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"What are we going to do about Shan?" Jasper asked from the conference table a few days later.

Corinne sat at the far end of the long table, her legs up on the desk and a frown on her face. Elijah wasn't there, he stayed in Manhattan gathering more information about the impending investigation that mentioned our family. Whether it was about when I got shot or generally about my father, I didn't know.

Our family has dealt with the eyes and ears of the law enforcement listening in all our lives. The only thing that reminded us of our safety was the fact that we had multiple politicians under our thumbs due to their reckless behavior especially from one major city's mayor who loved gambling a little too much.

Any case ever opened against my family or my father specifically, disappeared without questions. And if there were ever any questions then those people were dealt with accordingly.

I sat at the head of the table, leaning back in my seat and staring at the ceiling. "Shan will get what's coming to him." Jasper didn't look too reassured by my statement but I kept my mouth shut.

"And Zhang Wei? If you touch his heir, you're practically declaring war against him and his entire family," he added, a note of fear in his voice.

"Then maybe it's time for a war to break out," I said monotonously. I had done the necessary things to keep myself a couple of steps ahead of everyone involved.

Jasper blanched, his face outraged. "You want two of the strongest families in the entire fucking country to start fighting? What would father say?"

I shrugged, sipping water from a glass. "I don't actually give a fuck what father would say, he's not here now and he's not in charge of this business or the family. I am."

Maybe the pent-up anger towards my father could be related to the fact that he hadn't called about the fact that I got shot over a week ago. Not one call. And I knew he knew because Jasper reported every little thing to him.

I told myself not to care. He was an asshole anyway. Why should I be shocked?

"If we corner Shan then maybe we'll be able to find another clue into who set up this whole list, which we still haven't gotten our hands-on, just by the way," Corinne informed us, an annoyed look on her face. Losing didn't sit well with her.

"Shan has no ties to who made the list, he only cares about status, and me being higher than him upsets him," I told them, thinking back to all those years seeing Shan at events and meetings. He never accepted me as an equal and he sure as hell isn't enjoying me being above him.

"Did we find any more clues to Uncle Ron's murder? Uncle George has been bugging me about information for weeks now," Jasper said, pulling out his phone and typing on it while finishing his sentence. He was glued to that freaking thing.

Corinne dropped her feet to the ground and leaned forward. "Nothing to go on but your uncles' description of the murderer. Video cameras were down the whole night from when Ron walked into the house."

I used my free hand to rub my eyes, a headache slowly building in the center of my forehead. "How does someone jump over a heavily guarded compound, walk into a house, and murder someone?" I asked quietly.

The amount of sleep I lost over this entire list situation is unhealthy. On a regular night, I barely slept now, that's been cut in half because I can't even guarantee the safety of my siblings or staff in my own home.

I shook my head, pushing those thoughts to the back of my mind for now, and stood up from my seat. My brother and Corinne followed suit. "As soon as Elijah gets back, have him find me immediately, whether it's in the middle of the night or day. And not one word of this discussion to anyone, it stays between the four of us," I said, looking at Jasper. He nodded and left the room.

When the door shut, I slumped back in my cushioned seat, my head lolling to the side. "I don't know how much longer I can do this before I crack," I murmured, feeling the reality of my words hit me square in the chest.

"You were born to do this, Ana. You've trained your whole life for this position," Corinne said, leaning her hip against the table next to me. "You'll figure it out."

"I wish I could get on a plane and go back to California, where my life was much simpler." I closed my eyes for a moment.

"That life was a lie," Corinne cut down my wish with her smack of reality. "That Ana was living a fake life. This is who you are."

This is not who I want to be. I said in my head, knowing if those words left my lips she wouldn't understand. She never did. Corinne was raised to be a realist and nothing more.

"I have to go," I announced, standing back up and moving to the door, my movements stiff and defensive. "Doctor Weston needs to change my bandages."

Corinne only nodded her head. "I'm going for a run then." If she picked up on my closed-off persona, she didn't show it.

The walk to the infirmary led my mind to spiral. I cursed the life I lived. Cursed the life I had in California, for getting that taste of freedom and having it yanked right out from underneath me.

I stomped through the door to the infirmary, expecting to see Finn on an empty bed, sifting through papers. But instead, he stood over one of the housekeepers, a girl younger than me, maybe twenty or so. Her face was flushed as she gazed up at Finn while he cleaned her hands with disinfectant and a cloth.

An involuntary smile graced my lips. I don't blame her. He wore his regular black scrubs and his hair flopped onto his forehead, dark roots against the stark white showing the regrowth of his natural hair color.

