Shay Warner ran away from her adopted family as soon as she found out what they truly were: criminals. They lied, they killed, they betrayed her in a way that scarred her forever. It isn't until the police catch up to her that she's forced to go bac...
Placing the novel on the couch cushion, she walked through the narrow hallway to the one that connected to the bedrooms. She stopped for a half a second to see if she heard anything coming from Noah's room, but it was silent. The only sounds in the house seemed to be coming from the kitchen, since it was lunch time.
"Oh hey, Shay." Eli greeted as soon as she walked into the kitchen. Val, who was sitting at the breakfast bar in front of him, turned and smiled when she saw her.
"Have you gotten all settled in?" Val asked. She had spoken to Shay briefly when she first arrived but it was mostly a 'I'm so glad you're here, make yourself at home' followed by a response of 'thank you, I will'. This was the first time Shay was really seeing anyone but Noah, who, coincidentally enough, was nowhere to be seen.
"Yeah, thanks." Shay wanted to comment on having her old room back, but didn't know how Val would react. The fact that she didn't change a thing about that room for two years made Shay feel even more guilty than she did already.
"We have a ton of fresh veggies for a salad if you want. Bread too if you want to put it in a sandwich." Eli offered.
"Does that include avocados?"
"Yep, we have those too."
Shay smiled wide. If there was one food she couldn't live without, it was avocados.
She prepared herself a wrap full of lettuce, cucumbers, tomatoes, and of course, avocados. After throwing some potato chips on her plate, she sat at the breakfast bar with the two older residents in the house.
A couple of minutes into their meal, there was a beeping sound followed by the counter moving away from them. Shay watched as her plate was carried to the right by the mechanical trap door, still sitting on the stool with nothing but a staircase in front of her.
Summer came up first, followed by Noah. When he saw the three of them sitting there, his expression turned cold and he avoided looking at Shay. Without one word, he walked past them and went upstairs.
"I guess he's having a rough time adjusting." Summer said as a way of apology. Her eyes landed on Shay as if to remind her that it was her fault he was acting this way.
She knew.
"Do you think he'll be ready to go to work?" Val asked.
"Maybe a minor case."
Val nodded, considering this. "Thank you for keeping an eye on him."
"No problem." Summer shot Val a smile before turning around, leaving them alone in the kitchen as the counter moved back to its original position. Eli and Val went back to eating their lunch while Shay just stared at hers. Suddenly, she was wishing that she was the one looking after Noah, not Summer.
"Shay, after we eat I would like to speak to you." Val placed her fork into her empty salad bowl before standing up and bringing it to the dishwasher.
"Ok." Shay stuttered.
"I'll be in my bedroom. Just knock when you're ready." Then she turned on her heel and walked to right side of the house, disappearing behind the door that Shay had never seen the other side of.
Eyes flitting around with uncertainty, Shay had a hard time concentrating on her meal. No one was ever asked to speak to Val alone unless they were in trouble. For her to be in trouble after being there for six hours could only mean one thing: Val knew.
"Don't worry, she's probably just going to brief you on what we've been up to." Eli reassured her.
Shay shot his a nervous smile but didn't respond. Hopefully, he was right.
After ten minutes of picking at her food, eating like a chipmunk with tiny-ass bites, she put her plate in the stainless steel sink and washed her hands. Then she made her way through the great room until she was next to the foyer, standing in front of a thick door with a keypad. Hesitantly, she raised her fist and lightly knocked.
Then the door opened, and Val ushered her inside.
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Though the love drama is definitely my favorite, still gotta get into Val's operation. What exactly has she been up to?
