“What the hell is that?” Noah grunts, clearly seeing what I’m seeing.
Tully shakes her head. “That can’t be right.”
I stare at the words written before me, feeling absolutely sick to my stomach because right here in my hands, my official birth certificate is telling me that Anton Mathers is my biological father.
I shake my head. This can’t be. There has to be a mistake somewhere.
I hastily check over the other documents in my hand and gasp as I find a DNA report. I flip it open faster than I’ve ever flipped anything open in my life. There has to be a mistake here. Maybe she was wrong and jumped the gun on naming the father.
My eyes scan over the report, taking in every last detail. “No, no, no, no,” I panic, reading over it.
“What is it? What does it say?” Noah demands, grabbing the papers from me in his desperation to get some answers.
My body crumbles as my eyes fill with tears. Noah catches me a moment later, desperately searching my eyes. “Gina had a DNA test done. It dates right after I was born. Anton is my real father.”
Chapter 20
I pace back and forth across my living room. This can’t be happening.
Anton Mathers is my father.
No. I refuse to believe it; because if he is, that means my actual father, the man who has been there for me since the very beginning, is not mine at all. It means that Aria is not my sister and that Rivers is my full, biological brother.
This can’t be happening. Dad and Aria are the only true family I’ve ever had. They can’t be taken from me.
I’ve already suffered through learning that Kelly wasn’t my real mother, and now this? Has my whole life been a lie? Is anything I know and love real? Hell, maybe Noah is going to turn around and tell me that it was all a joke, that he never loved me, and that he’s leaving. That seems about right.
Anton Mathers is a monster. Just sharing the same DNA as him has covered Rivers world in darkness. I can’t have that. I’m already screwed finding out my real mother is a convicted criminal, now my father is a mobster who walks around pointing guns at teenage boys.
Fuck me. I can’t handle this shit.
My phone dings on the coffee table for the hundredth time. It will be a text from either Noah or Tully checking in with me again and making sure I’m not going off the rails.
Being alone right now probably isn’t the best thing for me. I should have told them to stay, but I wanted this time alone to panic. If they were here, they would have made me talk it through, they would have tried to make it alright, and I’m simply not there yet.
I need to scream. I need to cry. I need to throw a fucking hissy fit and smash a few things against the wall, and if my phone keeps dinging the way it is, that’s going to be the first thing smashed.
The only good thing that could possibly come from this is having Rivers as a full brother– everything else? I’m fucked?
What’s dad going to say when he finds out? He’s going to be crushed. Is he going to kick me out knowing I’m not his daughter? Am I going to be out living on the streets or moving in with Rivers? Good thing my mother is in prison; I could use her old room. You know, considering I clean up all the evidence of her prostitution ring.
Shit, what about Aria? She’s going to be devastated learning that I’m not really her big sister. She only just found us and now our family is already going to be torn to shreds. How is she ever going to get past this? Especially after all the bullshit she’s already been through.
My phone dings again and I clench down on my jaw while balling my hands into fists. If Ari wasn’t asleep right now, I’d probably be throwing the damn thing through the window and hoping I do a little damage in the process.
I can’t help but stare down at the stupid phone. I need to talk to dad. He has to know about this. It will tear him to pieces, but he has a right to know the truth. Maybe he might just know the right thing to say that will make this all ok because I sure as hell don’t have a fucking clue.
Letting out a shaky breath, I grab my phone and call dad. It’s either now or never as I don’t think I’ll ever find the guts to bring this up with him again. I’m terrified of hurting him and petrified of what the outcome could be.
The phone rings once and I start making my way down the hall, making sure Aria’s bedroom door is shut so I don’t wake her up in case I burst out into uncontrollable sobs.
It rights twice.
Three times.
I make my way back up the hall and begin pacing in front of the couch once again.
“Come on,” I groan as it rings a fourth time.
Five. Six.
“Squish.”
There’s a knock at the door.
“For fuck’s sake,” I groan. “Can’t I catch a fucking break?”
“Henley?” Dad questions. “What the fuck is going on?”
“Hold on,” I say, glaring at the door knowing it’s either Noah or Tully having come to check on me seeing as though I’ve avoided every damn call and text that’s come my way. “There’s someone at the door.”
Dad mumbles a “Mmkay,” as I shove the phone between my shoulder and ear. I work on unlocking the multiple locks on the door that dad had installed after finding out about Monica and Candice’s attacks and grumble under my breath, silently cursing those damn twins for not knowing anything about giving a woman a little personal space.
“Come on, Squish. What’s taking so long?”
I ignore dad as I pull the door wide open. “What the hell do you want?” I demand a moment before sucking in a shocked breath.
I was wrong. So fucking wrong. It’s not Noah or Tully at all.
It’s Kelly. The woman who lied to me all my life. The person who I first think of when I hear the word ‘mom’, and the woman who kept my little sister away from me while she scarred her with the disgusting choices of her mother’s lifestyle.
In my eyes, the only thing in this world worse than Anton Mathers is this woman standing right in front of me. She’s the true definition of a monster. While Anton will physically hurt someone, this woman would enjoy hearing about the scars she left on both mine and Aria’s souls.
“Kelly,” I say bluntly. “What the hell do you want?” I demand, focusing on the stranger before me and distantly noticing that she looks a shitload better than the last time I saw her. It’s clear as day that she got herself clean, but I have a feeling that was something that was forced upon her.