As if feeling my stare, he glanced over his shoulder, a twitch of his lips at the sight of me as he gestured for me to take a seat while I waited. The young girl's eyes were wide, unable to keep her gaze away from me.

For the next few minutes, I made myself comfortable on an empty bed, fiddling with the straps of my sling and watching Finn work in complete silence. The young girl hissed in pain as he cleaned the wound. He mumbled apologies, trying to be gentle yet thorough.

"What happened?" I questioned the young girl as soon as she caught my eye again.

She sucked in a ragged breath. "I uh, was making fresh rolls for dinner when I grabbed the tray out of the oven with my bare hands without thinking," she replied sheepishly.

I gave her a pitying smile. "I'm sorry that happened." Finn paused his work and glanced at me over the shoulder with a raised eyebrow, visibly impressed. "When Doctor Weston is finished here, take the rest of the week off to make sure you heal without any strain," I added, staring into those damn blue eyes.

The young girl gasped. "Thank you so much, Miss Love, thank you," she babbled, forgetting her hands for a moment.

I tipped my head in acknowledgment. "Of course."

A few more minutes passed before she left the room with another show of gratitude towards both of us. Without a word, I slipped off my sling and stripped off my shirt, leaving me in my bra. Oddly enough, I had been back here almost every day this week to change out my bandages but haven't spoken much to him. This week alone I've been more in my head about...well, everything. And Finn isn't much of a conversationalist in general.

"You know you're a lot nicer than people make you out as," Finn commented, removing the bandages on my shoulder. "Wounds are healing nicely," he murmured more to himself. "Although maybe you should take the advice you gave her and take some time to actually heal properly."

I grinned, ignoring his comment. "Do my staff talk about me behind my back?"

He tilted his head giving me an obvious look. "I think people are scared to even mention your name."

My eyes rolled into the back of my head. "My name is nothing special."

"Anastasia Love," Finn said in his deep voice that caused a shiver to run up my spine. Say it again, just like that. "Sounds pretty important to me," he checked my stitches again before getting fresh gauze. "Has anyone ever called you Annie?"

I leaned back in annoyance. "Never, and I would kill anyone who would."

"Like you killed the man from The Courtyard?" He asked boldly and so quickly I was caught off guard. He stepped back, watching my mannerisms. I forced myself to sit still. "You did, didn't you?"

"It's none of your business."

His eyes flared in outrage. "You made me tend to his wounds yet you killed him anyway, why?"

"Again, none of your business," I answered curtly, annoyed that he would think it would be okay to ask me something like that.

"So that's what your family does that makes you all so notorious? Kill people if they don't give you what they want?" Although his words were harsh, his fingers were gentle across my skin. "Why did you do it?" I asked softly. I understood why he was so upset. His whole life was dedicated to saving lives and I made his entire career redundant with one bullet.

I stared at the wall over his shoulder, simmering quietly. The amusement from earlier completely sucked from the room, replaced with tense silence. Unable to remain quiet in his presence, wanting to explain myself, needing to clear my name in his eyes, I spoke.

"You seem to think I have a choice in what I do," I said in a bland tone, keeping my eyes on the wall.

After more than a minute, his cold hand touched my bare shoulder. My jaw grew taut and my lips pinched shut. "Don't you? You're in charge, you're the big boss here."

My eyes glossed over the more I stared at the wall. "No one refuses my father," my thoughts turned to Jasper and his one act of defiance as a child, "it ends badly for everyone involved."

My voice sounded hollow in my ears. We may have had everything we could've ever wished for growing up, but gentleness was not something Jasper, Elijah, and myself knew. Our father got control of us while our mother handled Atticus and Amari. We got the harshness and they got the love.

Fingers swept across my jaw until they gripped my chin and forced my gaze to meet blue eyes. Those damn blue eyes. "I didn't realize he still had you under his thumb with him in hiding," he said softly, his expression filled with guilt. "I'm sorry, Annie."

"Never call me that again," I said with a forced chuckle, thankful for the little nickname so I could effectively change the subject. "Never." I leaned out of his grip and saw my shoulder in fresh bandages. With deft fingers, I threw my shirt and sling on securely. "You know, if you're feeling lonely, you should join us for dinner," I offered, "We're having soup with freshly baked rolls."

His fingers fidgeted before he ran a hand through his hair. "I wouldn't want to impose on a private family dinner."

"Nothing to impose, usually we eat separately but Amari asked if we could eat dinner together tonight," I answered. "At least if I have to suffer listening to her talk all night long then so do you."

