“Do they know?” I ask.
“No. Enzo only wanted me to verify that they were blood-related and Milo could be the heir.”
I nod slowly as if on reaction.
Enzo has a brother who is evil. Just like his father. And if Milo finds out, he’ll be even more hellbent on trying to take over the Black empire. He will feel that he’s owed it after growing up without a father.
I feel Langston and Liesel standing behind me, taking the information in.
“If you need anything else, you have my number,” Archard says, putting his hat back on and picking up his leather briefcase.
He must read the shock on all of our faces. “I’ll give you as much time as I can to figure this out, but you don’t have long.”
“Thank you,” I say.
And then Archard leaves.
I take a deep breath; I don’t have time to dwell on the fact that Milo is Enzo’s half-brother. It doesn’t matter. Not in the grand scheme of things. Just one more way this world is smaller than I realized.
“I need to find an heir to prevent Milo from winning. And I need to find a way to save Enzo. Are you two going to help me or not?” I ask.
“Maybe this is a sign that you shouldn’t? That you just need to drop it and go live a long happy life away from all of this,” Langston says, his voice broken and dripping with pain. It’s not what he wants. He wants me to fight. But I have a feeling Enzo made him vow to do whatever it takes to keep me safe. And trying to convince me not to try to save Enzo in the first place is part of that promise.
“I can’t do that,” I say.
He nods and smiles slightly. “Good.”
“So you will help me?” I ask.
His grin gets bigger as he looks from me to Liesel. “As long as I don’t have to take orders from Miss Bossy Britches over there, then yes.”
I chuckle as Liesel frowns, obviously not happy but she doesn’t verbally object.
“Deal,” I say, not giving Liesel a chance to say anything.
“We need to take care of the heir problem first. As much as I want to storm in and save Enzo, I don’t think we can. Milo is too smart. And Enzo is safe for now, at least as long as the games last. I need an heir to keep me in the game.”
Liesel crosses her arms but doesn’t argue with me.
“Let’s split up so we can get to the part where we save Enzo faster. Langston, you do an extensive search to see if I have any long lost siblings or relations I don’t know about. Even if they are too far away in blood relation, I want to know about them.”
“On it,” Langston says, running off.
And that leaves me and Liesel. I don’t want to say the words. I don’t want to go to the doctor. I don’t want to know the answers.
“Come on, I’ll hold your hand while you go to the doctor to get tests,” Liesel says.
I roll my eyes at her sarcasm. “I don’t need someone to hold my hand.”
“No, you need someone to drag your ass to the doctor and make it happen. Let’s go.”
I sigh and follow Liesel.
I’m coming Enzo. Don’t give up hope. I remember what my life was like after I gave up hope that anyone would come for me. And it destroyed the tiny spark that was left of who I was deep inside. I don’t want that fate for Enzo. Too much time is wasted trying to get it back.
Find an heir, then find a way to save Enzo. Should be easy enough.
Except it would be easier to find a needle in a haystack. Because I’m not sure if I will ever get past step one.