“Kelly?” she questions with a raised eyebrow. “What? I don’t get a ‘Hi, mom. Great to see you again. How have you been?’”
“What the fuck?” I hear dad screeching through the phone. “Did you just say ‘Kelly’? Henley? Goddamn it, Henley. Answer me.”
A man strolls down the front path and comes to stand behind Kelly, trying to appear somewhat intimidating, but let’s face it, after the shit I’ve been through, this guy is shit on a stick that’s standing in my way.
I scoff at his pathetic attempts and focus back on Kelly. “Quit the bullshit. You’re not my mother.”
Both of her brows raise. “So, the old bastard finally told you, huh?”
“And about fucking time too,” I smirk, hitting her where it hurts. “Do you have any idea what a relief it is to know that I don’t share your DNA? I mean, that’s a whole lot of fucked up shit that I’d happily do without.”
Kelly’s eyes narrow on me. “Watch it, Henley,” she warns. “I was hoping we could do this without it turning into some kind of drama.”
“Henley?” dad snaps, making me pull the phone away from my ear due to the tone of his voice piercing right through my skull, though despite pulling the phone away, I can still hear him crystal clear. “Tell me what the fuck is going on, right now? Get that piece of shit off my doorstep.”
Gladly.
I grab the door and go to close it while giving her a beaming grin. “Alright, well this is been lovely, but let’s not make this a tradition.” With that, I go to s
lam the door but a heavy boot steps in the doorway, forcing the door back open.
“The fuck you think you’re doing?” I demand, keeping one hand on the door and my body right in the middle of the walkway as I stare up at the imposing man before me.
He doesn’t say a word so I turn my glare on Kelly. “I’m not sure you quite understood,” I tell her, focusing heavily on her eyes and making sure she gets every fucking word that comes out of my mouth. “It’s time for you to fuck off back to wherever the hell you’ve been all these years and screw up some other kid’s life. You’re done here.”
“You see, that’s where you’re wrong,” she tells me, not holding back on her seething attitude as clearly, she doesn’t give a shit anymore. “I got myself clean and now I want my kid back.”
I laugh in her face. “You’ve got to be kidding, right?” I howl as I hear dad going off his rocker through the phone. “There’s no way in hell you’re getting her back. Another few months living with you and she would have been dead. You’re fucking insane if you think that’s about to happen.”
Kelly steps forward, narrowing her eyes on me and desperately trying to look like a boss bitch as her face reddens with anger. “Get my kid. Now.”
I tighten my hold on the door while bringing my phone back up to my ear. “Dad, call the cops now.” I end the call knowing that he won’t hesitate for a single moment as I stare back at Kelly. “Go and jam a needle in your arm, whore.”
With that, I slam the door once again, this time trying a little harder and feeling the instant relief as the door closes. I desperately try for the lock as I hear Kelly’s voice screeching on the other side of the door. “Kick the fucking door down. I want my kid.”
My eyes widen in panic and my hands fumble over the lock but it’s too late, the door gets kicked down in one easy go and the heavy wood comes tumbling down on top of me, smacking me hard in the face as Kelly and the man force their way inside my home.
“NO,” I scream, ignoring the way my head spins and chasing down the hall after them.
I scramble behind them, desperate to save my little sister from their evil clutches. I grab hold of Kelly’s shirt and pull her back with everything that I’ve got. The fabric of her shirt tears and she shakes me off as I continue stumbling around.
I don’t dare give up. I try again and dive towards them as my vision blurs from the hit of the door when the man spins around and grabs me. "I’m getting really fucking sick of you, you little bitch.” A moment later, he slams my head into the wall so fucking hard that it puts a hole in the drywall.
He releases me and my body crumbles to the ground, my head spinning and pounding. My vision blurs and I try to get up, but my head is too heavy. I collapse back down to the ground as the darkness begins to claim me.
No. I need to get up. I need to fight.
Aria is counting on me.
I hear the sound of her bedroom door being kicked in before the sound of her terrified screams come tearing up the hallway. “Ari,” I whimper, my voice barely audible.
“Henley,” she cries. “Henley.”
I hear the exact moment a hand is slapped over her mouth before she’s hauled out of bed. Two bodies rush back up the hallway, barging into me on their way out as the man clutches my terrified little sister. Their bodies blur and my head spins. “No,” I cry.
The last thing I see is the blurry vision of their backs before the darkness completely claims me.
Unmistakeable – Haven Falls (Book 6)
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Author Biography
Sheridan Anne is a wife to a smart-ass husband, Mumma to two beautiful girls, twin sister, daughter, and friend who lives in beautiful Australia. Sheridan writes both romance and young adult fantasy books on a variety of topics and can be found on most days with her family or writing during naptime. To find out more or to simply say ‘hello’, connect with her on Facebook or Instagram -
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Other Series by Sheridan Anne
www.amazon.com/Sheridan-Anne/e/B079TLXN6K
Teen & Young Adult - Paranormal Romance
The Guard Trilogy (3 Book Series)
Warriors of Light (3 Book Series - Coming Soon)
Young Adult / New Adult - Romance
The Broken Hill High Series (5 Book Series + Novella)
Haven Falls (6 Book Series)
New Adult Romance
Kings of Denver (4 Book Series)
Denver Royalty (3 Book Series)
Rebels Advocate (4 Book Series)
Undeniable: Haven Falls (Book 5) Page 21