Page 31 of The Echo of Forever

Even I, who made it my business to know every player in Everwood’s power structure, had only heard whispers of that family.

“Fairchild,” I repeated slowly. “As in—”

“Yes,” my grandmother confirmed. “The Fairchilds are old blood in the Collective. Founding members. They operate above the structure that most of society sees. They don’t appear at functions, don’t hold official positions we can see, but their influence touches everything.” She picked up her tea again, taking a small sip before continuing. “Your grandfather knew who she was when Gerald brought her home. Only the three of us knew the truth.”

My mind raced, recalibrating everything I thought I knew about my mother.

“Why did she leave them?”

“She never shared the full story, even with your father. Only that she couldn’t stomach what her family represented anymore. The Fairchilds don’t forgive betrayal, Demetrius. When she left, she was dead to them. Until your father exposed her without knowing. His greed is why she had to go back.”

I brushed a hand down my face.

“They killed Gerald to punish her,” she went on. “And when she offered herself in exchange for leaving the rest of you alone, they took that deal.” Her voice grew softer. “Not out of mercy, but because having her back under their control was worth more than killing her children.”

“And now they’ve either killed her or still have her,” I said. “Why send her stuff to our doorstep? I can’t wrap my mind around that part.”

It had to be a cry for help.

“If she’s alive, she’s being held by the Fairchilds, not anyone else.”

She leaned forward, eyes intense.

“This is what I needed you to understand. You’re not just going up against the society that runs Everwood. You’re challenging a shadow power that most people don’t even know exists.”

I sat back, absorbing this new reality but still determined to do what I set out, even if it meant going against a family so powerful they operated behind the scenes of an already secretive organization. If my mother was alive, extracting her would be infinitely more complicated than I’d planned.

“Do they know?” I asked. “About us being her children?”

“The higher ranks of the Collective know you’re Aurelia’s children. Whether they know she was Soleme Fairchild…” She shook her head. “That, I can’t tell you. Your mother went to extraordinary lengths to bury that connection, and whether she liked it or not, so had her family.”

I stood, needing to move as my mind processed what was being explained to me.

“Anyone else in the family know about this?”

“No.” She watched me pace, her expression unreadable. “I’ve kept this secret for forty years, Demetrius. I’m only tellingyou now because you need to understand exactly what you’re walking into.”

I stopped at the window, looking out at the compound.

“I’m still moving forward with my plans,” I said finally, turning back to her.

My grandmother’s eyes were sad as she nodded.

“Be careful, Meechie. Some enemies are too powerful to confront directly.”

I kissed her forehead before leaving, the revelation heavy on my mind even hours later.

The city lights faded in the rear-view mirror as Oliver and I headed out of Everwood.

Neither of us had spoken much since leaving the compound.

Oliver drove, fingers tapping an irregular beat on the steering wheel, breaking the silence only to say, “They could easily fuck us over.”

“They’ll deliver what we need,” I replied, not wanting to have this conversation about trust again.

Forty minutes later, we turned onto a gravel road that cut through dense woods. The headlights carved a narrow path through the darkness.

Oliver slowed as we approached a clearing where an abandoned gas station stood with the warehouse I’d won at the auction a few feet from it. A single van was parked beside the gas station, its dark shape barely visible until our lights swept across it.