Page 34 of Grave Kisses
“Yeah,” I say. “Without genetic testing, there is no way to know who the father is.”
“I’m happy for you guys. Twins are a handful, but I think you're more than capable,” he says.
“Wait,” Martin says. “What did you say?”
“Two blobs. Two babies,” I say before looking at Collier. “I’m not in any rush, but I’d like to clean the property up and sell it soon…”
“Yeah… so… That might be a while,” he says. “For one, we have found a total of twelve bodies. Ten are identified as runaways or prostitutes. Two, we are waiting for confirmation. It appearsthat there is an entrance in the back part of the property that was frequented.”
“Jesus,” Marcus says.
“We are still looking and have a few more areas to dig when weather permits,” he says. “We are taking our time so we can make sure everything out there can be found. It’s nearly two hundred acres, so there is a lot to search.”
“So where do we go from here?” I ask. “Oh. Did you find anything about my birth parents?”
“Yeah. That is mostly the reason I am here,” Collier says, handing me a file folder. “This is your copy. To explain on top of this, we’re still looking into missing children… Suzette’s autopsy suggested that she died of a heroin overdose. They also noted that she had previously had a hysterectomy. She was fully healed, and you were at most a few weeks old. That would suggest that she is not your biological parent, but you were found with her, so you were put into the system.”
“I had that blanket, though. It had my name on it.” I say, looking at the folder. The first thing is a picture of a very small baby. I had nice clothes on despite the fact I was found with a junkie. I recognize the blanket in the picture, but it’s gone now.
“So, five years prior, Suzette lost her daughter when she got into a car wreck. She was five months old when she died, but she would have been much older when you were born,” Collier explains.
“So Kendra isn’t my name?” I ask.
“No. I am very confident that she kidnapped you,” he tells me with a gentle tone. Who the fuck am I then? “The texts you are getting are pinging off a tower near a small town named Hawson in Texas. That is also where you were found with Suzette, so we are following a few leads to see if they also lead back there.”
“Alright,” I say with a heavy sigh. “Well… I guess I’ll just try to be patient.”
“I need to get back, but I’ll try to get you some more information soon,” Collier says.
When Collier leaves, I turn and go to the stairs. Martin blocks me immediately and scowls at me. “Excuse me,” I say.
“Do I look dumb?” he asks.
“What?” Marcus asks. “Dad?”
“Do I?” Martin asks me again, and I smile. “Absolutely not, Kendra.”
I pat his chest before walking around him and going up the stairs. Halfway up, I turn back to everyone. “I am going to Hawson. You can either come with me or stay here and sit on your ass. I don’t care either way.”
“Kendra,” Bellamy says.
“What?”
“If you are serious about this, we will go with you, but just Marcus and myself,” he says. “If we all up and disappear, it will look suspicious. Plus, someone has to keep the company floating.”
“Jesus,” Martin sighs.
“Hush, Martin,” Noel says. “We will work the office until you all get back.”
“I can help also,” Jesse says.
“You better update frequently,” Julie says.
“If Collier asks, don’t lie,” I say.
“He will be pissy, but he will be okay,” Marcus says.
“Cool. I’m going to go pack,” I say. “Thank you guys for supporting me.”
