2.6 - Good Intentions

“Gavin.”

I snapped awake. I was on the beach again, in the same spot, at the same time. It seemed like time hadn’t moved forward from the last time I was here.

I spun around to find the same girl that found me the last time I was here, surrounded in darkness. She smiled. "Hello."

I averted my eyes from her dark blue wings. "Who are you?"

She smiled and nodded. "Yeah, I guess you don't remember me. It's been a long time. The last time I saw you, you were just a kid." She took a deep breath. "My name is Stacius. I'm your family's guardian."

I stared at her. "What does that mean, you're my family's guardian?"

She gave a single, but quiet, laugh. "I was instructed with protecting your family after your mother moved to Starlight Shores after her father died. My job is to protect you and make sure your family is on the right path."

I scoffed. "Yeah, right."

Stacius shrugged. "You believed me when I visited you when you were younger."

I continued to stare at her. "You visited me? When?"

"You were a child. I don't think you remember."

"Why did you visit me?"

Stacius crossed her arms. "Because I like to visit the family I'm protecting every once in a while."

"Does anyone else know about you?"

Stacius sighed. "Just your mother. But I haven't been able to speak to her at all lately. I'm lucky I'm being able to talk to you now."

"Why?"

Stacius frowned. "Because of the darkness that surrounds her heart."

I sighed. "Why can't the others talk to you?"

"That is a secret that I can't reveal just yet."

"Okay...so what are you, exactly? A fairy?"

"Not quite. I have the appearance of a fairy, but I have more of the attributes of an angel. Not to toot my own horn." She said with a wink.

"So, you said you were instructed to protect my family. Instructed by who?"

Suddenly, Stacius frowned. She sighed. "The darkness is closing in. I'm being cut off. I'm sorry I couldn't say everything." She gave a weak smile. "Just know that the darkness will end soon. When it does, we can talk about everything." Stacius rose above the ground and moved her hands over my eyes. 

I lost consciousness, immediately forgetting about Stacius and everything we discussed on the beach.

"Villiers." A rough voice woke me.

I startled awake, rubbing my eyes. I struggled to remember what I was dreaming about with no result.

"Sleeping on the interrogation, Villiers? Not enough sleep last night?" Walter asked.

"Now, why don't we go over what happened again?" He insisted.

I groaned. "I told you. I wasn't going to follow through with the promises I made her. It was a trick to try and get her back here without a fight."

Walter scoffed. "It seemed like you two were pretty close. And I guess you would be, considering the two of you were best friends back home."

"Look, I told you what I can tell you. It was never going to happen. I was doing my job. She would have gotten away if I didn't buy time, and then we would have been back at square 1." I snapped. "I don't know why I'm even here in the first place."

Before Walter could retaliate, Arnold opened the door to the interrogation room. "He's free to go."

Walter jumped up from his chair. "Like hell he is!"

Arnold held his hands up in an attempt to calm him down. "The chief said to release him. He informed one of the officers of his plan."

Walter gaped at him. "Which officer?"

"Officer Wicker." He said plainly.

"You're off the case." Wicker said quickly. "The deal's off. We're reclaiming your apartment, as well as your badge. I expect all of your belongings to be out of the apartment by the end of the week."

My heart dropped. This can't be it. After all of this, this can't be where it ends. I didn't spend all of this time to end up without a result. "Sir-"

"That's all I'm going to say on it, Villiers. You've screwed up."

"Sir, with all due respect, you know I'm not directly involved with this crime! I no longer have any ties with Grizella Rein. I was using my past relationship with her to get some results, but I only did it because she's a convicted felon with multiple charges!"

"Your past relationship with her is why I'm taking you off the case. You were directly involved with two of the suspects in this case, and I would have switched your case in a heartbeat had I known. You wouldn't have even started the investigation, and I would have transferred you somewhere else. But, you didn't. The agency is threatening to shut us down. If you hadn't told my daughter about your little stunt, you'd be joining your dad in prison and the entire program would be shut down. You're lucky you're getting off with a free trip back home."

"But sir, the entire reason I came here in the first place was to reduce my father's sentencing! I can't go home without making some type of progress."

Wicker shook his head. "You've ruined the whole case. There's a chance Rein could get off scott-free because of what you did. I can't reward that. Goodbye, Villiers."

I walked outside of Wicker's office. Autumn stood by the wall close to the front door, in the same dress she was wearing the night before. I felt a pang of guilt. This is all my fault...

I slowly approached her. "You covered for me?"

Autumn nodded. "Even if you did screw up the case, I know you're not on the other side of things. I know you too well. Even if it meant lying to my father, I was willing to do that than to see you get carted off to jail."

