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His father purses his lips, scrutinizes his son, and shakes his head. “Sorry. I need to pay a visit to Ms. Williams, and after that I have a meeting. And tonight I’m traveling to Phoenix for a few Council sessions. I’ll be back in a couple of days. I’ll have time then.”
He turns around and reaches for the door handle. But Ayden can’t contain himself any longer.
“I want to talk to you about my parents. Please, it’s important.”
Mr. Collins turns around, looking stunned. “I don’t know what there is to talk about. You know everything. And this is really not the time or the place.” He gives me a sidelong glance.
“Tess can hear what you have to say. I’ll tell her everything afterward anyway.”
“Ayden, really. It can’t be that urgent.”
“Do I have a brother?”
Now my eyes widen, and Mr. Collins stares at his son too, lost for words. Neither of us expected him to be so direct. But I guess he’s been carrying this around with him for too long, and it’s burst the banks. He wants to finally hear the truth.
“What… what gave you that preposterous idea?” asks a stunned Mr. Collins. His eyes dart around, and he can’t bring himself to look at Ayden directly. The situation obviously makes him very uncomfortable.
“So it’s true?” Ayden asks.
I can’t believe it. I stare at Mr. Collins incredulously.
“I’ve met him, so you can stop lying to me. I just want the truth. What went down that night? Why did nobody tell me I have a brother? What happened?”
“Ayden,” he begins cautiously. “This can’t be true; do you hear me? I…”
“Stop evading my questions. I want to know what’s going on, and I’ll find out with or without you.”
His dad runs his hand over his dismayed face. Again, he seems to be running through things in his mind, searching for an out. But he can’t continue the lie, and he knows it. It’s over.
“So, he’s still alive.” Mr. Collins rubs his chin thoughtfully. “How do you know? You said you met him?”
“It’s Noah,” says Ayden.
Mr. Collins’ face blanches. “Noah… a Noctu. That explains why he was assumed dead.” Mr. Collins stares numbly at the floor in front of his feet. It’s as if he’s picturing scenes from the past. Finally he says, “We… we assumed he died in the fire with your parents. We didn’t know he survived; you have to believe me. We never would have left him with the Noctu. After attacking your parents, the Noctu must have intended to take you both with them. Or maybe only one of you. Maybe the hunters interrupted them in the act, and they were only able to take your brother,” Mr. Collins muses.
“But why?” Ayden asks. He’s overwrought, and it’s no wonder. Noah and Ayden – who can’t stand each other and who grew up on opposing sides – are twin brothers. “Why did they take Noah with them and raise him as a Noctu?”
“I don’t know,” Mr. Collins replies, looking at his son. “Maybe to deliver a harsh blow. What could be worse? A child from a respected hunter couple growing up as a Noctu – it doesn’t bear thinking about.”
“You should have told me,” Ayden says in an accusatory tone.
“You were a baby. You had no memory of your family. What good would it have done, telling you that your brother was murdered by the Noctu as well? It would only have added to your pain. You’ve been through enough. I didn’t want to burden you with that too. I’m sorry if that was a mistake. But I was just trying to protect you. Nobody should have to live with something like that, and I figured I could at least take away some of your pain.” He moves a step closer to Ayden and extends his arm. “I’m sorry if that was the wrong call. I only wanted the best for you.” And with those words, he slowly puts his arms around Ayden.
The next day, I keep thinking about what Mr. Collins said. So it’s true – Ayden and Noah are brothers. Kate was right about what she saw in her vision. I can’t believe what the Noctu did to them and their parents. They didn’t just take their mother and father from them – they ripped the siblings apart too. I keep asking myself why. Why did they only take one of them?
Ayden is clearly affected by all this, but he doesn’t want to talk about it. I assumed he would immediately try to contact Noah and talk to him. But unfortunately, that didn’t happen.
“The problem is Noah’s not a Tempes,” Ayden said when we talked after his conversation with his father. “I doubt I can convince him to change sides. So this changes nothing. We’re from enemy camps; it’s as simple as that.”
I know Ayden’s right. Noah would never defect to the Tempes, and regular contact between them is unthinkable. If a Noctu or Tempes found out about their connection… I don’t even want to think about what would happen to them.
“This is hard for me,” Ayden openly admitted. “I don’t know how I’m supposed to relate to Noah. Does the fact that we’re brothers change anything? I doubt we’ll ever be close – the circumstances are too complicated, and there’s too much water under the bridge.”
Ayden’s clearly struggling with all this. But he needs to have a conversation with Noah – as soon as possible.
I’ve just come from English class – which really dragged because my mind was elsewhere. I’m glad it’s over so I can finally go visit Kate in the infirmary again. The Fabricis didn’t give me a pass to go see her, so I’ll have to skip my next class. I’ll fake a headache, go to the infirmary, and see how she’s doing. I’m still really worried about Kate’s episode. I hope she’s feeling better now and that we can figure out what’s causing these pain attacks.
When I get to the infirmary, there’s no one around, so I don’t need to make up a story. I hurry down the corridor and open Kate’s door. To my surprise, the room is empty. The hairs on the back of my neck stand on end, and I stare cluelessly at the bed, which has already been stripped.
