[EVE]
Victor left the next day, leaving Sinclair to stay for a week—"Grandfather bonding time," he said. He spoiled Bean ridiculously. Toys, more toys, clothes, a silk blanket that probably cost more than our fridge.
But there was one night—quiet and still—when he sat beside me in the living room and looked more serious than I'd ever seen him.
"I wanted to tell you sooner," Sinclair said, swirling his tea, "but we've finally cleaned up the mess."
I turned to him, puzzled. "What mess?"
"The syndicate," he said, tone low. "The one that switched your parents. That kidnapped you as a child."
My stomach dropped. I hadn't heard much about that investigation in months. It had always lingered like a shadow at the back of my mind.
The mystery of my stolen childhood. The people who tore me from my real family, and the one who pretended to be my real family.
