Page 39 of Code Name: Dante

“Your brother.”

I felt bile rise in my throat. If Lark wasn’t his daughter, why would he have these photos? No other explanation made sense.

God, the woman I was falling in love with, the woman who’d come to mean so much to me in such a short period of time… “Excuse me,” I said, racing from the room and into the nearest bathroom. After losing what little was in my stomach, I splashed my face with cold water and stared into the mirror.

My reaction was based on howIwas feeling. The profound anger and frustration I was experiencing believing that Lark, the beautiful and amazing woman I wanted to spend every minute with, was more than likelymy niece. I bent over the toilet again as dry heaves racked my body.

“This isn’t about you. It’s about Lark,” I stood and said to my reflection. How would she feel, knowing someone had been following her, photographing her all her life? How violated, how horrified? I had to get a grip and think about her.

I returned to Alice’s office and closed the door behind me.

“Are you okay?” she asked.

I shook my head. “No, but how I am doesn’t matter. Lark—” I had no idea what to say. How would we tell her?

“I know what you’re thinking,” Alice said in a soft tone of voice.

“You do? I have to admit, I don’t.”

“We need to tell her. Show her.”

“I know, but…” I shook my head again. “I don’t know how or what to say.”

“I don’t either, but she needs to know.”

“I agree,” I said, finally catching a breath.

“One other thing.”

“What?” I asked.

“Lark should decide what she tells her grandmother.”

I nodded again. “I agree.”

“I don’t want to do this in here, but I don’t know where else we’d have the same privacy.”

The longer we waited, the harder this would be. “I’ll go get her.”

“I’ll have Pershing distract Barbara.”

The steps I took back downstairs were harder than the ones up a few minutes ago. I still had no idea what I’d say or how I’d tell her. The only thing I knew for sure was that I didn’t want anyone other than her to hear what I had to say.

“Hey,” I said when she came out of the bathroom, her hair wet and skin flushed.

“Hey. Um, is everything okay?”

I walked closer and held out my hand. “Can you come with me?”

“What’s going on? Is Gram?—”

“She’s talking to Admiral,” I said, hoping Alice had made that happen after I left.

Her hand gripped mine as we walked up the stairs I’d just come down. And, like she had with me, Alice motioned for Lark to join her.

“You too,” Alice said when I hesitated, not knowing what to say but also knowing I couldn’t let Lark see the photos without me by her side.

“You’re both scaring me,” Lark said under her breath.