Zena finished the message to Lacey on her laptop. She thanked her lucky stars one more time that it was undamaged from her fall. Was it only this morning? As if it wasn't enough her Mom was gone, now her whole identity was shifting. Who was she? Her Dad wasn't really her father.

"What happened to your arm?" Her Dad's question brought Anya back to mind. Another thing to deal with. Being bullied.

"A bully," she admitted with a half snarl.

"Hmmm, I'll have a chat with the principal about that. Even though it might be a good thing for you to have a dose of your own medicine, it isn't right no matter what the circumstances. Who was it?" His hands tightened on the steering wheel as he spoke.

"Her name is Anya. I haven't figured out what her last name is, but she's been after Lacey since grade school. She thought I was Lacey."

Zena slumped into the seat. It was good to talk about it. Maybe Dad wasn't such a bad guy.

"We'll add her to the list of things we need to talk about with the Pemberton's. What's under the bandage?"

She pulled the dressing off, exposing the scabbed up scratches.

"Ouch. I'm going to have her charged with assault. I'll talk to your teachers and the guidance counsellor. Maybe a restraining order."

"Really?" Tears leaked from her eyes. Who was this man? He'd pretty much ignored her except the few times a month they ate together when Mom was home between flying trips. "You would do that?"

"No matter what is going on, I love you Zee." He reached over to squeeze her shoulder as they turned into the driveway up to the mansion. "Stay in the car. I'll be right back."

Zena hiccupped softly and opened the center console to search for tissues. She jerked when soft tapping caught her attention. Mr. Chiccaro smiled as she rolled the window down.

"Miss, I want you to have these." He handed her a bouquet of mixed flowers, including daisies, roses, and a few snapdragons. "You must have had a hard day today. Tell Miss Lacey she doesn't have to come to help tomorrow."

"Thank you. Does everyone know about us?" She didn't really expect an answer.

"I think so, this is exciting news for a small town. Not much happens here without gossip spreading quickly." He gave her a half bow and went back to the rose bushes.

Zena buried her nose in the flowers, inhaling the sweet scents. Clutching them in one hand, she wiped her face and pulled the sunshade down to check the mirror. Thank God for waterproof mascara. She examined the fresh cut blooms more closely. He'd taken the time to de-thorn the roses, and there were two elastics snugged around the stems to keep the arrangement together.

Is he a florist too? Is he the one who put fresh arrangements in her room, and on the dining room table? Why would someone who barely knows me do something to make me feel better? How does he know I love plants and gardens? Did Dad tell him?

Zena kept the colorful bunch of flowers in front of her face, hiding the tear stains. Her thoughts drifting across the day's events. All she really wanted to do was get into her room and lock the door. This day needed to end, but she had a feeling the surprises weren't done.

Her dad came out carrying a small file folder which he put on the back seat before getting in himself.

"Nice, who gave you those?"

Zena turned the bouquet so her father could study it.

"Senor Chiccaro. He's really nice for an old guy."

"Papa Juan, his wife is Mama Rosa. They have been caretakers here for over twenty years."

"That's before you and Mom got married."

"Yes, and when your great grandmother Emily Pettigrew was still alive."

"Nice how I didn't get a chance to know her. There's so much I don't know. I'm not sure what I'm feeling. It's like I lost you and myself all at once. I don't know what to do." Zena sighed.

"I know it doesn't seem fair. I hope we can explain some of it for you as soon as we get to James Pemberton's office." Matt Henderson reached across to kiss Zena's forehead. "It will work out."

"I don't see how," she said softly so her father wouldn't hear.

"Oh, before we get moving, here." Her Dad reached into his shirt pocket and handed her the cell phone he'd. "With a bully bothering you, you can't be without a phone. Safety is more important than anything else now."

"Wow! I was going to ask for it back."

"We have to get you a new phone number, but for now I set up a roaming plan for you. We'll head down to the Verizon store tomorrow after school."

"Thanks Dad."

Zena signed in and congratulated herself for remembering her password. First thing was to check her messages. There weren't any. Not one. Sara hadn't even sent one, but she knew her bestie was using email. It wasn't nearly as nice as text messages or What's App. She hit the icon for What's App and nothing there either. Didn't one person from Denver miss her? At least she could catch up on Tik-Tok and Instagram. She barely registered the drive into town center, only glancing up when they bounced across the covered bridge over the river.

Her father drove beside the river, following the curve onto Main Street.

"Look, there's a beach across the river there, and a nice park too. Seems like the kids like to gather there after school."

Her Dad's comment had Zena scanning the view outside the car window.

"Pretty nice. Percy told me about it. He says it's the in place to be when it's hot."

"Who's Percy?"

"Just a guy from drama class. He's on the cheer squad too. Speaking of which, I'm trying out for it on Wednesday after school."

"That's quick." Her father sounded surprised.

"They're getting ready for homecoming and the game on the long weekend. I was going to be the team captain back home." The resentful quiver in her voice was real this time.

"If you're going to try for the team, do you want to get back into dance lessons?"

"Maybe, if we can find a good studio."

"Ask around. If you have a dance team on the squad, they have to be taking lessons somewhere," her dad suggested. "But I'm glad you're not part of the crowd you were in anymore. I'm sorry your dreams for this year had to be scrapped."

Zena studied her Dad's face as he found a parking spot in front of city hall. Was she going to let him off the hook? Not yet. At least he wasn't a total jerk. He must love her, or she wouldn't have her phone back or the promise of help fighting against Anya and her two enforcers. But did he really love her? She didn't know anymore, it kept going back and forth in her head. Why had her parents hidden the fact she was adopted for all this time? Who was her real mother? Nothing made sense anymore.

"Dad, just why did you have to go to the principal's office?"

"Because someone found out I was writing papers for the jocks. The worst of it was I was just trying to keep myself in one piece. Somehow, they wanted to blame me for them forcing it. I guess the college application essay I wrote for one of them, was sent in by ten different jocks to the same school. All of them were disqualified from any possible scholarships."

Zena's eyes popped open. "Oh man, that's awful. A real scandal."

"It was. They were expelled and I was blamed for us losing the state championship that year. I don't like remembering high school."

"But you're a stud now. I see how the mothers were looking at you in the pickup line at school."

"The gym and time. I really changed in college." Her dad grinned at her as they pulled into the curb to park. "It's why your mother's words in her will hit me so hard. I was bullied. I didn't want you to be one."