Page 48 of Splitting Secrets
“Of course. Me, Lewis, and his father built it with our own two hands. I’m glad to see it’s stayed with the Whitlock bloodline.”
“Raze isverydifferent from Lewis,” I mumble under my breath. If he knew, I doubt he’d be happy that his hard work has fallen into the hands of a murderer.
“Raze is trying his best to right the wrongs he had nothing to do with.”
I have to look away to suppress my eye roll. I had no idea he was a Raze-apologist.
“The Whitlocks have been allies of the Landry name for centuries,” he barks when he catches the tail end of my scowl. “Whatever tiff you two are in will pass, just as they always did for me and Lewis.”
“It’s more than a tiff,” I bite back.
Perfect. Now, I’m arguing with a ghost.
“It’ll pass,” he repeats, twirling a hair tie between his fingers.
Instead of bickering with him, I change the subject. I still haven’t figured out how these visits work or if I can kick him out if things were to get heated. I’d rather not test it.
“Why did your family come here? To Nocturne Valley?”
“Well, first of all, when we came here, it wasn’t Nocturne Valley. It was an empty piece of land between a treacherous mountain range,” he corrects. While I’ve attempted to put our disagreement behind me, he’s still clinging to his attitude.
I shake my head and shrug to say,You knew what I meant.
With a long, pointed look, he continues. “Gifted individuals were not widely accepted where we lived, and my father grew tired of hiding in secret. His family was wealthy, but he was an only child and when my grandfather died, he was left completely alone. One night, his father came to him in a dream and showed him Nocturne Valley. He didn’t waste any time getting to work. He gathered as many families like us as he could and got them here. The land was cheap, since there wasn’t civilization for miles. It was perfect for his purpose, though. A haven for us to practice our gifts openly.”
“Were you born here?”
“Yes. My older brothers were born in our homeland. My parents made the trip when she was pregnant with my oldest sister. With the help of everyone and their gifts, they were able to build up the Landry estate within a year’s time. Everyone livedin it together while they built up the town. It was a time of unity and openness. One where everyone worked toward the common goal of making Nocturne Valley the best it could ever be. I know my parents looked back at it with pride.”
“Then what happened? Why did they...you know,” I struggle to say the words, but Finley knows what I mean.
Why did they slaughter them all?
“Because of small men with inflated self-importance and heaps of greed,” he snarls. “They were hungry for more power and wanted to steal from the innocent to get it.”
I sit up, wedging my pillow behind my back. “I thought tensions rose because there were no resources.”
“That was a part of it, but I later learned that those issues were fabricated to turn the town against my father.”
“I’m confused. So . . . they weren’t real?”
“No, they were real. People starved. The town turned against one another, and then they turned on us. But that was only part of the real problem.” He explains all of this in a bitter tone, proving that even time can’t break a Landry grudge. “It was when the Midnight Syndicate was created that things took a turn. Their first mission was to sabotage the building of the road between Nocturne Valley and Infinity Heights. They would sneak out in the middle of the night to destroy any progress made during the day.”
“That’s unbelievable.”
“It’s only the start.”
Hugging my knees, I offer him an apologetic grimace. “I understand why you were so pissed in your journals.”
“My anger has only gotten worse. I’ve had nearly two centuries to stew over this,” he spits.
“And you think I’m going to make a difference?”
His lips curve in a knowing smile. “Youarethe difference, lovely girl.”
“You keep saying things like that, but never bother to explain why you think so.”
“Everything will reveal itself in due time,” he assures, and then his body blinks out and he appears again beside my bed. “You must be tired. Your friends have been asleep for hours. I’ll let you get some rest.”