I gave her a weak smile. "Thank you."

Autumn narrowed her eyes. "That was incredibly stupid."

"What? My empty promises to Izzy?"

"No. Getting involved in this case." Autumn began. "You should have went straight to the chief when you realized Eli Martinez was involved, because that relationship with him alone made you a liability. He would have switched your case, and this wouldn't have happened. Now, the case is ruined and your father's sentence stays the same." Autumn crossed her arms. "Congratulations." she said sarcastically.

I didn't have a response. I just looked down at the ground, avoiding her gaze. I couldn't apologize, I couldn't do anything.

Autumn sighed. "How long did he give you?"

"A week."

Autumn nodded. "Listen, Vinny...Despite what happened last night, I really do think you're a great guy, but you're going home, and..."

I looked back up at her. "So, is this it? This is when everything ends?"

Autumn shrugged. "Maybe we were a mistake. It was stupid of me to get involved in something I knew wasn't permanent."

"Is that really how you feel?" I asked, my heart breaking.

The front door opened behind me. I spun around to find my older brother and sister walking in. Khloe's eyes narrowed when she saw me.

"What are you two doing here?"

"We were called. What the hell is going on?" Khloe demanded.

"What the hell happened, Vinny?" Khloe demanded. "The both of us got called down to be 'interrogated?' Interrogated for what? What the hell happened?"

My eyes darted from Ryder to Khloe. "Izzy is the one behind the crimes happening in the city."

"Izzy...Grizella? Grizella Ghee?" Ryder asked, astonished.

"Yes. I've been looking for her since the day I found Eli in jail. I've been out of my mind searching for her, but I never found any leads."

"Okay, so what happened?" Khloe asked.

"Last night, I went out to this restaurant with Autumn. I saw Izzy there ordering a drink." I began. "I tried approaching her, but she ran. I followed her to this abandoned warehouse at the edge of the city. I had to find some way to bring her back to the station without a fight, so I made some fake promises to try and get her back. The cops showed up and arrested the both of us because they thought I was working with Izzy. They brought me back, and..." I looked to Ryder. "Long story short, they let me go. But the chief told me I screwed up the case and he kicked me off. He's taking the apartment back." I looked sadly to my siblings. "I have to go back home."

"What about Dad's sentence?" Khloe asked.

I looked sympathetically at her. "It won't be changed."

Khloe's eyes widened. She put her head in her hands. "Vinny...why would you be this stupid?"

"I had to find Izzy! I wanted to be done with this whole damn thing!" I yelled in exasperation.

"You could have let somebody else handle it! It's the police's job to hunt her down, not yours!"Khloe yelled.

"I am the police!"

"You're a detective! You don't work in forensics!" She looked back up at me. "What were you thinking? Why were you that obsessed with getting her back?"

I stayed silent. Ryder looked at me with sympathy. "Gavin."

I looked up at him.

"I think it's time to tell her."

A harsh anger gripped at me. "No! That isn't for you to decide!"

Khloe grabbed onto my shoulder. "What is he talking about, Gavin?"

I didn't answer.

"Gavin!"

"BECAUSE I'M THE ONE WHO PUT DAD IN JAIL!"

Khloe's eyes widened. "What...What do you mean?"

I sadly looked at Khloe. I sighed. "Back in Starlight Shores, back when we were kids, I was there the night Katie died."

Both Khloe and Ryder fell silent.

"I was there with Izzy and Eli. We were at the movies, and Izzy saw Katie go to the back of the theater to call somebody. I guess they weren't on good terms. Izzy just...killed her. I couldn't do anything to stop her, neither me or Eli. It took a lot to keep it a secret this long, but-"

She turned to Ryder. "You knew?"

Ryder sighed and crossed his arms. "He told me. He was scared, he needed help."

Khloe started to raise her voice. "I was scared! I needed help!"

"Khloe..." Ryder pleaded.

I moved towards Khloe. "Khloe, I'm so sorry-"

Khloe pushed me away. "Get away from me, you asshole!" she yelled. "Dad's in prison because of you! He's going to live out the rest of his life without ever seeing us again! This is all your fault!" Khloe yelled.

 She turned away from me and bolted out the door.

I started to run after her, but Ryder stopped me. "She needs to digest the news. If she doesn't come back in a couple of hours, we'll go out to look for her."

Ryder and I spent the entire day searching for Khloe. She wasn't answering her phone, and the two of us went all around town looking for her. At around 5, we ended up at the bridge. We decided to take a break, and I leaned against the railing, overlooking the water.

Ryder walked up to me. "Are you okay?"

