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The three of us look up at each other. Bennet’s face gives nothing away. Luis looks a little surly, but he kind of always looks like that.
Realizing that no one else can see what we can see, I break the news.
“Well, this relationship just got a little weirder,” I joke and pass my results to Mrs. Coolson, who looks up at her husband with tears and concern in her eyes. There’s no way I’m mistaking that look, and I feel for a moment that she might know something I don’t.
“How is this possible?” Six asks, looking at Bennet’s results.
“My father is an asshole,” Bennet deadpans.
“No, I mean…. None of you knew each other before that day, right? Other than Micah and Lukas, obviously.”
“Not exactly. I knew of Bennet and had suspicions about his… our father. But we’d never met each other,” says Luis.
I shake my head, “I’ve lived here most of my life, so I know about Bennet’s family. But we’d never met.
“Okay, well… What are the chances that the three of you are not only related, but end up wrapped up in my bullshit too?”
We ponder it for a few minutes, no one having a good response.
“Just lucky I guess?” My answer doesn’t seem to help her feel better.
We eat in silence for a while, until Lukas mentions his theory about Six’s dreams and the potential of getting her memory back. He’s planning on doing some research to see what he can dig up about amnesia and brain injuries, and what the likelihood of her regaining those memories is.
Bennet, Luis, and I are going to start going through some of my mom’s things to see if we can find anything related to Jackson Adley - my father - or a record of the pills she took, which Luis is especially concerned about.
Micah mentions that he and Six will likely work on physical therapy some more, talking about some success they had in the bathtub. As he mentions it, Six turns about six shades of red and Luis finds his fruit salad intensely interesting. I’m sensing some tension here and it is delicious. I love a good saucy drama and I am dying to know why Six seems to be avoiding Luis.
Before I can demand everyone spill their secrets, Mrs. Coolson appears to clear the buffet, her eyes puffy and red. “Why don’t you use the lap pool in the basement?”
“The… what?” Everyone is confused. A pool was not part of the tour.
I explain. “There used to be a small lap pool, one of those ‘endless’ pools that’s like a swimming treadmill or whatever. It was in the basement, as well as some gym equipment, but a pipe burst a few years back. The whole room got flooded. None of it is usable, which is why I didn’t mention it.”
“It is now,” says Mrs. Coolson. “The crew Mr. Adley sent fixed everything. There isn’t any equipment left, all of that was unsalvageable, but they fixed the pool.”
“Well, I’ll be damned, Mr. Adley.” I thump him on the back.
“Just Bennet, please.”
Mrs. Coolson nods in understanding. “We’re very appreciative, Bennet,” she says kindly before leaving the room again.
Once breakfast is over, I follow Bennet and Luis to the back office.
“How are you guys feeling about the confirmation?” I ask, because I know no one else is going to voluntarily talk about their feelings.
“It’s really a confirmation of something we already knew, but it does solidify some things for me,” says Bennet.
Luis nods his agreement.
“Well, alrighty then. Where should we get started?” Clearly, we aren’t going to hold hands or hug it out right now.
“Where are your mother’s things, her files, records?” Bennet is ready to get down to business as usual.
“She has an office on the third floor. It’s only accessible with the elevator and we need the key, but I think Mrs. Coolson probably has it.”
“I’d wondered what was up there.”
“Not gonna lie, I didn’t even notice there was a third floor,” admits Luis.
