhave married Sulien if fate had been a little kinder.

“My dad never did anything like this, and he’s, well, my dad,” I said, trying to diffuse the situation.

Shin’s expression softened as his initial shock melted into something sadder, almost pained. He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees; his leather gloves creaked as he clasped his hands together.

“I knew your father for years before you and your siblings came along,” he said calmly.

“I know… He’s your nemesis.”

Shin’s eyes widened as he barked out a laugh. “That’s what the media likes to call us… Did you know I used to work with Flynn?”

My grip on the cup tightened as I tried to hide my surprise by taking another sip.

“What do you mean?” I asked as I swallowed my tea.

Shin held up a finger before waltzing over to an ornate bookshelf nestled in the corner. He ran his finger along the leather-bound books as he looked for something; I just had no idea what.

“Drink more tea–it’s good for the baby,” he commanded as he continued his search.

I listened, not wanting to upset the most dangerous man in the world. But, the longer I sat with Shin…, the less he felt like the man my father had made him out to be. Dangerous men killed people, and I guess that was still true for Shin. But, what a villain of his caliberdidn’tdo was fawn over essentially a stranger like a doting father would.

His fingers paused for a moment before removing a thick black book. He held it with both hands as he walked back before forcing himself into the chair with me. Our legs pressed together as he opened what I quickly learned was an old photo album.

I tried to lean in to see a little better, but the action caused me to tip forward. Shin threw an arm over me, shooting me a glare before adjusting himself so I could look at the photos more easily.

“When Kane said you were coming–I’d wanted to talk about Sulien… but this seems like information you need to have too.”

My gaze dropped to the pages splayed across our laps, and my breath caught in my throat as I took in the first black-and-white photograph. I reached out, my fingers dancing across the glossy material as I took in a photo of Shin and my Father. Both of them seemed impossibly young, probably around Sulien’s age, and they were dressed in matching super-suits, the front of which was decorated with what looked like a version of the Aegis symbol.

“I came to America on one of the first-everheroingvisas,” Shin explained. “When I got off the plane, I was stationed in Pittsburgh and assigned to be your father’s partner.”

My heart fell to my stomach as Shin flipped the page to reveal yet another photo of him and my father. This one appeared to be taken from a newspaper.

“I… How?” This whole situation was so hard to grasp that it caused my head to hurt.

Shin shrugged, pushing the cup in my hands up with one finger, signaling that, yet again, he wanted me to drink.

“We were a good team too. He could fight the villains while I rescued anyone who was trapped.” Shin said as if that made any of this easier to swallow.

“If this is true, how did you two end up likethis?”

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