I shook my head. "She's right. This was all my fault." I tried to control my breathing. "I got dad arrested. I ran away from home when Mom needed me the most. I did it to get Dad out, but I even managed to fuck that up, too."

Ryder put his hand on my shoulder. "Listen, we'll figure all of this out. I think it's awesome that you even came here in the first place. I know 'it's the thought that counts' isn't going to work very well in this scenario, but..." He trailed off, not really knowing what to say next.

Still, I couldn't help but smile. "Thanks, Ryder."

He smiled at me, "No problem, bro."

Just then, my cell phone started to ring. I immediately grabbed for it and saw that Benny was calling. I haven't heard from him since the night of the kiss...

I picked up the phone. "Hello?"

Benny's voice, sounding desperate, left no room for silence. "Vinny! Quick! You need to get down here! Rein broke out of the interrogation room and killed two of the officers! 

"She took one of their guns and she has Autumn hostage inside of the compound! She's gonna kill her!"

2.5 - Just Too Close to Love You

*WARNING: STRONG CURSING IN THIS CHAPTER*

“Gavin," called a voice that sounded like it was miles away. I couldn't tell who it was, but it sounded...familiar somehow. Like I've heard it somewhere before.

When the blurriness in my vision faded away, I looked around, realizing I was completely alone.

As I looked around me, I found myself standing by the ocean. I woke up on some beach in the middle of nowhere.

"It's been a while, Gavin." I heard from behind me. I spun around to see a girl with some kind of dark blue matter behind her. Are those wings?

"Who-?"

"It's been a while. You've grown up so much."

"Who are you?"

"Never mind that now. I don't have a lot of time. The darkness is closing in." The woman gave me a solemn look. "Listen to me. This will all be over soon. The light will shine through soon, and the evil will be gone. It's surrounded you for a long time, which is why I haven't been able to reach you as well as I should be." She started to rise above the ground, her feet suspended from the sandy ground. "I need you to stand still. I know this might not make sense, but I'm running out of time."

Her hands opened up, and a gold aura was emitted from her palms.

The golden dust showered over me, leaving specks on my clothes. The ones that stuck immediately dissolved, causing my body to illuminate a neon pink color.

 "I'll see you soon."

"No! Come back!" I snapped awake. I rubbed my eyes.

I looked around. I was standing in front of my apartment building. It was pitch black outside, meaning it had to be the middle of the night. However, If I was sleepwalking, why was I still in my clothes? I don't remember even being at the apartment since this morning. Who was that woman?

I decided to shrug it off. I have more important things to worry about. This is the first time this has happened, I decided to let it slide. I walked inside, bypassed my sleeping doorman, and took the elevator up to the apartment.

I opened my door to hear the sound of talking. I thought Khloe was on the phone until I noticed the other man sitting across from her.

He resembled my sister except for his flame-colored hair and his brown eyes, like mine. The spitting image of our father. Ryder, my older brother.

Khloe immediately stopped talking mid-sentence and turned to me. "Hey."

Ryder turned to me and smiled. "Hey, little brother."

I gaped at my brother. "R-Ryder? What are you doing here?"

"I called him here." Khloe stated plainly. "The three of us need to have a discussion about the whole 'Selena' situation."

I groaned. "We're not seriously on this again, are we?"

Khloe looked offended. "This is serious, Vinny!"

"How?" I said sarcastically. "How exactly is this serious? This is just a theory you came up with because you were being paranoid, as you always are." I stressed. "Calling our brother down here from god-knows-where isn't going to prove you're right, it's just going to make you look crazier."

Khloe crossed her arms. "I AM right."

"You don't know that."

"Vinny. I went to Selena's. I asked her straight up if Leah was Dad's kid, and she said 'yes.'"

I stared at her for a second, not really registering what she was saying. "What?"

Khloe uncrossed her arms. "Leah's our sister." Khloe started telling me everything 

My breathing started to slow. I looked from my brother to my sister. "Okay. Great. So what now?" I said blankly.

Khloe glanced at Ryder. "I think we need to have an adult conversation about what to do with this information."

"What do you mean?"

Khloe looked at me sympathetically. "I think we need to tell Mom and Dad."

"No." I said quickly.

"Vinny-"

"No. Why would we tell them? Selena moved away. she didn't want Dad to be a part of Leah's life. Why would we tell them about her? It doesn't make sense."

Khloe scowled. "Yeah, you've given your bit."

I gave her that scowl right back. "So have you. You did call Ryder down here to have him reinforce your opinion, didn't you?" I mocked. "Very mature for the oldest, I have to say."