A smile touched his lips. "Well, then we can suffer together." He jerked a thumb over his shoulder. "Let me just change quickly." He walked towards the small office, tugging his black scrubs top over his head as he walked, giving me a clear view of his lean muscular back.

Oh my god. I glimpsed a sliver of ink on his back as he turned the door handle but couldn't make it out in time before he disappeared from view.

Minutes later he walked out in a pair of jeans and a dark green sweater. Together we walked up the stairs and into the hallway. Few staff members scuttled across the house as the dinner bell chimed for my siblings. With Elijah still not home, I figured Finn could take his place.

The dining room was a large space with a wall of mirrors looking onto the backyard patio where the pool and the outdoor entertaining area were located. The table itself seated sixteen people sat in the middle of the room under a large glass chandelier my mother just had to have.

The house staff had set the table accordingly and the aroma of freshly baked bread and the various kinds of soup filled the air.

Only Atticus sat in a seat, the others had not arrived yet. He sat quietly, reading a book that he hid in his lap under the table. I flicked the back of his head as I walked past and only then did he register other people in the room.

He nodded silently to Finn and turned his attention back to his book. I sat at the head of the table, gesturing for Finn to sit on my left, where Elijah usually did. With a flourish, I laid my napkin across my lap and leaned an elbow on the table, giving my youngest brother my full attention. "What book are you obsessed with this time?" I asked with a grin, knowing I was probably annoying him by forcing him to look away from his book.

Without a word, he lifted the book in my direction. "Yes Atticus, I can see the book but I would rather you actually conversed with me once in a while," I stated, waving a hand in his direction.

A heavy sigh left his lips before he tore his eyes away from the pages and looked at me. "Lord of the Rings," he stated in a monotone, waving the book in the air for a second.

"Haven't you already read that one?" I asked in confusion.

He shook his head. "Nope, I read The Hobbit which is the prequel to The Lord of the Rings," he replied, eyes glued to the pages. Better than nothing.

Footsteps thundered down the passage and into the dining room. Amari stood there with a bright smile lighting up her face and the entire room.

I gave her an unimpressed look. "You couldn't have changed after your horseriding lesson?" I inquired, staring at her riding boots caked in mud and her riding pants covered in horsehair. Sweat shined on her flushed face.

Amari glanced down at herself, strands of her brown hair pulling free from her braid. "I only just finished my lesson, if I showered and changed, I would have missed dinner," she pouted, kicking off her boots and tossing them into the corner where they hit the wall, marking it in mud. Oh good god.

Her eyes roamed the room, frowning at the empty seat to my right and freezing on the seat to my left. She raised a poised eyebrow, tilting her head slightly. "Who are you?"

Finn stood up respectfully and held out a hand. "Doctor Finn Weston, your family's surgeon."

She furrowed her eyebrows, shaking his hand delicately, like the princess she is. "We need a family surgeon?" She joked, completely oblivious. "I get that you get banged up every once in a while but a whole surgeon? Insane." She chuckled to herself before sitting in her seat next to Finn's.

Finn still stood in the same spot, staring at my shoulder pointedly. Not once had Amari asked about my shoulder or expressed any form of concern. I licked my lips to stop myself from hysterically laughing at my sister.

Jasper walked in a few seconds later, his steps did not falter when he noticed Finn in the room. He sat at my right, silently. Amari smiled at him and received a simple nod in answer. Atticus stared at his book until Jasper ripped it from his hands and tossed it further down the table, out of reach. Atticus slumped in his seat, grumbling to himself.

Once Finn reseated himself, I reached forward and grabbed the serving tongs, and gave myself a crunchy roll. Everyone else started grabbing things, serving each other soup and other small things.

My soup bowl sat empty while I waited, internally trying to navigate how I would serve myself soup one-handed. Without any indication, Finn picked up my soup and held a hand out towards the different ladles for each kind of soup.

"Which one would you like?" He asked expectantly.

I schooled my surprised face. "Butternut squash, please." He ladled a few scoops in and set it down in front of me before serving himself. Huh. "Thank you."

"Can I have some friends over this weekend?" Amari asked from her seat, taking small delicate bites of her food. Ah ha, the reason she wanted to have dinner together.

"No," Jasper and I both echoed simultaneously.

Amari slumped in her seat, a visible look of distraught on her face. "Why not?" she whined.

"Because your friends are assholes," Jasper replied curtly. I coughed over my laughter. Atticus leaned back in his seat with a smile. Finn looked back and forth between all of us.

