Secrets shall be revealed

Part 11

It was the next day, and he hadn't left his room. He was busy working on his plan. There was a lot of evidence he needed to collect and leads to investigate. He was making a list. But he realized he was not delusional.

Others also found the actions of Father wrong and out of character. So, it gave him the reassurance to investigate. His list was long if he was going to investigate all sources, but he knew where to start.

His first step was talking to people Father came across regularly. He needed to find people who noticed the change of behavior and establish a rough timeline.

After finding everyone affected, he would need to find the extent to which the strange behavior affected them. Was the behavior only towards him? People he didn't like? All villains? Strangers?

He needed to find the people affected to find common patterns.

So, his first step was mostly gathering information about strange behavior and triggers and patterns.

His next step would then be to perhaps conduct some experiments. He needed to ensure that the results of his first step were correct.

The third step would then be to find the source of the behavior and fix it. This was the hardest step to predict since he couldn't be sure of what to do before completing the first 2 steps. He would be lying if he said he wasn't afraid of what he would find in the first two steps.

Maybe it was all in his head. Maybe he was trying to convince himself. But he wanted to try. He didn't want to give up before trying.

He went through his plans again, putting more and more details about them.

Damian was frustrated; his linking was almost finished. Only a few people remained, and he hadn't found anything solid. Only 3 people were left, and he didn't look forward to any of them. His previous visits were not very cooperative, and these three people were even less likely to cooperate.

Most of the visits resulted in answers of not caring enough to notice or not willing to give an answer. He couldn't force answers out of them, so he had to just leave. Plus, communicating by means of a notepad was not really a good incentive for people to give him answers.

He felt stupid, but he didn't have a choice. In his voice therapy, it was discovered the damage was worse than expected. While he would be able to talk to an extent in the future, he would not fully recover. He would have permanent damage.

His voice would only be a raspy whisper, and even then, it would be forced, and he couldn't speak more than a few words. He was not as hurt as he thought over the news. He was reviled of the fact that some speech would be possible.

There was nothing to do to change his condition, so what good would complaining do. He still attended all his sessions to gain as much use of his voice as possible. He asked Dr Thompkins not to tell the truth to others.

It was better this way. He knew his time in manor would end soon. He didn't want others to blame Father for his condition. Despite what others told him, he was to blame for what happened. He was the one who went against orders.

He was going through the first person on his remaining list tonight. He went to pack his bag.

Damian was in a dark ally. He was playing with a few kittens. They seemed hungry, so he had a few cans of food opened for them. His target would be there shortly. As if on cue, he heard the sounds of steps behind him.

Purposefully loud steps to make him aware of their presence. He didn't turn to look at them when the steps halted behind him, opting to keep his attention on the white kitten in his lap.

"Looking for me, kitten?" said the voice behind him with a hint of amusement.

They were sitting in her apartment, each holding their own mug of tea. It was too late for coffee anyway. Damian was sitting on the big L-shaped couch, and she sat on the other side of the L so they were facing each other.

Kyle was one of the people closest to his father and one who knew him intimately and for a long time. When he first came to the manor, he was short-tempered and harsh on the woman due to all the things his mother fed him about her.

But the woman was patient with her, the way many weren't. While he did his best to insult and hurt the woman, she saw the meaning behind his words. So, in time, they formed a neutral but respectful relationship.

Damian didn't talk to her much, but he knew he could trust her with his problems. She gave him an address. A place where he could find her if he needed her. Of course, he knew her apartment address, but they both knew he wasn't the type to bother her at her doorstep.

She seemed aware of the recent events, so he didn't have to explain his current predicament. Damian took another sip of his drink. "So kitten, are you ready to tell me what brought you here?" She said in a soft, patient voice.

'It's about Father.' Damian signed. He was glad she was efficient in sign language like most other members of their family.