Ryder held his hands up in defense. "Alright, alright. I know this is a sensitive situation, but we're reduced to fighting like we did when we were kids. Let's try to keep this in perspective, alright? Now, I know Khloe wants Leah to be a part of the family she deserves, but..."He gave Khloe a sympathetic look.

Her eyes darted from Ryder to me. "Oh, alright. The boys against the girls, is that how we're going to  play it?" she said, angered at her odds of winning.

Ryder stood in front of her. "Listen, I know you're angry at Dad. I am too, and so is Gavin. And part of you thinks that Leah deserves to know who her father was, and that same part thinks that this is what Dad deserves, for doing that to Mom. We're all thinking that way, and under normal circumstances, I'd agree with you, Khloe. But these aren't regular circumstances. Dad is in jail. Gavin isn't home. Mom is a mess right now. The worst possible time to tell them would be now. Maybe, when things settle down, we'll figure out what to do then, but certainly not now."

I was actually really impressed with how Ryder handled it.

Khloe stood up. "When will be a good time, Ryder?" She threw her hands up in exasperation. "It's NEVER a good time! Look at all of the crap we've had to put up with in the past few years! It'll never be a good time for anything!"

At that point, I had had enough. "I don't have time for this shit." I started walking to the door. "All I'm gonna say is that I'm done talking about it. Majority rules. I'll be back later tonight." I slammed the door behind me.

Autumn stood in front of our table, making sure that no one would take it.

She looked like she had been waiting a while, but she wore a very elated smile on her face. Like there were no thoughts in her mind that I stood her up.

Autumn's eyes drifted over to me after I entered through the back door of the restauraunt. She smiled when she saw me. She looks beautiful...

I walked over to our table and kissed Autumn. "Hey. Didn't think I ditched you, did you?"
"No, because I know if you did, I'd be coming at you with forks and knives I snatched from this place." She said with a chuckle.

The two of us sat down and waited patiently for the server to come around and take our drink orders. I put my hands in my lap. "So, how exactly do you know this place?" I asked.

"I'm the police chief's daughter, remember?" She said, looking at me skeptically. "I always used to be dragged to these fancy police gatherings at these fancy restaurants. I know all of the best places to eat in this city, and this at least number 2." She said with a smirk.
"So, what exactly got you into police work? You mentioned it, but you never really told me." I asked. "Was it because of all the fantastic dinner parties?" I said sarcastically.
She sighed in play frustration and shook her head. "No. I was in a lot of sports teams in high school, and I was really good at almost all of them. I got a lot of attention from recruiters for colleges, and I even got a full-time scholarship for SimU. My dad noticed it also, and he thought it would be best to have me graduate early and send me to police college when I turned sixteen." she finished with a sigh.
I looked at her for a second, trying to read her expression. "Is that what you wanted?"
Autumn looked like she just snapped out of a daze. "Not really. I kind of wanted to try for SimU, and maybe go into Professional Sports. But, I knew it was a long shot for me to make it in the leagues, and even with a full scholarship, college costs money. But, we could actually afford police college, so I decided to make that my career." As the drinks came back, she took a sip. "I don't know. I like what I do. It was a rocky start, but now i'm enjoying it." she said with a smile.

I smiled. "Good, I'm glad."
Autumn nodded. "So, can I ask you something?" she paused. "What are you going to do after this is all over? Where are you gonna go?" Autumn said, looking solemn.
I sighed. "I don't know. I'm not even sure when this will all be over, but when it is, I guess I'll figure out where to go from there."
Autumn was silent for what seemed like a long time. "Are you going back to Starlight Shores?"
I gave her a sympathetic look. When the two of us got into this relationship, we did so forgetting the fact that I'm not staying here permanently. We didn't know how long it was going to last, and we just went with it. But, now-
Before I could answer, I heard a voice coming from the bar. "Could I just get a scotch, please?"
I froze. I knew that voice.
Autumn gave me a concerned look. "Vinny?"
I strained my head to find the source of the voice. I stood up from the table. "Vinny, what's wrong?" Autumn asked.

Everything else around me seemed to have frozen. I stared at her, wide-eyed. It's her.
I pushed my chair in and walked up to the bar. I tapped her on the shoulder. "Ella?"

Izzy spun around and gasped. "Oh, shit!" She quickly turned around and started sprinting away from the restaurant.
"Izzy, stop!"
"Vinny?!" Autumn yelled after me.

I turned around the corner of the old brick warehouse. Izzy crouched besides the garbage can, trying to catch her breath.

"You can't keep running, Izzy." I walked up to her.
Izzy kept panting. "What do you want? Leave me alone."