"That is so rude, you barely know them," she exclaimed, folding her arms across her chest. "Then can I go to their house?"

"No," I replied, taking a large bite of bread.

She slammed her palms on the table. "Oh my god, why?" she demanded, eyes blazing.

"I could have sworn we had a conversation about how someone is trying to murder us?" I asked sarcastically, glancing at my two brothers for confirmation. Atticus slouched in his seat, hoping to disappear and Jasper only rolled his eyes at our sister's behavior.

"You're being paranoid, this prison of a home is perfectly safe," she stated.

I dropped my bread roll on my plate. "Oh my god you are so fucking sheltered, it's embarrassing," I said exasperated, "I was shot over the weekend because of this fucking list and you're calling me paranoid?" Silence ensued from the rest of the table. I glared at Amari. "You need to stop acting like a brat, mom and dad aren't here to give you everything you want any more, get used to it."

She pushed to her feet, tears in her eyes as she grabbed her plate and left the room. I watched her go with furrowed brows. Atticus cleared his throat and looked at the watch on his wrist. "Huh, eight minutes, that's a new record for us," he said, surprised. Jasper raised his eyebrows, impressed.

"Shut up," I mumbled, throwing a piece of bread at him. He dodged it with a grin.

Jasper leaned back in his chair, resting his hands on the table. "I think it's time that you and Amari have a sit-down conversation and hash this drama out."

"She's being ridiculous, how can she not see what's going on around her? She's not stupid, she sees what goes on around here, she's just choosing to block it out," I stated, genuinely confused at how she can ignore the kinds of things her family is attached to.

"Wouldn't you if you could?" Atticus asked, eyeing me carefully.

Jasper cleared his throat. "Again, a conversation to have with her. I'm not interested in being a therapist to you every time you fight with our sister." His eyes roamed around the table. "Maybe ask the doctor since you've found the need to keep him so close to you," Jasper nodded his head towards Finn, who furrowed his eyebrows in the light dig.

Finn tilted his head to the side. "Did I do something to annoy you?"

Jasper kept his face blank. "Of course not, I don't even know you," Jasper replied, and that calm tone caught my attention.

He doesn't trust Finn? My eyes casually observed Finn's stiff posture as he stared down with Jasper. He didn't have a chance. Jasper was practically carved from ice with that attitude of his.

Finn blinked first, annoyance marking his face from the way his lips were pinched to the side.

Jasper shrugged. "Why is it that you've only got one page of information on you?" His head tilted. "No addresses, no schooling information, only your sudden appearance at medical school and then The Corner Store. Nothing on your parents or any foster homes or even adoption papers." Jasper rested an elbow on the arm of his chair, rubbing his thumb across his bottom lip in thought.

My face slowly fell as I internalized everything Jasper said. Finn never gave away any information about himself, he only ever glossed over it before changing the subject. No one hides that information unless there's something that could incriminate you.

"I have my reasons," Finn replied curtly, "with the childhood you've had, I'm sure you can understand why I like to keep things private."

Jasper's eyes flared in alarm and his gaze snapped to mine. "How much have you told him?" He demanded.

"Barely anything of use," I defended myself. "Father's an asshole, we all know that and if you didn't it's not hard to figure out." I widened my eyes at my brother, trying to have a silent conversation with him but his gaze hardened.

"If you wanted dick so bad, you could have just gone to Franco, God knows he'll crawl across fire for you," Jasper accused before standing up to stare down at me. A power move.

I pushed to my feet and glared right back. "Say that again and I'll kick your ass with this sling on," I promised, feeling the tension grow tight between us. "You can interrogate Finn all you want, but you don't drag me into it and throw me through the dirt like that, ever." My eyes said it all. I'm not afraid of you, one-handed or not.

Jasper's cheek hollowed out, his jaw was taut. He backed down by sitting in his seat, leaving me standing there, and continued eating his food in silence. I gathered up my rolls on a plate and stepped away from the table.

"Finn," I said, gaining his attention, "Understand that while you signed a non-disclosure agreement when you came here, it works both ways, if we have cause for suspicion, you give us the information required and we keep it to ourselves." Finn's eyes shuttered at my words but he nodded. "Jasper," I called, gaining my brother's moody attention, "suck a dick." With that, I left the room to finish my dinner in peace.

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Do you have any siblings/ people you treat like siblings? I have three siblings that are all older than me. Two brothers and one sister!

Either way, I hope you enjoyed it!

Until next time,

Sammipott xx

© Samantha Pottinger 2021. All rights reserved