"I can't." I started.
"Why the hell not? Go the fuck back to Starlight Shores with your picket-fence family and leave me alone."
"I said I can't." I said, becoming more angry.
"Why?!"
I pulled out my badge out of my pocket and showed it to her. Her eyes widened. "You're a fucking cop. I can't believe this."

I shrugged.
"How much do you know about me?"
"I know that you've gotten your goons to attack Lucy Miles twice: once in this city, and another in Appaloosa Plains. I know that you've broken into Selena Miles' house in an attempt to kidnap Leah Miles to try and blackmail Selena into releasing Eli from prison. I know that this isn't the first person you've harassed and almost killed because you don't have what you want."
Izzy got in my face. "You don't know shit."

"I know that you killed Katie Reynolds."
Izzy narrowed her eyes at me and crossed her arms.
"Izzy, putting everything else aside, you have to help me." I began. "My dad is in jail because of what we did that night. He might be in there for the rest of his life. I can't live with myself if that's what's going to happen to him."

"So, what? You want me to confess?" Izzy scoffed.
"Yes. Please."
Izzy laughed. "You can't be that stupid."
I narrowed my eyes. "Listen to me. I have more dirt on you than you think, including the murder. Now that I know where you are, I could have the police over here in five minutes. You won't just get punished for the murder, you'll be punished for the assault of Lucy, the potential kidnapping of Leah, and the break-in of Selena. Not to mention the other list of crimes you should be charged for. That's enough to put you away for life."
"So what exactly are you suggesting?" Izzy asked.

"If you confess to the murder, back home, then the other charges will be dropped."
Izzy crossed her arms. "How will you do that?"
"I can fake evidence. I've done it before." I looked at her with pleading eyes. I knew I wasn't going to actually fake the evidence, but I needed her cooperation for my job to end. Once Izzy's in jail, I can go back home and go back to living my life.
Izzy narrowed her eyes. "How will I know you'll keep your promise?"
I gave her a smile, "You can't trust a promise made by an old friend?"
Izzy thought about it for a long time, but, finally, she nodded. "Okay." she said with a frown. "What do I have to do?"

I never got to answer her. A bright flashlight shined in between the two of us. "BOTH OF YOU! DOWN ON THE GROUND, HANDS BEHIND YOUR HEAD." A male voice shouted.
The two of us obeyed. Handcuffs were locked around our wrists, and we were hoisted up and walked to the car. On the way there, Autumn stood in her black dress, her arms crossed, frowning at me. Her look was a look of disappointment and sympathy.

"Autumn, it was a misunderstanding!"

*********AUTHOR'S NOTE*********

Okay! Chapter 5 is done!

Okay, so there are going to be 2 more chapters in the whole "Mulan" storyline and then I get to move Vinny back to Starlight Shores and he can continue his life as a regular sim :D

Btw, I was going to finish this chapter last night and have it up on here already....

but....

Then a Telltale Episode for "The Walking Dead" was released yesterday

So I had to get it xD

FYI, whenever there is a day that a telltale game is released,

9 times out of 10, there will not be a chapter up that day xD

I apologize in advance, but you don't understand the struggle of having to wait for those episodes.

Unless you play them as well, in which case...You do xD

Anyway, that's it for now!

bye-bye kiddies!

~Orange

2.4 - Search and Destroy

Arnold called me up from the office two days after Eli’s interrogation. 

There is no one under the name “Grizella Ghee” living in Bridgeport.

In fact, there is no one under the last name "Ghee."

I don't know how that's possible.

Eli told me that Ella was still in the city. On a follow-up investigation, he told me that she doesn't go by the name "Ella" anymore. Instead, her coworkers called her "Izzy."

Even still, she couldn't be found. Her information when she was a child is still there, but only her father, Gary Ghee, is listed. Her mother is not. Gary's location isn't even known.

For the past week, I've been searching as hard as I can for information on Izzy. For about two weeks, I've been working at the station to get to the bottom of the recent break-ins that have been happening around the city, and I've been searching for Izzy's whereabouts. So far, it's been a dead-end search.

I started messaging Raymond, Dad's lawyer, online to see if I could find any information from him, but I wasn't getting anywhere. Raymond didn't know anything. On top of everything that was going on, Khloe kept trying to talk about Leah every time I came home.

"Vinny-"

"Can we please not do this today?" I pleaded. "I'm kind of busy."

Khloe crossed her arms and scowled. "With what?"

I didn't move my gaze from my laptop. "Getting Dad out of jail." I snapped.

Khloe scoffed. "Sure."

I had finally had enough. I closed my computer and stood up. "What exactly is your problem?"

"You can't keep avoiding this. I know you're busy, but we need to talk about this."

"We've talked about it already."

"Not really. You've said your bit, but I haven't said mine. We haven't come to a decision yet."

"A decision about what?" I snapped.

"Whether or not to tell Mom." Khloe said.

"Look, we don't need to do this right now. I'm going crazy trying to get this done so Dad can be released and I can go back home. Worrying about something like this right now is just going to slow that down."

Khloe looked at me like I was crazy. "She could be Dad's daughter."

I was losing my patience. "We don't even know that for sure! What exactly are you basing this off of? You don't have any proof, you haven't even seen Leah yet. This could just be a coincidence, and when it actually DOES turn out to be a coincidence, it's just going to be time wasted worrying about nothing." I turned to go out of the apartment door, but I turned back to her. "Anyway, what does it matter if she is his? Selena moved across the country. She didn't want Leah to be a part of Dad's life, so what does it matter who her biological parents are? She's not our sister, regardless who her father is. So figuring this out is just going to cause trouble for everyone else, so I suggest you cut the shit and go back to Alchemy training." With that, I slammed the door behind me and left the building.

Whenever I had free time, I spent it with Autumn. We'd meet up after work was over and we'd either go out for dinner, or we'd order in at either one of our apartments.

Autumn started taking me to the gym on our days off to build up my fitness.

Autumn was way more into it than I was. She put me on a workout routine that I had to follow every day so I could get my fitness up. Now I started regretting not going to the gym with my Dad and Ryder when I was a teenager, because that would have helped now.

Autumn came up to me one day after my workout routine was over. "Nice job today, recruit." She said with a smile.

I stood up from the workout bench. "I'm getting better, right?"

Autumn shrugged with a chuckle. "You're definitely not as lanky as you were when you got here, so that's a start."

I faked a disappointed look, and she grabbed my hand. "You're getting much better." Autumn leaned over and kissed me.

"So do you wanna go out tonight? I found this new pizza place in downtown that I kind of want to try out." I said with a smile.

Autumn gave a weak one back. "I won't be able to." She let go of my hands and crossed her arms. "I'm staying in Appaloosa Plains for a few days."

"Why?"

"Lucy Miles was staying with her Dad. Whoever these people are followed her there, and she was attacked. My Dad stationed me there for a few days to investigate what's going on."

I gaped at her. "So it's just gonna be me and Benny, huh?"

She shrugged. "He's not that bad. He apologized for being a jerk, didn't he?"

"Yeah, I guess."

"So maybe you can at least try to get along with him? Because I guarantee you he's trying."

"Okay." I frowned. "So when are you getting back?"

"I'll be back in a few days, I promise." She smiled. "Then we can have a night out when I get back."

Autumn went to go wash up in the bathroom when I got a call from Wicker.

"Dill's at the prison. I need you both to get answers out of Martinez so we can find out the location of Ghee. Anything would be useful at this point."

"Yes, sir. I'm heading there now."

"I told you everything I know, I swear!"

"You have to know more than that! Lucy Miles was attacked again last night! There is no one named Grizella Ghee living in Bridgeport, so you have to be lying to us! Where is she?!"

I quickly opened the door and walked up to Benny. "Benny, lay off. I'll take over from here."

"What makes you think you can just come up and tell ME what to do? You're-" He immediately silenced himself, realizing that Eli was standing right next to him.

I pulled Benny aside. "Do you want a badgering charge, or do you want results?" I asked. "Let me handle this."

Benny stayed quiet for a few seconds, then nodded. "Alright. I'll wait outside." Benny glanced at Eli and then walked out of the interrogation room.

I turned to Eli. "How've you been?"

Eli scoffed. "You're looking at it."

I nodded. "I'm sorry about that. We're all just stressed out because we've been searching and searching for Izzy, but we can't find her anywhere. There's no one with the last name "Ghee" even living in Bridgeport."

"I told you're friend, I have no idea where she is! I didn't know that girl was going to be attacked again! Izzy could have moved cities since I got arrested, there's no way of knowing if she's still here!"

"Eli, the attacks are her way of getting you out of prison. If she's still trying to break you out, it doesn't make sense for her to move cities. Is it possible she moved here under any other name, anything you might know? Please, you know these attacks on Lucy need to stop."

Eli frowned. "I don't know. She could be under any name. Are you sure there's no one under Ghee?"

"Nobody living in the city."

"That doesn't make any sense. Her father moved here from Starlight Shores a little while after we did."

I froze. "What? Where?"

"I don't know. He and Izzy stopped talking after we left together. I haven't even seen him since Starlight shores, I only know this because he called Izzy saying he was moving up there. I figured he would at least use the last name "Ghee."

He must have known about Izzy being a felon. He didn't want to get tied up with that. "I've been searching for information on Izzy. I was able to find the name of her father, but not her mother. Has she said anything to you about her?"

Eli stared at me for a second, struggling to remember. "She was in jail for most of Izzy's life. I'm pretty sure she's still there. She was arrested when Izzy was a baby, which is why her dad had to raise her all on his own."

"Did she give you a name?" I asked, feeling so close to the answer.

It took him a little while, but he finally spoke. "Josephine. I'm pretty sure her name was Josephine."

"Josephine? Are you sure?"

"Yes, that's her name. I'm sure."

I met Benny back at the station. I gave him the information that Eli had given me, and we started our search for Josephine Ghee.

After I was searching long enough, I found a newspaper article that mentioned a "Josephine Rein," But not a "Ghee." I decided to read it anyway. The article talked about the conviction of a woman named Josephine Rein, who lived with her boyfriend Gary Ghee and her daughter, Grizella Rein. She was a minor suspect in the case for the murders of Kristy and Courtney Rein, her sister and mother, who were killed in an explosion that destroyed their entire home. The SSPD told the press that, based on their evidence, their main suspect was...Meredith Villiers, who was the stepsister of Josephine and Kristy, and the stepdaughter to Courtney. At the hearing of Meredith Villiers, Josephine confessed to murdering her sister and mother after they kicked her out on the street after discovering that Josephine was pregnant. Josephine says she wanted revenge on her mother and sister for tossing her out on the street, and she was sentenced to 25 years in prison. Her boyfriend and daughter continued to live in Starlight Shores after her sentencing...Her boyfriend to raise a child on his own, and her daughter to grow up to become a felon...

I tried swallowing this news as best I could. I didn't realize how close together our families were. My mother was the stepsister of Izzy's mother. They may not have grown up together, but they were once a family, nonetheless.

I stood up and walked over to Benny, who was hard at work searching for information on Josephine Ghee. I told him what I had found.

"Excellent. Good work, Villiers." Benny walked over to Arnold, who was sitting at another desk. "Try searching for a woman with the last name 'Rein.' Send me the results. Also, try finding Josephine Rein. She should still be in Starlight Shores, but she might be able to help us find her daughter." After Arnold gave an affirmative reply, Benny walked back over to me.

He was quick to speak first. "Listen, I wanted to apologize for what I said earlier," he began, "This whole case is stressing me out, so I've been lashing out at everyone. Please don't take it personally, because I really do think you're a good guy, it's just been...difficult to get used to."

As much as I disliked this guy, I did feel bad for him. "You know what? Don't worry about it. No harm done. I've been there before, so it's no big deal."

"Great. Listen, do you maybe wanna go get drinks somewhere? Make up for me being a dick?"

I had to smile. "Yeah, actually. Sounds good."

Benny took me to this bar called Waylon's Haunt. It wasn't a dance club, like the one Autumn took me to, it was just a little dive bar.

While we were there, I got to see a totally different side of Benny. At work, he seems like he's all serious, all the time, but he started to loosen up once we got to the bar.

We were talking about work, I found out he's into sculpting, and, much to my dismay, he had no sense of humor whatsoever. But, it was still an enjoyable night. A night I didn't expect to have after everything that's been going on. And Autumn never even came up once.

Benny decided to walk me back to my apartment. On the walk there, we started talking about music, and I told him I played the violin.

"Wait, really?"

I chuckled. "Yeah. My brother knows how to play guitar, but I never really got into it. I tried branching out from what my brother was into, so I started playing the violin."

Benny grinned. "That's so cool. You should play me something."

I glanced at him. "Are you sure?"

Benny nodded. "Yeah, man! I wanna hear it."

I sighed and nodded. I pulled out my guitar, and I started playing one of the pieces I knew best how to play.

Normally, when I was playing a piece I really liked, it was easy to get lost in the music and just play for hours, like the night I met Autumn. However, it was hard losing myself in the music because Benny was just staring at me and smiling.

After I finished, Benny started clapping and walked up to me. "Wow...You're really talented, you know?"

I laughed. "Thanks."

"You're a...great guy, Vinny."

I was going to give a sarcastic response back, but Benny pulled me into a kiss before I could speak.

He only kissed me once. He pulled back for a second, looking at me for approval to give me another one, but I just stood frozen, staring at him, wide-eyed.

Not knowing how else to react, I immediately pushed him off. "What the h-hell are you doing?! I have a girlfriend!"

Benny backed up, gaping at me, struggling with his words. "I-I'm sorry, I-I thought-"

I sighed, trying to calm down. "Look, Benny, You're a nice guy, but I'm not gay. I'm sorry if I gave you the impression that I was, but I'm seeing Autumn."

"No, I-I'm sorry." Benny said, before turning back and walking away. "I'll see you at work tomorrow!" He called out to me.

I watched him walk away, and waited for my breathing to calm down before walking back into the apartment.

"Oh god, this just keeps getting better and better."

*Khloe's POV*

I crossed my arms, trying to ignore the incoming rain. 'God, how far away is her house?' I thought to myself.

My mind replayed the conversation I had with Vinny this morning. He got upset when I even mentioned Leah to him. He knows it's too much of a coincidence.

When I finally made it to the address, I stood outside of the front door for a few seconds. I struggled to stay calm, and I pushed the doorbell.

An older woman with deep blue eyes answered the door holding a little girl in her arms. For a second, I forgot what I was going to say, and I just stared at Leah. She looks so much like Dad...

"Can I help you?" Selena's question woke me up.

"Y-yes, hi. I'm Khloe, I'm Grant's daughter."

Selena's eyes lit up when I finished. "Oh, yes, Khloe! I remember you, please come in!" She said, stepping back inside. "Grant's kids just keep running into me, one by one. I won't at all be surprised when Ryder comes to my door."

I stepped inside and crossed my arms. "How are you?"

Selena shrugged. "I've been better. Gavin's told you what's been going on?"

I nodded. Selena adjusted her hold on Leah. "So, is this your daughter?"

Selena smiled. "Yes, this is Leah."

"How old is she?" I asked.

"She just turned four."

Leah turned to look at me. She has Dad's eyes.

I sighed, trying to find the words to ask her outright. "Mrs. Miles, Gavin told me about a week ago that he visited you to investigate what's been going on, and he mentioned you had a little girl. This might just be a coincidence, and I don't know exactly what was going on between you and my dad, but given her age, I can't help but thinking that she's my father's daughter."

Selena sighed, looking like she was struggling with the words. She didn't say anything for what seemed like forever, when finally she spoke. "You have to understand, your father doesn't know that he has another daughter."

For a second, I couldn't breathe. I couldn't speak. I just stood there, gaping at Selena. I was right.

"He doesn't know?"

"No. This all went down around the time that your parents were fighting. Your father was struggling without her, and when he met me again, he tried filling the hole that she left. I knew what he was doing, but I kept playing along with it. It was a reason to love him again." She looked up at me. "I love your father, and I probably always will, but the last thing I wanted was to take him away from you kids, or your mother."

"When I found out I was pregnant, I was excited, for a while. I thought things were over between him and your mother, so I thought I might be getting the family with him that I always wanted. One day, he came over early in the morning to talk to me, and that was the day I was going to tell him. But he only came to tell me that he was going back to Meredith. I was so upset that I kept my mouth shut. I was devastated, but I didn't want to get in between him and Meredith. So, I decided to raise her on my own. I moved here to prevent the two of us from breaking your family up.

"When I was a little girl, my mother cheated on my father and got pregnant with someone else's baby. My father was devastated, and the two of them got divorced. Up until I moved out, I had to be carted in between my father's dirty old apartment, and my mother's house, where her lover and my half-brother lived. It was absolutely miserable, and before that happened, I thought we were going to be a family forever. I didn't want that for you kids. When I moved here, I was thinking of your family over mine."

I couldn't speak. All I could do was listen. I took in Selena's story, then I said, "So she's my sister?"

Selena smiled. "Yep, she's your little baby sister. I guess it was kind of hard to hide, she looks so much like her dad."

I tried to keep the tears from breaking the surface. "Could I hold her?" I said, my voice shaking a little.

Selena smiled. "Of course."

Leah warmed up to me quickly, laughing and smiling as if we always knew each other.

The poor little girl was going to grow up without knowing her whole family, only knowing her kind,caring mother and occasionally her older sister. She'd never know her father, her two older brothers, and her older sister from the other side of the family.

I wouldn't wish that on my worst enemy.

*********AUTHOR'S NOTE******************************************

So after a busy couple of weeks, I was able to get the next chapter out.

I had the play, then my birthday was the week after, so I knocked writing this chapter out in like a day.

So the next chapter will probably be up in the course of a week,

I know I said that before, but now life is going to go back to normal pretty quick here.

BTW, I'm going to be updating the family tree (obviously) and I'm going to add bio pages to the blog that I will update every time a new character comes into the series.

THAT'S IT FOR NOW, KIDDIES.

~Orange